Almost a dozen children and teens raced down a muddy, rutted alley to attend an early evening Christian worship service. They chatted and laughed as they came, some kicking around a soccer ball before they climbed a crumbling concrete-and-metal outside staircase to the second floor of the ministry centre. It’s an uncommon scene in this part of the country of Georgia where most residents are from an ethnic minority that has traditionally been opposed to the Gospel.

One of the leaders among the teens is a 15-year-old girl who received a shoebox gift when she was 6. Ketevan* remembers a few of the things that were in the box—pencils, a toothbrush, and gloves, which were her favourite. “We usually don’t have snow, but it gets cold in the winter,” she said. “I was very happy when I opened this box. I love gifts and was so happy to get this one.” The gift opened the door to a relationship with the missionaries from Korea who gave it to her.

Ketevan started going to the mission centre on Sundays and hearing more about Jesus. She recalls that one time the discussion was about the end of the world. “I cried and prayed,” she said. “That day, I decided I wanted to believe Jesus, and I wanted to live for His will and be a Christian. I said, ‘God, I don’t want to be a slave of Satan, I want to follow You.’”

She has noticed changes in her attitude since that day. Before she received Jesus, she would say bad things to other people and fight with friends, even when she was at the ministry centre. She said, “Sometimes my schoolmates call me bad words because I believe in Jesus, but we pray for them, because I know that if I were not a believer, I would live like they’re living.”

Praying for Spiritual Change

Ketevan refers to Dennis as “teacher.” He has been a missionary and church planter in this part of the world for 21 years, though he is from Korea. He learnt of Operation Christmas Child when he was working in another country. In Georgia, he gives out 300 to 500 shoebox gifts each year as he tries to reach children and their families with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. “I really think Samaritan’s Purse shoeboxes have been great to reach the kids,” he said.

Before distributing any shoeboxes, Dennis will first go to a village and determine how many children are there. Then he begins planning the outreach event, which includes fun activities and a presentation of the Gospel. As a church planter, he knows that if even one family decides to follow Christ, there’s hope that God can start a church in that village. If after receiving a shoebox the children—or their parents—want to learn more about Jesus, someone from the team follows up.

It’s not an easy job. The predominant religion in this area is intertwined with every part of people’s lives. The community is not open to outside people or ideas. That’s one reason for intermarriages within the community. When they’re only 15 or 16 years old, young people often prepare to marry cousins. Dennis says that in many immigrant communities, the people try to learn the Georgian language, but this particular group isolates themselves within the country. “We need the power of the Spirit of freedom to actually free them from this community and culture,” Dennis said. “But only through the Gospel is this possible.”

Among this group, it is hard for new Christians—especially young people—to grow in their faith after they receive the Lord. Sometimes parents stop them from being discipled before they reach that point of maturity.

Everyone knows that Dennis is teaching about Jesus, and they see the mission house as sort of a weekend school. He said, “We made a name for the group of students—YBTJ (Youth Back to Jesus). We encourage the kids to do worship at school. They are allowed, but we didn’t necessarily teach them how.” Several missionary kids attend local schools, and they model Christian worship for the local students.

Dennis has been praying for at least one local believer to rise up and become a spark for spiritual change in Georgia. “I’ve been praying that that person will be one of the youth,” he said.

Maybe that person will be Ketevan. She boldly shares her faith with friends; some of them are coming to the meetings at the centre, too.

Her dream for the future is to go to different countries and share about Jesus. And she has a prayer request: “We want to have a revival in Georgia. YBTJ is a group of children who go to schools and pray. We do this three times a week: We go to a schoolyard and pray. We pray for our schools that more children will know Jesus and that our schoolmates will join our prayers. I want to have 7,000 of these groups in Georgia.”

“Let no one despise your youth, but be an example to the believers in word, in conduct, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity” (1 Timothy 4:12).

* Name changed for security reasons.