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By: Eric Mock
October 16, 2023
There is a passage in the Bible that is sometimes hard to process. The Apostle Paul writes,
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God” (2 Corinthians 1:3-4).
This is the doctor in Kryvyi Rih who did Maryna's surgery with others, and he took things for other children.
We often pray that God will spare us affliction and even feel God has forgotten us when we are afflicted. The idea that God would allow misery seems unthinkable to most. But He does allow it, for His purposes and eternal good (Isaiah 45:7). So, God may be allowing an affliction in our lives that He will see us through so that we might be vessels of mercy for others, pointing them to the same comfort that we are comforted with by God.
It is almost unthinkable that a little girl might suffer at the hands of our wicked world so that she might be able to comfort others in a way she could not have before. Yet little Maryna in Ukraine can now comfort others with the same comfort. She lost her leg when a rocket exploded nearby, crushing her leg under a collapsing wall, and was comforted by God and His church. This is very hard to process, but it is equally amazing to see the work of God clearly.
Maryna's grandfather, Sergei, is an SGA-sponsored missionary pastor in Ukraine. He shared a recent story of his granddaughter comforting others:
“After arriving from Kyiv, my children and granddaughter Maryna went to the hospital where she had her surgery. They miss her there and love her. My daughter and Maryna not only went to visit and thank them but also took clothes and toys for other children who were there. [These toys and clothes were donated by people in the Kherson region who themselves had nothing]. They both remembered how much the children in the hospital wanted someone to bring them something. There are many children from Kherson and Kryvyi Rih. They were brought there after the flood. Now we are collecting more things and are going to deliver them again.”
Through the suffering that Maryna endured, she was perfectly positioned by God to comfort others. Through the witness of her victory in suffering, she is able to encourage others with the same hope she holds dear.
The parents of the children were overwhelmed by little Maryna’s ministry to them. And again, Sergei said this was all Maryna’s initiative.
Sergei said that Maryna now has many new friends. One parent wrote,
“There are two girls, Kira and Nastia, and other children thanking Maryna and all of you for your help. Their moms wish that God will take care of Maryna and protect her. The children are dressed in jackets and with the donated toys. Kira has no father, and your help was very helpful. Mom is raising two children alone. We hug you. We also gave children’s things to Karolina and other children. Maryna, you're doing a great job. Thank you!!"
Rather than seeing her affliction as evidence of God's absence or an extension of His anger, Maryna was comforted in her affliction and now can comfort others in their affliction. May we, too, embrace both the times of peace and the times of suffering as all from God and as opportunities to declare with greater conviction and love that God alone is our source of hope and mercy.
