The nation of Moldova gained its independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, when a democratically elected government took power. Nestled between Ukraine and Romania, this little nation is one of the poorest countries in Europe.
Founded in Australia, Christian Mission International Aid (CMIAID ) is a ministry whose purpose is to send aid and Christian literature to the once persecuted Christians of Eastern Europe. Dan Marianciuc (Romania) and I (Australia) moved to Moldova in 2009. That year a property was purchased in southern Moldova, in the village of Zirnesti, to hold children’s camps, gospel meetings, Bible clubs, and other evangelistic activities. In 2011, Dan married Melissa (Australia) and I married Ruth (United Kingdom) who was at that time working in Armenia. Ruth and I still live on the Base with our boys. Dan and Mel, who have four children, live in the village.
In 2012, a brother and sister from the village accepted the Lord Jesus as their Savior. Having a desire to establish a local assembly, a small group comprised of Christians from abroad and these new local believers began gathering each Lord’s Day. Since then, it has been wonderful to see many more, both in Zirnesti and surrounding villages, come to know the Lord Jesus, be baptized and added to the Zirnesti Christian Assembly. Today, the CMIAID ministry continues, working hand in hand with the local assembly. The purpose is to provide local Christians with the resources to reach out to the people of Moldova.
When we first arrived in Moldova, much emphasis was put on children’s work, holding summer camps and Bible clubs throughout southern Moldova, as well as a local Sunday School and Youth Ministry associated with the nearby assembly. We saw this as very important as Moldova is an Orthodox country. Many of the older generation are steeped in religious traditions and it is often hard to get past this wall of religion. However, the children are open and ready to learn. How wonderful it is to see this young generation learning Bible stories, memorizing Scripture, and hearing the good news of salvation.
Since then, we have added other outreaches such as the Step into the Bible Program. This is run in co-operation with the country’s Education Department. Each year 6,000 ‒ 8,000 children from government schools are brought in by CMIAID buses to our Bethesda Centre (a five-story apartment block the Lord enabled us to purchase in Zirnesti) where we put on a gospel presentation for the children. The presentations change each year and are acted out in five different rooms. A guide takes the children from room to room where the Bible stories are brought to life through beautifully painted settings, authentic deco, and dedicated actors. Some of the stories presented so far include “To Save The World” (a Bible overview of the gospel story from Genesis to the Gospels), “Pilgrim’s Progress,” “The Lamb” (a look at the promised Lamb in the Old Testament and the life of Christ) and “Child of the King” (the story of George Müller).
We give thanks to God for this amazing open door among the school children, and that the Education Department is not only open, but eager for these outreaches. The Director of Education for our region, though not yet saved, is convinced of the importance of children learning these stories from the Bible. The Lord has enabled us to have many profitable discussions with him. One day he proceeded to tell us of a meeting with various officials to discuss current problems in schools, such as drugs and alcohol abuse. As they discussed various causes and effects, the Lord brought to his mind various conversations he had had at CMIAID and he seriously informed his colleagues, “It is because we have left the Bible out of our schools. We no longer teach our children about God.” His opinion was taken seriously, and the result was a meeting with several officials, including the director, to discuss how we could work together to reintroduce the Bible into the schools in Southern Moldova.
In the Bethesda Centre we also have a Teachers’ Resource Centre (TRC) for government schoolteachers. Due to the poor economic situation in Moldova many schools are severely under-resourced and lack even the essentials such as computers and printers for the teachers to use. The TRC was set up to help with this need but also to help us to get to know the teachers and to build bridges with them enabling us to share the gospel. We are delighted that there are now over 400 teachers registered to use the TRC and it is usually fully booked.
Another unique opportunity came through the government fire-fighting services. In 2012 we got to know the Fire Chief for the region. This led to us purchasing some second-hand fire trucks in the United Kingdom to help them update their equipment. We also set up a volunteer fire service for our village. The volunteers are those involved in other areas of the ministry who have now trained to be on call fire-fighters. The team has attended many emergency incidents, giving vital aid. Even more exciting, God has used this to open many doors for the gospel in the most unexpected places. Contacts with fire-fighters throughout the country have flourished, enabling us to distribute large quantities of Christian literature. Each Christmas, every fire-fighter in Moldova receives a gospel “Fire-fighter” calendar in their language, a Gospel of John, and other Christian literature, along with a festive gift. More recently, we have been able to start working among the police, ambulance officers, and prison guards. On 28 December 2023 we had the first police gospel outreach dinner at the CMIAID Base with about 75 police officers in attendance. It was lovely to have the opportunity to share the gospel with them.
One of the team conducts basic first aid training courses to children in the area government schools. At the end of each class, he is also able to share the gospel and give literature to the children. At one of these classes the Governor of the Cahul prison was in attendance because his child was in the class. Afterwards he approached and asked if it would be possible to do a similar course for prison guards. Of course we were happy for this opportunity, and we are looking forward to welcoming the guards to the CMIAID Base where we have organized a training course and gospel outreach dinner.
We have recently started a program called “Strong Foundations,” which is aimed at discipling young Christians so that they can be established and equipped to go out and serve the Lord. Last year at the summer camps, we were encouraged to see 12 young people volunteering to help those who had been saved through Sunday School, youth, or camp work. We realize that they need to have a strong foundation in the Word and to be suitably equipped to do the ministry to which God has called them.
Early this year, brother Alexander Kurian visited us to teach at a Strong Foundations Conference we had organized in Yerevan, Armenia. The subject was, “What does it mean to be a disciple of the Lord Jesus?” We were encouraged to see many in attendance and the enthusiasm with which the teachings were received. Since then, we have opened a new Postal Bible School office in Yerevan, aimed at teaching children God’s Word through Bible Time lessons. We already do this ministry in Moldova and have found it effective in building up children’s understanding of the Word. This is so vital in a country where there is a belief in God but so much dependence on religious rituals and traditions.
Through CMIAID Publications, we are translating several Everyday Publications books into Romanian and Eastern Armenian. As well, we are translating “The Church: Masterpiece of the Ages” by J B Nicholson and “Believer’s Bible Commentary” by William MacDonald into Eastern Armenian. Each year we also publish gospel calendars in Russian, Romanian and Eastern Armenian.
For more information, please visit www.cmiaid.org or email [email protected]. To support this ministry, gifts may be sent through CMML or MSC Canada.