Hillsong Kiev: Caring At Christmas [PHOTOS]
10 January, 2012
What a great time of the year this is - Christmas. In the post Soviet countries this was never a big celebration. Christmas was always in the shadow of another big holiday - New Year Eve...
But a few years ago we have decided that it is time to change that and put it in the right order. At least in our church. During this time we learned how to express extravagant giving, to serve more, to share the Good News more, especially with those who have less luck than us.
On Thursday, January 5 we held a special dinner for some of the poorest families in our city - as Christmas Eve in our country is celebrated on January, 6. There is an old custom in our culture (which was forgotten during Soviet era) to have a special Christmas dinner in a family circle. But we know that many people in our city are so lonely and so poor that they wouldn't have anything to eat at this Christmas. Thats why we as a church decided to do a small act of kindness and serve a special dinner for around 300 people.
Some of the people were presented from the Council of WW2 veterans (60 amazing elderly men and women - not many of them are still alive today). Some of the gipsy families said they did not have good food for months... All of them were absolutely surprised by the atmosphere of the night and could not believe that someone decorated the room, set the tables and beautifully served them great food with no expectations... As the result of the night 146 people prayed the prayer of Salvation and gave their hearts to Jesus.
It is truly a big privilege to be a blessing and it feels so good as a church to be able not just talk about Jesus, but to be His hands and feet.
Also it is good to realize once again - it does not take much to get people to respond to the message of Jesus. We all just need to act like Jesus - love people and truly care for them.
Zhenya Kasevich
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