So as I mentioned before, the madness climaxed on Thursday. Here are the highlights: We took the Expedition after lunch. On the Expedition, we take kids on a hike that explains each color of the gospel beads at a different station and at the end they make the bracelete. For those of you unfamiliar with the gospel colors they are: Yellow- because God created this world with light and love, and we are his unique creation. Blue- because of our sin and sadness. Red- Jesus's blood that was shed for our sins. Clear- because we are washed clean in Jesus and Green- which represents growing in our relationship with Jesus once we have accepted Jesus as our personal Savior. It's a really pretty trail that ends at an outdoor chapel. Well, halfway through the hike, one of my campers has to use the restroom- or as she put it "I GOTTA USE IT! I GOTTA USE IT BAAAD!" So we picked a shady area in the trees and she went out there.
After the expedition was pool time, followed by games in the lower fields. During pool time one of my momentum helpers informed me that there were two little girls fighting, and this time with cuss words and hitting. So I alerted a leadership staff member so she could help decide how to discipline. We got the two girls together and our plan was just to talk it out and give them a warning. However, they decided they did not want to talk it out and they starting fighting again, so they got put in lifejackets. The lifejacket is pretty much the ultimate punishment at camp. We have three basic rules: Don't fight, Don't cuss, and Don't disrespect. If they break them, they get a warning, then a lifejacket. Because those actions in life will bring them down and we are trying to save them. If they were drowning in a water, we'd throw them a lifejacket. Therefore, if they're about to drown in life, we do likewise. It's really just embarassing; it's basically a scarlet letter. Kids do have the choice not to wear it, but then they have to sit out by themselves and they can't participate in anything. Luckily, our girls did accept their punishment, which is one step. They got off lucky too because Thursday we had sponsors and potential sponsors coming so they got to take them off when the sponsors were there.
The sponsors was another reason why Thursday was hectic. There were so many people at camp! It's good though to see all those people willing to support us. It was also nice because Domainia (our nightime program with praise and worship and the gospel skit) was taken up a few notches. Our praise leader Darris had his band there, which was great, and they actually had lights when it got dark. Plus, Barry Baker, who works for CityCure presented the gospel message after the gospel skit, and I think a lot of kids really understood and accepted Jesus that night.
After Domainia is small group, where we discuss what went on in the gospel skit. The gospel skit is the prodigal son put into urban, current day form that the kids can relate to. It's really powerful, and I can explain more another time. Anyway, it's always hard to get the kids into small group, especially when they're young and tired. Paige, of course (she was in a lifejacket and had been causing problems all week), decided to literally run around the dining hall where we were having small group because she didn't want to go. So I sprinted after her until I caught her. Of course she wouldn't say anything, so leadership got involved and helped out.
Even though it was nearly 10:30 because we were running late, the night was not over! On the way to the bathroom to brush our teeth, one of my campers (the same little girl who had to go during the Expedition) peed herself. So I had a momentum take her to the showers to rinse off while I ran and got her new clothes from King's Kloset (and I was running because I didn't want the poor girl sitting there embarrassed for too long). I expressed my doubt about the momentums in the previous entry, but I have to say, when it came down to it and I really needed them- they stepped up to the plate. It was great. Anyway, then I ran back to the laundry room to wash the dirty clothes. It was a hectic night.
Finally the next day they left. And you'd think that after such a crazy week I'd be happy to see them go, but I was actually kind of sad. When the kids are misbehaving, it's easy to see them simply as little hellions out to ruin your day and make things harder for you. But when it comes down to it, they're still little girls who just need love. God's really been helping me see things from his point of view lately, and it's been good (see Matt. 16:23).
Another thing I've been learning is how much I can learn and grow here at camp from really becoming like a child (Matt 18:2-4). Everything during the week is kid-centered and it's all too easy to see myself as above that because I'm an adult. But everything from the songs to the skits to the kids themselves teach me things every week. Jesus had a reason for telling us to become like little children. What better way to do that then to hang out with them all summer!
Friday night we went to Chipotle, WalMart, and Starbucks again like last week. We're thinking about making it a tradition. I like that idea :)
Saturday we went to a Cincinnati Reds game! That was fun, even though I'm not really into baseball. I just like being around a lot of people, so it was a nice change from camp. It was nice to see Cincinnati a little more too since I have never really spent a lot of time here.
