Kyrgyzstan (MNN)–A revolution in Kyrgyzstan two months ago paved the way for what will hopefully be a unifying election July 10th. There are nine presidential candidates vying for the presidential seat.
There is some concern that the election might divide the impoverished Central Asian country into south and north. More than that, neighboring countries, already struggling with stability, are watching the direction the people move.
Interserve’s Karen Dominguez says they’re watching the elections as well, with great anticipation. “We are actually hoping for a more open government that would be elected. The previous government was very open to Christian activity, as compared to other countries in the region. We are not expecting a change for the negative, we are actually hoping for a change for the better.”
In the current atmosphere, churches decided they were ready to work together in a unified approach to ministry for children.
Dominguez explains, “I went over there to teach English in a high school. The first weekend I got there, they were having this conference for churches of all denominations and I went to that and there were working groups and there was one who really wanted to start an inter-church camp.”
In Kyrgyzstan, the innercity is where the wealthy live, and the suburbs are where the poor are. In these outer reaches, teams teach English classes and German classes, ballet or whatever they can teach with someone who has expertise.
Some of them are actually taught by young people. It is using the youth center to help young people to reach out to the community. They also started an English club among other activities . From there grew the idea to work together, and in the course of related work, the camp grew.
In the four years since the launch of ‘Camp Adonai’, Dominguez says it has become a great evangelistic tool. She hopes that tradition will continue. “Close to 18-hundred children go through this camp, from the ages of 10 to 18. They study the Bible, and they have games and crafts and sports that are all coordinated with the daily themes. About 50-percent of are non-Christians. It’s exciting because more than half of them become Christians while they’re at camp.”
