A Ukrainian Coffee House | Reaching Un-reached Youth

Ira Blaga was deeply inspired by the 2014 GLS in Ukraine. Patrick Lencioni spoke about servant leadership and humility, Jeffrey Immelt spoke about the importance of building a team so that everyone is heard and appreciated and Wilfredo de Jesus talked about “filling the gap” in your community. All of these messages spoke to Ira, and stirred a dream in her.

Ira realized she had to do something, and not just pray about what was wrong in her town, but join with Jesus to fix it. There are many youth in her community who are far from Jesus, so she decided to start a ministry called ‘Coffee House’ in order to reach the non-Christian youth in her community.

“The dream to do such a ministry appeared long ago, but I needed a sort of challenge and motivation to finally make a first step,” said Ira. “I had been afraid of not having a team, enough money and the courage to do something like this. But the GLS 2014 helped me get rid of all my fears. I realized that I should rely on God who had all the resources. My prayers should result in actions.”

When she returned to my hometown after the GLS, she began the work to recruit a team. “We prayed a lot,” she said. “God gave us start. We received a small donation from a woman in Germany, and later another donation that helped us buy a coffee machine.”

Coffee House gathers youth for bible study, music, games, drama, and messages from speakers. So far there are about 35 young men and women that attend. They are not just served with coffee and biscuits, but also receive the love of Jesus from this incredible team, inviting them into a relationship with Him.

“Our God is incredible,” said Ira. “I am thankful to Him for guiding me to GLS event to jumpstart this ministry and reach the youth in my community.”