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Find out about your ancestors and you
will learn a lot about yourself.
My husband Oleg and I are immigrants to America. In 2007, ten years into our marriage, our journey began…
One evening, when Oleg, I and our three children knelt to pray to God, I heard Oleg say: “God, I am so tired of being a “lukewarm” Christian. I want to have a personal relationship with You! Please send a situation into my life that will show me WHO YOU REALLY ARE!” For a moment, I felt scared and thought what is my husband talking about? But because I loved him and trusted him, I thought he knew what he was asking for. As I understood later, our words have power because God heard my husband’s prayer. He came and knocked at our door, and we began a very hard journey. Only a few years later, when we read a following statement in the book of Sirach, 2:1-5, in a full Bible, we understood what had actually happened.
It says there: “My child, if you aspire to serve the Lord, prepare yourself for an ordeal… Be sincere of heart, be steadfast, and do not be alarmed when disaster comes. Whatever happens to you, accept it, and in the uncertainties of your humble state, be patient, since GOLD IS TESTED IN THE FIRE, and the CHOSEN IN THE FURNACE OF HUMILIATION.”
I am about to tell you what happened after Oleg’s prayer. I am not blaming my husband or God. Today, seven years later, Oleg and I thank God for every second of our life, for God’s miracles, lessons and for revealing Himself to us. God’s work in our life was painful, but worth every moment of it. It was the time of spiritual growth and learning Who really God is. Today, we love God, each other, and our children so much more than we ever did before. We value our family and know the price of health and happiness. And most important, we know the difference between religion and the real God!
This story begins with our family. We, as individuals, are a product of our family and of other people, who influence us. Therefore, to understand our decisions, you have to understand us as a family. The decisions we make today are connected to the past.
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My family is from Ukraine. Grandmothers and Grandfathers grew up in wealthy families, but during the revolution, the communists took away most of their property and distributed it between the poor people. Life in the Soviet Ukraine under the communist regime was hard: less food being produced, hunger and some deaths from starvation.
During World War II, in 1942, the Germans invaded our country. My Grandfather, Alexander Lapin, was drafted into the Red Army. He helped to defend the city of Leningrad and was among the troops who entered Berlin. He believed his faith in God kept him safe, when so many people died during the war.
When Alexander came home, he fell in love with a beautiful girl, Anna, and married her. They lived in the urban-settlement, Rakitno, seventy miles from Kiev, the Capitol of the Ukraine. Alexander was a generous man and people were drawn to him. He was originally a member of the Baptist church. After returning from the war, his faith had changed. He became a pastor of a Pentecostal church, serving his community and seven surrounding villages. He rode his bicycle to see people, bringing honey and other gifts with him. At the same time, Alexander worked as а machinist of a local train company. With time, their family grew to nine children. My Father, Anatoliy, is their second child.
Alexander & Anna Lapin My Father – Anatoliy Lapin
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My Mother’s Father, Peter Lysenko, was also drafted into World War II. One battle became so intense that many of his fellow soldiers were injured or killed. Wounded and fearing death, he cried out to the Lord, “If you exist, help me survive and I will serve you to the end.” He survived, but was captured by Germans and put on a train to Auschwitz, a concentration camp. On the way, he and two other soldiers crawled up to the roof and tried to escape. The two soldiers were shot and killed; Peter was the only one to escape.
Several months later he returned home. His life was still in danger, as the Germans were in every village of the Ukraine. He joined the Baptist church, where he met a beautiful girl, Maria, and married her. At first, he worked at a grocery store. Later, he became a supervisor of agricultural workers. During evenings he would do wood work and build furniture. Peter also became a pastor of a Pentecostal church in his village. With Maria, they had eleven children. My Mom, Vera, is their third child.
Peter & Maria Lysenko My Mother – Vera Lysenko
Several years later, Peter developed a tumor in his head and almost died. His wife and children prayed for him, and God healed him. Disabled, Peter could no longer work and stayed home with the children.
Maria worked as a nurse to support the family. At that time, to practice one’s Christian faith was unacceptable to the communist government. Because Maria was a Christian, she was sent far from her village to work with disabled patients, so she would not tell people about God. Soon, she lost her job. Peter went to Kiev and talked to the governor. He told him that he defended his country and became disabled. His wife, Maria, the only source of income, lost her job because she was a Christian. Peter asked for help. The governor was not happy about this situation. He promised to write a letter to Maria’s employer. Maria got her job back.
The police actively searched for people practicing their faith. If caught by the government, they were subject to fines, persecution, even imprisonment. The government threatened to take away the children of Christian families, if they kept teaching them about God. In order to worship God together, families had to gather in secret at someone’s house, in the woods, or in another village, where they were less known. Freedom of religion, as we practice it in the United States today, was prohibited. Something as simple as a church building was not allowed to exist. To protect the church and its members, parents strongly encouraged their children to marry within the faith. Therefore, it was important for Christian families to know each other and to rely upon each other. Mom’s and Dad’s families lived thirty minutes apart. They met during church activities.
Christian children were generally not accepted into college. Only those, who had straight A’s and didn’t have to take an exam, were accepted. Still they were always oppressed. My Mom was one of the lucky few, accepted into college and allowed to complete a degree as an Engineer/Technologist. My Dad received his training through college and later through his job, and had professions as a Diesel Locomotive Engineer, Electrician, Welder and Plumber.
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My Dad knew and loved my Mom since she was thirteen, but he had never told her. Upon returning from the Soviet Army during 1970’s, at age twenty-one, he asked my Mom to marry him. She agreed, and they have been very happy together. They lived by his parents, who divided their land into four plots and gave a plot to their three oldest children, including my Father. Dad was a machinist at a train station, and Mom supervised a meat company. The first few years of their marriage, with the help of relatives, they built their house, while keeping full-time jobs.
