We greet you with the love of our Lord Jesus Christ!
Dear brothers and sisters from the USA, as we wrote to you in the previous report about our youth Christian camp "Candela" which we held with God's help from August 1 to 6 in Boyany, almost 60 children, teenagers, and youth repented there and now we want to write briefly a few testimonies of these children.
1. George Troyan, 15 years old, the village of Malinovka (from an unbelieving family):
-I am very grateful to God that I had invitations to be in this Christian camp. For me, this is the first time to be in such a wonderful camp. I really liked the Word of God. I studied the messages from James. This is just about our time. Nobody knows what awaits us tomorrow. The main thing is that we are reconciled with God. I understood this and Jesus helped me to come out and repent. I should be a light further for my friends, for my parents. Help me, Lord! Thank you for everything you have done for us. Bless you!
2. Edgar, 16 years old, in the village of Malinovka (father is an alcoholic):
-It was my first time in a Christian camp. And thank you. I liked everything about this camp. My parents are unbelievers, my father has problems with alcohol and I don't like the life that my parents lead. I then learned that there is another life - bright, kind, divine. And the Word of God can set you free. Christ frees everyone who comes to Him with faith and repentance. I learned this in this camp and accepted Christ in my heart - Glory to God. I pray to God that He will give me patience and wisdom on how to be a real Christian. Thank you all for such a wonderful camp.
3. Artur Tkachuk, 18 years old, Malinovka village.
-I am from a believing family and I kind of repented earlier in the meetings, but that repentance was not real. Only in this camp, I felt how the Holy Spirit touched my heart after the sermon of brother Will from the USA, I decided to seriously give my heart to Jesus Christ. Then I just raised my hand and when there was a general camp call to repentance on Friday evening, I was one of the first to come forward to confess my sins before the Lord and to accept Christ in my heart. And then on Sunday, I went out in front of our church so that the church would know about my decision and pray for me. Thank God for accepting invitations to this camp. Thanks to all the sponsors for sponsoring this camp. It's worth it. So many souls have gained Christ during these 5 days of the camp - Thank God!
4. Stephania, 15 years old, Forosna village.
- I am very grateful to God that I ended up in this camp. I really liked everything in this camp. At home, I live only with my mother and my younger sister. We go to meetings in Forosna, but I have never felt the call of Christ so close to my heart. Every day we stayed in reading the Word and in prayer with the very morning, then studied the Word from the message of St. James. Yes, indeed, the Word of God sets us free. I liked the games and swimming in the pool, and the worship evenings. My mother was very happy about my decision. God help me to carry this faith in my heart until the end of my life.
5. Vlada, 14 years old, Zhilovka village.
-Thank you for inviting me to this wonderful camp! My parents are believers, and when they heard that there was a youth camp in Boyany, they immediately tried to get a ticket for me. And I am very glad that I was in this camp. I cannot describe my feelings of gratitude to everyone who was next to me: both my leader and teacher, Pastor Pavel, and my peers who were with me in the camp. I really liked the Word of God in the group in which I studied the Epistles of Apostle James. I thank and praise God for the fact that the Holy Spirit revealed to me eyes and heart so that I decide to accept Christ and repent. And my friend and I decided to repent. After prayer, we wept with joy that we had acquired the salvation of our souls. God help me to be a true Christian!
6. Kiril, 14 years old (immigrant from Kherson).
-I am grateful to the leader Tatyana for giving me a ticket to this Christian camp. My parents are unbelievers and we live with them and my younger brother in Nesvoi, they gave us a house where to live, because we lost our house because of the war. People from this village and people who go to the Baptist church help us a lot, with various products and other help that is necessary for us. I really liked this camp. It was my first time in such a camp. I went to the lessons of pastor Pavel where he taught these lessons in such an accessible way for us. It was the first time I held a Bible in my hands. The leader helped me figure out how to look for books in the Bible and the New Testament, and in the Old Testament. It was very difficult for me from the beginning. And then I got used to it. And I got a taste for reading the Word. When brother Will from the USA was preaching, I realized that I need to choose Jesus in my life. And I chose Jesus as my Savior. May God help me to follow the true path to the end with faith and love. Thank you for the camp. This is a great gift for me - thank God!