Today we went to Antioch church again. I really like it there. I forget if I mentioned this before, but Pastor Dave is doing a series on "People like Us with Problems like Ours." Today's sermon was on Caleb and how he served the Lord "wholeheartedly" in everything he did. The Hebrew word for "wholeheartedly" means that something was empty and now it is completely full of something else. Like a vase filled with water, Caleb was completely filled with God. Pastor Dave really challenged us to think about how we are living our lives compared to Caleb. It kind of going along with another thought that I've been considering lately. I love the song "Blessed Be Your Name." If you aren't familiar with it, download it or look up the lyrics. Well, I was singing that, and it hit me: I'm singing this song, but in the regular moments of my day, do I really bless His name in everything? That thought haunted me this past week and has been something that I'm working on.
Next week I'm in cabin 5, so they'll be significantly older than last week. There will be less kids, so God-willing it won't be as crazy as last week.
I'm working on getting pictures up from the past week. I took a lot, so it's going to take awhile, especially once I take more this week and have to upload those too!
In Christ,
Audrey
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Week Four: Craziest Week of My Life
Unfortunately, I have less than a half hour for this entry right now. That means there is no way I can express how crazy this past week was (if there is a way to express it in the first place). However, I will start to recount the week, and then probably finish it whenever I get a chance next.
The week started off well.. kind of. Monday, Doug Pollock came to speak. Doug is the Evangelism Director for Athletes in Action, so he definitely had some good thoughts and advice to kick off the week. We talked about some major Do's and Don'ts of evangelism and how to share your story well. A lot of the stuff he talked about is on his website, GodsGPS.com. The unfortunate part of that talk is the the momentum kids looks downright bored. Many were actually sleeping, a few texting. It was really frustrating that they weren't taking advantage of all the great tips and ideas that Doug was sharing. If you don't remember what momentum is, it's a program for junior and high school students to come and serve as junior counselors at camp for a week(basically they help out the counselors with whatever needs to be done). Sometimes the momentum kids can be really helpful, but seeinf them doze off during Doug's talk made me a little worried about the coming week. Did they really care? Did they really come here to grow and serve or just to hang out with their friends?
After lunch, all the counselors helped out with a program at a nearby church for special needs kids. I didn't work directly with the kids, but seeing my fellow counselors do so was amazing. Their patience with those children was fantastic. My freinds Ty and Dan worked with a boy who was autistic and had downs syndrome. They really had to pour their entire self into working with that boy, and it was great seeing them do that through God's strength. That day, they were Jesus to that little boy.
Tuesday the kids came. Before I begin the happenings of the time with the kids, let me preface with this: there were 120 kids on camp this past week- the most kids that have been on camp since it first opened. I knew it was going to be a little hectic, but I had no idea what it was really going to be like.
Tuesday morning I left around 7 to go to Crossroads (the church in Cincinnati where the kids are dropped off). They usually send a few counselors with some leadership staff to help out. The counselors job there is just to play with the kids and make sure things are in general order. Around 10 or 11 we load kids onto two buses to take them to camp. We had so many kids that we had to cram 3 or 4 kids to a seat and we had to stand or sit on the steps. Even then we had to recruit other drivers to take some kids to camp. The craziness had begun.
Once at camp, we ate lunch and found out who was in our cabin. We had 11 girls. 11 girls ages 6-9 who know no boundaries. Ah! There are only 12 beds in the cabin!. So with 11 kids plus two counselors, we had to put a mattress on the floor. Once that was sorted out, we had to get all our stuff in the cabin, change into bathing suits and go down to the pool. It seemed like all my kids were missing something. Not everyone had flipflops, or a once piece bathing suit, or a towel, or tennis shoes, etc etc. Which isn't there fault by any means, it just makes things crazier because I have to run over to King's Kloset and get them stuff.
The madness continued on Wednesday, constantly breaking up fights and counting heads to make sure they were all alive, but it probably climaxed on Thursday. Unfortuantely I have to go, but I will finish this another time.
In Christ,
Audrey
The week started off well.. kind of. Monday, Doug Pollock came to speak. Doug is the Evangelism Director for Athletes in Action, so he definitely had some good thoughts and advice to kick off the week. We talked about some major Do's and Don'ts of evangelism and how to share your story well. A lot of the stuff he talked about is on his website, GodsGPS.com. The unfortunate part of that talk is the the momentum kids looks downright bored. Many were actually sleeping, a few texting. It was really frustrating that they weren't taking advantage of all the great tips and ideas that Doug was sharing. If you don't remember what momentum is, it's a program for junior and high school students to come and serve as junior counselors at camp for a week(basically they help out the counselors with whatever needs to be done). Sometimes the momentum kids can be really helpful, but seeinf them doze off during Doug's talk made me a little worried about the coming week. Did they really care? Did they really come here to grow and serve or just to hang out with their friends?
