Testimony
Sam Wright
Kerch Kids at Alushta Camp
Sevastopol City Kids Camp
Inkerman Camp
Balaclava Outreaches
The
Spirit
of
the
Lord
is
on
me,
because
he
has
annointed
me
to
preach
the
good
news
to
the
poor.
He
has
sent
me
to
proclaim
freedom
for
the
prisoners and recovery of sight for the bling, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor. Luke 4:18
Saturday, 28 June
Wow
it’s
so
wonderful
to
finally
make
it
back
to
Ukraine
and
to
see
our
team
leaders,
Rich
and
Vitalik.
The
long
flights
over
here
went
well
(Praise
God)
and
I
somewhat
got
to
know
my
two
American
teammates
-
they’re
incredible
women
and
I
cannot
wait
to
see
how
God
uses
us
on
this
trip.
We
already
found
out
that
the
plans
are
different
and
that
our
final
destination
has
slightly
changed
(we
thought
we
were
going
to
Kerch,
but
now
are
going
to
a
small
town
called
Alushta),
but
I
think
-
or
KNOW
-
that
it’s
still
going
to
be
a
fantastic
ministry.
Now,
we’re
waiting at the train station and will soon begin this amazing journey.
Sunday, 6 July
What
an
amazing
first
week!
There’s
so
much
to
tell,
but
to
write
it
all
down
would
fill
the
pages
of
a
Steinbeck
novel!
God
has
given
our
team such remarkable unity, and has definitely begun to change these orphans’ lives.
We
(Vitalik
and
us
three
Americans)
arrived
at
the
camp
Sunday
night
and
found
the
conditions
to
be,
as
Vitalik
stated,
“awkward”,
and
this
“awkwardness”
continued
through
the
week.
We
sometimes
had
water,
sometimes
not,
sometimes
had
a
place
to
shower,
sometimes
not…but
these
were
minor
setbacks
(if
you
can
even
call
them
“setbacks”)
when
our
goal
is
glorifying
God
and
sharing
the
good
news
with
these
precious children. It forces us to rely solely on God for our comforts.
The
other
seven
Ukrainian
team
members
arrived
Monday
around
noon-ish
with
all
of
the
children
from
the
Kerch
Internot.
It
was
so
good
to
meet the team and see the children that we’d be living with and ministering to for the next two weeks.
There
is
little
to
no
help
from
the
camp
workers
trying
to
set
up
scheduling
for
our
programs.
The
first
day
of
ministry,
after
constantly
being
told
we
couldn’t
perform
our
program
because
the
children
were
“busy”,
we
finally
just
took
the
team
out
into
the
hall
and
began
singing
songs.
After
a
few
songs,
a
couple
of
children
started
to
gather
to
listen
and
watch
and
a
few
of
the
brave
ones
even
participated.
We
did
our
entire
program
with
maybe
only
ten
kids,
but
I
knew
that
even
if
we
only
shared
the
Gospel
with
ten
kids
during
this
trip,
that
it
was
totally
worth coming.
Throughout
the
week
God
really
answered
our
prayers
and
we
began
to
see
the
number
of
kids
attending
the
programs
increased.
And
with
that,
we
started
to
see
changes
in
the
kids
-
more
openness,
better
behaviors,
more
participation…and
saw
a
change
in
the
older
kids
and
those
that
weren’t
coming
every
day
to
see
us
do
our
program.
They
would
tend
to
walk
slowly
past
us
during
our
programs
and
try
to
catch
what
we
were saying as they passed
(but pretend not to be interested) or juggle a soccer ball within hearing distance, again acting as if they didn’t care. God is truly working here.
Today
we
had
a
church
service
and
invited
the
kids
-
we
actually
had
more
children
attend
this
than
have
a
tendency
to
come
to
our
programs.
At
the
end
of
the
service,
for
reasons
I’m
still
not
sure
of,
one
of
the
boys
I
am
very
close
to
(his
name
is
Artome)
leaned
over
and
began
to
cry
on my leg. We sat there for maybe ten minutes just weeping together. I can see that the Holy Spirit is doing powerful things in this boy’s heart.
We’re
now
over
half
way
done
with
this
camp,
and
way
excited
to
see
the
miracles
God
performs
in
the
last
four
days
of
ministry.
Our
God
is
an awesome God.
Friday, 11 July
So…we’re
finished…and
wow,
we
went
out
with
quite
a
bang.
The
power
of
prayer
is
incredible
and
we
truly
saw
God’s
sovereignty
this
past
week.
When
I
get
home,
I
know
that
I
won’t
be
able
to
describe
the
experiences
that
I’ve
had
to
my
friends
because
they
won’t
understand.
Even writing them down doesn’t do the miracles justice.
The
easiest
sign
to
physically
see
that
God
was
working
in
the
lives
of
the
kids
was
the
number
attending
programs.
I
mentioned
in
the
last
entry
that
we
started
out
ministering
to
about
ten
kids…by
the
last
few
days
of
our
programs
we
were
presenting
the
good
news
of
Jesus
Christ
to
40
or
50
kids!!
