Pics of the First Baptist Church of Center facilities

I just wanted to post some photos of some of the rooms from my new work and worship place.


THE SANCTUARY



THE CHOIR ROOM



THE CHAPEL

MY OFFICE

A TIME TO THROW AWAY

A time to search and a time to give up as lost; A time to keep and a time to throw away.  –Ecclesiastes 3:6

Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us.  -Hebrews 12:1

Following the “Hall of Faith” (Hebrews chapter 11), the Apostle Paul says that we should remove everything from our lives that weighs us down or might cause us to trip.  A runner would never wear work boots to a race.  No, a runner wears light weight shows that are designed to give the him an optimal performance. 

On December 1^st, moving day from Malakoff, TX to Center, TX, I had a life changing event slap me like a two-by-four to the forehead.  That fateful day, I discovered that 15 years worth of furniture, clothing, books, toys, and keepsakes will more than fill a semi truck trailer.  I confess to you today that I had to return 3 days later with the church’s trailer to retrieve the contents of my storage shed.  Unbelievable!

Ecclesiastes 3:6 says there is a time to keep and a time to throw away.  I recall telling Kim, “This is it!  Things are going to change! We are going to fit our possessions on a semi truck with room to spare the next time the Beechem’s move!”  He took our first load to the Goodwill in Nacogdoches on Saturday.  Yesterday, my pastor showed me a thrift store in Center called The Shelby County Outreach.  Glory hallelujah!  We have no excuses now because we have a local thrift store where we can donate all of our unnecessary things.  I can’t wait to take my first load and many more after that.  This will be very liberating for us.  Who knows, maybe we’ll be able to park our cars in the garage if all goes well!

Listed With Steve Grant Real Estate ( Malakoff / Star Harbor / Cedar Creek Lake )

3 Bedrooms
2 Bathrooms

1,962 Square Feet

Built in 2008

Malakoff ISD

$179,000

To view listing, click link below.
3 Jupiter Road (Star Harbor/Malakoff, TX)

Contact Bev Holipski at 903.681.0477 or to schedule an appointment.

Living Room

Breakfast Nook and Kitchen

Kitchen

Formal Dining Room

Bathroom

Master Bedroom

Master Bathroom

Master Bathroom

Community Center

Golf Course

Boat Launch Privileges to Beautiful Cedar Creek Lake

General Info

Natural stone and Hardy exterior. 1,962 sq ft living area plus patio and 2 car garage. Fenced yard with sprinkler system. Spacious, open living area with wood burning fireplace. Split bedroom floor plan. Access to golf and boat launch privileges.

Kitchen

Kitchen opens to breakfast nook and livingroom and has a great view of the vacant wooded lots where you can cook while you watch the deer graze. Modern appliances include a dishwasher, garbage disposal, ceramic cooktop, and microwave. The kitchen features lots of cabinets and a pantry.

Family/Living Room

Cozy family living area features beautiful stained concrete floors, a full sized wood burning fireplace covered with natural stone with a mirror over the mantle. 8' ceilings with 9' box ceiling featuring a remote controlled ceiling fan.

Dining Room

Dining room opens to the living room and kitchen area. It features a nice chandalier and large window to the front yard.

Bedrooms

Split bedroom floor plan with master suite, shower, garden tub, and large walk-in closet. There is carpet in the master bedroom.

PLUG IN TO THE POWER SOURCE

My pastor, Nathan Lorick, preached a message today from Acts 1:4-14.  The title was “Plugging In to the Power Source”. 

In his introduction he asked, “Has anybody in here ever attempted to disassemble something in an attempt to fix it, only to find out that it wasn’t plugged in to begin with?”

Kim nudged me and whispered, “Like Ami, when she was training Java with that shock collar.”

Ami is married to Kim’s brother, Kevin.  They had adopted a mutt from the dog pound.  They named him Java.  Java grew into a very large animal.  If you have every read the comic strip “Marmaduke”, then you have an idea as to his size.  Java was a much undisciplined canine.  When a guest would visit their house, Java would rear up and wrap his humongous paws around them.  Evan was knocked down many times and had the scratches and bruises to prove it.  One day, the veterinarian gave Java a check up. 