After lunch, all the counselors helped out with a program at a nearby church for special needs kids. I didn't work directly with the kids, but seeing my fellow counselors do so was amazing. Their patience with those children was fantastic. My freinds Ty and Dan worked with a boy who was autistic and had downs syndrome. They really had to pour their entire self into working with that boy, and it was great seeing them do that through God's strength. That day, they were Jesus to that little boy.
Tuesday the kids came. Before I begin the happenings of the time with the kids, let me preface with this: there were 120 kids on camp this past week- the most kids that have been on camp since it first opened. I knew it was going to be a little hectic, but I had no idea what it was really going to be like.
Tuesday morning I left around 7 to go to Crossroads (the church in Cincinnati where the kids are dropped off). They usually send a few counselors with some leadership staff to help out. The counselors job there is just to play with the kids and make sure things are in general order. Around 10 or 11 we load kids onto two buses to take them to camp. We had so many kids that we had to cram 3 or 4 kids to a seat and we had to stand or sit on the steps. Even then we had to recruit other drivers to take some kids to camp. The craziness had begun.
Once at camp, we ate lunch and found out who was in our cabin. We had 11 girls. 11 girls ages 6-9 who know no boundaries. Ah! There are only 12 beds in the cabin!. So with 11 kids plus two counselors, we had to put a mattress on the floor. Once that was sorted out, we had to get all our stuff in the cabin, change into bathing suits and go down to the pool. It seemed like all my kids were missing something. Not everyone had flipflops, or a once piece bathing suit, or a towel, or tennis shoes, etc etc. Which isn't there fault by any means, it just makes things crazier because I have to run over to King's Kloset and get them stuff.
The madness continued on Wednesday, constantly breaking up fights and counting heads to make sure they were all alive, but it probably climaxed on Thursday. Unfortuantely I have to go, but I will finish this another time.
In Christ,
Audrey
Sunday, July 20, 2008
Week 3: Domainia Week
After I ended the last post, there were still some preparatory things to take care of before suburban week (aka Domainia week). Sunday evening they had a foot-washing ceremony. The leadership women washed the counselors feet. It reminded me of Pass the Baton at OU (I still have my baton from that- I keep it next to my bed to remind me of the commitment I made to the movement). Speaking of my commitment to serve Crusade at OU, I'm also going to be discipled for the rest of the project by Erin, who was actually my co-counselor the first week I was here but has moved up to leadership staff since then. We had a really good chat this week; she had some really great advice and encouragement. So I'm looking forward to that. After foot-washing we had a communion ceremony. That was nice, because I feel like I haven't had communion in awhile.
Monday I found out that I was in cabin 6 with Alee. I didn't know her that well, but she was an awesome co-counselor. We worked together well and definitely got to know each other better through the week. Lots of late night chats outside the cabin when the girls were asleep (or at least they were supposed to be). Registration was later that day. We only had 4 girls in our cabin. All middle school age, though one was in 6th grade and the rest in 8th. Three of the girls already knew each other because they went to the same church; two of them were best friends. I was worried at the beginning of the week that the two bffs would stick together and not get to know the other girls better, but they really included the other two well. Also, one girl in the cabin had a learning disability so she was a little socially behind as well, but she grew so much this past week. It was great seeing her come out of her shell and be social and just much bolder than she was when she arrived. She came to all of the dance workshops and gave it her all. It was great. One of the best friends actually was gone a lot (one day for a doctor's appt. about a rash and another for a swim competition), so that helped the other one get to know the other girls, but it was hard to bond as a cabin.
Because it was suburban week most of the kids were pretty familiar with the Bible and the gospel in general. It was hard to find time to get into a deep conversation with any of them about what it means to have a personal relationship with Christ, but Alee and I still did out best to show Christ's love and what a young woman of God looks like. They did comment a couple of times about how much we read our Bibles and pray, so I think that that made an impact on them because they at least noticed it.
Probably one of my favorite parts of the week was running the dance workshop with Lindsey. The kids can choose from a number of workshops in the time between breakfast and lunch, two workshops a day. Lindsey ran the dance workshop last project, but she let me kind of take control of it and make some adjustments. I really wanted to focus more on the idea of praise dance. Lindsey and I choreographed some new praise dances and came up with some questions to give the kids an idea of what praise dance is. It is honestly such a joy to see kids dance for Jesus!! So fun!
