奥列格·特拉克通常不会在深夜打开电视.

但是在2月8日晚上. 23, 2022, Turlac, 他和妻子娜塔莎还有两个孩子住在多伦多, 说上帝让他保持清醒.

“I just saw the news broadcast that Russia just started bombing Kyiv,特拉克说. “从那一刻起，我的心就一直很痛，很沉重. … We didn’t believe that such a war was possible between two nations that share a common cultural heritage, 家庭关系和属于苏联."

两国之间有着如此紧密的家庭关系, Turlac compared it to a scenario in which Alabama and Mississippi went to war with one another.

Turlac是比森神学院的校友，出生于摩尔多瓦. 他领导着Turlac使团, 在前共产主义国家分享福音并满足实际需要, 包括乌克兰和其他正在发生冲突的国家.

在最初的震惊之后，特拉克开始工作. His phone began ringing nonstop with people requesting help evacuating 乌克兰 or looking for help in finding family members who lived in the country. Turlac and his team were able to send financial aid to churches in Moldova and other neighboring countries that assisted Ukrainian refugees. 逃离暴力的人得到了热茶、一顿饭和交通工具.

“For the first three days, it was almost a 24/7 time of ministry for us,特拉克说.

入侵开始几周后, Turlac flew to Poland and worked with the Ukrainian evangelical church in Warsaw to supply a help center for refugees with food, 药物和其他需要的东西. 他说，人们每隔半小时就会乘坐火车和公共汽车到达.

特拉克说:“人们害怕地下了车，他们已经旅行了好几天。. 所以，他们需要欢迎. 他们需要茶和热的食物，所以我们为他们提供了这些.”

从去年二月开始, Turlac and his team have continued to share the gospel and serve refugees and others in countries near 乌克兰. In recognition of his commitment to the Great Commission and the Great Commandment in a time of crisis, Beeson Divinity School is proud to recognize him as the 2023 Alumnus of the Year.

“Dr. Turlac is doing crucial work in 乌克兰 and among Ukrainian refugees elsewhere, 更不用说东欧和中亚的其他国家了. This award is a timely way to shine a light upon his ministry in these places and ask the Beeson community to pray for and support the work of Turlac Mission,道格拉斯·A说. 斯威尼，比森神学院院长.

“我的遗产是受迫害教会的遗产”

当Turlac出生的时候, 摩尔多瓦仍然是苏联的一部分, 是由无神论思想主导的.

特拉克是班里唯一的基督徒. 他的曾祖父, 乌克兰南部的浸信会牧师, 被判在斯大林的西伯利亚古拉格集中营服刑10年, 一天晚上，一辆黑色卡车把他从家里带走了. 他的祖父因为是基督徒而坐了五年牢. His parents were denied an opportunity to receive a college degree because of their faith.

“我的遗产是受迫害教会的遗产，”Turlac说.

看到他家人的忠诚, Turlac became a Christian at the age of 11 and began preaching at 16 years old in 1992.

从那时起, Turlac在34个国家传福音, 其中13个是前苏联加盟共和国.

Turlac was able to come to America and earn both a Master of Divinity and Doctor of Ministry degree from Beeson. 在这里学到的教训不仅对他布道有帮助, 而是在摩尔多瓦的一所圣经学院投资培养自己的学生.

“I’m grateful to Christians that invested in me and now I’m already seeing the students of my students that I have trained, that have traveled 遍布前苏联 and have continued to preach the gospel,特拉克说.

特拉克深情地回忆着比森, from learning New Testament theology from Frank Thielman to studying Calvin’s Institutes with founding dean Timothy George, 以及对他的牧灵工作有帮助的实用课程和课程. 伯明翰地区的基督徒在他的成长中也发挥了至关重要的作用.

“不仅仅是比森和72779太阳集团影响了我，”图拉克说. “我去了几个教堂，比如山溪浸信会, 圣冠浸信会, 深山浸信会. 那些教会的朋友们拥抱了我和我的妻子, Natasha; they showered us with love, 这对我们来说也是一次学习的经历.”

奉耶稣的名盼望

去年冬天战争爆发后, it didn’t take long for Turlac and his team to come together to help those impacted by the crisis.

