Under such title, the Department of Christian Ethics held the first of three Christian camps in the village of Polyana, Zakarpattia region, on July 14-20, 2023, for children aged 12-14 years, intending to teach them to pray to God as Christ taught His disciples.
In total, 50 people (41 children and 9 team members) came to the camp. The team and the driver were believers from the evangelical churches of the Rivne region. There were children from orphanages, as well as some children from families of believers. Two students – winners of the Olympiad “Young Bible Scholars – 2023” from the Kyiv and Volyn regions were also in this camp. 40 camp participants and team members were in such a camp for the first time.
40 participants and team members were there for the first time, 6 team members and 4 children had already been there before.
For each day in the camp we had a different theme and the children learned by heart a new golden verse: prayer (Isaiah 55:8), worshipping God and devotion (Matthew 6:9), humility (Matthew 6:10), what is necessary for me… (Matthew 6:11-12), on the guard of life (Matthew 6:13). Every day, teams had to prepare and complete creative tasks: 1) a news wall; 2) news video; 3) photo reportage with comments and sound effects; 4) advertising; 5) skit, pantomime, song, recitation of a poem. In the morning and the evening, there was a common spiritual part: glorifying God with singing, preaching the Word of God, and prayer. Then the teams went to different locations for Bible lessons. Later, some went to needlework, some to sports. Every day after lunch, trips were organized to the thermal waters of Berehove and Kosino or excursions: Schönborn castle, “Kvitka poloniny” sanatorium, “Palanok” castle in Mukachevo. In the evening, after the spiritual part, the presentation of tasks, and prayers, the teams went for a snack and communicated with mentors, discussing the events of the day. During the camp, we held two general camp games: 1) Names of God; and 2) The road taken by Love (the way of Jesus Christ to Calvary).
Discipline was unusual for many children: separate rooms for boys and separate rooms for girls, after announcing a bedtime, you cannot walk around and peek in the rooms, and everyone must rest/sleep. Some children were told how to behave themselves so they would quit using obscene language. Everyone quickly became friends, and every day we watched how God influenced each camp participant through the Word, many had a desire to pray, study the Bible, and sing. We taught children to open their hearts to God and to love their neighbors.
After the camp, the children continue to stay in touch with their mentors and communicate, some have started attending Sunday school in an Evangelical church. Please pray with us that the Lord will open their hearts and they will all become children of God!
Review from one of the camp participants:
«Having seen the mountains, and having been on amazing excursions, I can say with confidence that there are no words to describe this beauty! Of course, through this beauty, I see the power of God and His presence in my life. Through Bible lessons, sermons, and worship, I realized that prayer is very important. Biblical truths hit me more and more each time. Reading Isaiah 53, I realized how much the Lord loves us and how powerful God’s mercy is. And the girls in my room were just wonderful, we immediately became friends.
As with every pastime, it has its pros and cons. I’ll start with the positive: 1) interesting and meaningful Bible lessons; 2) excursions and trips to thermal waters and the water park; 3) traveling by bus, which was not tiring for me; 4) positive and very good mentors; 5) and much more…
Some downsides: 1) the camp ends quickly, and I wish it would go on and on. But this is far from the reality. So I thank God for such an opportunity and thank all those who make efforts and donate funds for our joy and positive mood. Thank you very much for everything!»
Bohdana, 14
Video from the camp
