Darina and Edik walked into the apartment in a friendly but reserved manner. They observed the surroundings and waited until they felt comfortable with us to open up. They shared their story of how God had delivered them and changed the course of their lives to become beacons in their Roma community. This is the story of the Roma couple and how God is using them to bless their Roma people.
Edik
Edik started drinking alcohol at the age of 8, began non-injection drugs at 13, and heroine at 15. He was also involved with guns and violence. His father had a respectable job and refused to allow his son to go down a wild path. So his father tried everything to break him of the addictions: rehab, beatings, even injuries to the point of hospitalization, but nothing worked. He married Darina and they had a daughter, but his addictions took his family down a dark path. He would often sell their belongings for drug money and eventually they were plunged into deep poverty. One day, his wife took his daughter and left him alone in a pit of depression and thoughts of suicide. At this point, all of his friends that he was involved with when he was younger had been killed; he was the only one left. He knew that his life needed something more. He checked into a rehab center but even after completing the program he was still bed-ridden extremely ill. One day, a pastor came to him and he asked the pastor if he could be healed. The pastor told him that first he would have to repent and come to Jesus first if he wanted true healing. In that moment, Edik prayed to accept Jesus, and the very next morning, the world was different. His strength had returned and he saw nature as he had never seen it before. The colors were vibrant and he truly felt alive. From that point forward, he began to seek more of God and His will; this would eventually lead him back to his wife, family, and life’s purpose.
Darina
When Darina left Edik for the final time, she took her 3 year old daughter with her and moved in with her mother. Her mother threatened her that if she went back to Edik again, she would stop supporting her and her daughter; so Darina knew that she couldn’t go back to Edik like before—not unless some big changes happened. So she couldn’t believe it when one day, Edik came to her and told her that Jesus had changed his life. He told her that this time his belief in God was different and took her to church to prove it. While she was there, the preacher did an alter call asking people to repent and come to God.
Before she knew what she was doing, she was walking up to the front of the church. From that point on they learned to rely on God for everything. They especially looked to God for a new house and furniture after Edik had previously sold all their belongings for drugs.
Their Growth in God Together
At first, it was extremely hard for them because they lived a small, one-room shack with no furniture, neither of them had a job, they were extremely poor, and hardly enough food to feed themselves. Yet, over time God proved to be faithful. Even though they had very little food, she found enough to feed her family and even bless the neighbors who had even less than they did. Over time, they realized that their heart was to meet the physical needs of their Roma people and help better their standard of living. It was even prophesied that they would be used by God to be a pillar in the Roma community and help meet the needs of people. Though they had no idea what it meant at the time, God soon revealed a glorious plan for their lives.
Darina and Edik in their lovely, new home
They had my team over for a traditional Ukrainian-Roma meal. Such an awesome family!
Present-day Work
The Ukrainian government received money from organizations that wanted to help Roma people, and they began looking for representatives who would serve as a liason between the government funding and the Roma community. A local church recommended Darina for the position, and since then, she has been helping Roma people get much-needed supplies and training on how to improve the standard of living for their families. Their goal is also to fight against discrimination and change people’s views of the Roma.
Darina and Edik currently serve many roles in the community. These are just a few of the things they do:
- Visit families & fellowship with them
- Teach parents how to properly raise children
- Serve a mediator between Roma families and Ukrainian doctors
- Call doctors and/or go to hospital with familes
- Educate people on the issue of tuberculosis (TB)
- Hand out medicine and vitamins to children with TB
- Serve in a Roma church
- Host Bible studies for women and families
Darina’s goal is for Roma women to have an understanding of their innate value the way God values them. Roma tradition treats the husband as everything and the woman as nothing, even though the women work, go to the store, cook, and more. Because a lot of Roma tradition has stayed in the community, women can feel humiliated and not important. Darina wants the women to understand that they are each God’s creation and there’s a lot they can do.
To date, many Roma people have come to god and there are currently about 150 people in their church. God is definitely using this couple to do amazing things in the community and for Roma people in general. I was deeply touched by how God has redeemed and used them for His glory. I see so much hope for the Roma people all over Europe and I ask that you will join me in praying for Darina & Edik, their work in Ukraine, and God’s work throughout the Roma community at large. I know that He has big plans to redeem their entire people group.
My team joined in a community effort to clean up a dumpsite near Roma community.
After a Roma women’s group, we prayed over the women of the church.
