Fire broke out in the attic of Christ Apostolic Church International in Mableton, Georgia, during Sunday worship, Charisma reports, forcing more than 80 people to evacuate. Members spotted smoke coming from the roof. As the fire moved from the back of the building toward the front, church elders got the children out first, then the rest of the congregation. Everyone made it out. No one was injured.
The building is badly damaged and has no electricity. The Rev. Frederick Appiah told WSB-TV the church may need a temporary place to gather, and still put the situation in God’s hands: “God knows best. We are hoping on God to see us through these trying times.” Organizers of a fundraising effort for cleanup, repairs and a temporary meeting place wrote, “Structures can be replaced, but lives cannot. God protected His people today!”
My take
That’s the right order. Thank God first that people walked out, then roll up your sleeves on the building. “God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble” (Psalm 46:1). Pray for this congregation, for a place to keep meeting, and for the first responders who went in after them. The church is the people. The Holy Spirit can meet them in a borrowed room just as surely as He did in that sanctuary.
God Bless, and Happy hacking!
