SYKTYVKAR (RUSSIA) – On September 23, a women's conference “Created in the Image” was held in Syktyvkar. It was the first women's conference in the church after a break of 11 years.
The speakers were Larisa Grabovenko, leader of the women's ministry of the RCCEF, and Valeria Tsvetkova, leader of the women's ministry of the RCCEF in the Northwest Federal District. The worship led the team of the Source of Life Church of Syktyvkar.
There were four worship and prayer services at the conference. At two of these services, instead of preaching, talk shows for married and unmarried women were organized, where speakers answered questions of the participants. Three questions from married women were addressed — “What are the responsibilities and roles of a wife and mother?”, “Is the image of a wife from Proverbs, chapter 31 relevant and how do we understand in our time that 'the wife does everything around the house, and the husband sits at the gate'?” and “A husband who drinks, does not work and an unbeliever — what should I do?”. There were more questions from the unmarried on the second talk show — “Loneliness/singleness — should it be fought or accepted?”, “Should every Christian woman have a spiritual mentor and should she open up her heart to brothers in the church?”, “What issues should be discussed before marriage with a partner?”, “Why are there so many unbelievers in the world, if we are all from the same God?”, “Was Adam next to Eve, when she was tempted by the seducer?”, “Why is virginity not valued even among believers?” and private questions.
Speakers in their sermons opened wider and deeper the theme of the conference “Created in the image”. Larissa Grabovenko spoke on the theme “Created in the Image” and noted: “We can live in the image of God, but it is our choice to act in His image. To have the same feelings — to forgive, to have mercy, to love.” The preacher touched on issues of the will, loneliness, temptation, and other topics relevant to woman. The main chapters of the Bible in the sermon were chapters 1-3 of the book of Genesis.
Valeria Tsvetkova began her sermon “To put back in place” with the words of instruction: “We are a temple, and in the temple there is the Holy of Holies, in this place should stand only what God has determined, and only for the purposes that God has determined. And we need to take something out of the Holy of Holies and put something back in that place.”
At the closing service, the speakers and pastors' wives prayed for the needs of all who attended.
On the eve of the conference there was an evening of praise and worship with the praise team from Syktyvkar's Source of Life Church.
Participants from Syktyvkar, Ukhta, Usinsk, Pechora, Yemva, Vorkuta, Koigorodok, Sosnogorsk and Yaroslavl took away prizes from the conference and memorable photos from the neon heart-shaped photo zone.
A few reviews of the conference “Created in the Image” from the participants:
“More conferences like this. Strong edification in the Word. God's presence was abundant in prayer and praise.”
“Women's conferences are needed, I wish there will be opportunities to realize such conferences.”
“Been looking forward to this conference for a long time, really wanted to attend! Loved the photo zone, media set up, expanded cafe, candy, and the last service.”
“The breaks gave me an opportunity to fellowship with other Christians, and it was through these conversations that I received practical direction on how to move forward. And received reinforcement of the truth in the sermon.”
Source of Life Church of Syktyvkar
The Russian Church of Christians of Evangelical Faith/Pentecostals
