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

dlittle@lakelandsbaptist.org USPS 391-110

bjones@lakelandsbaptist.org (Financial Secretary)

admin@lakelandsbaptist.org (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