Country:
Slovakia
Occupation:
Christian Ministry—Christian Organization
Forum Network:
Bible Teachers and Preachers
Ministry Focus:
Children and/or Youth
Tomas Sklars works for INSIDE, a ministry that disciples youth. He is also a small group leader and youth group leader.
When did you trust Christ?
I became a Christian in 2011. It was at my first weekend camp. Previous to this I had attended a confirmation class and taken religion classes at Lutheran middle and high school. However, this was the time when all the knowledge I had accumulated over the years started to make sense. I was touched Revelation 3:15 and I realized it made no sense for me to just believe in the existence of God. I had to make a choice whether I wanted to live for Him. I decided to enter into a relationship with Christ and go all in for the Lord.
What have been the defining moments of your Christian walk?
During my first year as a Christian, I grew a lot in my youth group. Leaders invested in me through a small group focuses on apologetics, which helped me to understand why I believed what I did. Slowly, I started to get involved in other things, like a youth group at my school. Later, I was invited to join the leadership team of my own youth group. During those years I led two English camps, studied theology and youth ministry at Zilinska Univerzita, and started to serve in the INSIDE ministry, which I lead today as a full-time youth ministry coordinator for Bratislava region. All these opportunities formed my walk with Christ.
Why do you want to attend the Forum?
I love learning new things and throughout my life I have learned how much impact in inspiring conference can have. At the Forum I have had some amazing opportunities to meet a lot of new people, which I believe will open up doors for future cooperation. Being part of a network on church planting, I will hopefully also be able to start conversations in my church about how we might plant more churches in the future. I am also a youth group leader in my local church, which I have led since 2013. Besides this, I lead two small groups and teach religion in local elementary schools.
What is your ministry?
The INSIDE ministry is a regional ministry focused on bringing the gospel message to youth and helping them grow in their faith. We prepare missional activities – weekend camps, summer camp, and one-day activities like sports days. We create a network of volunteers serving in local churches and cooperate with them on a regional level. We also equip volunteers to be able to serve better.
What are your past leadership roles?
I have previously been an English camp leader.
Why should someone invest in your ministry?
I believe that I am a fast learner and I am not afraid to try new things and new adventures in ministry, which might further increase the impact of this investment. I believe the ministry I am part of has a huge impact on the lives of teenagers and the lives of local churches.
