Mark, age 14, lives in Saltivka, a neighborhood in Kharkiv, Ukraine, that has been devastated by constant shelling. His parents sent him to camp last summer to keep him safe for a week. He arrived distant, hurting, and unimpressed that the camp was Christian. He argued with his leaders about the existence of God, and the week passed with tension and resistance. However, the leaders were not combative. They came alongside him and showed him how to follow Jesus. On the final evening of camp, as the worship team sang quietly about God’s nearness, something broke open inside him. Afterward, Mark pulled his leader aside and whispered through tears he couldn’t explain, “I’m not an atheist. It’s impossible to be one when there’s so much of God around.” That moment changed everything as he experienced the love of Jesus for himself. Mark began attending teen ministry, serving in church, and inviting others to come.