Another highlight from the week: I also got my first bee sting ever! I figured that would happen while I was here at camp. It was right in the arch of my foot! It actually didn't hurt that badly, but it kind of itches.
After all the kids left on Friday, we had a debriefing of sorts and one of the leadership men announced that they had a surprise for the girl counselors in the conference room. So we all went up there and found red roses with notes for each of us from one of the guys! How sweet!! The note had this really sweet poem like thing on it about women in God's eyes and then there was a personal note about us. It was so nice.
That night we all went out to Chipotle for dinner! Mmmm! Then we all had to pick up some things from WalMart, and then to the Starbucks nearby. It was a good time off camp. It's nice to just chill and have some good fellowship.
Yesterday I was on facebook for about 3 hours uploaded over 100 pictures from the past two weeks and captioning them. So if you are my facebook friend, check it out. Or get someone who is to log in and show you. After chilling at the pool for an hour or so, we had dinner and went to see the new Batman movie. I liked it. After the movie we had a late-night pool party. I was tired, but it was fun anyway.
Some more notes from the week: I really feel God building a servant's heart in me and showing me what it means to be a servant leader, which is pretty sweet. Also, my prayer life has gotten a lot better. I've been really working on being in prayer continually and trying to be truly walking in the power of the Holy Spirit.
Well, momentum kids come today and the urban campers come Tuesday. I'm in Cabin 1, so I get the youngest ones. I'm not sure how I feel about that right now, but with momentum to help us it should be okay.
That's all for now!
In Christ,
Audrey
Monday I found out that I was in cabin 6 with Alee. I didn't know her that well, but she was an awesome co-counselor. We worked together well and definitely got to know each other better through the week. Lots of late night chats outside the cabin when the girls were asleep (or at least they were supposed to be). Registration was later that day. We only had 4 girls in our cabin. All middle school age, though one was in 6th grade and the rest in 8th. Three of the girls already knew each other because they went to the same church; two of them were best friends. I was worried at the beginning of the week that the two bffs would stick together and not get to know the other girls better, but they really included the other two well. Also, one girl in the cabin had a learning disability so she was a little socially behind as well, but she grew so much this past week. It was great seeing her come out of her shell and be social and just much bolder than she was when she arrived. She came to all of the dance workshops and gave it her all. It was great. One of the best friends actually was gone a lot (one day for a doctor's appt. about a rash and another for a swim competition), so that helped the other one get to know the other girls, but it was hard to bond as a cabin.
Because it was suburban week most of the kids were pretty familiar with the Bible and the gospel in general. It was hard to find time to get into a deep conversation with any of them about what it means to have a personal relationship with Christ, but Alee and I still did out best to show Christ's love and what a young woman of God looks like. They did comment a couple of times about how much we read our Bibles and pray, so I think that that made an impact on them because they at least noticed it.
Probably one of my favorite parts of the week was running the dance workshop with Lindsey. The kids can choose from a number of workshops in the time between breakfast and lunch, two workshops a day. Lindsey ran the dance workshop last project, but she let me kind of take control of it and make some adjustments. I really wanted to focus more on the idea of praise dance. Lindsey and I choreographed some new praise dances and came up with some questions to give the kids an idea of what praise dance is. It is honestly such a joy to see kids dance for Jesus!! So fun!
Another highlight from the week: I also got my first bee sting ever! I figured that would happen while I was here at camp. It was right in the arch of my foot! It actually didn't hurt that badly, but it kind of itches.
After all the kids left on Friday, we had a debriefing of sorts and one of the leadership men announced that they had a surprise for the girl counselors in the conference room. So we all went up there and found red roses with notes for each of us from one of the guys! How sweet!! The note had this really sweet poem like thing on it about women in God's eyes and then there was a personal note about us. It was so nice.
That night we all went out to Chipotle for dinner! Mmmm! Then we all had to pick up some things from WalMart, and then to the Starbucks nearby. It was a good time off camp. It's nice to just chill and have some good fellowship.
Yesterday I was on facebook for about 3 hours uploaded over 100 pictures from the past two weeks and captioning them. So if you are my facebook friend, check it out. Or get someone who is to log in and show you. After chilling at the pool for an hour or so, we had dinner and went to see the new Batman movie. I liked it. After the movie we had a late-night pool party. I was tired, but it was fun anyway.
Some more notes from the week: I really feel God building a servant's heart in me and showing me what it means to be a servant leader, which is pretty sweet. Also, my prayer life has gotten a lot better. I've been really working on being in prayer continually and trying to be truly walking in the power of the Holy Spirit.
