Since the war of the 1990s, there has been a political division between the countries created by the breakup of Yugoslavia. The church, however, is working to bring unity between the various countries and people.

In Fall 2022, a Bosnian pastor, a Croatian pastor, and a Serbian pastor envisioned a large Christian festival for young people ages 13-30. It is significant that leaders from within the former Yugoslavia countries initiated and organized this event. Other pastors and leaders across several denominations joined in planning and working together for this younger generation. Within the church, there has been nothing like this since an event in Zagreb, Croatia in 2008.

“Srcokret” comes from srce (heart) and okret (turning). It means the turning of the heart — a symbol of transformation and renewal. The vision for Srcokret is to see hearts across nations turning to Jesus resulting in unity, faith, and revival among youth in the Balkans.

Srcokret took place June 24-26, 2025, at the beautiful Adriatic Camp near the Croatian coastal city of Šibenik. This gathering provided a large evangelical Christian experience for the young people of former Yugoslavia. Because the languages are similar, young people from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Montenegro, Northern Macedonia, Serbia, and Slovenia could communicate with others at this event. Another important aspect was the fact this festival expanded across denominational boundaries within the Protestant church. More than 150 churches and organizations participated in Srcokret.

Srcokret success

More than 1,300 young people including 300 volunteers from 25 countries gathered for this Christian festival. The Evangelical Church that AG World Missions works with conducts annual men’s and women’s conferences and this year, they canceled these conferences so their people could serve at Srcokret. They served in registration, security, logistics, and meal distribution. Their presence made the event a success!

The festival used kitchen facilities at a nearby Teen Challenge center. Srcokret also received donations through Teen Challenges’ contacts. It was exciting to see unity across denominations as they worked toward a common goal of doing something meaningful for teens and young adults.

The festival included worship, fellowship, workshops, and concerts during the day. In the afternoons the young people participated in outreaches. There was a David’s Tent where they had 24/7 worship and prayer for the event and the evangelism.

A Roma team led in worship at one of the evening meetings. This was monumental because even though there is some ministry among the Roma, they are often not included in larger events like this. Because of that, some people felt like it was one of the more significant worship times.

Some of the more than the 50 workshop topics included leading worship, teen ministry, student ministry, Bible study, Bible interpretation and application, evangelism training and outreach. Young people who had passion or expertise in graphic design, counseling, and recording and producing music CDs led some workshops. One pastor is an artist. He organized an “Art Zone” with a couple of area artists. Festival participants learned art techniques. During one session after-worship, they held a creative art worship time.

The final big event was in the city square where the three Protestant churches joined, providing testimonies by their members to the people of their city and the thousands of tourists visiting..

Follow up

Each week after the festival, the prayer team sent out a prayer theme for follow-up and encouragement. In October, each country hosted a “Scrokret Reunion” where young people from that country came to share testimonies, worship, and pray for one another. Because of the impact Srcokret had on the young people and those serving, the planning committee agreed that even though it was a lot of work, they were willing to plan another one for 2029.

Several testimonies emerged from Srcokret. A young Serbian man had attended an Intervarsity (EUS) camp last summer hosted by our camp at Emek Beraka. One night at Srcokret he came forward for prayer. Our pastor’s wife prayed for him. When she finished, he told her that God had reminded him of something that happened last summer at a camp in Bosnia. While swimming he dove headfirst into the water and hit his head on a rock. He thought he was going to die, and He cried out to God to save him. Our pastor’s wife asked if the camp was Emek Beraka because on the first day of our camp, this incident occurred. When he told her yes, she said “I was there!” The young man declared that he was going to go to the camp again this summer and get baptized at the spot where he thought he was going to die. A month later at the lake with many tourists watching and about 100 other EUS campers present, he was baptized! God is good!

Pia is originally from Austria. When she first considered going to Srcokret Festival, she had doubts. But she felt the Lord encouraging her to take this step. Pia says, “I walked in with a lot of questions and uncertainties, but I walked out with peace, healing, and renewed courage. Despite all the noise and the struggles I carried, I felt God’s healing peace settling over me. Suddenly it was just me and the Lord. I began to pour out my heart, being completely honest about my fears and worries. But during these times, it truly felt as if chains were falling off my soul, and I could finally breathe again.”

Another attendee told Pia, “The Lord has given me message for you. She said, ‘I am your loving father. Do not fear. If you go left, I will be with you, and if you go right, I will be with you.’”

Those words confirmed God's presence. “He spoke directly to my deepest anxieties, that I wasn't loving or worshiping Him purely enough. He gently confirmed that He’s in my heart and I am enough in His eyes. I can rest in His arms without having to force anything. That transformed hidden places in me that I didn't even know that needed healing.”

The festival was also about connecting with God's people from all over the world, building new friendships, praying together, encouraging one another, and worshiping side by side. It reminded me also of the incredible power of prayer.

Pia continues, “The festival’s name, Srcokret, a turning of the heart, makes sense to me now. What happened there impacted my heart and it continues to give me strength. Psalm 34:4 came alive for me in these days. ‘I sought the Lord and he answered me and delivers me from all my fears’” (NIV).

Please pray that this event will be used by God to strengthen and encourage our young believers and that it will be evangelistically effective in touching unbelievers with hope and purpose. Pray for the next event in 2029 to have even more impact. We need prayer for a breakthrough across the Balkans.

By Curtis Hobbs