Salvation Church recently celebrated thanksgiving for the harvest. Although there is no direct evidence in the New Testament that a thanksgiving as such was celebrated, still it is always appropriate to thank God for physical and spiritual blessings. The message that we heard from the preachers, the singers and the recitations of children reminded all those at the service of the countless blessings that we continually receive from God, and of the need for fruit in our earthly lives, for which we will have to give account before the Creator.

At the end of the summer, August 24-26 in Melitopol the international floorball tournament SKALA SUMMER CUP 2012 was held. Our team, the Poltava «Biters», was there. We were able to prove ourselves worthy of the honor and demonstrated a high level of preparation.

Have you heard of cause and effect relationships? For example when you were a child and you broke a vase, you got a punishment. Or when you teased the neighbor's dog and had to get away quick when he got angry. Of course these are trivial, childish stories but they show that we have to answer for our every action, word and even thought. Everything we do has its consequences ...

P!XelsPoltava has returned from the open Ukrainian championship tournament for Ultimate Frisbee. The competition was attended by 16 teams from Russia, Belarus, Moldova, and of course, Ukraine, where we finished in 13th place :) In fact, that's not too bad for a team as "green" as ours.

We live in our church family and do not even know what interesting and talented people God has given us as brothers and sisters in Christ. Each of them is a bit like the Father in some way: some are more patient, some are more balanced, some can sing better, and some understand and interpret the Bible. With these differences we complement each other, serve each other and in this bright variety of gifts and talents we show the perfection of our Lord Jesus Christ.

How can the church respond effectively to the needs of society in the 21st century? How can we find a common language with our society? Is secular culture the enemy of the gospel? Or can it still be a tool for the proclamation of the Gospel?

These and other questions were discussed by participants at the festival "Without Walls", which was held for the third time now in Ukraine. This time it took place at Donetsk Christian University from August 24 to 26. Salvation church sent seven participants to the festival, which constituted the lion's share of the delegation from our region. Three more came from Kremenchug. In all, the festival attracted about 300 young people from all regions of Ukraine and from neighboring countries.

Education without God's guidance and blessing rarely brings true pleasure. Most of us went to school without much enthusiasm, or more likely, quite reluctantly. Some people don't even want to remember those years. And the vast majority can not recall even a third of the information of what they learned there. 

Undoubtedly, the memory of the intimidating the Soviet education system played a significant role in shaping our attitudes to learning. Even now, in times of democracy and freedom, it is difficult to change the attitude to the educational process that built up over a period of decades.

What's the worst pain? Most people will answer: "Toothache!" But if you think about it, there are other things that hurt worse than a toothache. How can you tell if someone is in pain? A grimace on the face, tears in the eyes, sweat on the forehead, and so on. But there is another kind of pain, where the eyes become vacant and the gaze becomes unfocused, where the heart becomes heavy, not from physical spasms, but from a hurting soul. Not many people talk about it out loud. Why? The answer is simple - no pharmacy has the medicine to treat this pain!

This was the name of the children's camp we conducted on the Vorskla river where the time just flew by. I say flew because the children were so enthusiastic about the full and interesting program that when we asked them what could be better about the camp, we got the answer that it was too short. Five days was not enough. And how many days would it take to get tired of a camp with loving teachers, with excellent facilities managers who made our life more comfortable, with the best chefs in a "five-star" kitchen, a camp with interesting games and sports, singing and socializing at the evening campfire, and just plain good atmosphere!?

Every teenager wants to become a man, to grow up. This is a good and natural desire. He imitates the attributes of adulthood that he sees around him. It's just that his environment is not always healthy, in which case his view of manhood is distorted. There is no need to go into detail concerning the errors that are part of these distorted views, but what they have in common is that the men who are deceived by them are unstable, uncomfortable to be around, and sometimes monstrous.