What now seems like such a long time ago, the first PCSBA’s convention took place on October 12-14, 1928. It was there that there was a decision made to create a Union of Slavic Baptist churches. The first committee was also selected there with Nikolay Radionov as a committee’s leader.
Pretty soon the stores, streets, houses, and churches will be decorated for the Christmas. People will be preparing and anticipating this holiday. But how does one celebrate Christmas at the time of war? How are those who live in shadow of the unknown and constant danger, going to celebrate it?
PCSBA's September newsletter is available here: in Russian | in English.
The annual prayer breakfast of The Moms in Prayer Ministry, which usually happens at the beginning of a school year, took place on September 9 at the Second Slavic Baptist Church in Sacramento. Over a hundred women from various churches of PCSBA were able to attend this event.
Registration is now open for the 85th Convention, which will be held on October 27-28, 2023 at the Second Slavic Baptist Church of Sacramento
The church address is 6601 Watt Ave, North Highlands, CA 95660.
Registration is open for the new program: "CHURCH MINISTRY, DEGREE AA" IN ENGLISH
On August 17-20, The Living Stones Church of Sacramento had a three-day church camp. The theme of the camp was, “Rebooting your relationship with God”. Vladimir Omelchuk was the guest speaker from Irpen, Ukraine. Over the course of three days, we had an opportunity to meditate on the Word of God, and think about how important it is to have a personal relationship with God. The Bible is the revelation of God that is shedding light on the world that we live in. It helps us to understand His being, and our purpose as we discover our proper outlook on life. As an example, I would like to share a few key ideas that stood out the most to our members:
VIEWING - Thursday, September 7, 2023 from 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm, Boice Funeral Home at 308 Pollasky Ave, Clovis, CA 93612.
MEMORIAL SERVICE - Friday, September 8, 2023 from 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm at Trinity Community Church, 12168 N Willow Ave, Clovis, CA 93619
The live stream will be available at this link: https://trinitycc.com/live/.
PCSBA's August 2023 newsletter is available here: in Russian | in English.
In an urgent meeting of the Association’s executive committee which took place on July 20, Eugene Kamyshov was appointed as the new leader of the youth ministry in the Association. For years, he was the assistant of Peter Makletsov, who entrusted to him this ministry.
Vyacheslav Mikhailovich lived a long life, full of many interesting events. He was born in Belarus, in the city of Brest, on July 31, 1949. He was the first-born and the only son in the young family of Michael and Polina Tsvirinko, who ended up in Brest after the end of the II World War. There they met at a local Baptist church and got married in 1948.
The former Chairman of the Pacific Coast Slavic Baptist Association, Vyacheslav Mikhailovich Tsvirinko, was called home by the Lord, to His eternal abode, on August 26. We mourn with his family over this loss, but we rejoice that his suffering is over, that he is with the Lord.
Vyacheslav Mikhailovich was a servant dedicated to the Lord, who did a lot of useful things during his service as Chairman of the Association and left a good example for many to follow.I was gripped with great sorrow as I received a notification that a dear pastor, teacher, missionary, and a previous president of PCSBA, Vyacheslav Mikhailovich Tsvirinko is now with the Lord in the Paradise of God. Since 2016, he entrusted this ministry to me. While being a president over the past seven years, I came to Vyacheslav Tsvirinko to be counseled by him. I deeply treasure his experience in so many areas of ministry, as well as our close relationship together.
85th PCSBA of ECB’s convention will take place on October 27 and 28 at the Second Slavic Baptist Church in Sacramento, at 6601 Watt Ave, North Highlands, CA 95660. The theme of the convention is “In the Unity of Generations”. Text: “… He will restore the hearts of the fathers to their children and the hearts of the children to their fathers...” (Mal. 4:6.)
Along with other churches and Connect International mission, the Second Slavic Baptist Church in Sacramento were able to get involved in a short-term missions trip to Ukraine to organize two family camps for widows and orphans. Hundreds of people experienced the call of Christ and responded in submission to following Him.
The ministry of Pacific Thrift Store in Sacramento continues! The store is accepting any items that you do not need and are in good condition. The store’s profits are directed towards ministry in Europe. A member of the PCSBA’s Information Department, Svetlana Iotko, visited the store and interviewed the staff.
All Sunday School Principals, Teachers and Assistant Teachers are invited to the conference on September 30th, 2023 in Bryte Church.
PCSBA's July 2023 newsletter is available here: In Russian | in English.
It is a difficult task to proclaim to others about the Lord. It is a challenge to speak to people who are in a hurry, who are sometimes aggressive, and who don’t want to hear anything about eternity. Over the course of many years, Vasiliy Khripunov, along with his ever-changing team of preachers, has been proclaiming the Gospel on the streets of Sacramento, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and many other cities. They preach at the intersections to the homeless, as well as to everyone who is able to hear them.
