Staff Devotions: The God Who Sees

In this episode of On The Ground With Samaritan’s Purse, host Kristy Graham is taking you behind the scenes to join staff for devotions at the Samaritan’s Purse headquarters.

First, Hannah Bolvi, development manager of The Greatest Journey discipleship curriculum with Operation Christmas Child, updates staff on the work happening around the world before introducing the morning’s speaker, Irina Creek. Hannah encourages us to remember the Disaster Assistance Response Team in Ukraine as they’re risking it all to serve in a recently liberated area.

Irina Creek starts her story with the reminder that God is a “God who sees.” Irina grew up in an orphanage in a country that was largely closed off to the Gospel. She lived in multiple institutions, one of which was confining and strict. Her childhood was reduced to the walls of her orphanage.

She explained how one day she and the other children at the orphanage were told they would receive a gift. Soon she saw gift-filled boxes fill the room, and opened her own. The boxes came with a presentation of the Gospel. Irina recalls how she’d always heard that sin was like a burden we each carry, but for the first time she finally understood what it meant to be free of that burden. She even felt it physically as she received Jesus.

“Jesus gives us the opportunity to give that burden off to Him. and it made so much sense to me, so I did that, I gave my burden to Him. I literally, physically felt lighter. And for the first time, I felt secure.” —Irina Creek

Years later, as she attended a church in the Soviet Union, she felt stirred to speak to another church member there. She found out that this man, Victor, was the person responsible for getting those Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes into her orphanage! Irina explained to us that this was impactful because it was a direct answer to her prayers: she’d been asking the Lord to show her who had brought these gifts. She felt so thankful to receive the gift and the hope of Jesus that she wanted to find out what had motivated someone to love her, an orphan. Finding Victor felt like an extra gift from God—a reminder that she was seen.

Next, Kristy Graham reflects on Irina’s message, digging deeper into the Hebrew name for God: El Roi, which means “the God who sees.” Kristy talks about the Biblical story of Hagar in Genesis 16, a woman in the Old Testament who is comforted by God. Even when Hagar is mistreated by the society around her, God reminds her that He has chosen her for His purposes. Just like Hagar, Irina’s life was changed through the Gospel, and the truth that God chose her specifically.

Irina also shared about the fact that we’re all adopted into the family of God. Kristy shares about a recent conversation with her own adopted son, Levi. It reminded her that every one of us is a spiritual child of God.

“We were all adopted by God. We were all sinners, separated from God, lonely and orphaned and God rescued us. So we have that in common.” —Kristy Graham

Finally, Kristy shares an update on the ongoing work of Samaritan’s Purse in Ukraine. It’s been nine months since Russia first invaded Ukraine in February. Throughout this time, the needs in eastern Europe have continued to change. Kristy speaks with Blake Welch, the regional manager of the Samaritan’s Purse projects in Ukraine.

“It’s a fluid situation. Things change day to day, sometimes hour to hour.” —Blake Welch

The needs on the ground are diverse. From winterization kits, to food supplies, to medical care at our Emergency Field Hospital, Samaritan’s Purse is constantly adapting to serve the people caught in the wake of violence. Through these projects, we’ve been able to help 8.5 million people.

Thanks to our 178 church partners, we’re able to get this aid into the hands of those who need it most.

“If it wasn’t for the church partners, we wouldn’t be able to do the work we’re doing. These church partners, that’s their communities, that’s their home, that’s their people and so they know the places to go to help people.” —Blake Welch

Please continue to pray for our teams serving in Ukraine. Pray for every child like Irina who will receive an Operation Christmas Child shoebox this Christmas season.