Lost Sheep: West Coast Honor Camp 2013

Hi all!

High school campers use their "Lost Sheep" t-shirts to share
the Gospel message Wednesday during ministry outreaches.

As promised: more information about this year's Gospel tool for the high school ministry outreaches at West Coast Honor Camp. In my previous post, I mentioned they were using t-shirts. These particular shirts, called the "Lost Sheep" tool, are blue with a 10x10 grid of sheep on the front. In the bottom right side of the grid, one sheep is missing. When people ask about the missing sheep, the high school campers can share the parable of the lost sheep, found in Matthew 18:10-13. A verse is printed on the inside of the front hem, which can be turned out when sharing.

To find out more of what happened this week, you can check out the pictures on WCHC's Facebook page.

All campers, counselors and staff returned home today. Praise the Lord for another fun year of camp, and I pray all are able to apply what they learned this week, working together to further God's kingdom.

For more information about Awana Clubs International, visit the Awana Homepage
To find a club in your area visit the Club Locator.

High School Ministry Outreach: West Coast Honor Camp 2013 Wednesday

Pictures from this year's high-school ministry outreach are available! Check them out on West Coast Honor Camp's Facebook page!

High school campers get their hands dirty during
one of the ministry outreach opportunities at
West Coast Honor Camp.

For those who are new, the high-school campers train Monday and Tuesday to travel into Redding, Calif. and surrounding areas for different outreaches on Wednesday. Outreaches include volunteering to perform maintenance and provide service at a mission, neighboring camps, and throughout the area; singing and sharing the Gospel at a senior center; and putting together a one-day Awana -- complete with water games, songs, a puppet show or a skit, a Bible lesson and verse, testimonies, and the presentation of the Gospel message.

These outreaches are one way of training the high-school campers about serving in ministry, and they teach the campers a different method for sharing the Gospel each year, from the EvangeCube to the Gospel Glove (last year's tool).

This year, they're using a tee-shirt. I will provide more details as they become available.

Please continue to pray for the staff, counselors and campers as they finish this week strong.

For more information about Awana Clubs International, visit the Awana Homepage
To find a club in your area visit the Club Locator.

"Nothing Changes if Nothing Changes"

As you may have noticed, my postings have been sparse over the past couple months. Well, by seeing my lack of postings, you've also witnessed a period of great change in my life. And with West Coast Honor Camp starting Sunday, I've been remembering past years, and one in particular applies to my current situation.

Awana Missionary Ed Gossien teaches campers, leaders,
and staff that "Nothing Changes if Nothing Changes"

Each year, Camp has a guest speaker who teaches large-group lessons each night. Last year, the speaker was Pastor Shawn Thornton. You can check out his different messages, as well as other Camp fun under my West Coast Honor Camp tag.

But the year I'm thinking of was the year when Pacific Northwest Awana Missionary Ed Gossien spoke, and the main theme of his messages was "Nothing Changes if Nothing Changes." As Christians, we sometimes fall into the trap of thinking, "I'm going to sit and wait until God tells me what to do, or until God makes the change for me." Now, I'm not saying we rush right out and do what we think is right or what we think we should do -- that's what gets us in trouble because it leads to us doing things our way instead of God's way. But we shouldn't just sit down and passively wait, either: the house doesn't get cleaned if we sit on the sofa and wait for Mickey Mouse's magical brooms to do it for us (this year's Camp theme is "Cartoon").

God tells us in Matthew 6:33 to "seek first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness." This isn't a suggestion; it's not "when you feel like it"; it's not "your answers will just float by"; it's a command. It means we need to actively search for God's direction. We need to actively study the scriptures and apply what we learn.

It means choosing to step forward and make guided changes, even when we don't know the results. As I discussed in "Faith Despite Fear," sometimes those decisions are hard because we fear the future. What if I make the wrong decision? What if I fail? What if I get hurt, or hurt someone else? What if it's not what God wanted me to do?

Consider the analogy of life as a car: it's easier for God to steer if the wheels are moving forward. To expand the analogy, yes, we do sometimes end up in a ditch on the side of the road, or sometimes we have to swerve to miss a pothole. But if we look at the second half of Matthew 6:33 and all of 34, we'll notice that God makes a promise for those who follow His command: "all these things shall be added to you. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble." You'll find everything included in that list of "all these things" by reading the complete chapter. But the fact is that as long as you continue moving forward and attempting to become more Christ-like and further God's kingdom, He will take care of you.

These last couple months -- really the last six -- I've been busy with some pretty sizeable life changes. The first was my December graduation from college. The next was planning and preparing for my wedding. Yes, if you noticed on my profile, my name has changed. And now I am adjusting to life as a college graduate and a wife, and hopefully soon I'll be adding an employee to that list.

My marriage in particular turned my world upside down. Is he the man God had in mind? What if he's not? What if I won't be fulfilling God's plan for me if I marry him? On the other hand, what if marrying him is God's plan? We became a couple three years ago, and the approach I chose was, "I'll continue forward on this path until God shows me otherwise." And here I sit, three weeks after our wedding, blessed and full of joy, praying that God continues to steer the car as I drive forward. I continue to pray for His guidance to help me change in ways that further His kingdom.

I will not be blogging from Camp this year; my husband and I are taking some time at home as we just returned from our honeymoon and we have VBS and other outreaches and trips to prepare for. However, you can still keep track of the kids and their fun by checking the West Coast Honor Camp website, the West Coast Honor Camp Facebook page, and the West Coast Honor Camp group page.

Please pray next week for the campers, counselors, staff, and this year's speaker Dr. Dan Iles, a missionary with Indigenous Ministries International.
I too would appreciate prayer as I seek employment.

For more information about Awana Clubs International, visit the Awana Homepage.
To find a club in your area visit the Club Locator.