VYACHESLAV MIKHAILOVICH TSVIRINKO WENT TO BE WITH THE LORD
 The former Chairman of the Pacific Coast Slavic Baptist Association, Vyacheslav Mikhailovich Tsvirinko, was called home by the Lord, to His eternal abode, on August 26. We mourn with his family over this loss, but we rejoice that his suffering is over, that he is with the Lord.
Vyacheslav Mikhailovich was a servant dedicated to the Lord, who did a lot of useful things during his service as Chairman of the Association. Read more in the article by I. Mileev. The obituary can be found here. Information about the funeral and broadcast services will be given later on the website and on the Association’s Facebook page.
UPCOMING 85TH ANNUAL PCSBA ANNUAL CONVENTION
 The 85th PCSBA annual convention will take place on October 27 and 28 at the Second Slavic Baptist Church at 6601 Watt Ave, North Highlands, CA 95660. The theme of the convention is “In the Unity of Generations.” The Association’s president, I. Mileyev, requests everyone to pray for God’s blessing in the process of convention preparation and for the convention itself, and invites everyone to be a part of it. Read his article here.
DATE CHANGE FOR THE YOUTH FORUM
On August 3, there was another Zoom meeting for the chairmen of the four Baptist Associations and leaders of the youth departments, where they were discussing the youth forum, “Connect-24 Gatherings.” Because of the magnitude of the event and the required preparation time, they decided to change the forum’s date to April 2025. Please pray that the Lord would bless the preparation process and help in resolving any issues or spiritual questions related to this event.
NEW LEADER OF THE YOUTH DEPARTMENT
 In an urgent meeting of the Association’s executive committee which took place on July 20, Eugene Kamyshov was appointed as the new leader of the youth ministry in the Association. For years, he was the assistant of Peter Makletsov, who entrusted to him this ministry.
We are thankful to Peter for his zealous ministry, organization, and creating a unified team of youth leaders and developing the youth ministry. It was Peter’s decision to step down from ministry and entrust his ministry to his assistant. After getting to know Eugene, the committee members unanimously voted in support of this candidate. In addition, A. Pronin, who is the vice president of the Association, was appointed as the spiritual counselor for the youth department.
May God abundantly bless Eugene and his family in ministry, as well as every leader of the youth department. The youth ministry continues to be a priority for the leadership of the Association. I. Mileyev..
PURCHASE OF A BUILDING FOR THE SPRING OF LIFE CHURCH IN SOUTH CAROLINA
Earlier this year, in May, the newly-established “Spring of Life” Church in Anderson, South Carolina, which became part of our Association, was asking us to help them in their need, both to pray and help financially to purchase a church building.
The Lord helped them to do just that! Praise Him for that! Read the details here (in Russian only.)
GOD DOES INCREDIBLE WORK!
God has done incredible work at the Cornerstone Church! Eleven people who were never affiliated with any church and who had faint ideas about a God who seemed to be so far away, while entering into a covenant with the Lord were sharing about how they came to Christ in fellowship with the believers who helped them on their difficult path, who supported them, and shared the Gospel with them. Then three more people in the audience expressed their desire to follow Jesus. Read more here (in Russian only.)
New church members
CONFERENCE FOR PASTORS OF PCSBA
On August 19, Bryte Church hosted a special meeting for the ministers of the Association. About 50 ministers came from various churches. There were two instructors: Willie Dyker (Germany) who is a representative of the International Evangelism Association, and Vitaliy Sorokun (Ukraine), who is the chairman of Burnham Ministries International. They taught wonderful seminars on the topic of discipleship and mentorship. Read more details here (in Russian only.) Workshop recordings are available here:
During Willie Dyker’s seminar
THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE OF PCSBA AND THE MINISTRY LEADERSHIP
 The topic of leadership is always important. It is especially important in church and Association leadership. A. Ivanov, one of the members of the Executive Committee of PCSBA, who is also the head pastor of The House of Gospel Church in Fresno, talks about this in an interview with a member of the Association’s Information Ministry, S. Iotko. Read more details here (in Russian only.)
