This year our Transformation Church had the opportunity to have a great church camp. It was held in Lavky, a village not far from Mukachevo, dated July 17-23. The main theme of the camp was ‘Covenant with God’.
This topic was interesting for church members and also for unbelievers. There were 83 people in the camp. 40% of them are people who don’t attend church. Why did we raise this topic? Maybe this topic is out of current interests for unbelivers? Why were we talking with church members about the covenant when they have already made it? This topic turned out multipurposed for everyone.
From the very beginning of the world God made relationships with people through the Covenant. Since time of Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, God was the first who wanted to have relationships with people. He made covenants with them. The New Covenant was perfect, because of it we have access to the throne of grace.
For those church members who don’t have much experience in christian life it was very interesting and they could understand a sense of baptizing more deeply. For those people who don’t attend church everything was new and very interesting. One woman, who is a school teacher, she reads a lot and is very erudite, said ‘I’ve always thought that I know a lot, but now I realized I know just a little’. She compared herself to Nicodimus about whom we talked during Bible lesson. On Sunday after camp some unbelievers came to church, and some of them are interested in Bible studying groups.
Also together with spiritual part of the camp there were different kinds of excursions and trips to the lake. Of course it’s hard to imagine summer camp without sport games. And we had them too. One lady, her name is Alla who is a school teacher too, said ‘In this camp I remembered that I am a child, just a big one’. It was so amazing to watch grandmas and their grandchildren who ran, climbed on all fours and slided on a soap slide. It’s so cool to feel ourselves like kids again.
The camp is a good time to become friends and one big family. Just for a while to forget about daily routine and to go back into childhood. No one wanted to leave. But the most important thing is that seeds of truth were planted in peoples hearts.
That’s why, dear friends, when you remember about Rivne Transformation Church camp, please pray for people in whose hearts God’s Word was sowed. May God bless you to carry light into the world.
Sincerely, Pastor of Transformation Church Oleksandr Havryliuk