Well, momentum kids come today and the urban campers come Tuesday. I'm in Cabin 1, so I get the youngest ones. I'm not sure how I feel about that right now, but with momentum to help us it should be okay.
That's all for now!
In Christ,
Audrey
Sunday, July 13, 2008
Second Week Here: Training Week
So a week ago from today new counselors were still trickling in from all over the country for the second official project. From Montana, Idaho, Oklahoma, Michigan, Indiana, and the list goes on. Eventually everyone got here by Monday night around dinner. Two people I know from OU came down, so that was good. It's nice to have some familiar faces around and to see some friends.
After dinner, we had to get dressed in crazy, random costumes and go on a photo scavenger hunt at a nearby shopping complex. For those of you who don't know what that is: you get in teams, one person has to have a digital camera, then you get a list of things you need to find or do and take pictures of. Each item on the list was a different number of points. Some easy ones were less points, and ones like "scare a stranger (for real)" were 300 points!! At the end of the hour the points were totalled. They never announced the winner, but from talking to the other groups, I'm pretty sure my team won. We were sprinting around like crazy trying to get as many points as possible. Then we all got rewarded for being silly on the scavenger hunt by getting icecream or slushies at Sonic.
The next day we took a prayer walk on one of the trails. It was nice to get in groups and pray and connect with some other counselors. During the busy weeks when kids are here, I won't always have a chance to contemplate the beauty that's surrounding me, so it was nice to enjoy God's creation for a little.
Another thing we did that day was practice for the "Banquet" night. The first night the kids are here is a banquet theme, so we use trashbags to make dresses for the girls and ties for the boys. It's silly, but fun and the kids love it. As an added twist for this week we had the guy conselors make the girl's dresses, which turned out pretty funny in some cases, but mine was actually pretty good (I added a lot of suggestions because my Project Runway mode was kicking in, haha).
We also had a campfire that night, which was nice. The guys made the girls smores, so that was an added bonus. We learned some more campfire songs and talked. It was pretty chill.
The next day we organized workshops, which is what the kids do between breakfast and lunch when they're here. I get to help organize the dance workshop, which is really exciting! I'm going to teach them a dance to the chorus of "Who Am I" by Casting Crowns. We did a dance to it with Daughters of the King fall quarter, so I pretty much just modified the moves we did for that to be simpler for kids of all ages.
After lunch that day we went on the "expedition." On the expedition, you take a trail and along the way there are stations that each explain a different color of the gospel beads. For those of you who may not be familiar with the gospel beads, the first color is yellow which stands for God's light and love with which He created the world. Blue stands for our sin and sadness that causes us to be separate from God. Red is for Jesus' blood which washes us clean, so the next bead is Clear. And the final bead is Green for growing in our relationship with God once we have been cleansed of our sin. I think it's such a simple and clear presentation of the gospel; I really love that they use it here to reach children. At the end of the expedition trail there's an outdoor chapel where the kids can make their own braceletes. I already have one from Christmas Conference, which I still have on!
Next, we had a workshop on worship. It was interesting to hear people's thoughts on the different types of worship and what the Bible has to say about it (which is A LOT). And of course we got to worship, which is always awesome.
The next day, Thursday, did some team building exercises like the trust fall. We also talked about discipline. It was interesting to hear about how to really discipline through love and what that looks like. It definitely made me feel more confident about the coming weeks and handling a variety of situations. Another workshop that day was about spiritual gifts, which is always an interesting topic. I feel that God has really given me the gift of knowledge, particularly about His Word. It made me think a lot about what God really wants me to do with the gifts He's given me. He's given me this insatiable hunger for studying His Word; and now I just need to be listening more about what I'm meant to do with it!
Friday we watched Freedom Writers after lunch (if you haven't seen it, rent it! it's sooo good). I'd seen it before, but it has the same emotional impact every time. It sparked conversation about how to reach kids who come from a rough, inner city background. One thing is for sure, it's not easy. I think the most important thing sometimes is to just listen, especially when you can't relate. Pretending that you can, or trying to won't work well. These kids just need love, and it won't matter to them where you're from if you can show them real love.
After lunch we had our poverty simulation. This meant bringing only our toothbrush and toothpaste and the clothes on our back, going into the worst part of Cincinnati to experience where our campers our coming from first hand. I have never been so uncomfortable in my life. If you know me well you might know that I spend a lot of time avoiding potentially awkward situations, and here God threw me straight into the most awkward situation ever. I wasn't really scared; it was honestly pure discomfort. I just didn't know how to act. But in the end, it was good to have been there and to see what our campers are used to. We actually ran into one kid who had been to camp before hanging out outside his home. It was so interesting to talk to him in his setting and here his opinions and thoughts. We spent the night in a church in Cincy and helped with a CityCure program the next morning before heading back to camp. CityCure is the program that works with innercity youth that sends us a lot of our campers.
