december 2019 / january 2020 volume 41 issue...
TRANSCRIPT
December 2019 / January 2020 Volume 41 Issue 10
Page 2 LAKELANDS LEADER
Lakelands Baptist Association Office
will be...
CLOSED at 12pm on December 23
CLOSED December 24-26
OPEN December 30
CLOSED December 31 and January 1
OPEN January 2
After this point please refer to our website
www.lakelandsbaptist.org for location and hours.
“Mov’n On!”
Yep, that is all I can think about today…mov’n on! Why is that? Well, I
am glad you asked!
Because today, I must start and finish a toddler bunk bed for Lettie and
Sadie. You see, in my former life, I did many things, from work on a
cricket farm, to manage a hardware store, to being a furniture builder for a
guy when I was in college. So it was there that I learned the trade of
woodworking. That was a good thing, except now that my chill’ns are
grown and they have their own chill’ns, I am the go-to guy for all things
handmade and wooden. Which I love, but sometimes the timing stinks.
So like, my daughter-n-law Katelyn, assigned Z and me the task of
building this toddler bunk bed, oh I don’t know, maybe two months ago.
But now that she is having her fourth baby this week, she is wondering
where her chill’ns toddler bunk bed is. Being she is still relatively new in
the family, she is still learning that ole Gramps doesn’t comply too readily
when asked to do something during hunt’n season…which explains why
her bunk beds are yet to be finished. But now with my freezer half full, I
can focus on the grands bunk beds…cause she has assured me that she is
giving birth this week whether it is hunt’n season or not and her chill’ns…
my grands…kinda need a place to sleep, Yep, me and ole Zack, to keep
us from digging a whole any deeper with Katelyn, are mov’n on with
toddler bunk bed construction cause pregnant women have a way of
motivating a man…and the more pregnant they are, the more motivating
they can be…just say’n!
But yet another example of time mov’n on is simply the season. Yep, last
night after Justin and I came out of the deer woods…uh…see paragraph
above, Kim, Addie and myself went to Justin and Emily’s for a delicious
pork loin roast meal. As soon as I got there, I noticed how time is indeed a
mov’n on, as I saw stockings hung in her window and lighted garland on
her window sills. I know, we haven’t even had Thanksgiving yet, but
does it really matter, cause time is a mov’n on way too fast. And this year
since Thanksgiving is later than normal, the time between Thanksgiving
and Christmas will seem to go by faster, making us all aware that time is
indeed, a mov’n on. But to that I say, bring it on! I’m ready for some fun
and holidays and all that sort of thing. It’s been a crazy busy year and
looking forward to some down time is just what the doctor ordered.
This morning as Kim and I were getting out of bed, she swung her feet
onto the floor and groaned and said in a rasping voice, “Oh my, I must be
getting old…everything hurts!” Yep, I can attest to that one! Why in just a
year and a half, all five of my siblings and myself, will be over the sixty
year mark, with my oldest brother and brother-n-law over seventy. Yikes!
Weren’t we just in our twenties…like a couple of years ago? Sure we
were, and just a few years ago we could out-run speeding bullets and
jump tall buildings, at least that’s what our children thought. But now,
even sweet little Addie Lee said just this week in reference to her parents
and aunts and uncles, “Geez, all y’all are gett’n old!” Indeed, wish it
weren’t so, but time stands still for no man, at least that’s what I been
told…yep, time’s a mov’n on!
Speaking of mov’n on, something is about to happen that is shore ‘nuf
gonna upset the proverbial apple cart and make us feel like time is a
mov’n on way faster than any of us want. And to be perfectly honest,
because of this next huge thing, I need help from all of our friends of the
association.
You see, when we tried to sell our office nearly eight years ago, prior to
the lawsuits, we enlisted a real estate company to help us sell it so we
could move. About a year later, when we had to take the office off the
market due to the lawsuits, we had absolutely no one interested in even
looking at it, let alone, purchasing our building. Now fast forward to
12 August, this year, when at Abney Memorial Church, the association
hosted a BBQ meal to showcase the association’s plans for the future,
complete with new office plans for the property given to the association
by Abney Memorial. It was an awesome night, with sweet fellowship and
excitement for the association’s future plans.
But little did I know that the very next day I would receive a phone call
from someone interested in buying our office. Yep, I said…the very next
day. But wait, we didn’t have the office listed with a real estate company.
Nor do we have a new office in which to move. Nor do we have a
temporary office to move to while the new office is being built. You want
to do what, I asked, “We want to buy your building.” So as of right now,
without even attempting to sell the LBA office, without advertising,
without anywhere to go…it looks like we will be out on the street by
sometime in January. Wow! How did all this happen so fast? Now, we
don’t have to sell the office at this time, however, seeing as how hard it
was to sell it previously, having someone interested who also has the
ability to actually purchase it, the LBA Leadership Team is saying,
“Sell it!” Again wow…this is all happening too fast!
