Prayer focus

THANK YOU, GOD

• For the CCI/Ukraine CampDays Annual Conference (May 15–18), where 150 camp leaders from 55 camps gathered, for safety amid ongoing threats, a strong atmosphere, and a clear desire among camp leaders to learn. The event included training tracks for counselors, program leaders, camp directors, and sports instructors.
• For CCI/Georgia, where most of the Annual Staff Training Workshop (STW) program for camp leaders is now ready. Only a few final rehearsals remain next week for the opening and closing sessions.
• For CCI/Country X, for distributing literature and interacting with people during the Bible Day celebration marking the anniversary of Bible translation into the language of Country X and its minority languages. The event brought together 1,023 visitors, with 32 churches participating in its organisation.

ACTIVITIES

• This week, CCI/Ukraine is drawing together facts and data to create an honest picture of the ministry and where we stand today. This will serve as the foundation for a strategy for the next three years.
• CCI/Georgia continues work on STW administration, catering arrangements, and maintenance across the STW site.
• CCI/Country X and other volunteers are meeting with Samaritan’s Purse leadership this week. Discussions focus on customs clearance and next steps.
• CCI/Armenia is holding a meeting on Saturday with 14 Sunday school teachers in preparation for June 1, National Children’s Day. 

INTERCESSION

• Please continue to pray for God’s protection over Ukraine amid Russia’s ongoing missile and drone attacks. On the day we were leaving for the CCI/Ukraine CampDays Annual Conference last week, close to 1,500 drones and missiles were launched across Ukraine. Some of us travelled to the train station while explosions were happening nearby.
• Please pray for strong registration and attendance for the CCI/Georgia STW (June 3–6).
• Ask God that the Samaritan’s Purse gift boxes for children in Country X would be cleared without customs fees.
• Thank God for protecting Oleg, Andriy, and Maxim—the husbands of our CCI/Ukraine staff Oksana, Dasha, and Jenya—this past week as they serve near the war’s front line. Pray for their continued health and safety. Pray for Andriy’s recovery and for the full restoration of his leg’s function after he was wounded at the front line a month ago.
• With the sharp increase in Russian missile and drone attacks on Kyiv and many homes destroyed, please pray, as God reminds you, for God’s protection over our Kyiv staff Oksana and Pavlo, their families and homes, and the CCI/Ukraine office located in a residential area.

FROM THE MISSION FIELD

While our CCI/Ukraine team is travelling home today from the CampDays leadership training conference completed yesterday, and before our scheduled review of the feedback and evaluation forms, we felt it would be a good moment to share a few participant responses from this year’s CCI/Ukraine training events.

Participant responses:

“Youth ministry often feels like separate projects, but here I saw that God works with generations, not isolated events.”

“The pressure we face in the field is real, yet I now see these limitations as spaces where God can grow us.”

“My role is not only to run programms, but to guide young people toward a hopeful future with care and clarity.”

“I realised that strong expectations alone can harm a child, but patient guidance opens a way forward.”

“The training helped me understand Generation Alpha and today’s digital youth in a more practical way.”

“I see now that trust-based relationships matter more than managing behaviour.”

“Sports can carry biblical truth when used with intention, not just as entertainment.”

“The new tools, games, and interactive methods give structure to how we reach teenagers today.”

“These approaches help me respond to the real challenges young people face in our time.”

“I felt alone in my struggles before this conference, but now I see I am part of a wider community.”

“This gathering gave me strength to continue in ministry when I felt weary.”

“I return home with new ideas, but also with renewed energy to serve the next generation.”

“This time felt like a breath of fresh air that reminded me our work is not in vain.”