Ukraine (MNN)–The Association of Baptists for World Evangelism gave us an update in the aftermath of a devastating fire April 30th in Ukraine.
The investigation on the fire that damaged the Church Ministries Institute (CMI) has been closed. What could have been a draining expense topped out at $400 for fees.
While that is good news, ABWE now faces an immediate 125-thousand dollars needed for fire-related repairs. The funds will go towards partially dismantling and securing the building, replacing critical equipment, and relocating while repairs are made.
Word has gotten out, and the community is responding. A Christian businessman in Odessa offered to clean all of the smoke-damaged furniture with special chemicals free of charge. Upon hearing of the fire at a missions conference, a group of Bible college students in Kiev collected $130 for CMI fire relief.
A temporary CMI office has been set up at a facility owned by national partners, located only two kilometers from the existing property.
But the best news is that rather than shutting down, the students moved to a temporary location where two courses have already been conducted.
Please pray for the ministry to continue to move forward. Pray also for wisdom as decisions are made about what kind of facility is needed to replace the CMI building.
The new International Training & Resource Center will need to house offices for all of the CMI administration and the new distance education division, as well as a large library and resource center to serve all the regional schools across Euro-Asia.
Until they are able to relocate to a new facility, the CMI offices will be located in various apartments in the area.
