Ukraine (MNN) – Years into Russia’s full-scale invasion, many children in Ukraine continue to carry the weight of war. Nighttime doesn’t mean cozy beds, but sleeping in hallways or basements to the sound of air raid sirens.
That’s why Summer Bible Camps with Slavic Gospel Association (SGA) offer something increasingly rare: peace.
(Photo courtesy of SGA)
“Many of these children grow up hearing near-nightly air raid sirens. They are often without a father who’s either fighting on the front line or the economic conditions are such that the dad is needing to work somewhere else to make money for the family,” says SGA’s Eric Mock.
SGA-supported Ukrainian churches host these summer camps for children, and create a refuge from the realities of war.
The camps take many forms. Some resemble a neighborhood Vacation Bible School in a central building complex or apartment square. Others look more like traditional summer camps out in nature.
But Mock says this outreach goes far beyond a temporary escape.
“These camps then – more than just being islands of peace – are the islands of peace that pass all understanding, for these kids hear a message of hope. They encounter people who show them grace and love and patience and joy, and they encounter something different than the world has provided them.”
(Photo courtesy of Valentin Lupashko/Slavic Gospel Association)
As children and families experience Christian community, they also encounter the Gospel in action.
Mock shares, “Children and their families who have suffered from the ravages of war, who have known only difficulty and trials, are now brought into an environment that seems filled with light! [They go] from the darkness of this world to the light of the Gospel. They not only hear the Gospel message, but see the Gospel message.”
Please pray for Ukrainian children attending summer camps this year and for the churches sharing Christ’s hope amid the hardships of war. Ask God to draw families to faith and raise up a new generation of believers who will shine His light in their communities.
You can support SGA’s Ukraine ministry here!
Header photo courtesy of SGA.
