July 7 – From Anacortes Washington

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Camp is over and we are on our way.  We finished up camp yesterday morning and headed out to our next destination in Anacortes Washington.  Below is a map of our current location.

 

Camp Updates

We had a great time and made some fantastic relationships.  At the end, the kids shared a bit about what they loved and what they did not love.  How camp impacted them and what things it may change in their life.  They also created and memorized a mission statement to guide them through life’s decisions.  Here is one example from one of the students I was able to really spend time pouring into this camp.

“Be Persistent.  Be Courageous.  Live Active.  Pursue God and include Him in my conversations.  Always help others with their challenges and be like Christ in all I do.”

Camps like this create such strong bonds between campers.  There is talk about visiting each other in the future, going to Beijing, Tai Pei, or coming to Tennessee.  The hardest part of camp is the day we leave.  Saying goodbye to people who the kids have become such close friends with was challenging.  Questions about whether we will meet again swirl in our minds as we all head back to normal life.  Below are a few pictures from the camp.  I tried to include as many of the whole group as I could.

Our entire group dressed and ready to hit the 46 degree water for some rafting.
Snow fight on top of Mt Hood. Some of them wore shorts as the temperatures were not terribly cold by most snowy standards.
The accommodations where the kids would sleep and call home.

 

Josiah, Arthur, and Eric are demonstrating how addictions to television can turn people into zombies.
Hanan and Caleb were assigned each other as ‘buddies” when we are out and learned they are actually a lot alike.
As we loaded up to head out there were last minute selfies with some close friends.

 

 

 

 

 

I wanted to share an amazing view with you to close out the June camp.  One day I took a hike alone to the top of Wind Mountain.  I am not much of a hiker but I wanted to see the top and be alone with Jesus so it worked.  I almost gave up while making the hike to the top (a 1.15 mile, 1,138ft elevation change).  Once I made it though, the view and my time alone listening to His voice in the breeze was so worth it.

On The Road Again

We are back on the road and spending a few days with our friends Michael and Heidi in Anacortes, WA.  From here we will head to Glacier National Park, Yellowstone, Rapid City and home.  Between now and the 20th of July we will log 3,000 miles and see some amazing sites.  I will update you as we go.

Thank you for continuing to pray for and support us as we go.

June 23 – From Camp Beyond

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We have been busy!  We are in camp 7 days a week and the typical day looks like the following:

  • 7:15am – Breakfast
  • 7:45am – Class
  • 9:15am – Leave for activity (Hiking, swimming, visit museum, climb a mountain, etc.)
  • 12:00pm – Lunch
  • 1:00pm – Leave for activity (visit fish hatchery, learn about nature, visit dairy farm, hiking, etc.)
  • 5:30pm – get home
  • 6:00pm – dinner
  • 7:00pm – class
  • 9:00pm – free time
  • 10:00pm – lights out

We don’t go to every activity because as the teacher I need to make sure I am prepared for my new lessons both morning and night.

Our lessons are helping kids deal with 6 key decisions teenagers must make.  The 6 decisions deal with

  • Parents and Family
  • Friends
  • School
  • Addiction
  • Dating and Sex
  • Self-Worth

On each of these topics we do some specific class activities and discussion to help them in choosing how to deal with these decisions.  Example, tomorrow morning we will be starting the part on Parents and Family and will be introducing them to The 5 Love Languages.  This will help them learn how to recognize their parents need for love as well as how the student needs and tends to give love.  I love the material and believe strongly in the effectiveness of discussing these topics.

In the first few classes, we talked about the greatest challenges each student was currently facing. I had them write down challenges and turn them in. I then categorized them and counted them to see what our biggest challenges were.
Students are reviewing some of their greatest challenges with another person from the class. This gives students a great time to bond with others not only from another student group but also another language, culture, and country. It is interesting to find how their challenges are very similar.
A great team building exercise! Have them set up a tent without instructions and then spend 2 nights in it. They did quite well. Especially since several of them had never dealt with a tent.
Eryk learning how to use a hatchet and cut wood for the first time. He is one of our youngest students and is so full of joy although a little bit of a prankster from time to time.

 

We have also had some amazing things happening when not in class where God is ministering to some of the students.  I can’t share all of those details here.  We still have 2 weeks of class to go to this particular camp.  More to come!

The camp has a dedicated photographer who uploads pictures and videos she takes to their Facebook page.  I have shared them on our page as I find them.  If you are on Facebook and would like to see them click the picture below.

 

 

 

 

Interview with Engaging Missions Show

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After our recent trip to Myanmar and Thailand, Josiah and I participated in an interview with my friend Bryan Entzminger, host of the Engaging Missions Show.  We kicked off a series of shows on kids in ministry (something really close to my heart).  I am super excited about this series and the future guests.  Please consider visiting and subscribing to the Engaging Missions Show if you have a heart for missions or you would like to be encouraged by all that God is doing around the world.

If you have not heard some of our stories from Myanmar and the amazing things God did take time to listen to a few of them here.  Josiah is a little nervous starting out but I was so proud of him not only in learning to operate with the Holy Spirit at 11 years old but also to get on the radio and share his heart and the stories from our trip.  I hope you enjoy.

Listen here or pease consider visiting The Engaging Missions Show website.

 

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