The
increase
is
phenomenal
and
certainly
has
not
come
about
by
simply
human
works.
Also
the
kids
were
more
inclined
to
participate in skits, songs, crafts, and even in prayer. This is a great testament to the work God was doing through us.
It
was
very
difficult
leaving
the
children.
Last
night,
many
of
the
children
whom
we
were
close
to
held
tightly
onto
us
until
late
into
the
night
and
cried
and
cried.
They
didn’t
want
to
see
us
go
and
return
to
their
normal
(very
difficult)
lives.
Though
I
do
not
know
how
many
of
the
children
we
ministered
to
accepted
Christ
while
we
were
here,
I
know
that
over
the
past
two
weeks,
we
have
planted
seeds
that
in
time,
God
will help to sprout and bear fruit. It was incredible the miracles we witnessed in these precious lives.
Saturday, 19 July
Well…another
week
down
and
very
new
and
different
experiences.
This
was
an…interesting
week.
Not
better
or
worse
than
any
of
the
other
ministries
-
just
different.
This
week
I
was
in
a
city
called
Sevastopol
working
at
a
Christian
camp
put
on
by
a
church
that
has
connections
with
“The
Least
of
These”.
The
team
was
comprised
of
members
from
the
church
(two
of
whom
I
had
worked
with
from
camp
Gorney
last
year),
several members of a different “The Least of These” team, and me and one of my teammates from Alushta, Serge.
This
camp
was
very
difficult
for
me
to
help
out.
Because
this
was
a
Christian
camp,
and
because
I
don’t
know
the
language,
I
could
not
help
lead
the
Bible
times,
couldn’t
really
participate
in
many
skits,
couldn’t
lead
prayer.
I
ended
up
being
more
crowd
control
than
anything.
But
despite that, I know that God used me simply to show the kids how to live life in the joy of the Lord.
More
than
anything,
I
believe
God
used
this
trip
for
my
own
maturation.
The
circumstances
that
we
were
in
weren’t
always
easy
-
we
had
to
walk
to
and
from
almost
everywhere
(to
the
point
where
my
feet
would
have
bloody
sores
on
them
from
my
tennis
shoes),
we
had
food
MOST
of
the
time
but
sometimes
went
hungry,
the
kids
were
very
physically
and
emotional
taxing,
the
church
flooded…so
all
of
this
added
up
fast.
But
at
the
end
I
realized
that
none
of
it
was
all
that
bad.
It
required
me
to
turn
to
God
for
strength
-
it
helped
me
trust
in
Him
that
everything
was
going
fine
and
there
is
nothing
that
I
can’t
handle
with
my
God
giving
me
strength.
I
noticed
that
I
began
to
pray
more,
meditate
on
His
word more, and just live in a more godly way. It’s strange how God works.
So
right
now,
Serge
and
I
am
traveling
by
train
to
the
next
camp
-
this
one
is
in
Inkermann,
a
village
in
Sevastopol
(I
guess
you
could
call
it
a
suburb
almost),
and
we’ll
be
sleeping
in
tents
for
the
week!
It’s
good
that
God’s
been
preparing
me
to
trust
in
Him
for
my
strength
because
I’m
deducing we’ll have no toilet, shower, or running water! But I know it’ll be a fantastic ministry.
Sunday, 27 July
Oh
my
goodness…God
is
good,
all
the
time,
and
all
the
time,
God
is
good.
This
week
of
ministry
was
absolutely
incredible.
So
much
happened
during
this
week,
that
I
don’t
even
know
where
to
begin
writing
down
my
thoughts.
We
reached
so
many
kids
and
saw
so
many
lives
being changed that I am astounded at the power of God.
Yet
again,
this
camp
(9:00
am
-
5:00
pm)
was
extremely
taxing
physically,
mentally,
emotionally…but
we
were
given
so
much
strength
to
push
onwards
through
God.
We
partnered
with
a
church
in
Sevastopol,
and
between
those
30-some
people
and
the
8
“Least
of
These”
team
members,
God
used
us
to
reach
almost
120
children!
Not
only
that,
we
had
numerous
parents
calling
or
coming
to
the
camp
to
figure
out
who
we
were,
or
what
we
were
doing
that
made
their
child
so
happy
when
he/she
would
return
home
in
the
evening.
We
saw
a
progression
of
behavior in these kids from day 1 through day 6 that was only possible by the grace of God.
The
kids
were
somewhat
“stand-offish”
the
first
day,
but
by
the
second
and
third,
were
very
open
and
we
started
to
get
glimpses
into
what
their
lives
were
like.
Many
of
them
came
from
families
with
only
one
parent
or
an
abusive
situation.
Those
kids
came
to
us
with
deep
pain
in
their
eyes,
but
while
with
us,
we
started
to
see
a
new
glow;
a
new
joy
that
they
began
to
receive
from
seeing
God.
It
was
so
neat
to
see
this
change.
By
the
end
of
the
camp,
there
were
a
number
of
the
kids
calling
different
team
members
“Mama”
and
“Papa”.