“The good thing was that we had a wide network of churches with which we cooperated,特拉克说. “我有不少学生在摩尔多瓦各地牧养教会, 乌克兰, 中亚, 遍布前苏联. So, in a way it was easy to just reach out to them and involve them in this network of helping the Ukrainians.”

乌克兰成为他们部门的主要关注点, 而是Turlac使团所从事的其他工作, which included assisting the persecuted church and combating human trafficking, 在乌克兰也成为了一种需求.

“The war fueled and raised the number of vulnerable women to human trafficking,特拉克说. “And that became a wider avenue for ministry in Moldova and Poland and other countries.”

It is estimated that between 10 and 14 million Ukrainians left the country, Turlac说. 他们大多定居在东欧, 大约有50万人定居在他的祖国加拿大.

“我们一直在帮助(在加拿大的)乌克兰人，向他们发放食品卡, 为他们提供衣服, 和他们一起去做医学检查，他们需要得到必要的文件,特拉克说.

Turlac和他的团队还帮助难民找到工作，无论他们最终在哪里.

除了满足有形需求, Turlac说 there has been an increased opportunity to share the gospel and provide hope in the name of Jesus.

作为耶稣的跟随者, 我们意识到战争不仅影响人类的身体状况, 还有他们的精神和情感健康,Turlac在最近的一份通讯中说.

The Ukrainian evangelical church in Warsaw jumped from 25 members before the war to more than 700 people attending the Sunday morning worship service, Turlac说.

“People, when they are vulnerable, open their hearts to the preaching of the gospel. 他们开始寻求上帝，”Turlac说. “当他们不能依靠世俗的财富或不再存在的制度时, 他们寻求神，来到教会.”

在乌克兰，大约80%的人现在去教堂, 它有东正教和乌克兰东正教的背景, 是un-churched.

“这对我们所有人来说都是一个巨大的快乐，因为人们接受了基督. They are coming not just to receive humanitarian aid but to listen to the gospel. 这是在乌克兰开展任务的最佳时机, 即使在这种困难的情况下,特拉克说.

“People, when they are vulnerable, open their hearts to the preaching of the gospel. 他们开始寻求上帝. 当他们不能依靠尘世的财富或不再存在的制度时, 他们寻求神，来到教会.”

尤里和安娜, 逃到波兰的乌克兰人, 有两个人从特拉克的内阁中获益吗.

这对夫妇逃离了马里乌波尔的轰炸, traveling for more than two days through 乌克兰 on trains that were kept dark to avoid Russian bomb attacks. 当时，这对夫妇还不认识基督.

While in Poland, they were invited to attend an evangelical church and decided to go.

“虽然他们不认识上帝, 他们承认向他祷告, 他会从炸弹中拯救他们和他们的两个孩子,特拉克说. 他们对福音的信息敞开了心扉, 他们决定跟随耶稣基督.”

尤里和安娜“对上帝充满了热情，”图拉克说.

“他们喜欢唱歌和宣讲基督. It is amazing to see how much this story of escape impacted their lives and led them to the Lord. Now it serves as a testimony to other Ukrainians to whom they are witnessing about Jesus Christ,特拉克说.

“主啊，我在这里. 寄给我.”

去年2月发生的事件改变了包括Turlac在内的许多人的生活.

“I’m learning that I have to be prepared to serve the Lord in very different circumstances, 我看到了他在我生命中的计划,特拉克说. “上帝从小就在为我做准备. Having experienced persecution as a child, I can now minister to those who are persecuted. 生活在无神论的苏联环境下, 物资匮乏的地方, 我现在可以了解难民并帮助他们了.”

Turlac说 he is being taught to “be prepared to preach in season and out of season,使徒保罗对提摩太说.

“我随时准备在教会里传道, 在火车站, 在街上, 给一大群人，甚至三四个人,特拉克说. “我也认识到，我生活的时代充满了意想不到的危机. 这教导我要随时准备服事他人."

“I always have my suitcase packed, just in case I have to hit the road,特拉克说. “我今年的座右铭是《72779太阳集团》第6章第8节，‘我可以差遣谁呢?’我凭信心回答主说:‘主啊，我在这里. 寄给我. 我准备好了.’”

Turlac将于10月9日在比森举行的校友大会上获得荣誉. 30. 要了解更多关于他的事工，请访问他的网站 网站. 要注册校友会议，请访问我们的注册处 页面.