Not Afraid - Day 4 Recap

As today is the last full day of camp, it has been hard to find time to post the events of the day. We have been trying to pack in as many activities as possible before we go home tomorrow. Breakfast was pancakes and sausages before we jetted  up to the camp amphitheater for the camp picture. Then it was off to chapel where the theme for the day was Not Afraid of Being Alone.

Mr. Joe introduced the story of Elijah who faced off on Mount Carmel with the 500 prophets of Baal, he challenged them to have their god send down fire from heaven. As the day went on, no fire from heaven came as the false god Baal did not answer them. Elijah mocked them all day long -"Maybe your god is on a trip" ,"Maybe he is in the bathroom." These false prophets cried all the louder and cut themselves, but still no answer. If you know the rest of the story, at the end of the day, it was Elijah's turn. They set the altar, the wood, the sacrifice and poured 12 barrels of water  on top of it all drenching it thoroughly. Then Elijah prayed to the one true God who sent fire that burned it all up. But even after seeing God do all this, Elijah became afraid when the Queen threatened his life and so he ran away. God had to remind Elijah that he was not alone, but that He was with him. Elijah did not have to be afraid.

Right after chapel, I had the privilege of hearing one church's leaders share how they had made Jesus their Forever Friend. One after another shared how Jesus had changed them and helped them overcome their fears. Mr. Joe gave that same invitation tonight. You can pray for the campers that stood to indicate a decision for Christ.

Not Afraid Day 3 - Night Edition

We have just finished evening chapel and the kids are on a roll -they beat the counselors again in "Minute to Win It" and had some pretty loud musical worship  (I wish I could bottle their energy). Our skitters showed what happens if you are afraid of not having enough (you carry big bags of food into the buffet restaurant.) Mr. Joe shared the story of how the Israelites always had enough food and water because God sent manna from heaven and quail for them to eat. Every morning God provided for them so that they were full and never went hungry. We can trust God to deliver on His promises because of who He is and we can see how He has been faithful in the past. Being not afraid then is learning to trust and depend on God. We will explore this more tomorrow. Tonight, we have the Night Game to play. We can't wait.

Not Afraid - Day 3

It's hard to believe that camp is half over. It has been so fun and we have learned so much so far. This morning we talked about not be afraid when you don't have enough - enough to eat, clothes to wear, shelter, people who love you. Mr. Joe reminds us that Jesus is enough and He can provide for us; He understands what it like to be hungry, tired, cold and alone. While He may not "fix" all your needs at once (He himself didn't fall for Satan's temptation to turn stones into bread when He was hungry), Jesus promises His very presence to comfort us and to help us be unafraid.
Many of the kids faced their fears by going on the zip line, swimming, or going on the big hike today. Tonight, they may even overcome their fear of the dark during our crazy night game. Look for more pictures on Flickr.

Not Afraid - Day 2 Wrap Up

I didn't get a chance to blog last night as I was a little under the weather. Night 2 was really good with more Minute to Win It fun -the kids finally beat the counselors in their match against each other. The kids have also been doing well in their memory verses and cabin clean-up competitions. We got to see the first of the photos that are being posted  to Flickr during our opening slideshow -the children love to see themselves up on the big screen. As we moved from the more wild and crazy parts of the evening (worship music can still be in that category), Ms. Mary and her "bears" revealed the results of yesterday's mission offering inwhich the kids gave over $40 towards our camp scholarship fund. Tuesday night saw the debut of the Lightseekers 2017 skit team as their drama on the fear of moving to a new place helped open for Mr. Joe. He shared about not being afraid when we experience pain and suffering; we all experience tough times: we get sick, we have experienced the loss of a beloved pet or family member, accidents happen and other bad things come our way.  The important thing to remember is that Jesus is there just as He was with the disciples when the storm hit the boat. We will learn more today as we discover how to be NOT AFRAID!

Not Afraid Day 2 - The Morning Report

We woke this morning at 7am and hurried off to breakfast of cinnamon French toast and sausage before chapel. We opened our time with Ms. Karla and the band leading worship, singing some of our favorite Lightseeker Camp songs followed by some "Minute to Win It" games. Ms. Karla shared about how she started as Lightseeker camper back when she was in third grade, became a Counselor in Training while she was in high school, later became a counselor. Then she started leading worship at camp and was on the Design Team before ending up as our Camp Dean. The point is, she said, that God was working in her throughout her whole life to help her minister in the church and here in Lightseekers -God wants to do wonderful things for this generation of campers and perhaps He will use a few of them to be Missionary Kids, Counselors, or Leaders in the future, if they are not afraid.
Mr. Joe taught us to day about Moses and the Burning Bush. Moses was afraid when God spoke to him; he didn't want to go to Egypt and speak to Pharaoh, telling him to let God's people go. Trying new things can be very scary, but just like He promised Moses, God promises to be with us wherever we go. In fact our theme verse for the week says, " Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9.
Today's memory verse Psalm 27:1 tells us: The Lord is my light and my salvation - whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life - of whom shall I be afraid?" As we will learn this week, if God is with us we won't have any reason to stay afraid. We might be afraid to try new things, go new places or meet new people but we can know that God will help us overcome our fears.
With tat being said, the students are out right now trying new things in their unit time. I will report more later...

Lightseekers 2017 - Not Afraid, The First Day of Camp

Well, we are all here, we made it all safe and sound to camp at Mile High Pines. The weather is wonderful, it's not too hot for a summer day. The kids have been having lots of fun so far and we are just beginning our first night of chapel. We have eaten good food and played hard, now it's time to worship God and listen to our awesome speaker, Mr. Joe talk about not being afraid. I'll post more later, but I wanted all you parents to know that we got here okay.