It's hard to believe but there is only one day of camp left. Friday morning they will pack up and leave. At first we were all concerned that a camp would last 10 full days with two half days for travel. It seemed like being forced to sprint the distance of a marathon. Now we can see that it has been worth it. It took 6 or 7 days to really connect with some of the campers to the point that they would open up to us. We have had most of our significant discussions over the past couple days.
Dirk can now consider himself an international recording artist. Two nights ago we had a concert with Dirk as the headline act. They wanted it to be retro rock and roll so he rewrote the lyrics to some classic rock songs. In the end he only played a handful of the songs but it sounded great. They even recorded one of the songs and we heard it playing later through the sound system. He has really reached out in a pastoral/fatherly way to many of the younger campers. They really esteem musicians, which helps, but I think they can see that he really cares for them.
Vadim, one of the regional pastors and the camp speaker this year, gave a clear gospel presentation the other night and invited people to come forward to repent (the main phrase the Russian believers use to refer to placing your faith in Christ for salvation). It seemed like more than 20 campers came forward. Obviously we never know if this was simply an emotional moment for them or a whole hearted commitment to Christ that will last a lifetime. Only time will tell. Still, it was awesome to see so many young hearts making a profession of faith. One of the reasons we enjoy this partnership is that we know the churches here are committed to following up with this campers over the next year. They will try very hard not to let any slip through the cracks after they return home. Please pray that their professions of faith would bear genuine fruit in their lives.
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