Saturday after getting back from the poverty simulation, we got to shower (yayy!) and chill for a little. After dinner we went night rafting, which was so much fun!! The Little Miami River isn't anything really awesome, but it was so pretty at dusk and another great opportunity to get to know my fellow counselors. There's one part of the trip where you can get out and swim, there's a small current that you can let carry you (the water is like 2 ft deep, mind you, so you can stand up at anytime). It was great.
Today we went to church at Antioch, which is at the largest YMCA in the country. It was a good service. It seems like they played all my favorite songs and the message was good. Dave, the pastor (who is also Wendell's son, Wendell is the camp president), came to speak on Wednesday or Thursday, and gave a good talk on Ephesians, particularly preparing for war and putting on God's armor. Today the message was about Joseph and how even in the toughest situations, he knew that God was with him and acted that way.
I have to go to a meeting now, so I can't proofread this at all! I'm learning so much, and I wish I could share on a deeper level all that God is teaching me, but I don't have time right now!
In Christ,
Audrey
After dinner, we had to get dressed in crazy, random costumes and go on a photo scavenger hunt at a nearby shopping complex. For those of you who don't know what that is: you get in teams, one person has to have a digital camera, then you get a list of things you need to find or do and take pictures of. Each item on the list was a different number of points. Some easy ones were less points, and ones like "scare a stranger (for real)" were 300 points!! At the end of the hour the points were totalled. They never announced the winner, but from talking to the other groups, I'm pretty sure my team won. We were sprinting around like crazy trying to get as many points as possible. Then we all got rewarded for being silly on the scavenger hunt by getting icecream or slushies at Sonic.
The next day we took a prayer walk on one of the trails. It was nice to get in groups and pray and connect with some other counselors. During the busy weeks when kids are here, I won't always have a chance to contemplate the beauty that's surrounding me, so it was nice to enjoy God's creation for a little.
Another thing we did that day was practice for the "Banquet" night. The first night the kids are here is a banquet theme, so we use trashbags to make dresses for the girls and ties for the boys. It's silly, but fun and the kids love it. As an added twist for this week we had the guy conselors make the girl's dresses, which turned out pretty funny in some cases, but mine was actually pretty good (I added a lot of suggestions because my Project Runway mode was kicking in, haha).
We also had a campfire that night, which was nice. The guys made the girls smores, so that was an added bonus. We learned some more campfire songs and talked. It was pretty chill.
The next day we organized workshops, which is what the kids do between breakfast and lunch when they're here. I get to help organize the dance workshop, which is really exciting! I'm going to teach them a dance to the chorus of "Who Am I" by Casting Crowns. We did a dance to it with Daughters of the King fall quarter, so I pretty much just modified the moves we did for that to be simpler for kids of all ages.
After lunch that day we went on the "expedition." On the expedition, you take a trail and along the way there are stations that each explain a different color of the gospel beads. For those of you who may not be familiar with the gospel beads, the first color is yellow which stands for God's light and love with which He created the world. Blue stands for our sin and sadness that causes us to be separate from God. Red is for Jesus' blood which washes us clean, so the next bead is Clear. And the final bead is Green for growing in our relationship with God once we have been cleansed of our sin. I think it's such a simple and clear presentation of the gospel; I really love that they use it here to reach children. At the end of the expedition trail there's an outdoor chapel where the kids can make their own braceletes. I already have one from Christmas Conference, which I still have on!
Next, we had a workshop on worship. It was interesting to hear people's thoughts on the different types of worship and what the Bible has to say about it (which is A LOT). And of course we got to worship, which is always awesome.
The next day, Thursday, did some team building exercises like the trust fall. We also talked about discipline. It was interesting to hear about how to really discipline through love and what that looks like. It definitely made me feel more confident about the coming weeks and handling a variety of situations. Another workshop that day was about spiritual gifts, which is always an interesting topic. I feel that God has really given me the gift of knowledge, particularly about His Word. It made me think a lot about what God really wants me to do with the gifts He's given me. He's given me this insatiable hunger for studying His Word; and now I just need to be listening more about what I'm meant to do with it!