So here’s the deal. I was at a Rice Memorial Sunday and a couple came
up to me and asked if we were making any progress towards the new
building. I explained what I just said about the pending sell of the office
and they were like, “That’s great! We want to give to the building fund,
but was waiting to make sure it was going to get off the ground before we
gave.” Of course I left church rejoicing, but thought, I wonder if others
are waiting as well. Yep y’all…its happening!
Now here’s where you come in. We need a temporary office, like really
soon, so that we can pack up and move sometime in January. If your
church has any empty space in the Greenwood area, call me please.
Secondly, we need you to enter into a time of great patience with us, as
your associational office staff will be in a state of flux and uncertainty for
a time to come. Thirdly, if you or your church has not committed to give
towards the LBA Building Fund, please consider doing so now...and yes,
you can amend the budget of your church…it’s legal, doable and God will
bless your church…just say’n! We desperately need revenue to begin to
build and we need it as soon as possible, as your association will be
without an office very soon.
Many churches and individuals have made large and small financial
commitments to see this project through. And I am grateful for every
single one of them. Time is a mov’n on, and if we are going to work
together to accomplish this move which will enable the Lakelands Baptist
Association to continue and expand its services to the churches in our
geographical Jerusalem and beyond, now is the time to do so, cause time
is of the essence. The association needs every church and all who will to
come on board to git-r-dun. The next time you receive a newsletter from
us or need to come see us, we will no longer have an office at 310 Panola
Ave., and I have no idea where we will be located at the end of January.
Yep…time’s a mov’n on…so please, help us if you can. God bless and
happy holidays y’all!
DECEMBER 2019 / JANUARY 2020 PAGE 3
Jesus Christ was with God the Father before the world was created. He
became human and lived among humanity as Jesus of Nazareth. He came to
show us what God the Father is like. He lived a sinless life, showing us how
to live, and He died on a cross to pay for our sins. God raised Him from the
dead. Jesus is the source of eternal life. Jesus wants to be the doorway of new
life for you. In the Bible, He was called “Lamb of God” (John 1:29). In the
Old Testament, sacrifices were made for the sins of the people. Jesus became
the sacrificial Lamb offered for our sin. Jesus said, “I am the way and the
truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” (John
14:6). He is waiting for you now.
Admit to God that you are a sinner. Repent, turning away from your sin.
By faith, receive Jesus Christ as God’s Son and accept Jesus’ gift of
forgiveness by dying on the cross.
Confess your faith in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord.
You may pray a silent prayer similar to this as you call on God to save you.
“Dear God, I know that You love me. I confess my sin and need of salvation. I
turn away from my sin and place my faith in Jesus as my Savior and Lord. In
Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.” After you have received Jesus Christ into your
life, tell a pastor or another Christian about your decision. Show others your
faith in Christ by asking for a baptism by immersion in your local church as a
public expression of your faith.
The Holy Bible, Book of Romans 10:9-13
Lakelands Baptist Leader DEC 2019 / JAN 2020
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Lakelands Baptist Association Periodical Paid At
David W. Little, Associational Missionary
Greenwood, SC 29649-9998
[email protected] USPS 391-110
[email protected] (Financial Secretary)
[email protected] (Administrative Assistant)
Website: www.lakelandsbaptist.org
Telephone: (864) 227-6261
310 Panola Avenue
Greenwood, South Carolina 29646-4562
Mission Mobilization Team Meeting
January 28 at 6:30pm
First Mt. Moriah Baptist Church
2017 Mt. Moriah Rd, Greenwood
International Mission Study
January 14 at 7pm
South Main Baptist Church
in the Connecting Place
Rev. Miller Murphy will be speaking on
Rohingya, a Muslim minority in Myanmar (Burma),
the most persecuted people in the world.
IMPORTANT NOTICE!
As you will read in my article this month, our office building is in the process of being sold to the
Greenwood Pathway House, which means very soon the Lakelands Baptist Association office will not be in
this building anymore. Therefore, we ask for your patience as we determine where to temporarily relocate,
and please understand that our normal lines of communication may be temporarily interrupted while we
relocate. We encourage you to check the associational website at www.lakelandsbaptist.org for the latest
information on associational activities and where we will relocate. All of which should take place during a
brief period in January. Beginning immediately please send all future mail correspondence to:
P.O. Box 1312, Greenwood, SC 29648
Thank you for your patience.
David Little
Pastor2Pastor
January 22nd at 8am
Greenwood Country Club