MISSION to KAZAN, TATARSTAN 2013

"WHO WILL GO?" Isaiah 6:8

Dear friends!

      I hope you are doing fine!  Thank you so much for being with us in the ministry God has entrusted us in Ukraine!

   As we already evaluated this ministry semester and are looking into the summer activities, I would like to remind you to be in prayer for our small group of Christian students from Ukraine. They are going to be part of summer camp in Kazan, Tatarstan!

            In July 2013, the students of the nations are coming to Russia for a unique global event. 

       The World University Games (Universiade) http://kazan2013.ru/en

occurs every two years. 10,000 elite student athletes from over 200 countries will be gathering in Kazan, Russia for ten days of events and competition. This presents a unique, strategic opportunity for building student movements and share Gospel with student leaders from Russia and all over the world. Cru team in Russia is putting together a 20 days outreach -

 KAZAN 2013 to reach young people with Gospel and to launch movement in that city after the Games are over. Our students know Russia and the culture. They do not need a visa and are very desirable to be part of this camp.

           I thank God for putting this desire on my heart to help them go and be apart of this outreach together with you. I feel like I’m just a small part of God’s magnificent work of salvation of souls!

        In my list there are 11 people: 3 missionaries of Ukraine for Christ and 7 students from different Ukrainian cities as Kiev, Lviv, Kharkiv and an American volunteer.

Please, PRAY for:

        Everybody from my list to be able to go and that God will put away the barriers to participate. Also pray for those who have illnesses, exams, ban parents or finances.

        Let God give us wisdom to get better, train via Moscow to go 2 days, or airplane and that we all will have tickets on time. Ask God to help us be well prepared for the Gospel and serve with wisdom, and for all students who grows in this first experience to go to a Muslim country.

       Pray that the Lord will give us the opportunity to witness about Him, and will give us faith, repentance and a desire to follow Christ.  God protect us from all evil in our outreach to the Muslim country. Thank you for your prayer!

    TAKE A FRIEND TO THE MOUNTAINS AND GLORIFY THE CREATOR!

     Our mountain trip with students was a great end-of-the-year ministry project.      Our group of 42 people conquered the Grand Canyon of Crimea. I am very grateful for your prayers. God worked in our hearts!   

In our group we had 14 students who went on a camping trip with Christians for the first time, and I want to tell you about a couple of them.                                

        Natasha is a student at Kiev Polytechnic Institute (KPI). She is a bold and friendly girl. She practices yoga and she showed us how well she could stand on her head. She shared that she wanted to have a firm foundation in life. This trip was her first time around Christians and we pray that Jesus will become the firm foundation of her life.

           Tolik also studies at KPI. It was his first time in Crimea and his third project with us. One evening when we were sitting around a camp fire he shared that when he went on a trip to Lviv  with us last fall (it was his first project with us) he got scared and thought we were a cult. Our Christian songs and the talks he heard on the project gave him that idea. Nevertheless, he also attended our Winter Bible Conference contrary to our expectations. In Crimea he said he had been thinking a lot and realized that he should be with people like us and build his life with faith in God. This school year Tolik has been coming to one of our  Bible study groups. Please pray that God will strengthen him in his faith and lead his parents to Himself. Now they are against Tolik's involvement in our ministry.

"But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord." (1 Cor. 15:57-58)