More than 650 foreigners—including former US vice president Mike Pence—joined Ukraine’s National Prayer Breakfast.
48th Vice President of the United States Mike Pence speaks at the National Prayer Breakfast on August 23, 2026 in Kyiv, Ukraine.
CHRISTIANITY TODAYAUGUST 28, 2026
Global Images Ukraine / Contributor / Getty
Oksana Kravchuk emerged from her sleeping compartment on the train from Przemysl, Poland, to Kyiv, Ukraine, on August 22 and gazed out the window at the green pastures of her native homeland.
She hadn’t slept much during the 10-hour overnight train ride, even though she was tired after traveling from Seattle to Poland. Kravchuk had activated Ukraine’s Air Alert app, and its alarm sounded several times throughout the night to warn of possible attacks on Kyiv.
“It’s scary because of the bombings, but I know why I’m going,” said Kravchuk, who moved to the United States after Russia’s first invasion of Ukraine in 2014.
Kravchuk and her husband, Alex, are volunteer coordinators at Uniting for Ukrainian Kids, a Christian organization that brings the children of fallen Ukrainian soldiers to the United States for a three-week stay with host families to learn about the culture and attend a Christian camp. While in Ukraine, the couple was excited to make a surprise visit to the homes of two girls they had previously hosted.
They were also among more than 650 foreign guests from 17 countries who attended Ukraine’s third National Prayer Breakfast in Kyiv on August 23. Attendees began mingling in an outdoor courtyard at 8 a.m., greeting friends over coffee and pastries while classical music played in the background.
The gathering felt similar to formal events in other European cities, until the clock struck 9 a.m. and a recorded ticking noise sounded through the speakers. Conversations ceased and the whir of cappuccino machines paused as Ukraine marked its daily minute of silence to honor soldiers and civilians who have died during the past four and a half years of war.
This July was Ukraine’s deadliest month since the full-scale war began in February 2022, with Kyiv particularly hard hit. The Eastern European country faces a critical shortage of interceptors needed to shoot down Russian missiles and drones attacking Ukrainian cities. Washington has yet to commit more of its Patriot interceptors after the war with Iran depleted much of its stockpile.
“We need at least 150 Patriot missiles,” said Oleg Gavrysh, adviser to President Volodymyr Zelensky’s office, while sitting in a Kyiv café. “We are ready to buy them,” he added, noting that the money would come from Europe. He is concerned that a serious humanitarian crisis will develop this winter as Russia ramps up its attacks on Ukraine’s water, energy, and sanitation systems.
At the prayer breakfast, around 1,500 people gathered at tables set in a long hall as Ukrainian Christian leaders from various denominations prayed for doctors, soldiers, and rescue workers facing exhaustion; for God’s nearness to those who grieve; for those in captivity; and for God to confuse the plans of the enemy.
When former US vice president Mike Pence stood to speak, he acknowledged the Ukrainian soldiers in the room, noting that the only time Jesus said he was amazed was during his encounter with a soldier, citing Matthew 8:10. He thanked Zelensky, who was also in attendence, for his perseverance and for “standing strong against the Russian war machine.”
Meanwhile, Zelensky shared his concerns about the war as it nears its fifth anniversary in February. “The war has been going on for a long time, and the greatest danger now is not fatigue at the front,” he said. “It is the world getting used to [the war].”
Ukraine is the second country, after the United States, to establish an annual national day of prayer by law. This year’s prayer breakfast coincided with Independence Day, marking 35 years since Ukraine declared its freedom from the Soviet Union.
Colby Barrett, a resident of Telluride, Colorado, said each visit he has made to Ukraine leaves him feeling spiritually enriched after witnessing how local Christians respond to adversity. He has cultivated friendships with Ukrainians through his role as a documentary film producer. His company recently released a five-episode series about faith in war.
During the prayer breakfast, Barrett reconnected with one of his Ukrainian friends, a pastor whose church narrowly escaped a direct hit by two Iranian Shahed drones one year ago.
“I don’t speak Ukrainian. He doesn’t speak English,” he noted. “We just hugged it out for a bit.” After the events in Kyiv, Barrett traveled to other cities to work on future films.
Meanwhile, Karl Ahlgren, a chaplain from Tulsa, Oklahoma, who also attended the prayer breakfast, went on to visit Sumy, a city in northeast Ukraine about 18 miles from the Russian border, which is under constant attack. Sumy established a friendship-city partnership with Tulsa earlier this year, and Ahlgren brought two of his friends to meet with pastors and city administrators and find ways to serve and encourage the people of the city.
Adam Barnett, senior pastor of missions and evangelism at Tulsa’s Asbury Church, was one of Ahlgren’s traveling companions. He considered backing out when he first received the invitation to the prayer breakfast. “My second oldest kid just started her senior year in high school, so why would I come to a war-torn country?” Barnett said.
He eventually reconsidered. “It makes a statement—a really loud statement—when we stand with Ukraine on their soil,” Barnett explained as he walked through rows of Ukrainian flags and photos of fallen soldiers at Kyiv’s Independence Square. “I’m here to take the message home, to wake the North American church up to the need for prayer.”
As Barnett walked the streets of Kyiv, he saw Ukrainians refusing to relinquish their summertime pleasures. People strolled through parks, walked their dogs, and gathered in cafés. At one park overlooking the Dnipro River, a woman played a piano nestled under a gazebo while Ukrainians lined up to take their turn.
Still, Ukrainians tell tales of terrifying nights with little advance warning of incoming missiles and drones. One restaurant hostess said she was filled with fear last month as she heard the loud blasts of missiles striking Kyiv. Her neighbors told her it was too late to flee to the underground metro, but she couldn’t stop herself from running.
Kyiv was relatively quiet during the days around the National Prayer Breakfast and Independence Day, even as other cities came under attack. Many Ukrainians pointed to the presence of important American leaders as the reason for the calm, as an attack on them could draw Russian president Vladimir Putin into direct war with the United States. After the prayer breakfast, a Ukrainian journalist told retired Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg, former US envoy to Ukraine, “Ukrainians say you are the best air defense.”
Kellogg, who served 36 years in the US Army, pointed to Proverbs and the Psalms during his speech at the prayer breakfast. “Some nations boast of their armies and weapons, but we boast in the name of God,” Kellogg said, paraphrasing Psalm 20:7.
The following evening, Kellogg and dozens of other foreigners boarded their trains back to Poland. An air raid alert 45 minutes prior to departure forced many of the travelers to follow an orderly group of Ukrainians to an underground metro station, where they sheltered for 20 minutes before another alert let them know it was safe to leave. The Ukrainians appeared unflappable, chatting as they pulled their luggage underground and politely answered the questions of concerned foreigners.
“I’m always impressed by the spirit of the people,” Kellogg told Christianity Today upon arriving back in Poland after his train ride from Kyiv. “The fact that they’ve got such great resilience—you can’t beat the heart of the country.”
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