Every detail in God’s hands
Amika Illyna, one of the leaders of the Day Centre ministry, unexpectedly found herself in charge of the church camps at Blagodatne and Korobivka this summer, as a combination of illness, work commitments and military call-ups left others unable to take on the responsibility.
Despite initially feeling a little overwhelmed, Amika trusted God to show her what to do, and was able to say at the end that all the camps had been a great blessing. “I was really worried,” she says. “I had no idea how to put it all together. I prayed, and the pastor reminded me that the Lord knows everything and plans everything. He told me, ‘Don't worry, rely on the Lord.’ I prayed all the time, and the Lord blessed me.”
Amika has several examples of how God answered her prayers and provided all that was needed for the camps to run smoothly. First some other adults in the church were able to take time off work, which gave her a trusted team to work with. Then others stepped up to help with logistics.
“When the war started, many new people came to our church, and these people are now involved in the camps,” she explains. “One lady came with her husband to help me with the shopping, to stock up for camps. My brother came from Kyiv and he helped with driving, as I couldn’t use our car. And when we went to the shops, there was a sale on the videos that we needed, so we could buy them much more cheaply; if they had been at full price, we wouldn’t have been able to buy them. That is how the Lord arranged everything and found the right people.”
During the week of camp at Blagodatne, there were the usual day-to-day issues for Amika and her team to deal with, but the biggest challenge came at the end. On the Thursday evening, a huge thunderstorm left the whole village without electricity. It felt like a disaster - yet once again God proved himself faithful. “Friday was the last day of the camp and everyone was waiting, not knowing if there would be a day of camp or not, because there was no electricity in the village and people couldn’t call each other,” she shares. “I made my way to the church wondering if the children would come at all. And then, more children came than on the first day, even though there was no electricity! Praise the Lord!”
Amika was also excited to see how one of her non-Christian friends (a refugee who came to Blagodatne after being displaced by the war), was drawn into helping with the camps. She offered her services as a photographer and captured pictures and videos of all the fun activities the children were doing; and Amika has no doubt that this was all part of how God is at work in her friend’s life. “She has not become a Christian yet, but the Lord is working on it, and I know that in the future she will become a member of our church.”
Amika’s story is a powerful testimony of God’s faithful provision in all circumstances. He answered prayers and made every detail fall into place, turning her worries into blessings. As she herself says, “The Lord always acts and always supports. We praise Him for everything.”
