Introducing the Church in Apostolovo, Ukraine
Pastor Pavel Golub was born into a large, Christian family in the former Soviet Union in 1959 and committed his life to Christ in 1978. He sensed that he had a calling on his life, and his ministry soon developed from youth work into evangelism and church planting. Under communism, it was forbidden to hold church meetings; still, the believers wanted to come together to pray and to grow in the Lord. On one occasion the militia interrupted their youth meeting, and the house owner was fined for allowing the group to meet there.
Pavel married in 1979 and entered military service the following year. “The state tried to shake my belief in God,” he remembers. “They considered each believer to be a potential traitor of the country.” After the military, Pavel returned to his hometown, preaching in church, spending nights in prayer for revival and memorizing entire passages from the New Testament. He traveled throughout various Soviet republics, planting churches and starting prison ministries. Pastor Golub has now been in full-time ministry for over 20 years and is an enrichment to the work of the Church of God in Ukraine.
A New Church and the Need for a Building
In June 2000, Pavel and his family felt impressed to start a new church in Apostolovo, Ukraine. Within six months, the church had to move from his living room into a rented auditorium. The congregation now consist of 120 people, besides three church groups they were caring for in the surrounding villages. And the ministry continues to grow.
The church has outgrown its rented facilities. When they purchased a building plot in 2007, God granted them favor with the property owner, allowing them to secure the land for much less than the competing bids. With the assistance of a charitable mission, the congregation was able to begin construction of the church building in 2008 with their own hands. The building process has been slow its completion is in sight. However, there are several items that need to be completed before the church can receive its occupancy permit. Additionally, just to apply for the occupancy permit, they must pay $1700 along with the submission of the application and its paperwork. Altogether, they need about $13,000 to finish building project.
The sooner the congregation can move into the building, the sooner they can stop paying rent for a meeting place and can put those expenses toward the further construction.
Would you partner with us in helping him and his faithful congregation to complete the vision that the Lord has placed on their heart for a church home from which they can reach the people of Apostolovo?
