SLAVIC GOSPEL ASSOCIATION

Celebrating Christmas For Orphans

More Than 4,700 Orphan Children Across the Former Soviet Union to Receive Gifts

(LOVES PARK, ILLINOIS) — Once again, partners of Loves Park, Illinois-based Slavic Gospel Association joyfully participated in this year’s Christmas for Orphans outreach across the former Soviet Union. Their generous giving is making it possible for evangelical churches in seven countries to reach more than 4,700 orphan children with the life-changing Gospel of Jesus Christ. During the scheduled outreach events, faithful church workers will distribute to each child a wrapped gift for their very own, Russian-language Christian children’s literature, and other much-needed items such as warm clothing or toiletries.

According to Eric Mock, SGA vice president of ministry operations, Christmas for Orphans outreaches are being held in the nations of Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Armenia. The participating churches will be holding their outreaches between December 25 — the traditional Christmas observance here in North America — through January 7, when Christmas is observed in Russian-speaking countries. “These gifts will be purchased overseas and distributed by local churches as part of their Christmas celebration,” said Mock. “These gifts are typically the only presents these lonely, forgotten children receive, and it makes a lasting impression when they receive such loving care through God’s people. It opens the door for the churches to conduct further ministry down the road.”

A great example of the impact of Christmas for Orphans came from Galina Shashkova, who wrote to report the results of last year’s ministry in Volgodonsk, Russia . . .

“We visited a new orphanage in Bolshaya Martinovka. A sister from the church in Volgodonsk moved there and is serving the Lord in that village. They had been praying about an opportunity for us to visit a local orphanage for many months, but the director of the orphanage wouldn’t give her consent. We came with gifts and a special Christmas show. The children seated themselves around the stage and were totally enraptured by the performance — even the director herself was absorbed by it. After the show and the Christian Christmas songs, we were surrounded by the staff and they wouldn’t let us go. They wanted soundtracks and the words to the songs. They wanted us to come again. We pray that we might now start serving orphans in that town with the help of the Lord.”