The Good News Baptist Church in Skopje, Macedonia is relentless in its desire to see the Word of God impact lives in that small nation. “We are currently busy with teaching three different courses in our Church and the Mission Centre in Aerodrom,” Marko Grozdanov explains. “The current topics we teach are Christian Ethics, the Future according to the Bible and Differences and Similarities between various Christian denominations.”
These courses usually generate some interest and this year they have distributed over ten thousand invitations to attend. The Christian Ethics course has had over forty registered participants since February, with over half of them being new participants. The other two courses are also generating some new interest and this is making Marko very happy. “Pray that this will affect not only their minds, but also their hearts,” said Marko.
Above: A study group meeting at Aerdrom
Below: The display of Christian literature at the Fair
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The publishing aspect of the ministry also participated at the Annual Book Fair in Skopje, and this year all the previous records were broken, with over five hundred books and two thousand brochures and booklets sold.
This is amazing considering the Fair lasts less than a week. It has also generated new opportunities for witness to people with whom they had no contact previously.
This summer the Church has planned two weeks of English language seminars to be held at three locations (the Church, the Aerodrom Centre and a Public Library) which will hopefully also help them break some of the prejudices people have in Macedonia.
Preparation continues on the building work which is needed to enlarge the sanctuary of the Good News Baptist Church in Skopje. The authorities have still not given permission for the all the extra space that Ivan Grozdanov desires and the steel structures will have to be placed within the building. This means they will have to move out of the Church while the work is carried out. Obviously these changes will incur more cost to the project.
One of the problems that had to be overcome was the seismic conditions that are obligatory, following the earthquake they experienced in Skopje in 1963. When finished, the sanctuary of the Church will have a balcony to the rear of the building. This will give a total seating capacity of one hundred and fifty and will give room for congregational growth in the coming years. Marko concludes, “Pray with us that funds will be provided to help us reach our goal and finalise this building project. It will play a fundamental part in our vision for bringing the Gospel to the one million people living within a thirty minute drive from the Church in the next few decades.”
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The Good News Baptist Church in Skopje which is to be renovated to enlarge the seating capacity |
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