Lexington, Kentucky
On Wednesday, I had the opportunity to visit Commonwealth Baptist College, a ministry of Clays Mill Baptist Church in Lexington, KY. I have known of Commonwealth and the ministry of Clays Mill Baptist for many years but I've never had the opportunity to visit the campus.
I have a couple of connections to this ministry. Gary Norris, our Barnabas missionary, that many of you know, is out of Clays Mill Baptist Church. Also, I grew up with Mrs. Elizabeth Young, the wife of Mr. Derek Young, the vice president of Commonwealth Baptist College. (Elizabeth and I both grew up at Fellowship Baptist Church and Central Iowa Christian Academy in Marshalltown, IA.)
An interesting thing about Commonwealth is the fact that it purchased and uses the facilities of what used to be the Eldorado Hotel of Lexington. The hotel rooms are now used as the dormitory rooms for the college students. The facilities are perfectly suited for a Bible college. The building that you see in the above photo was added by the college. It is built in the place where the hotel's swimming pool was located. The building serves as the main academic building with classrooms, offices, and a chapel.
While on campus, I had the opportunity to attend their chapel service. They had a guest speaker, Pastor John Shook, pastor of the Bailey's Grove Baptist Church in Asheboro, NC.
While I was not on campus to "officially" recruit staff, I was able to meet a number of students and was able to pass out our recruitment card. (Commonwealth has a student body of 140 students.) I truly felt like a missionary as I handed out those cards to students and asked them to pray for us! I started this recruitment trip with 500 recruitment cards and I'm coming home with just a small handful of cards. I'm excited to see how God will not only answer our prayers but also the prayers of all those who received one of our cards!
Wednesday night, I was able to attend the mid-week service for Clays Mill Baptist Church and hear Pastor Jeff Fugate preach. I have never had the opportunity to hear Bro. Fugate but I've always heard good things about him. He preached a message, from James chapter 3, entitled, Turning Wars into Wins. (Although they haven't posted that message yet, I'm sure they'll post it soon if you'd like to listen to it.)
It's now Thursday and I will be meeting with a prospective staff member later this afternoon in the Louisville area. Then, on Friday morning, I will begin the 8 hour trip back to Charlotte. I am looking forward to being home. Although I traveled for two years as a college rep for Pensacola Christian College, I had forgotten how "draining" this type of travel can be! (I'm not sure how many miles I've traveled but I know it's close to 2,000!)
I have taken time to pray, to read, and to study for sermon preparation. So, I'm looking forward to being back at SCBC on Sunday. In the J.O.Y. Connection Group we'll be in 1 Kings 21 and "The Straw That Broke The Camel's Back!" and, in the 11 AM service, will pick up with our theme, Truth in Love, from Ephesians 4:15. I trust that you will be in your place on Sunday.
Until next time!
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