Friday we watched Freedom Writers after lunch (if you haven't seen it, rent it! it's sooo good). I'd seen it before, but it has the same emotional impact every time. It sparked conversation about how to reach kids who come from a rough, inner city background. One thing is for sure, it's not easy. I think the most important thing sometimes is to just listen, especially when you can't relate. Pretending that you can, or trying to won't work well. These kids just need love, and it won't matter to them where you're from if you can show them real love.
After lunch we had our poverty simulation. This meant bringing only our toothbrush and toothpaste and the clothes on our back, going into the worst part of Cincinnati to experience where our campers our coming from first hand. I have never been so uncomfortable in my life. If you know me well you might know that I spend a lot of time avoiding potentially awkward situations, and here God threw me straight into the most awkward situation ever. I wasn't really scared; it was honestly pure discomfort. I just didn't know how to act. But in the end, it was good to have been there and to see what our campers are used to. We actually ran into one kid who had been to camp before hanging out outside his home. It was so interesting to talk to him in his setting and here his opinions and thoughts. We spent the night in a church in Cincy and helped with a CityCure program the next morning before heading back to camp. CityCure is the program that works with innercity youth that sends us a lot of our campers.
Saturday after getting back from the poverty simulation, we got to shower (yayy!) and chill for a little. After dinner we went night rafting, which was so much fun!! The Little Miami River isn't anything really awesome, but it was so pretty at dusk and another great opportunity to get to know my fellow counselors. There's one part of the trip where you can get out and swim, there's a small current that you can let carry you (the water is like 2 ft deep, mind you, so you can stand up at anytime). It was great.
Today we went to church at Antioch, which is at the largest YMCA in the country. It was a good service. It seems like they played all my favorite songs and the message was good. Dave, the pastor (who is also Wendell's son, Wendell is the camp president), came to speak on Wednesday or Thursday, and gave a good talk on Ephesians, particularly preparing for war and putting on God's armor. Today the message was about Joseph and how even in the toughest situations, he knew that God was with him and acted that way.
I have to go to a meeting now, so I can't proofread this at all! I'm learning so much, and I wish I could share on a deeper level all that God is teaching me, but I don't have time right now!
In Christ,
Audrey
Saturday, July 5, 2008
First Week Here!
Hello everyone. After almost a week of being away from my computer, I finally have it back and have a few moments to update this.
I arrived at camp Sunday afternoon, feeling a little hesitant to say the least. I didn't know where to go, and if I were closer to home I probably would've turned around and gone back. But I knew that those thoughts were not from God and that God had lead me here for a reason, so I wasn't about to abandon the plan He has for me here. After talking to Austin for awhile, I felt a little better and got enough courage to go inside and actually meet everyone and get started. From there we had a staff meeting where we discussed the week ahead, and I met everyone. Then I moved my stuff into Cabin 4, where I stayed last week. Erin was my co-counselor showing me the ropes this week. She served here last year too, so she definitely knows what she is doing. But I still felt pretty lost at times. As most of you know, I am a very planned person. I like knowing the where, when, why, who, and how of everything taking place. This week was definitely not like that. God has clearly been testing my trust in Him because I can't rely solely on my plans anymore. After a few days I did begin to feel a little more comfortable. It was also hard to get adjusted because this week was the last week of Project 1. So that means most counselors had been there for 6 weeks and are leaving today. Because of this, most of the counselors wanted to spend time with their friends who they'll be leaving and not seeing for awhile. I totally understand where they are coming from, and it's not like they did anything overt to make me feel excluded, but it was kind of a bummer because I couldn't really begin to establish any relationships. Though I did get to know some people a little, and they were all really nice.
Because I didn't really begin to make close friends, I'd have to say the highlight of the week was working with the kids. On Tuesday we went into Cincinnati for a NACC convention. There we helped children from a program called Whiz Kids go through the activities they had planned for the first half of the day. It was a nice warm up of sorts for the kids that were coming to King's Domain later that day. We had some time between the convention and getting our ride back to camp because of a bus shortage, but it was okay because I got to know some of the Momentum people better. Momentum is a program for junior high and high school students to help out at camp as junior counselors. They were so helpful the whole week, especially for someone like me who was just starting out. So it was nice to get to know some of them before the week really got going.
Once the kids got there, it was pretty busy. Four of the girls in my cabin had already been to camp two weeks previous, but that was helpful because they knew where they were going better than I did sometimes and because they were pretty well behaved. It was so great to see them learn about God's love and choosing life. I feel so blessed to be able to serve here and give these girls the love they need.
