The Christian outreach camp “Touch of Jesus” for teenagers aged 12–17, was held in the village of Polyana, Zakarpattia region, from January 8 to 14, 2025. The camp was attended by 54 people: 40 teenagers and 14 team members.
The camp program consisted of spiritual teachings, glorification of God, creative tasks, and health activities in the mountains and thermal pools. During Bible classes, the Gospel of Mark (chapters 1–6) was studied using the textbook “Experiencing the Touch of Jesus.”
In the camp, there were teenagers from the Rivne, Khmelnytskyi, Ternopil, Kherson, and Odessa regions. In particular, children from the social centers of Oleksandria and Shepetivka, as well as children of displaced people from Dniprorudny and Chkalovy, came to the camp. For the first time, the camp was visited by teenagers whose families had suffered from the war, as well as children who had experienced some sort of abuse.
The team consisted of experienced mentors, as well as young brothers who had recently participated in the camps themselves, in particular Ilya Bunyak (Community of the Good Shepherd Church, Rivne) and Dmytro Tymoshchuk (a church from Baptist Union, Kremenets). The mentors shared testimonies about their journey to God every day.
A special highlight of the camp was the repentance of seven teenagers: four girls (including from Odessa and Bilozerka) and three boys from Tuchyn and Klevan. One of them later wrote to his mentor that he had long dreamed of repentance and now he wants to be baptized.
The teenagers held an event to share the gospel with local residents, distributing leaflets “God loves you.” Although most people reacted negatively, it became an important lesson about the difficulties in communicating the Word of God. The camp participants also personally prepared crafts and letters of gratitude for the military of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and handed them over to the front line in the Donetsk region.
The camp organizers express their sincere gratitude to everyone who supported this event with prayers and support. May the Lord bless everyone for their participation!