On July 2, the New Hope Church had another outreach event in Rancho Cordova. They distributed over 7,000 Gospel tracts in their neighborhood.
On July 9, after the morning service, the Cornerstone Church had a special picnic for immigrants. Over 350 people were able to attend, and it was a great success! There was a lot of food, games, fellowship, and make new friends.
Women are invited to take part in the 15th annual women's camp "Salon of imperishable beauty".
Theme: "...Not as I want … “ …May your will be done.. (Mathew 6:10)
Dates: 22, 23, and 24 September, 2023.
Address: Zephyr Point Conference Center, 660 Highway 50, Zephyr Cove, NV 89448
PCSBA's May newsletter is available here: in Russian: http://eepurl.com/isaWeI | in English: http://eepurl.com/isa2Cg.
From the time of moving to a new building, with God’s help, we made minor repairs of a rental building where we meet for church service, but the building is now too small for us. We renovated the kitchen and were able to celebrate the anniversary of the church with a dinner and evangelistic service.
If you've ever thought about starting a church but don't know where to start, this information is for you! Pastor Bogdan Kipko of the Forward Church in Irvine, talks about the church planting training center.
PCSBA's April Newsletter is available here: in Russian | in English.
We appeal to all pastors and church members with a fervent request to join Christian parents in praying that God will protect their children from the influence of atheistic education while they are studying at secular schools, colleges, and universities.
By the grace of God 2023 has been an eventful and fruitful year thus far at Spring of Life Church. We have been blessed to have a teens winter camp where over 70 teens were able to go into the mountains and hear the Word of God, respond in worship and fellowship together.
On April 16-23, Christians in Sacramento collected donations of humanitarian aid to Ukraine. The donations and packing of the container took place at the Second Slavic Baptist Church. Up to 20 active volunteers were involved in this project.
“For Jesus doesn't change - yesterday, today, tomorrow, He's ALWAYS totally Himself.” Hebrews 13:8. There is a great urgency nowadays to share the Good News of the Gospel with people around us. Due to current global events, many people are searching for answers regarding meaning of life, if there is there is life after death and who is this Jesus? God enables you to be His body to fulfill His purposes.
On March 18th, Slavic Baptist Church in West Sacramento had a gathering of newly arrived families who have children with disabilities. Eight families came to this event and only one of them was a family of believers. This meeting was organized at the request of newly arrived families who wanted to find out more about ministry for children with disabilities, as well as to establish relationships with other parents and children with the same needs.
PCSBA's March 2023 newsletter is available here: in Russian | in English.
On March 18, The Good News Church in Tacoma hosted a GoLive conference. There were about 150 young people, mostly from Spokane, WA, and Salem, OR churches. There were guests from different states as well.
Dear Ladies, please join us on April 29th for our women's conference "A Woman by the heart of God" with guest speaker Oksana Grabchuk. It will be held at "New Hope" baptist church at 10720 Coloma Rd, Rancho Cordova, CA 95670.
There is a ministry that few people notice, but is very necessary in almost every church. They notice it only when it is not there or it stops working. That is the sound ministry. We immediately recognize the importance of this ministry when during the Sunday morning worship service, for example, we cannot hear the preacher well, or there is static, or we get the faulty amplification. After that, we start appreciating the importance of having quality sound equipment. Many years after Rick Warren opened The Saddleback Church, he was asked a question: “What would you do differently as part of your church plant?”. He said that he would have bought quality sound equipment.
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ! I congratulate you on the feast of Christ's Resurrection! All of Christianity is built on the fact of the Christ’s resurrection. This is an undeniable fact. This is the message of the Gospel!
The semiannual meeting of the PCSBA’s ministers in Sacramento may not always work for all the pastors from the South region. That is why we organize and have these meetings in their local churches. These meetings are necessary to have a time of fellowship, forming relationships among the churches, uphold the unity, and develop mission strategies for those regions.
The Association has various people working in our departments. Each individual has his own life story, and his own experience… People are different, but the Lord gathered them all for mutual service. Since 2016, Steve Mizera has been serving as the editor of the English version of the Association's newsletters. He is a man who has gone through a lot since his childhood, went through a very harsh experience in life’s school, and came to the Lord the hard way. Svetlana Iotko had a brief interview with him.
On Friday, March 3,2023, we hosted our 2nd annual Couples Dessert Date Night for married couples. This year’s topic was Communication in Marriage with a romantic atmosphere and beautiful backdrop of a French Cafe for our couples to enjoy.
On February 25, The House of Prayer church in West Sacramento hosted a semiannual meeting of PCSBA’s ministers. The pastors’ wives were also invited to come and have their own time of fellowship. During the meeting, four seminars were presented, each dealing with various aspects of the pastor’s ministry.
