Question: With war raging and me in the middle of it all, will my spiritual work lift me out of the clutches of this dismal place? And if so, where?

Answer:  Freedom from this raging planet with all of its wars begins with discovering and walking away from the war within ourselves. In Truth, there is no other battle, and what we see around us is the inevitable expression of the pain within us that pushes and pushes until it finds some release. As far as where your spiritual work leads you, leave it to the Spirit. It will never betray you.