He said, “Java behaves very poorly.  I know one thing for certain. He needs some severe pain inflicted on his rear end!” 

The vet recommended a collar that delivers an electric shock which was administered through a remote control.  Ami had used the device for several days in an attempt to train Java.  One day when we were visiting them, Ami was using it frequently. 

Kevin said, “Ami, it won’t be effective if you use it all of the time.” 

Ami replied, “It’s working Kevin!  Can’t you see how much better he’s acting?” 

“No I can’t”, answered Kevin.  “Let me see the remote.  Maybe the batteries are in wrong.”  Kevin opened the battery compartment.

“Ami, there are no batteries in here!”  Kevin exclaimed.

I believe each of us has a spiritual tank in our inmost parts that can only be filled by the Spirit of God.  In both the Old and New Testaments, we are told that we can’t live by bread alone, but we are to live also on spiritual food, the Word of God.  As a minister, I tend to pour my life into others.  That is a good thing, but if I’m not aware, the devil will blind me into believing that my spiritual tank is being filled in the process of exercising my spiritual gifts through ministry.

Have you ever heard the Jackson Browne song, “Running on Empty”?  If I fail to allow God to pour into my life, I will empty my spiritual tank.  I will run on fumes for a short time until I find myself pushing the car.  That’s as ridiculous as training a dog with a shock collar without batteries.  It’s not very powerful or effective.  The song lyrics read, “Running on empty….running behind.”  I must take time to stop at a service station (quiet time alone with God) to fill up with spiritual fuel.  I must be connected to the power source.  Why wouldn’t I want to be connected to the One who spoke the universe into motion at the sound of His voice?  Why wouldn’t I want to tap into the One who is omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent?  Once connected to Him, I can then pour into the lives of others out of the overflow of the Holy Spirit’s work in my life!

A couple of weeks ago, the Lord began to work on my heart.  He seemed to say, “Eric you’re trying too hard.  Trust in me and the power of my holy presence.” 

Let must tell you that I have now relinquished the oars of the ministry to Him and He has fill my sails and set my course straight. 

I can tell you two things that happened within the past week since trusting in His power.

Last Sunday, I locked the church doors and began a conversation with a wonderful couple in the church yard.  We concluded our dialogue; I got in my car, and headed for home.  As soon as I turned onto the highway, I had a strong feeling that the church doors were unlocked.  Something prompted me to realize that several church members had exited from the church door between the time I had locked the door and the time when I got into my car.  I immediately returned to the church.  When I arrived back at the church, I saw a man named Carl trying to enter the door.  It was indeed locked, and he through his arms up in frustration.

I rolled my window down and asked, “Sir, can I help you?”

Carl replied, “Oh, I hope so.  My wife left her purse under her seat in church today!” 

We entered and Carl retrieved his wife’s purse.  I told him that I believed God planted the idea in my head that I had left the church unlocked.  The timing was perfect and nobody can convince me that God was somehow to involved.

On the following Wednesday, I had a strong impulse that I needed to call Zo.  She is a dear choir member who had emailed a week earlier that she was struggling with being in choir.  She felt that she didn’t know enough about music to be of much use.  I called Zo and shared my heart with her.  She is an asset to the group and to the worship service.  Her attitude is great and it is contagious.  She just needed encouragement.  She said that right before I called, she thought she wished she could talk with me because she really wanted to stay involved in choir.  Again, God’s timing was perfect as most would say it probably was not a great idea to let a week go by before talking with her.  I believe Zo needed time for God to prepare her heart for our phone call.

This week God has taught me an incredible lesson of how much more powerful and effective life is when it is lived in step with the Spirit of God.  You don’t have to be vocational minister to apply this lesson.  I believe it can be used in any vocation.  After all, the English word “vocation” has its Latin root “vocare” which means “to call”.  So whatever you do, whether a paid employee, a volunteer, or a retired person, plug in to the power source!

