day 064. [blogging]

Being gone for a whole week meant a whole lot of blogging to catch up on. That's exactly what I did, once I woke up, haha.

We rolled into Oak Harbor last night around 1 in the morning. At that point I was just really tired and wanted to go to bed. Instead I looked through some of the photos from Camp. That just meant that I didn't go to bed until close to 3, which at this point is the latest I've stayed up all this past week.

When I woke up this morning though I knew for a fact that I didn't want to go out or really do anything seeing as I am trying to recover from a tiring week of Kid's Camp. I'm more tired from this year than I was last year! Goes to show how much energy I was putting in this year compared to last year, haha.

Seriously though, I spent a few hours today updating six new blogs that were missing because I was at camp. I've got another week of camp coming up, so that'll be a few more that need to be posted up late, ha. Oh man X)

But yeah, that's what I did for part of today ... blog. It was actually kind of fun writing down what happened this past week at Kid's Camp. If you haven't read them yet you are seriously missing out on some good stuff. Days 058 - 063. Check them out :)

That's about it, ha. I have some more seniors this week as well as a hangout with Calley & Kevin [leaders from camp!]

day 063. [remember when]

The last day was a hard day. Everything our boys were the first day was what they were today. At one point I told myself, "I wish I had gotten sent home early" because I was tired and didn't want to really deal with them anymore (I'll elaborate on that later, haha).

But when the parents were picking the kids up and signing them out I couldn't help but cry. I invested a weeks worth of my life into these boys. As did Kevin and Steven. It was so hard to say bye to some of the boys. Even the ones that caused us so much trouble throughout the week. At that moment I had to forgive them for the stress they caused us three. I had to forgive them for not listening. If I hadn't forgiven them for what they did I wouldn't be the Christian that I call myself.

The hardest part was when Kevin, Steven, and I looked at the sign out sheet and saw that all 15 boys were signed out. To look at the porch of our cabin and see that the only bags left were the leaders, that was hard.

Anyways, it's now time to recap on this past week. Camp is not camp if you do not create those remember when's, and boy do we have some remember when's from this week.
------------------------------------------------------------
Here are the Top 5 Remember When's from Kid's Camp 2010 (not in any order):

1. Getting lost on the way to Kid's Camp
Something that made this year different was the leader's didn't ride down to camp with the campers. This was because we all had to get to the campsite a whole day early. Now, if Tasha is reading this she is probably going to hit me or something the next time I see her, haha. Anyways, Tasha, Novella, Vetrica, and I left Oak Harbor at like 3:30ish and we didn't get to Lake Stevens until almost 6:30ish. If you're from Washington you'll know that the trip isn't that long of a trip. What happened was we took a right instead of a left ... took us 30 miles in the other direction. Poor Tasha. You know I love you :)

2. Chase the germaphobe
I met Chase Weholt last summer at Kid's Camp when he was getting ready to go into his freshman year of high school. Now he's getting ready to go into his sophomore year. I wasn't aware that he was as big of a germaphobe as he is. When I found that out, I thought I'd mess with him. I managed to lick his elbow a good 3-4 times in the last two days. Kevin managed to get his face. Calley I think managed to get his neck. If you read this Chase ... I love you and just know that you'll probably want to wash your shirt a good 5 times seeing as when I signed it I also licked it, haha.

3. "Remember when Rick licked ______"
Enough said. Ask me in person, bahaha.

4. Janelle was so angry that leaders about pooped their pants
For those that don't know this was possibly Janelle's last year of Kid's Camp because she moved up to the Ass. Pastor of Living Word. Because of that Tasha came up with a cool idea to go get her flowers from Safeway Thursday night. You have to realize that as leaders we signed a paper saying that we "would not leave the campus." To get the flowers meant having to leave the campus that night. Boy did we fail at being spies, haha. On our way to Safeway we were cracking jokes about how if Janelle ruined her surprise by finding us when we got back. Well, jokes became reality. When we pulled up to the parking lot we we re greeted by Janelle (who was coached on how to be angry) and Ty. What she said to us was:

"Pack your bags because you might not be able to say bye to your kids" (remember, she was coached! haha)


I about pooped my pants as did some of the other leaders. Tasha cleared things up with her, but we ended up having to have a meeting the following morning to discuss whether or not we would be able to stay. We got to stay, but when they were talking to us no one was looking at Janelle or Patty. Some of us were crying. It was just too much.

