Reading the latest news about the war in Ukraine, one can’t help but sometimes wonder: How much will it affect Singapore? Is this something we should worry about, or is it a little too distant to think about?

After all, Ukraine is more than 8,000 km away, and Singapore’s relations with the country are relatively low-key. Our trade with them is relatively small, too.

Naturally, it can thus be tempting to think that the Ukraine conflict will not really affect Singapore.

Yet, in today’s globalised world, everything is interconnected, and the war there promises to have far-reaching consequences on our everyday lives, 8,000 km away.

In fact, fuel prices have already risen in Singapore over the past few months, and this could be worsened by the war. Russia is a major energy exporter, and a significant amount of the supply of natural gas flows through Ukraine. If this triggers an energy crisis, it would affect production, transport, and industries around the world—including those that export food and essentials to Singapore.

Then there’s the supply of food and raw materials. Media reports note that anything from fertilisers for food production to metals for mobile phones could be affected, as well as the global supply of food itself. And all this coming on the back of severe disruptions to global trade caused by Covid-19.

Worse, the latest news hint at the spectre of a nuclear conflict, as Russia puts its nuclear deterrent on alert. The thought of a possible escalation is frightening, to say the least.

All this might make you wonder: Is there anything we can do as believers? How is a Christian living so far away, in Singapore, to respond?

On the world’s stage of geopolitics played by national leaders, there’s probably not a lot an ordinary individual can do. But we have the most powerful weapon of all—prayer.

Relying on God’s divine power makes prayer an integral part of the fearsome spiritual armaments that, as 2 Corinthians 10:4–5 puts it, have the “divine power to demolish strongholds”. Prayer is powerful because God is powerful.

The Bible is full of examples of people who relied on the power of prayer when stuck in difficult situations that no human could resolve. One that comes to mind is Daniel, who was living in exile in Babylon after his homeland Israel was conquered.

Daniel, a man of prayer whose first instinct in every situation was to turn to God, knew that while he may not have understood God’s plans, he could trust in His sovereignty over the world and over the most difficult situation.

His words in Daniel 2:20–23 so wonderfully express this truth:

“Praise be to the name of God for ever and ever;
 wisdom and power are his.
He changes times and seasons;
 he deposes kings and raises up others.
He gives wisdom to the wise
 and knowledge to the discerning.
He reveals deep and hidden things;
 he knows what lies in darkness,
 and light dwells with him.”

Perhaps, then, we can pray that . . .

• . . . God will be sovereign over the situation in Ukraine, and His will be done.
• . . . That God will work in the hearts and minds of national leaders, that they will act with wisdom, sensibility, and compassion.
• . . . That God will bring peace and resolution to the situation.
• . . . That God will protect and care for the people caught in the conflict, provide for their needs, and give them an extra measure of His divine comfort and strength in this difficult time.

Yours, Lord, is the greatness and the power
 and the glory and the majesty and the splendour,
 for everything in heaven and earth is yours.
Yours, Lord, is the kingdom;
 you are exalted as head over all.
Wealth and honour come from you;
 you are the ruler of all things.
In your hands are strength and power
 to exalt and give strength to all.
(1 Chronicles 29:11–12)