Worship services have started in the new building of the First Baptist Church of Polotsk, Belarus. The new auditorium is not quite finished, but Pastor Boris Valshonok (SMS missionary) and the congregation of eighty members praise God for this spacious place to gather for church services and special events. They are extremely excited, because there is room now for the choir to join their voices together in the services to honor and glorify the Lord Jesus Christ. In addition, the church has invited other choirs to share their gifts of ministry for special holidays and conferences.
The work that still needs to be completed includes the following: tiling the floor, painting the walls and installing new bathrooms. Likewise, additional sprinklers must be installed in order to meet the fire safety codes. The men of the church hope to accomplish all of these tasks by the summer of 2014. Afterward, the façade will be whitewashed and a new fence will surround the property. Pray that funds will be donated to assist this worthy project.
Recently, Pastor Valshonok performed the first marriage in the new auditorium. It was the marriage of his oldest son, Pavel. Two special meetings, which centered upon the message of Christ, were also conducted recently in the new structure for the children and young people within the community. Pray that God will guide the leadership and congregation of the church to continue to serve the city of Polotsk, which has a population of approximately 85,000 people, with the good news of salvation.