OH, DEER! A LESSON FROM MY RATSCHUND

 As our family was packing the last few items in the van for our trip to Texarkana, our rat terrier/dachshund mix, Eli, darted out of the garage door.  He bolted like a flash toward 6 deer that were grazing in the meadow across the road.  The deer scattered and Eli had his sites on the big buck.  Evan hysterically pursued behind the buck and Eli.  We followed the chase down a trail that leads through the woods to the lake.  Eli was not a bit afraid of the big buck.  Evan and I followed the sound of his high pitch barking and the tinkling of his ID tag on his collar.  We followed the commotion about 100 yards into the woods before we first saw Eli.  He relentlessly tormented the buck.  Twice, Eli scared the buck directly toward us.  I warned Evan that we should always keep a tree trunk between ourselves and the buck.  After about ten minutes, the buck finally escaped my little monster.  Physically exhausted, Eli returned to us.

 

It amazes me that Eli was not a bit afraid of that buck.  He had the buck convinced he was in grave danger when, in truth, the buck could have gored my mutt at any moment.  Why am I not as brave and crazy as Eli?  Why don’t I have that kind of radical faith that I can chase my fears with God strength?  The moral of this story is “it isn’t the size of the dog in the fight that matters, but the size of the fight in the dog.”

LESSONS FROM THE FISHING GUIDE

"Come, follow Me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men." -Mark 1:17

I once had the privilege of attending a guided fishing trip. We were fishing for striped bass. This was the first and only time I have used a guide.

Jesus called Simon and Andrew to follow him. He told these two professional fishermen that He would teach them how to catch men. While on the lake, I thought of several lessons.

GO WHERE THE FISH ARE

You might catch some fish by dropping your line in an arbitrary location, but you likely could catch many more by going where they are. Our guide knew where the fish were. Before we arrived, he was listening to other fishermen speak on the CB. He already had an idea of where the fish were. He also used a sonar device to spot the fish. When you find the fish and they don’t bite, then just move on to a new location. That’s what Jesus instructed us to do. If your message isn’t received, just shake the dust off and move on. That’s what our guide did when the fish ignored our bait.

BEAT THE WATER

Striped bass feed in schools. When the school swam away, our guide took an old fishing rod and thrashed it in the water for a minute. This technique mimicked the sound of a school of shad (a favorite food of striped bass) feeding on the surface of the lake. Nearly every time our guide beat the water, you could see schools of striped bass come into view on our fish finder. Churches need to “beat the water” occasionally to attract prospects. Church meals, revivals, fall festivals, block parties, and musicals are great ways to attract people.

CHANGE TECHNIQUES

When the fish stopped hitting on the live bait, our guide didn’t just give up on fishing altogether. No, he started using a technique called “slabbing”. Slabbing involves a lure called a slab. You let the slab drop to the lake bottom and then reel the line as fast as possible. We never change the gospel when sharing with the lost. However, when we are not successful, we need to change techniques to improve the results.

USE A GUIDE

If you are new to a certain type of fishing, it is smart to hire a fishing guide. A guide knows where the fish are and how to catch them. Likewise, you should partner with an experienced evangelist before you go out. She knows where the fish are and knows how to catch them!

The Sin of Stress

I Peter 5:7 says, “Cast your cares upon Him, because He cares for You.” The Greek word for cast is epirrhipto which is “to throw upon”. Could it be that we have replaced the word care with the modern words “anxiety” and “stress”? If so, I would submit to you that we can be in sin when we are stressed. It is the sin of unbelief in God and not obeying the command to let Him carry the load. In Matthew 11:28-30 Jesus instructs the weary and burdened to take His yoke upon them. Why would Jesus instruct a burdened person to stick his neck in a device used to perform difficult labor? The idea is clear to me. A yoke is made to use two oxen as one team. We can throw our stress, worries, and burdens upon the Lord. Then we can place our neck into his yoke. Jesus is on the other side of the yoke. You are on the same team. That is why His yoke is easy and His burden is light.  You are teamed with an omnipotent God!  What a team you can be!  Just stick your neck out!