Come to find out, while Janelle walked into her cabin and the leaders walked into their own cabins she was laughing while all of us were praying that we got to stay.

That morning though at chapel Aaron came up with a story so that we could present the flowers to her ... he called us the "ninja warriors" haha. It's all laughs now, but at the time it was pretty scary.

Did I mention that the 8 leaders were deemed the "Infamous 8" ... YAY! Like Tommy told us at Applebee's though, "at least you don't have rules that were made because of you"

5. God created relationships and moved through everybody at camp
This is probably the most cliche remember when to give, but it's so true. I mean it's Church Camp, so God is going to do something whether or not you want him to. God really did do a lot this week. He brought leaders together in friendship that has brought out support systems for all of us. We now have other people other than those we go to church with to support us. Don't forget though, God is always there to be our number one supporter. Go to him first before you go to anyone else :)

Not only did God build relationships amongst the leaders, but also between leaders and the kids. I would say their kids, but we all built relationships with all of the kids from camp. It took my second year of camp to realize how much of a heart I really do have for kids. To see kids their age worshiping and giving their lives to God is powerful and amazing. But yeah, he definitely built up relationships for some of these kids to look up to. I can only pray that these kids keep seeking out God after this week.

None of this wouldn't have happened through without his movement on that campsite. He moved through every individual that was there this past week.
------------------------------------------------------------
God is so flipping amazing. I'm crossing my fingers that I can make it for another year to Kid's Camp. They have a special place in my heart that aches for them to know their Father. Ahh. Gotta love kids :)

Don't let anyone think less of you because you are young. be an example to all believers in what you say, in the way you live, in your love, your faith, and your purity. 1 Timothy 4:12

day 061. [holy spirit]

Day 003 of Camp made itself to be one of the hardest days of camp. Mentally, Physically, Emotionally, and Spiritually.

The days seemed to have been repeating themselves at this point, and leaders were almost in constant prayer for their bodies to hold up as well as for other leader's bodies to hold up.

You see, great things happened tonight and the enemy didn't want any of that. People were getting sick, people were getting injured, and some people even got sent home. The enemy is so afraid of what God is doing. He's so aware at how powerful our God is.

God didn't just make this night the night of movement through the campers, but the leader's as well.

I've realized that sometimes we get so stuck in our mistakes and how broken we are, which is why I prayed to God to answer why I was there and why he was even using me through my brokeness. The enemy had obviously gotten to me a bit at that moment. I didn't see the light in myself that God has filled me with.

Later though after the message was given I just stood there with hands up before God. It was then that one of the staff members, Matt, came over to pray for me and even speak the words of our God into me. It was clear that God had answered my prayer from just an hour before. All Matt had to say to me was that:

I am loved and I am worthy.

It all made sense to me right then and there. God has seen something in me to speak his words into these boys. He doesn't care that I'm broken. He loves me and wants to use me to advance HIS kingdom.

What also made this night so special was that two of my boys that I prayed over. You could just tell that there was a presence that filled them. I really didn't want to let go of those boys as I prayed over them. The feeling was too much. They were giving their lives to God right before my eyes. They were giving their lives to God as I held them in an embrace. Probably the best feeling to witness ... EVER.

... May he equip you with all ou need for doing His will. May he produce in you, through the power of Jesus Christ, every good thing that is pleasing to Him ... Hebrews 13:21

day 060. [praise]

Day 002 of Kid's Camp rolled along just as Day 001 did.

If I were to pick just one day of the week as my favorite, I don't think I really enjoyed Kid's Camp for what it is. That's why I don't really have a favorite day. They were all my favorite in some kind of way that made them stand out.

One thing that stood out the most during this entire day was the evening chapel's worship. It was powerful and it spoke to the campers. It especially spoke to one of the campers that I had the opportunity to be a leader to.

Anyways, during worship one of my boys is at the altar, just as I am, worshiping and he knows I'm there, but at some point between songs Nick comes up to me and asks me if he could share something during cabin time. Unfortunately, we did not have cabin time that night, which was a bummer. I later asked him what he wanted to share with the cabin. What he said to me blew my mind, only because of the experience he just had.

What Nick said to me was:

When I was worshiping I couldn't hear the other people worshiping, but what I could see was angels above everyone and they were all holding our hearts keeping us safe.

When he said that to me, I wanted to cry out of excitement and joy. Those are some powerful words to say, and that's something that he obviously genuinely experienced. I pray that he remembers that night because it's a night that has changed the course of his life in his journey with God.

