“I seemed to be rooted”:
Inna Limar’s story

The daughter of Pastor Sergiy Limar, Inna has been involved in church since childhood, attending Sunday school classes, youth group and camps, and participating in Christmas dramas and various church events; she became a Christian aged 13. “I remember that day well,” she says, “It was at a camp and when on the last day I heard the call to repentance, I consciously and firmly knew that I wanted the Lord to forgive, cleanse me and adopt me. I still remember the joy of that moment. I was baptized at the age of 15.

”Inna has lived her whole life in the village of Blagodatne, situated on the Dnipro River opposite the city of Cherkasy, and she was at home when the invasion began in February 2022. She recalls it clearly. “At that moment, waking up early in the morning, we began to pray. It was worrying, but in my soul I had some confidence that God is with us and that everything is in His hands.”

Her faith was borne out by her actions: in those early days of fear and confusion when thousands fled Ukraine, Inna felt called to stay. “I do not regret at all that I did not leave our country,” she shares. “At the moment when many people left their homes (and this is their choice, which I respect and do not condemn at all), I seemed to be rooted and could not leave the place. I felt that I did not need to go anywhere. And to be honest, despite the danger, I did not want to leave my relatives, my friends, my church, my homeland.”

In spite of her certainty that she was right to remain, Inna did not always find it easy to face the day-to-day challenges of the conflict. At times she felt overwhelmed with anxiety because of the never-ending stream of negative headlines, and for a while she stopped reading the news altogether. Nonetheless, she found comfort in getting on with ‘normal’ things. “I found peace in the Lord, in serving Him and people, in everyday tasks and in my favourite activities. God has never left me and will never leave me,” she says confidently.

As time went on, Inna came to realise that God had a specific purpose for her being in Blagodatne: to re-start a ministry with the teenage girls in the church, something that had happened previously but had stopped. As soon as it was mentioned, she felt sure this was the purpose God had for her.“

When the war started, the members of our youth team met and discussed the plan of action: not to close our work, but on the contrary to develop it, and prepare our youth for the future. I remember another leader told me that the teenage girls would really like to spend time with me in an all-girl group. I had thought about this before, but I had felt that I had no time to do it. I prayed and understood that there was no need to wait for a ‘better’ time to get started: the time to serve the Lord is here and now.”

So Inna and the girls now meet regularly and are growing in their knowledge and love of God. They study the Bible together, sing, spend time outdoors, learn cookery, prepare beautiful picnics, and do crafts. “The main goal of our ministry is to be what God sees us to be,” Inna says. “To be His daughters.”

Her steadfast obedience carries on against the backdrop of war and like so many Ukrainians, Inna has no idea what will happen next, in her own life or for her country. “I do not know how and where God will lead me in the future,” she reflects, “but I want to trust Him and continue to serve, because it is a great joy and an honour.”

To find out more about Inna’s ministry, follow her on Instagram at

@inna__lymar_    @girls__daughters_of_the_king