From February 8, for 13 days, continuous 24-hour services have been going on at Asbury University, Kentucky, during which people confess their sins, renew their relationship with God, and glorify Him. According to FoxNews, more than 50,000 people from different cities of America and even other countries filled the small town in which this university is located. Starting with a simple, unremarkable gathering of a few students, the movement has grown and spread to several other colleges in the country. "What is this?" ministers of different denominations ask a question. "The revival that all Christians have been praying for for a long time?" The pastor of the Grace Family Church made an analysis of what is happening there and what many call the "Asberian revival" - read the article below.
A terrible disaster recently befell Turkey and Syria. A huge number of people died as a result of a strong earthquake. On behalf of the churches of the Pacific Coast’s Association of Churches, we express our sympathy and condolences to the people who have suffered as a result of this tragedy.
God is leading this man and his family in an amazing way! He was born in an unbelieving family. At a certain point, someone happened to give his sister the New Testament, and although he tried to read it many times, he wasn’t able to understand anything. He ended up marrying a woman whose grandmother was a Baptist. God continued to work with both of them, and through problems and various difficulties, He brought them to Himself. Moreover, he made Victor a pastor and a missionary.
You are invited to “GO LIVE” Conference which will take place on March 18, 2023 in Tacoma, WA. We pray that this conference will be a time of encouragement, growth, and Going LIVE for Jesus in practical ways so that “Jesus inside of you would be seen to everyone around you!”
WHAT TO EXPECT:
We continue to introduce representatives of various ministries of the PCSBA, and today we present our treasurer to you, Alexander Gol. A correspondent of the Information ministry department, Svetlana Iotko, had the following interview with him.
All Sunday School Principals, Teachers and Assistant Teachers are invited to the conference on March 18, 2023 at the Second Slavic Baptist Church.
Originally, due to the pandemic, the tickets that I bought to visit Spain in 2020 have been suspended indefinitely. Praise God that this trip was able to finally take place at the end of January 2023. The purpose of the trip was to teach about the building up of the church, to visit the church services in Valencia, and to meet with the local church leaders.
PCSBA's January 2023 Newsletter is available here: in Russian | in English.
Another one of the monthly meetings of ministers of the PCSBA took place on January 18. Even though the pandemic is now over, ZOOM became a good platform for communication among the PCSBA pastors who are serving in different cities.
This past Christmas season, our church used this opportunity to reach out to our surrounding community and host a Christmas Bingo Night. Few weeks in advance, we announced via church website, Instagram, and a sign banner on the church property to ensure that people are aware of the event. One week prior, our youth passed around flyers to the neighborhood inviting them personally. Our purpose was to create a community- friendly event and to invite those who may not otherwise come to church.
Over the course of many years in the Association, the video ministry was led by Aleksandr Vivsik who is a member at the First Slavic Evangelical Baptist Church of Sacramento. He has been a very sacrificial and dedicated person. Through the Association’s video channel on YouTube, he was sharing about the various ministries of the Association, about the Association’s conventions, and various events. However, at the end of 2022, due to his health issues, he had to pass this ministry on to another person.
PCSBA's December Newsletter is available here: in Russian | in English.
On December 9, 2022, House of the Gospel Church in Fresno held a Ladies Christmas Dinner with over 120 ladies in attendance. The purpose of the event was to bring ladies of all ages together to connect with each other and hear an encouraging message that would prepare them to enter the Christmas season with a heart that is focused on Jesus rather than the hustle and bustle of the secular world.
On Saturday, December 3, 2022 Bryte church hosted a missionary reunion – a meeting of missionaries and those, who are interested in this ministry. Over 16 missionary teams from various churches of the Pacific Coast Association, as well as our friends from SOL Church, and New Life rehab center were able to attend this meeting.
That was the theme of the youth conference, “Getting Right with God”, which was hosted by Bryte Church on November 11-12, 2022. The event was attended by almost two hundred young men and women ages 14-25. The Association’s “Unite” youth ministry were in charge of organizing this event; the main speakers were Evgeniy Gol and Andrey Sava.
Merry Christmas and a happy New Year 2023! During the time of celebration, may our hearts be filled with worship, just like the fields of Bethlehem were full of the melody, harmony, and rhythm that is out of this world! A few years ago, while being at the conservatory, I had the privilege of studying the structures of musical masterpieces, harmony, form, style, and much more. We do not know how this heavenly worship looked like, but we can be sure that it was unique which we can’t compare to anything that is recorded by the human composers on this earth!
PCSBA's November Newsletter is available here: in Russian| in English.
According to the testimony of Joseph Sheremet, who is in charge of the Missions ministry at Grace Family Church, God is calling their family to move to Poland for a long-term service among the Ukrainian refugees and the local Polish population. Prior to this, he was there with his wife and daughter on a short-term mission trip and saw the great need for dedicated ministers who are able to bring the Gospel to the people and help them in their spiritual concerns. He shares more about this in a radio broadcast, which can be accessed here. And in a booklet you may read to find out how to join them in their ministry and help them in carrying out this difficult project.