ENTRUSTING THE MINISTRY TO A NEW PASTOR
 Due to the senior pastor of the church in San Diego, Yuriy Korniyenko, moving to another place, the pastor’s ministry was entrusted to Sergey Debelinskiy. He had a lot of pastoral experience in Ukraine. We wish Sergey an abundance of blessings in serving the local church! For more about him and his previous ministry experience, read on the Association’s website (in Russian only.)
VISIT TO MOLDOVA
The war in Ukraine affected the distribution of the “Our Days” newspaper. I. Bruyako, who is the editor of the newspaper, was forced to go to Moldova to resolve some critical issues related to the closing of the newspaper’s office in Ukraine, the ceasing of deliveries of the newspapers in Russia, and many other pressing issues. Read more about this visit here (in Russian only.)
One of the meetings in Moldova
WOMEN’S RETREAT OF BRYTE CHURCH
In the middle of June, surrounded by the beauty of Lake Tahoe, Bryte church was able to have one more women’s retreat. The retreat was attended by 120 women, most of whom were from Bryte church. “DROP It” was the theme of the retreat. The acronym DROP stood for: Declutter, Restore, Organize, and Purify. The intention of the theme was to rethink and help the women to free themselves of anything that is unnecessary in their physical and spiritual lives. More details can be found here (in Russian only.)
 Worship service during the retreat
PICNIC FOR IMMIGRANTS
On July 9, after the morning service, the Cornerstone Church had a special picnic for immigrants. Over 350 people were able to attend, and it was a great success! Many immigrants came to church for the first time, and some of them were very surprised how they were able to feel the warmth and be so comfortable in the company of Christians. More can be found here.
At the picnic
EVERYTHING BEGINS IN CHILDHOOD
On July 16, Second Slavic Baptist Church celebrated the 20-year anniversary of the Koloski (wheat shoots) children’s choir ministry. Both young choristers and those who stood at the origins of the choir took part in the celebration. Over four hundred people attended the event.
During these 20 years, the choir participants were able to perform in numerous events of various themes, women’s ministries, prayer breakfasts, widows’ meetings, as well as church services for children with special needs. More information can be found here (in Russian only.)
Celebrating the anniversary
THE RISE AND FALL OF SOLOMON
The pastors of the Forward Church in Irvine, CA, recently had a four-week series of sermons dedicated to the life of King Solomon, including his rise to power, and his terrible demise. The series of sermons were called: “King: Rise and Fall of Solomon.” For more about the series, read in an article by Pastor B. Kipko of the Forward Church (in Russian only.)
ABOUT THE NEW ISSUE OF “GOD’S VINEYARD” MAGAZINE
The editor of the magazine, L. Pavlyuk, provides more about what to expect in the new issue of the magazine. The article can be found on the Association’s website – read here (in Russian only.)
IMPORTANT LESSONS OF “CORAM DEO”
Forty people from ten churches continue their learning in the second intake of the International Institute of Biblical Counseling “Coram Deo” in Sacramento. Unlike the first set of students who graduated already, there are quite a lot of brothers in this group, five of whom are pastors. This fact is especially important, given that it is pastors who most often and intensively have to provide counseling to members of churches, and understanding the importance of this ministry, acquiring theoretical and practical skills in this area is extremely necessary for them.
One of the students, who is the youth pastor at Grace Family Church, shared his thoughts on the important lessons that he learned while attending three modules of Coram Deo. Read his article on the Association’s website (in Russian only.)
Group of students and instructors of the second intake
HOLIDAYS WITH BENEFITS
On July 2, the New Hope Church had another outreach event in Rancho Cordova. They distributed over 7,000 gospel tracts in their neighborhood.
The evangelism of this church did not end just with that . A few days later, on July 4th, the church took part in celebrating Independence Day in Rancho Cordova. The church team consisted of about 120 people from the church, youth, and children. Read more details here.
Church Involvement in the Parade
FRUITFUL, JUICY, AND FRESH
On the last Sunday in June, the 28th, Yuba City Slavic Baptist Church was visited by a group from Altamedix , an organization that organizes leisure activities for the elderly in Sacramento. More than 30 people attended the service that day.
For a small church, this is a pretty good indicator and a great example of the fact that regardless of age and physical condition, every person can glorify the Lord. Read more here (in Russian only.)
Guests from Altamedix singing
TEN-YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF THE STORE
On July 1, Pacific Thrift Store celebrated ten wonderful years of service. The family of Pacific Thrift Store continues to grow! The team of dedicated volunteers and partners are the heart and soul of this ministry and demonstrate God’s generosity every day. May all the staff and volunteers continue to prosper in serving at the store, and may they continue being showered by blessings from the Lord!
Staff and volunteers of the store
NEWS FROM THE MISSIONS FIELD
STREET EVANGELISM
It is a difficult task to proclaim to others about the Lord. It is a challenge to speak to people who are in a hurry, who are sometimes aggressive, and who don’t want to hear anything about eternity. Over the course of many years, Vasiliy Khripunov, along with his ever-changing team of preachers, has been proclaiming the Gospel on the streets of Sacramento, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and many other cities. They preach at the intersections to the homeless, as well as to everyone who is able to hear them. Not everyone can handle what he and his team were able to endure, but if at least a few would come to saving faith, then it is all worth it. Read more details here.
On the beach in Santa Monica
MINISTRY IN BRAZIL
Vitaliy and Irina Arshulik, who are parti ally supported by our Association, are missionaries in Brazil. Occasionally, they share with us about their ministry and give us updates about how their ministry is growing. Read their update from June here. There is also an article about their involvement in the missionary trip through the Amazon river; click here to read. Both articles in Russian only.
On the Amazon River
NEWS FROM THE SHEREMET FAMILY IN POLAND
The Sheremet family, who moved to Poland to serve as missionaries to Ukranian refugees and other Slavs, in their June newsletter talks about how the ministry is going and their plans for the near future. Read their letter here - click this link (in Russian only.)
CHILDREN’S CHRISTIAN CAMP AT TORREVIEJA, SPAIN
On July 4-8, Light of Life Church in Torrevieja had a camp for Ukrainian refugee children. Some people from California, Germany, as well as the local youth, helped in organizing this camp. Read more here (in Russian only.)
Bible lessons during the camp
HELPING REFUGEES IN UKRAINE AND EUROPE
In the beginning of summer, the team, le d by Peter Babich from the House of the Gospel Church in Fresno, visited many places in Ukraine. Their ministry continued in Italy and in Spain. Peter shares about his impression of the trip in an article which can be found on the association’s website – click this link (in Russian only.)
During one of the meetings in Ukraine
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