He eventually did get to share what he had to say with the other cabin members. Some took it to heart while others didn't, but either way Little Nick was preaching it to boys his own age!

Study this Book of Instruction continually. Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do" Joshua 1:8

day 059. [spy disguise]

(end of month two!)

Day 001 of Camp started bright and early at 6:45 ... I think, I know that the other days started even WAY earlier than that, haha.

There was some excitement in getting to meet these kids, although as a leader there were a few more things that needed to be done and so meeting the boys didn't get done until all of that had to be done.

Seeing as the campers didn't get to the campsite until 9 that morning, the schedule was adjusted just a tad bit to get the campers to do what they had to do. The very first thing they did this year was a swim test - in a pool, not a lake. From there I do believe we had lunch for a bit before we did some activities around the camp site. Rock climbing, archery, and swimming were what we made to be their activities today.

Somewhere in the day Kevin, Steven, and I realized that our 15 boys we had wouldn't be the easiest boys to handle ... two years in a row for me (haha). None the less though, as leaders we were there to love on these boys and really just lead them to Christ as well as showing them what it means to be  young men, not little boys.

Later in the day all the campers had to attend chapel. It was an eye opener, for me. I'd been spending too many months trying to run away, but wanting to come back to God. I can't thank Janelle so much for her prayers and what she said to me that night as I was breaking down in front of her.

I've got to run this race with God with my head looking towards him. I can't look back otherwise I'm going to run into something and possibly run into people.

What a first day of Kid's Camp!

Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." John 14:6

day 058. [cabin 11]

Right away at the meeting on Friday I knew that camp was going to be a little different compared to camp from last year.

The first difference was the leaders had to show up to the camp site a day early. And to be honest with you, I kind of liked it that way. Just one more day to prepare ourselves for the kids.

The drive down was an interesting one at that. Let's just say that the drive down to the camp was one of those "remember when's!" haha. Love you Tasha :)

By the time all of leader's got there it was time for a party to happen! A leader's party that is!! Haha, it involved us getting our beds ready, meeting other leaders, going out to eat with some leaders, and some good worship on the porches of the cabins.

You could just tell that there was going to be some good bonding with the days to come!

PS. If you don't recognize the guy in the blue, that's Kevin from Arlington, but goes to New Life in Everett. He was the other Cabin Leader that joined me and Steven in Cabin 11!!

day 056. [brothers]

Today was honestly such a good day, ha. The best part was definitely later in the day, which I'll get to in just a bit.

So I started out my day by meeting up with my good buddy Sean; I've mentioned him before. It was another one of our heart-to-heart talks. One of the many we've had this summer. I look up to Sean when it comes to God like things. Maybe it's because he really understands what I went through and where I came from before every coming to Christ. Now, even though it was one of our many heart-to-heart talks ... not all of it was serious. Some of it was just goofy stuff, bahaha. Anyways, seeing as we met early in the morning, rather than later in the afternoon like we usually do, we went to get breakfast seeing as neither of us had eaten anything at that point; good because I was starving!

For breakfast we went to Island Cafe. Really good place to eat. Best part is they have breakfast all day! I'm not going to lie ... breakfast is honestly one of my favorite meals, haha. Good laughs while there.

After he brought me home I went to the auto shop to get my oil changed to find out that my brakes need to be fixed changed. Instead of going to Les Schwab though to get the brakes checked out I hit up the gym to play some good volleyball with a few people. It was definitely good and worth the time spent there!

After that though was when I decided to get the brakes checked. Looks like I'll need to fix the front brakes seeing as they're both reaching the end of their caliper ... I think that's what the guy was telling me. I wasn't really paying attention, haha.

The best part of today though was going to the Kid's Camp meeting at the Everett FourSquare Church. You seriously have no idea how exciting this week is going to be. Seeing old faces from last year definitely was fun. Meeting the other cabin leader that will be joining Steven and me. Honestly though, after tonight's meeting and then the vast amounts of "remember when's" made at dinner, this week will be nothing short of amazing. I'd love to share the "remember when's" but they were also "you had to be there's" haha X)

Praise God for this upcoming week. I can definitely feel that God will be doing some radical movements through not only the campers, but even the leaders. God always does radical things though, but it's just amazing to have this feeling. So excited though!!

Oh yeah. Senior Photos tomorrow: Steven Welch

PS. Both of those plates were Sean's ... he didn't let me eat what I ordered :(

PSS. Today's also the 8th Week!!