A Call to Serve: Pastor Volodymyr’s Journey of Faith and Perseverance

When Pastor Volodymyr Prokip first became involved in the United Methodist student ministry named "Youth to Jesus" in Lviv, Ukraine, he had no plans to become its pastor. He was simply a young man with a desire to serve God.

“I was not ready for any ministry at that time,” Volodymyr recalls. “I had a desire to serve the Lord.”

He began by volunteering at the UMC student center, doing whatever needed to be done. He helped with everyday tasks, became involved in the student leadership team, and eventually entered seminary. His willingness to serve caught the attention of Pastor David Goran, an American missionary who was helping lead the ministry.

But Volodymyr could not have imagined how quickly his life and ministry would change.

A Tragedy That Changed Everything

In 2011–2012, when Volodymyr was just 21 years old, a devastating accident occurred at the student ministry's building. During construction, the roof collapsed, killing two people, including Ilya, a close friend of Volodymyr's who served on the student leadership team. David, the missionary, was seriously injured.

Volodymyr himself had been working at the construction site nearly every day. On the day of the collapse, however, he and his wife, Ira, had been asked to help with some paperwork. They stayed longer than expected and were not at the building when the roof collapsed.

Looking back, Volodymyr believes God spared their lives.

The tragedy left the ministry in crisis. The missionaries returned home, the pastor departed, and the church and student ministry began to fall apart. The building was unusable, people were leaving, and the future of the ministry was uncertain.

In the midst of this upheaval, Volodymyr found himself responsible for keeping the ministry alive.

He had little experience, limited training, and no clear understanding of how to manage the church or navigate the organizational structures of the United Methodist Church.

“I was not ready, but there was no time to think about when I would be ready,” he recalls. “I just started.”

Faithfulness Through Difficult Years

The next four years would be among the most difficult of Volodymyr's life.

Along with the collapse of the ministry, he and Ira has experience a personal loss in their family. And Volodymyr was now without his close friend and mentor just months after the accident.

The ministry faced financial difficulties, and the building collapse had resulted in a criminal investigation. There was no established plan for rebuilding the ministry, and Volodymyr was still studying in seminary.

He describes those early years as a time of tremendous stress, exhaustion, and sacrifice.

“There was no time to grow, no time to think, no time to relax, no days off, no vacations. Not enough money. Just total dedication and sacrifice.”

For Volodymyr, the immediate goal was not to develop an ambitious vision for the future. It was simply to keep the church and student ministry alive.

“There was no plan for the next five years, no plan for three years. It was a plan to survive, save the church, save the student ministry.”

With limited resources, Volodymyr and the remaining ministry leaders began the slow work of rebuilding. They rented space for the student ministry while working to establish a permanent home.

To save money, Volodymyr spent hours doing construction and renovation work himself, including electrical work, painting, cleaning, and remodeling. He would then spend the remainder of his day working with students.

At times, his salary was very low. Vacations were out of the question, and the demands of ministry left him exhausted.

Looking back, Volodymyr acknowledges that his approach was not always sustainable. He experienced burnout and questioned whether the ministry would ever become what he hoped it could be.

Yet he continued.

He credits God with giving him the strength to persevere, even when he could not see what the future would hold.

“I believe it was God's wisdom, because He saw the future. He just gave the strength to go through all of that.”

The Fruit of Perseverance

Gradually, the ministry began to recover.

By approximately 2016, the most difficult period of rebuilding had passed. A new generation of young people began coming to the student center, many of whom had no previous connection to the church.

Volodymyr found renewed encouragement in their desire to learn about Jesus and grow in their faith.

The ministry developed new leadership teams, expanded its activities, and began preparing young people for ministry through theological education.

Youth to Jesus had survived, but it was no longer the same ministry it had been before the tragedy. Through the difficult years, Volodymyr and his fellow leaders had developed new approaches to reaching young people and building a Christian community in Lviv.

As resources became available, the ministry continued improving its facilities. In 2020, after years of careful saving, the church purchased the remaining portion of the apartment space it had been using and began remodeling it.

The years of sacrifice were beginning to bear fruit. But new challenges were on the horizon.

Ministry in a Time of War

In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 brought another period of uncertainty.

The war dramatically changed the lives of the young people Youth to Jesus was seeking to reach. Many fled Ukraine, including young adults whom Volodymyr had been preparing for leadership.

The ministry once again found itself adapting to circumstances beyond its control.

Volodymyr explains that the war has made long-term planning difficult. In some areas, the church can no longer realistically plan more than a year ahead. Instead, ministry leaders must continually adjust to changing circumstances and the needs of the people around them.

Yet the challenges have also helped clarify what matters most.

When discussing the future of Youth to Jesus, Volodymyr emphasizes that the church's greatest investment is not in buildings or programs, but in people.

“When we're thinking about investing, we're thinking about the people. Not in what, but in whom will I invest?”

That commitment has helped guide the ministry as it continues serving young people and responding to the needs created by the war.

Continuing to Answer God's Call

Today, Pastor Volodymyr continues leading Youth to Jesus and its ministry among the young people of Lviv.

His journey into pastoral ministry was not one he had carefully planned. It began with a simple desire to serve God and a willingness to do whatever was needed.

When tragedy struck, he accepted responsibilities for which he felt unprepared. When resources were scarce, he gave his time and labor. When the future was uncertain, he continued working to preserve the ministry and nurture the faith of the young people entrusted to his care.

Volodymyr does not describe those years as easy, nor does he pretend that his dedication came without a personal cost. He speaks openly about exhaustion, burnout, and the mistakes he made along the way.

But he also speaks with gratitude for the young people who have come to faith, the leaders who have emerged, and the ministry that continues today.

Reflecting on the difficult seasons of his life, Volodymyr describes the choice he faced again and again: to continue or to give up.

“Every time when you decide to keep going, it's the right decision.”

For United Methodists who stand alongside our brothers and sisters in Ukraine, Pastor Volodymyr's story offers a glimpse into the faithfulness and perseverance that have sustained the church through years of hardship.

His ministry began with a willingness to serve. Through tragedy, sacrifice, and now war, that willingness has remained at the heart of his calling.

And through Youth to Jesus, new generations of young Ukrainians continue to discover the hope of the Gospel.