Once the campers left, we had a celebration lunch with the Momentum kids, then cleaned out our cabins and moved in the dorm. We went to Niwana's for dinner. Niwana is our cook at camp and she was having a get-together for the 4th of July, so we got to go. It was so much fun. Good home cooking. There were these three older men just going to town on their acoustic guitars. It was great. I love watching good guitarists pick, it's great. I also ended up joining in on a volleyball game they had going. I didn't play really well, but it was still fun. After dinner, the girls baked desserts and chatted. I was excited that I got to bake; it's a form of therapy for me, I swear, haha. It was also encouraging to hear their stories from the past 6 weeks, even if I wasn't there to experience them, because I know that God has great things planned for my time here too.
I'm trying to upload pictures to facebook, but facebook isn't cooperating, so they might not be up today. I didn't take many the first couple days that the campers were here because I was still getting used to everything, so there aren't that many,
Overall, I can already feel my relationship with the Lord deepening. My time in prayer and in the Word has been so much more regular and God has really given me the passion I've been praying for.
I'm excited for the next week. I get to meet a lot of new people, see a couple cool kids from OU that are coming to be counselors, and actually be officially "trained."
Well, I think that about covers it!
In Christ,
Audrey
I arrived at camp Sunday afternoon, feeling a little hesitant to say the least. I didn't know where to go, and if I were closer to home I probably would've turned around and gone back. But I knew that those thoughts were not from God and that God had lead me here for a reason, so I wasn't about to abandon the plan He has for me here. After talking to Austin for awhile, I felt a little better and got enough courage to go inside and actually meet everyone and get started. From there we had a staff meeting where we discussed the week ahead, and I met everyone. Then I moved my stuff into Cabin 4, where I stayed last week. Erin was my co-counselor showing me the ropes this week. She served here last year too, so she definitely knows what she is doing. But I still felt pretty lost at times. As most of you know, I am a very planned person. I like knowing the where, when, why, who, and how of everything taking place. This week was definitely not like that. God has clearly been testing my trust in Him because I can't rely solely on my plans anymore. After a few days I did begin to feel a little more comfortable. It was also hard to get adjusted because this week was the last week of Project 1. So that means most counselors had been there for 6 weeks and are leaving today. Because of this, most of the counselors wanted to spend time with their friends who they'll be leaving and not seeing for awhile. I totally understand where they are coming from, and it's not like they did anything overt to make me feel excluded, but it was kind of a bummer because I couldn't really begin to establish any relationships. Though I did get to know some people a little, and they were all really nice.
Because I didn't really begin to make close friends, I'd have to say the highlight of the week was working with the kids. On Tuesday we went into Cincinnati for a NACC convention. There we helped children from a program called Whiz Kids go through the activities they had planned for the first half of the day. It was a nice warm up of sorts for the kids that were coming to King's Domain later that day. We had some time between the convention and getting our ride back to camp because of a bus shortage, but it was okay because I got to know some of the Momentum people better. Momentum is a program for junior high and high school students to help out at camp as junior counselors. They were so helpful the whole week, especially for someone like me who was just starting out. So it was nice to get to know some of them before the week really got going.
Once the kids got there, it was pretty busy. Four of the girls in my cabin had already been to camp two weeks previous, but that was helpful because they knew where they were going better than I did sometimes and because they were pretty well behaved. It was so great to see them learn about God's love and choosing life. I feel so blessed to be able to serve here and give these girls the love they need.
Once the campers left, we had a celebration lunch with the Momentum kids, then cleaned out our cabins and moved in the dorm. We went to Niwana's for dinner. Niwana is our cook at camp and she was having a get-together for the 4th of July, so we got to go. It was so much fun. Good home cooking. There were these three older men just going to town on their acoustic guitars. It was great. I love watching good guitarists pick, it's great. I also ended up joining in on a volleyball game they had going. I didn't play really well, but it was still fun. After dinner, the girls baked desserts and chatted. I was excited that I got to bake; it's a form of therapy for me, I swear, haha. It was also encouraging to hear their stories from the past 6 weeks, even if I wasn't there to experience them, because I know that God has great things planned for my time here too.
I'm trying to upload pictures to facebook, but facebook isn't cooperating, so they might not be up today. I didn't take many the first couple days that the campers were here because I was still getting used to everything, so there aren't that many,
Overall, I can already feel my relationship with the Lord deepening. My time in prayer and in the Word has been so much more regular and God has really given me the passion I've been praying for.
I'm excited for the next week. I get to meet a lot of new people, see a couple cool kids from OU that are coming to be counselors, and actually be officially "trained."
Well, I think that about covers it!
In Christ,
Audrey
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