By Message Staff TROUT – A year after floodwaters destroyed the 100-year-old building housing Zenoria Baptist Church, the congregation will hold a time of celebration to mark the remarkable progress that has been made on a new facility. Scheduled from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, March 11, the event will give members and guests a peek inside its future home. Located at 3133 Hwy. 500 in Trout, the facility will feature a worship center seating 138, Sunday school classrooms and a fellowship hall. Since Monday, March 6, nearly 80 Kingdom Builders have literally raised a new building from the slab up and they expect to finish much of the work by the end of the week despite two days of rain. Pastor Joel Johnson hopes his congregation of 65 people can be in their new facility by Easter. “It’s going to be a time of jubilee,” Johnson said. “We couldn’t have pulled this off without the help of people in the community, sister churches and the Kingdom Builders. We’re not finished yet but we’re approaching a place where we can soon meet together again.” Zenoria Baptist Church was destroyed after 9 feet of water from Little River – located less than a half-mile away – surrounded the church March 11, 2016. In just 12 hours time, … [Read more...]

By Message Staff MONROE – The Baptist Collegiate Ministry at the University of Louisiana-Monroe will break ground on a new building Wednesday, March 8. Scheduled for noon, the groundbreaking ceremony will take place at 1005 University Avenue with a lunch to follow. This new facility will be built within 12-18 months on the existing property of the original building, which was demolished in 2015. Since the building was torn down, the ministry has held worship services at College Place Baptist Church, just a few blocks from the ULM campus. Once complete, the center will be able to hold between 300 and 400 people for worship services, meals and special programs. ULM BCM director Chad McClurg said the new building will position the ministry to reach students for decades to come. “We are excited about the impact BCM will continue to make at ULM,” said McClurg. “Our ministry loves the students, faculty, and administration of this university and we are grateful to many faithful givers to this project so that we can continue our ministry here.” For information about ULM BCM visit www.ulmbcm.com. … [Read more...]