This
was,
in
one
sense
encouraging
to
see
that
we
(or
God
through
us)
were
able
to
affect
them
so
drastically
in
such
a
short
period
of
time,
but
on
the
other
side,
sad
to
realize
that
they
didn’t
necessarily
have
any
sort
of
encouraging
“Mama”
or
“Papa”
to
return
home
to.
I
can
only
pray
that
as
they
left
camp
for
the
last
time
last
night,
that
someday
the
seeds
that
we
planted
will
one
day
bear
fruit,
and
that
they
may
find
God
to
be
their
“Heavenly
Papa”.
So I have one week left to go (wow it’s gone by fast), and I can’t wait to see what miracles God performs these last days of ministry.
Saturday, 2 August
I
regret
to
write
that
I’m
finally
on
the
plane
heading
home,
but
it
is
what
it
is.
The
last
week
of
ministry
was
one
of
the
most
inspiring,
one
of
the
most
powerful,
and
one
of
the
most
humbling
weeks
of
my
life
thus
far.
As
I
have
written
many
times
before
in
this
journal,
it’s
truly
impossible to describe the feelings I have or the experiences I’ve been in throughout this past week…but I’ll do my best.
We
traveled
back
into
Sevastopol
to
do
ministry
in
one
small
orphanage
(only
about
15
children)
and
in
a
park
in
Balaclava
(a
smaller
town
just
outside
Sevastopol).
However
by
Tuesday,
we
began
a
third
ministry
in
a
apartment
complex’s
courtyard
type
area
(if
that
makes
sense),
also
in
Balaclava.
We
stayed
in
an
apartment
high-rise
of
a
women
connected
with
“The
Least
of
These”.
We
would,
in
the
morning
before
our
first
ministry
(at
the
orphanage),
prepare
a
program
and
crafts
for
all
three
of
the
places.
At
10:00
we
would
leave
for
the
orphanage,
at
2:30
we
would go to Balaclava for the second program, and then directly to the third by 6:00 (these were long days).
Working
with
the
orphan
children
was
amazing.
They’re
so
beautiful
and
were
fairly
open
to
us
even
by
the
end
of
the
first
day.
It
was
so
cool
to
see
the
teachers
of
these
children
sit
down
with
them
during
our
programs
and
sing
the
songs
and
listen
to
the
message.
Usually
these
directors
look
down
upon
Christian
teaching,
so
it
was
a
real
blessing
for
them
to
be
so
positive.
We
also
saw
God
perform
a
miracle
in
bringing
a
boy
that
we
had
ministered
to
in
Inkermann
to
this
orphanage.
He
had
stolen
two
cell
phones
from
Vitalik
and
was
in
need
of
forgiveness.
The
day
he
was
brought
to
the
orphanage
was
the
day
we
were
doing
the
program
about
forgiveness.
It’s
amazing
how
God
works,
even
if
the
situation
seems
bad.
This
young
boy
was
really
searching
for
God
and
was
brought
to
us
a
second
time
for
us
to
show
him
answers.
As his life goes into a chaotic spiral now (with being thrown into the orphanage system), God was able to show him a way out of his pain.
The
other
two
ministries
in
Balaclava
were
also
phenomenal.
The
earlier
of
the
two,
we
saw
persecution
by
the
Ukrainian
police
and
by
several
women
living
in
the
apartment
complex.
Instead
of
dashing
our
ministry,
we
were
able
to
show
the
love
of
Jesus
not
only
to
the
children,
but
also
to
the
persecutors,
by
the
way
we
were
able
to
handle
the
harassment.
God’s
glory
was
shown
even
in
the
midst
of
turbulent
waters. Praise God!! And the latter of the two Balaclava ministries went very smoothly and the kids were open and embracing of the truth.
Sitting
here
on
the
plane
writing
this
and
reading
about
all
of
the
situations
I’ve
gone
through,
I
can
say
without
a
shadow
of
a
doubt
that
this
was
one
of
the,
if
not
the
most
impacting
times
of
my
life.
I
witnessed
miracles
being
done
left
and
right,
saw
children’s
lives
being
significantly
changed,
found
joy
in
the
times
of
persecution,
and
through
it
all,
was
able
to
grow
emotionally,
mentally,
and
most
importantly
spiritually.
It
will
be
very
challenging
returning
home
and
not
being
able
to
describe
to
my
friends
this
remarkable
trip
I’ve
been
a
part
of.
Even
if
they
do
ask
about
my
stories,
they
will
not
be
able
to
comprehend
the
miraculous
happenings
that
took
place
because
they
weren’t
a
part
of
them.
On
the
other
hand,
this
trip
equipped
me
to
resist
temptations
and
rely
on
God
in
any
incident,
good
or
bad,
and
with
this
newly
strengthened behavior, I am confident that I’m not finished with my ministry…but that I’m just starting it!
I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow.
So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything,
but only God who makes things grow.
The man who plants and the man who waters have one purpose,
and each will be rewarded according to his own labor.
For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, God’s building.
~1 Corinthians 3:6-9
