68 Hours In Captivity

 'And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose'. (Romans 8:28)

My name is Sergei.

What happened to me and my family back in 2014, now seems like a horrible dream.

When the war started, our society divided into two: Some people supported Russia and ideas that Russia enforced (Lugansk Republic and Donetsk Republic); others – remained patriots of Ukraine, and those people who supported Ukraine had to either run away or keep quiet, for whoever didn’t keep quiet would mysteriously disappear.

That was the situation in Krasnodon region, where I lived with my family. Being Christians, we constantly prayed for Ukraine and our people. I was an Assistant Pastor and stayed in town to support local Christians, when our pastor left. I also had a great desire to take my family and just leave. But I couldn’t do it even if I wanted to, I had serious problems with my kidneys and had to be in a hospital. Later I understood that it was God’s will for my family to stay there, because local Christians really needed our support.

We had to experience various troubles that war brought upon us: no water for two months, almost an empty town, being under constant fire. After a while children learned to determine types of missiles just by the sound.

With God’s help we were able to survive all that.

When it became more or less quiet, people started coming back to their homes. But life was never the same anymore: telling on people and surrendering people, who supported Ukraine to the so-called militia, became normal.

October 13^th 2014 was a regular day for me. At 4:30 pm I was getting ready to meet my wife from work, but couldn’t make it out of my apartment. Group of eight armed men knocked at my door, forced their way in and accused me of being a pastor of American church (most evangelical churches in Ukraine were planted by American missionaries) and fighting on the Ukrainian side. They started searching the apartment, looking for weapons, took away cellphones, a laptop and documents. After that they told me and my 14-year old son Daniel to get our things and follow them. Surrounded by armed men, in front of all the people, they put us in the car and took us to the commandant’s office. When we got there, we were surrounded by lots of armed people, rubbing their hands in anticipation, saying: ”We got ourselves some pro-Ukrainians”.

They interrogated me and my son in different rooms and I couldn’t even imagine what was going on with Daniel. They accused us of fighting on the Ukrainian side and spying for Ukrainian army and demanded confession.

They handcuffed and blindfolded me, put me on my knees and told me that they would shoot me if I moved. They were trying to humiliate me in different ways and break me down. After a while they lifted me up and started kicking me, then put me in a chair and started hitting me in my head.  All that time I was praying and God gave me strength: He took away all my pain, I could feel how they hit me but didn’t feel any pain whatsoever. This could cripple any other person almost for sure. Later I called this “via dolorosa”.

At the same time, in the other room they were interrogating and hitting my 14-year old son Daniel, they were smothering him, hitting him in the face, kicking him in the chest.  They threaten him to rape him and shoot him in his foot.  And later he also told me that he prayed and didn’t feel pain when they hit him. And that was God’s miracle!

After that they told us that our fate was decided -  EXECUTION!

They put us in different cells, where we spent 68 hours. They kept us in terrible almost inhuman conditions. All this time we knew nothing about each other. And all this time they were constantly telling me that they were going to execute us, because we were “Pro-Ukrainians”.

On October 15^th, at approximately the lunch time, one of the leaders came to me and told me that tonight they are going to execute me.

As soon as they arrested us, my wife Elena and my oldest daughter Christina started calling everybody and asking to pray for us. My daughter also posted on Facebook a request for prayer and support. Later we found out that a lot of people in Ukraine and outside of Ukraine prayed for us.

On October 15^th when my wife Elena and daughter Christina once again came to the commandant’s office, they told them that counterintelligence people took us and that meant one thing - no one ever came back from them alive. But exactly that day people who were praying for us decided to start fasting and praying even harder. And God showed us another miracle! That person, who promised to execute us, called my wife and agreed to meet with her the next day, even though before that he wouldn’t even talk to her. All this time my wife Elena and my two daughters, 20-year old Christina and 9-year old Sophia, were working very hard to rescue us.

During the meeting he said that in exchange for our freedom they wanted food and supplies contribution, supposedly for 94 kids in orphanage. On October 16^th about 11:00 am they transferred me to my son’s cell. We started asking ourselves what is going to happen to us next?!

Meantime my wife started getting food and supplies. Thanks to the help of our friends, neighbors and acquaintances they put everything together very fast.

At approximately 1:00pm the same day, guards took us to the commandant’s office where my wife and daughter were waiting for us. When they released us, one of their leaders told me: “The only reason we are letting you out alive is your wife. You should build her a monument.” He told us that we should run away.

A lot of people helped us with the escape and we are very grateful to them. We now live in a Ukrainian town called Irpin and are very happy that we are together, alive and healthy. We found a new church – Philadelphia – where we’ve been serving for some years now.

For now, we are renting a small apartment and keep praying that God would bless us with our own place. But lack on amenities does not stop us from serving God – today we brought home a 3-year-old boy, who was neglected by his drunken parents, and became his guardians.

Our lives seem to be getting back on track. My wife Lena is now working at a university. Our oldest daughter Christina has gotten her Master's degree in vocal music. Our son Danial is now a student of a theological college. Christina and Daniel and both in the worship ministry. Our youngest daughter Sofia is in a middle school and is helping Christina at a music kids' club at church. I am a Bible study group leader and an assistant pastor at church. I am also a retired miner and am now raising our new little boy. 

We are very thankful to God for His trials and His grace!

'Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed.If you are insulted because of the name of Christ, you are blessed, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you. If you suffer, it should not be as a murderer or thief or any other kind of criminal, or even as a meddler. However, if you suffer as a Christian, do not be ashamed, but praise God that you bear that name'. (1 Peter 4:12-16)

Sergei Saikov