TRAINING OF MENTORS
On August 14-18, Bryte Church had training courses about a special resource which is instrumental in preparing future mentors, as well as how to practically work with those who just came to Christ. The courses were taught by Willie Dyker, who is a pastor-teacher with over 30 years of experience in preaching the Gospel and serving in Germany. The foundation for the courses is a rich experience of many evangelists, especially of Billie Hanks. More details are available in an article by I. Zuyev (in Russian only.)
BE FIRM IN THE FAITH!
On July 6-9, Grace Avenue Bible Church, Living Stones Baptist Church, and House of Gospel Church had their youth camp at beautiful Rollins Lake, California. The theme of the camp was: “Be Firm in Your Faith,” and the speaker was Igor Zhukov, who is a pastor of family counseling. For more about the camp, read an article by E. Belous (in Russian only.)
LEARN TO FOLLOW JESUS!
Over 120 children ages 6 to 12, including children of recent refugees, were able to be at Grace Avenue Bible Church’s day camps. Over the course of three days they learned what it means to follow Jesus: “Don’t take your eyes off of Jesus, who leads you in your faith, and continues to grow it to perfection.” (Hebrews 12:1) For more, read an article by S. Iotko (in Russian only.)
Here's how many of us came!
SUMMER CAMPS AT THE TRANSFIGURATION CHURCH
Summer at the Transfiguration Church has been very productive. They had evangelism and partnered with the Bible museum on wheels, The Bible Truck, they had a block party, and then the entire church had a four-day church camp where they had a time of rest and fellowship, but also where they edified one another through the wisdom of the Scriptures. More information here (in Russian only.)
During the camp
“TRUST” CAMP FOR CHILDREN WITH SPECIAL NEEDS
On June 30 – July 4, the ministry to children with special needs had a camp in Minneapolis. There is an interesting backstory to this camp, which started in 2018. Read more about it in an article by S. Iotko on the Association’s website (in Russian only.)
Children, parents, and camp staff for ministry to children with special needs
MEN’S RETREAT OF THE HOUSE OF GOSPEL CHURCH
On July 28-30, the House of Gospel Church in Fresno, CA had their men’s retreat for those who are 15 and older. The camp was in the nearby mountains of Fresno. The purpose of the camp was to give the men an opportunity to be spiritually enriched, but also to rest, and to have a time of fellowship. For more information – read an article by A. Ivanov, pastor of the church (in Russian only.)
Time of rest and spiritual growth
ANNUAL WOMEN’S GALA DINNER
On August 12, Bryte Church had an annual Ladies Gala Night, which was attended by about 110 women from more than 15 churches and represented more than 20 various ministries. For more information – read an article by I. Bondar (in Russian only.)
Women of service
PACIFIC THRIFT STORE: “WE ARE SELLING EVERYTHING!”
The ministry of Pacific Thrift Store in Sacramento continues! The store is accepting any items that you do not need and are in good condition. The store’s profits are directed towards ministry in Europe. A member of the Information Department of PCSBA, Svetlana Iotko, visited the store and interviewed the staff. Read her interview here.
In the store
MISSIONARY NEWS
EVANGELISTIC SUMMER CAMPS IN POLAND
A group of 13 youth from Grace Family Church partnered with the local Warsaw church and our missionary family, the Sheremet family, organized two camps in Warsaw and Torun. The majority of the children were from non-Christian families, and surprisingly, the program was engaging not only for the children, but also for their parents as well. For more details, read a letter by Joseph Sheremet (in Russian only) and an article by a pastor of the teens and children’s ministry, Andrey Kobzar.
One of the camps in Poland
CAMPS FOR WIDOWS AND ORPHANS IN UKRAINE
Together with other churches, as well as Connect International mission, a team from the Second Slavic Baptist Church in Sacramento were able to serve on a short-term missions trip to Ukraine to organize family camps for widows and orphans. Hundreds of people experienced Christ’s call and responded in following Him. The first camp was on June 23-30, and the second on July 1-16 in the beautiful Lviv region, Stara Sil on the Zaltsbog base. Both camps were in Ukrainian. For more details, read here.
During the camp for widows and orphans
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