Wed Nite & Thurs Morn  Oct 13,2011

Last evening was very busy.  After dinner we played a game called Davids vs. Goliaths.  It was a kind of frisbee freeze tag; campers vs. adults.  Watching those kids come at us was like one of those ancient battles when one side is facing overwhelming odds.  “If its to be the end, then let it be such and end that they speak of it for generations!”

Chapel was dynamite once again, with more encouragement from the band to worship God with all of our hearts.  The speaker picked up on the Saul chasing David theme – David chose to do right, even though Saul was choosing to do terrible things.  David truly was a man after God’s own heart.

After chapel we played Counselor Seek in he dark.  The adults got a 10 minute head start and hid all over the Meadow Ranch area.   To show you how hard core some of these guys are that come up year after year, one had brought up a wet suit and hid in the pond. 

The cabin devotions were powerful yet again.  The boys gathered in one cabin to hear the testimony of one of the camp staff – “Nach” (they don’t use their real names or reveal where they live).  Nacho had a very ugly childhood, yet visiting a youth group he fel God’s presence and set his heart to pursuing God.  Today, many of his family members are serving God.

Early mornings have been interesting.  Some of the kids have elected to walk around the lake before breakfast.  This morning I took a crew of 5 fishing - they had to wake up at 5:45am!  We didn’t catch anything, but the sight of the full moon on the lake at the crack of dawn, and the mist blowing off the water was breathtaking.   This camp facility truly is a beautiful setting.  They have full conference and resort facilities, if you are ever looking for a nice get-away.

This will be the last post from camp.  I will be heading down to the valley after dinner for an early morning meeting in Bakersfield tomorrow.  The Association of Christian Schools, Int’l (ACSI) hosts these meeting to brief school leaders on trends, upcoming events, new ACSI resources and any legal/legislative isssues that are coming down the pike.  The students should be back at the school at about 8pm tomorrow.  Mrs. Arkinson will coordinate the trip home.

It has been a treat to have time with many of the students, and to wath them grow in so many ways – especially spiritually.  I hope the pictures and background info in these posts will help you have plenty of contact points to have some great conversations with your children.

Many blessings.

Pastor Joe

Clicking a picture below will enlarge it, with “Next” or “Back” thumnails below.

Wed Daytime – Oct 12, 2011

Our morning adventure class this morning was Native Americans.  We learned about some of the plants that area Indians would have used, along with some crafts like acorn grinding with pestal/mortar and flint chipping to make arrow (and lance) heads.  The teacher (Nacho) also told us how the totem reveals a person’s identity, and how decorations – including face painting (optional) could illustrate aspects of that identity.

We had a special presentation for the afternoon class – Zoo to You.  The presenters showed us a hawk, gilla monster, fox, a pair of opossums and a couple alligators.

We started our free time with several of us playing volleyball – boys against girls.  The girls led for much of the game, but the boys pulled ahead at the end.  There is another game that seems to be popular – Gaga Ball.  Several players stand in an octagon enclosure and hit a 6″ softball toward each other or off the wall.  If it hits a player below the knee, he’s out. 

Slide show below… click to enlarge, and then via the “ahead” and “back” thumbnails below see the rest of the slides.

Tues Day -  Oct 11, 2011

We had a full day of activities, beginning with KP for the boys this time.  After breakfast and counselor’s meeting we gathered for a small chapel service and then broke into the 10 teams that will compete against each other for points (clean cabins, memory verses, camp spirit etc.).

Our first class was Meteorology, where we learned about the weather.  After lunch we had “Nappy-Poo” (quiet time) in the cabins, and then our second class, Rock Climbing.  Free time followed, with many of our students trying the Screamer.  It’s a 45 foot jump, with a harness and ropes that kick in after you free-fall for about 20 feet.  (I am proud to say that I didn’t scream like a little girl.)  A couple of our students went on it THREE times. 

Click to enlarge.

Tuesday Evening – Oct 12, 2011

After a great dinner (great in camp terms…) we played a fun game called A Fong.  The counselors were divided into three groups: Taggers, Point Guards and Medics.  The student’s goal was to touch a Point Guard, who would then fling a point card into the air.  The kids would scoop up the point card and deposit it into the bucket of their team.  The Taggers had long socks – with another crumpled up sock inside.  If they “tagged” a student with the sock, s/he was to kneel on the ground and call for a medic to come and liberate them.

The chapel service afterward was another great one.  Our band, The Tide was outstanding once again.  The speaker talked about the way sin separates us from God.  The key story was about Ryan’s recent house purchase, and his ignoring the roots (aka little sins) growing in the sewer line.  The consequences were catastrophic (and the stuff of Jr High humor).  We need to make a decision to “roto-rooter” those roots – i.e. let Jesus forgive us of our sins – and decide to live for Him (hence, “Decision Nite”) .  They dismissed the service in an attitude of prayerful silence, inviting anyone who wished to stay afterward for prayer – eleven of our kids stayed. 

The kids had free time afterward, with some of the activities described in earlier blogs.  Following are more pictures that we hope you will enoy…  If you notice a decided improvement in the quality of some of the pictures, we have Shannon Bedford to thank.  She has an amazing gift in photograpy.  We’ll assemble all of the pictures we can from everyone next week and get a copy of the disk to all the students. 

Click to enlarge…  Starts slideshow – click before or after thumbnail below to go to next slide.

Mon Eve -  Oct 10, 2011

The chapel theme is, “All In” – and the staff has done an amazing job creating a Western counterpart to the life of young King David.  They even made a movie that they are showing clips of to set up the drama vignettes for each service.  Last night we saw young  David Bethlehem in a mix up up with Phil Steen, who went to get his great big brother, Gil Steen.  Meanwhile, Sheriff Silver (the counterpart of King Saul) is getting miffed because David is getting more poular than he is.  Great fun!  They are going to include the movie on the camp DVD, so make sure your kids order it if this interests you.

The band is called The Tide, good friends of last year’s worship team – and very similar.  They are excellent musically, and the leader is showing the kids the value of worship that comes from the heart, and is uninhibited in its exuberance.  We’re clapping and shouting – and even dancing a bit!  The kids are really connecting.

The speaker, Ryan Suzuki, is an explosion of energy, and did a fantastic job tying together the various thoughts of the evening.   All In means we let God have full control.  He’s in charge, and we’ll let Him lead us where He wants to.

After the evening service, the kids were given some free time to play at the various activity centers - or just hang out in their cabins if they wanted to.  We wound up the evening with cabin devotionals and each cabin had a visit by a camp staff member.  In our cabin, our counselor Mark Turner passed out necklaces that he and his daughter Taylor had made before coming up (see pics). 

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Mon – 6pm

Hello parents and friends!   Our pre-dawn activities went smoothly, and we were able to get on the road without any major hick-ups and close to schedule.  Special thanks to all the parents who helped load the bus, organize kids, and screen the health forms. 

We had a fun trip, with no one getting sick.  We stopped in Visalia for lunch at a little mall that had three or four places to eat, and then tackled the windy road through the King’s Canyon area, arriving at about 1pm, when the camp opened for us.

The students put thier gear in their cabins, and then had till 5:30 to play:  fishing, exploring, swimming, volleyball, swings… they had a great time.   The girls cabins were first on the KP (Kitchen Patrol) list, and then we settleddown for Pizza and a nice slad bar.  Chapel starts in a few minutes, which will be the main topic for tomorrow morning’s post. 

Click to enlarge.