On Monday, 25^th August, I was privileged to be in Kyiv for the National Prayer Breakfast of Ukraine. This is what impressed me most during the two-day visit to the country.

Ukrainians celebrated their 34th anniversary of breaking from the Soviet Union with deep gratitude to God, and for their loved ones who have given their lives to keep their country free.

Put yourselves, if you can, in the shoes of one of their parents: your home has been destroyed, your village invaded, and one or more of your children have been kidnapped by the invaders.

Evangelicals from two generations and diverse church backgrounds see the fruit of collaboration, says Croatian Jasmin Avdagić. A festival brought together 1,300 people from countries of the former Yugoslavia region.

From the independence in 1991 to the ongoing war sparked by Russia’s invasion, Ukraine’s efforts to recover and assert its true history have become acts of resistance, healing, and hope.

Stalin, determined to eliminate Ukrainian nationalism and any threat of separatism, resolved to break the will of the Ukrainian people, not with guns, but with hunger.

In Spain and Italy, there are voices calling for science to be enriched with a distinctly biblical motivation and hope that leads to action. “Young people are bringing new ideas and ways of communicating the message of creation care to all around us”.

In war, the first casualty is truth. Nowhere is this more evident than in the long and brutal campaign waged by Moscow — not only against Ukraine’s sovereignty but against its very identity.

From sleepless nights to natural disasters such as the one in Valencia in 2024. Christian climate researchers share their experiences from Italy and Spain.

In the UK, the Church of England and the Methodist Church prepare to better respond to growing security threats globally. 

The Middle East and North Africa now looks like a battleground for global power games—where innocent lives are disposable, and regime change is a tool, not a goal. This is not justice. This is not God's heart.

An injustice against an historic Christian group remains unresolved.

Ukrainian evangelical churches invited Jan Wessels. “I was deeply impressed by the resilience of the Ukrainian society and the pivotal role that churches play in fostering this resilience”, he told Evangelical Focus.

A cry for peace and justice has come this week from the All Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organisations. “We are not merely asking — we are crying out. Not for weapons — but for solidarity. Not for sympathy — but for a response. Not for kind words — but for moral and spiritual leadership”.

The Royal Academy of Literature and Arts of Extremadura received the 16th Unamuno, Friend of Protestants Award at a ceremony held in the city of Trujillo. María del Mar Lozano highlighted the importance of rescuing Protestant memory “without prejudice or silence”.

‘No God But Theirs’ (a one-hour documentary in English) tells the case of Melitopol, a Russian-occupied city in southeastern Ukraine where Christians responded to the invasion with public prayer and mutual support.

The story of Sir John Laing, a British engineer who had a great impact on business and missionary work.

The FEREDE is “deeply concerned” about the suffering of children and elderly and prays for “the resumption of serious negotiations leading to a just and sustainable peace”.

The Ukrainians who travelled to Wisła, Poland, to attend the ELF conference did not talk about numbers. They shared stories about children suffering from vicarious trauma, regular Christians praying with soldiers on the front line, and the resilient action of churches serving displaced families.

Just as Jesus is betrayed by a close follower and handed over to unjust powers, Ukraine has faced aggression from a neighbouring nation with deep historical ties.

The “rumours of war” should not take Christians by surprise. Churches must “read the times”, commit to real peacemaking, and pray “lucid” and “not abstract” prayers. Leaders from Sweden, France, Portugal and Spain spoke to Evangelical Focus.

French evangelicals support the report but warn of the “risk of stigmatisation” of religious practices that are “fully protected by freedom of thought, conscience and religion”.

Tariffs are nothing new and can have various effects. Expert Moisés Contreras shares Christian principles for trade that go beyond political interests and would serve everyone.

The Middle East, a region marked by political turbulence, religious conflict, and a deep, often painful, history, provides a complex yet rich backdrop for theological education.

Spanish evangelical university students organise ‘events weeks’ to respond from a biblical perspective to the concerns of their friends.