Prayer request from Pastor Alexander Timofeyev in Kirovo-Chepetsk

For some time, the Baptist church  in Kirovo-Chepetsk (Kirov region) has been battling the local fire marshal’s office over alleged building safety issues. In October, there was a surprise inspection of the church by officials from the fire marshal’s office, followed by citations. Pastor Timofeyev wrote, that they have been in court and are now facing a huge fine and possible closure of the church, report SGA

“We had already done a lot of work to address the officials’ issues and hoped for their benevolence. But they came at us again very hard. We have been to court and our appeal was rejected. They fined us more than $2,700 and ordered us to close the building within 50 days. We are considering going back to court to address the issue of closing the building, as this is clearly a gross violation of the law. I beg you, please pray with us about this situation. We believe that the Lord will be glorified through it. Only with His help and through the prayers of God’s people can we endure these difficulties.”

Please join us in prayer for our brothers and sisters in Kirovo-Chepetsk. Their financial resources are very limited, and this heavy fine will only make it more difficult for them to address the safety issues being alleged by the inspectors. If these charges are spurious, our prayer is that a higher court will rule in favor of the church, and that the ministry of the Gospel will not be hindered.