7. Alina, 18 years old, the village of Nesvoya (parents are unbelievers).
-Thank you for inviting me to the Candela camp. This is my first time in such a camp and I liked being in it. It’s a pity that we spent only 5 days. My parents are unbelievers, divorced, and now I live only with my grandmother on my father’s side. My father did not want to let me go to this camp, saying that I should not leave my grandmother at home alone, and my grandmother is a believer and really wanted me to go to this camp. There she was left to help her daughter, who is older than my father and lives there not far from her, in the neighborhood. So I ended up in the camp. It was very good. I realized that I had to repent and made the right decision for myself on Friday, August 5. I accepted Jesus Christ in my heart. Thank God and thank you all for the camp!
8. Erika, 15 years old, Chisinau, Moldova.
-I was just visiting with my cousin in Ukraine and we heard about this Christian camp. We immediately asked to be given 2 vouchers. I really liked the camp. Everything was good here both for relaxation and for studying the Word of the Gospel. And in the end, the Lord through the Holy Spirit knocked on my heart and I accepted Him as a personal Savior in my heart, Glory to Him! I went home happy and saved. Parents are also happy for me because they are believers. Thank you all. It was a great camp.
9. Elizaveta, 13 years old, a migrant from the village of Avdeevka, Donetsk region.
- Thank you for this wonderful camp. My parents and I now live in Novoselitsa. We are immigrants from the Donetsk region. We don't even have a Bible at home. We were given here in the meeting. And in the camp pastor, Pavel gave me a Bible. I didn't even know how to read the Bible. Thanks to our leader Alina, we began to understand how to look for places from the Bible. We are 3 migrants from different cities in Ukraine and we lived in the same room where the leader Alina was a class leader. We spent morning classes with her and prayed together. And she helped us in the lessons. You know, I never held the Bible in my hands, and in the end of camp, I was so clear about looking for places throughout the Bible. It turns out that the Bible is the Book of Books. It is the source of the Wisdom of God. We studied the epistles of the Apostle James. What Words! They are for our days, although almost 2000 years have passed since then. These words speak of trials and temptations. Then, too, Christians wandered and fled from the persecution of Christians, but they knew what they were suffering for. And we? Yes, we ran away from our homes. Yes, we roam the world because of the war. But we did not have the most precious thing that God gave to people - the Holy Word. The Word really set me free and I realized that I needed to repent and accept Christ in my heart. And the Lord Jesus helped me take this step - Glory to Him. I believe that God will not leave me and will help me continue to live a new life - always hold on to Jesus Christ. Thank you again for your invitation to such a wonderful camp.
10. Alexandra, 12 years old, the city of Dnepropetrovsk.
- I, too, like Elizabeth, ran away with my parents from the war. Thank God we found a home here for our family. We were told about this camp and we accepted the invitation. It was very good for us. It's a pity, of course, that it was only 5 days, but anyway, thanks to all of you for such busy days. I liked the Word of God, I liked studying It. I learned a lot of things in this camp for myself. We must seek the kingdom of God first and the righteousness of God—and everything else God will take care of and give us what we need. We have already been accustomed for half a year of the war to being grateful to God for what we have. But then I realized something valuable to me. If we are not born again, we will not be able to enter the Kingdom of God. How to understand it? I had many questions like Nicodemus had once. And I asked the pastor, brother Paul, and the leaders. They tried to answer my questions. God revealed himself to me and I realized that I needed to repent. And I answered yes! - to the call of Christ. May God help me to carry this faith as a banner until the end of my days!
11. Egor, 16 years old, the village of Tarasovtsy.
-I first came to a Christian camp. And thanks to those who gave me this invitation. I didn’t even know how to behave right away, and then when I began to study the Word of God, I realized in which society I ended up. And in the end, the Word of God did its work in my heart. And I realized that I need to accept Christ in my heart and in my life. A very cool camp. Thanks to everyone who organized the camp and those who worked all the days of the camp so that we could feel good all these 5 days.
12. Emanuella, 11 years old, Mamaliga village.
-Thank you very much to everyone who organized this Christian camp. This is like a gift for me. I was in the group of teacher Tamara. The Word of God was very accessible to me. And I realized that I need to be reconciled with God. Everything was perfect in this camp, the games, the pool, and the evening worship. I really liked the fact that every evening the cameraman Alex showed us a video about our camp. Thanks to him and his wife Nadia for working all day shooting a video about us. It must be very difficult - thank you too. Thank you, teachers, thank you, leaders, thank you worship team for wonderful songs, thank you chefs for delicious food, and thank you brothers and sisters from the USA for sponsoring this camp. Thank God for everything! And most importantly this is the fact that I accepted Jesus Christ in my heart-Glory to God! Thanks again to everyone.
13. Sofia Martsinyuk, 10 years old, Mamaliga village.
-I go to this camp from an early age, because my parents work as leaders in this camp. But I realized real repentance only this year. The Lord touched my heart - Thank God! God. This work is very valuable. Thanks to our leaders. I had a great leader - may the Lord bless Christina and her family. God grant peace to Ukraine so that they can organize such Christian camps!
14. Melentiy Kostya, 13 years old, Dranitsa village.
-I liked the camp very much. Thank you for the invitation. I liked studying the Word of God with teacher Kioresko Gregory. There we studied the heroes of faith from the letter of the Apostle Paul to the Hebrews. I thought how before, in difficult conditions, believers served the Living God. But now ... yes, we have a war, it’s hard for displaced people, but in Bukovina, thank God, it’s quiet and calm. God has mercy on us. And people seem to be indifferent to the love of Christ. Yes, all of Ukraine prays even on their knees ... but they don’t accept Christ at all in their hearts. I realized in this camp that I need to seriously improve my relationship with God through the blood of Jesus Christ, which washes us from all sin. I am very grateful to God for the fact that He helped me to get out and repent. Thank you very much for a wonderful camp!
15. Maxim, 13 years old, the village of Tarasovtsy
- This is the first time I have been to such a camp. I really liked the Christian camp. I did not think that by studying the Word of God I would also like all this. But indeed God is Omnipotent and can change hardened hearts. Everything was top-notch in this camp. I even forgot how to say obscene words. I was just ashamed to say that being among the believers. And then the Word of God did its work in my heart and I repented. Help me God to keep this faith in You to the end! Thank you all for the camp!
16. Nastya, 13 years old, the city of Novoselitsa.
-I really liked this camp. First of all, I had a very good leader, Alina, who studied with us and showed us how to look for places from the Bible. I have never held a Bible in my hands - this is the first time in this camp. We have every morning there was a prayer and classes on the book of James from the New Testament. Then there were also classes on the books of Jacob in the lessons. And this helped me a lot to understand this book from the New Testament more deeply. Then I even answered boldly the teacher's questions. I never thought that this would happen to me. Yes, God is great in His grace and love for people. I had to come here so that I could find the Salvation of my soul. I pray that the Lord will help me on this path of faith. Thank you all for the invitations to the camp, and for organizing and sponsoring these beautiful camps! Thanks to all the leaders. Oh, it's a pity that it was only 5 days! Thanks to Sasha and Nadia for the wonderful video! God bless you all!
17. Bogachuk Marius 14 years old
-Thank you all for the camp. Everything was great. I understood the Word of God, which all the time reminded me that the Lord loves all of us and wants us to truly worship Him in Spirit and Truth. How wonderful it is to be in the Word all the time! It frees us from all unnecessary that surrounds us. I studied about the heroes of faith. Excellent lessons. The Holy Spirit prompted me to repent. And I went out and repented-Glory to God. May the Lord bless you all Amen!
Here are some testimonies of those teenagers and young men who repented in our camp - Thank God. And the parents of these children call us and thank us. They said they would pray for all of us. Of course, we told them that without the sponsorship of our brothers and sisters from the USA, we would not have been able to organize such a large camp. They also thanked you, our dear ones from the USA, for your donations. We are glad to hear good reviews about our camp. But glory belongs only to God. We are only instruments in the hands of the Lord, and God is Omnipotent and works through us, weak people, so that only God would be glorified - Glory to Him for everything! That's why we say like Apostle Paul in Philippians - I can do everything in Jesus Christ who strengthens me. (Phil. 4:13)
And thank you all for praying for us. We felt it. And thank God for such success! Thank God that there was a peaceful sky above us! Thank God that in our Bukovina everything is quiet and calm, although we were a little worried, there was still a war in our country. And the Lord had mercy on us - Glory to Him for everything!
Keep praying for Ukraine. So that the war in Ukraine ends. So that these children who repented in the camp could serve God through their lives. Pray for us servants, so that the Lord strengthens us in serving the Lord.
We pray for you that God bless you all with His blessings!
With love to you, the Petikhachny family, Pavel and Larisa.
