6/30/08
Wow! That is all I can think to describe these last few weeks. I am extremely disa
ppointed in myself that did not write one bit during these last three courses we had. But camp life is so crazy 
here…work hard from 7 to 10 and then pass out as soon as you hit your bed. I love it! I have begun to love this job so much that I now spend almost all my free time with the actual groups that I am leading during the week. I find myself staying up til midnight playing cards and talking, watching the stars and sitting around the campfire with these kids…because I want to. I have also found that the more time I invest into these kids, the more they trust me, love me, and follow me. They participate in the elements, fully pushing their fears and comfort zones and are therefore impacted all the more. If I can just show my group that I really do care about them outside of my “job” then they will be able to absorb the maximum effect that this camp has for them. That is sort of my philosophy that I have come up with; at least a small portion of it.
Needless to say, God has been at work here at New Frontiers…I wish I could explain it all, but it seems to be one of those things that you need to be a part of to truly understand. I can try to tell people about the camp and what goes on and they will say they understand…but I don’t think that they really do. New Frontiers breaks the barrier of the summer camp norm, definitely throwing the stereotype out the window. And it is a blast…every minute of it.
Wow! That is all I can think to describe these last few weeks. I am extremely disa
ppointed in myself that did not write one bit during these last three courses we had. But camp life is so crazy 
here…work hard from 7 to 10 and then pass out as soon as you hit your bed. I love it! I have begun to love this job so much that I now spend almost all my free time with the actual groups that I am leading during the week. I find myself staying up til midnight playing cards and talking, watching the stars and sitting around the campfire with these kids…because I want to. I have also found that the more time I invest into these kids, the more they trust me, love me, and follow me. They participate in the elements, fully pushing their fears and comfort zones and are therefore impacted all the more. If I can just show my group that I really do care about them outside of my “job” then they will be able to absorb the maximum effect that this camp has for them. That is sort of my philosophy that I have come up with; at least a small portion of it.
Needless to say, God has been at work here at New Frontiers…I wish I could explain it all, but it seems to be one of those things that you need to be a part of to truly understand. I can try to tell people about the camp and what goes on and they will say they understand…but I don’t think that they really do. New Frontiers breaks the barrier of the summer camp norm, definitely throwing the stereotype out the window. And it is a blast…every minute of it.Not only is God doing so much here and in my life, but I am simply learning so much that will be of benefit to me as my life continues. We have to just do things sometimes, even if we don’t exactly know what we are doing. To me, that is an awesome way to learn. I hav
e been learning how to cook for a bunch of people, how to lead people through each individual element, new card tricks and card games, how to inspire and push people, learned about the bug life here, about the stars (how to find the North Star and all that jazz about constellations. Kids think that stuff is cool.) learn so much about people and how to love and serve them, how to read them as groups and individuals, learn a bunch of fun games that have meaning, a bunch of riddles, how to belay, run the high elements well, how to live in a cave, canoe through a lake, etc. The list goes on. But one of the biggest things that I have learned is that God has called me in this genre/area of ministry. Whether its youth or outdoor or both, I have seen God work through me, I have had so much affirmation, and I simply love what I am doing so much…and that is really cool. I have never had such a feeling of impact as I ha
d this last week with my group from Spartanburg, South Carolina. I wish I could tell all about this group, my love for them, and all that they taught me…but that would be near impossible. However, I will write about them in the very near future, as soon as I get a hold of some of their pictures and videos so that I can put them on this blog. In fact I am planning on dedicating an entire blog post to the SCC (Spartanburg Community Church) youth group. I miss those guys…I haven’t washed my dusty car because they wrote on the windows with car chalk. Such a great group, what a blessing.
e been learning how to cook for a bunch of people, how to lead people through each individual element, new card tricks and card games, how to inspire and push people, learned about the bug life here, about the stars (how to find the North Star and all that jazz about constellations. Kids think that stuff is cool.) learn so much about people and how to love and serve them, how to read them as groups and individuals, learn a bunch of fun games that have meaning, a bunch of riddles, how to belay, run the high elements well, how to live in a cave, canoe through a lake, etc. The list goes on. But one of the biggest things that I have learned is that God has called me in this genre/area of ministry. Whether its youth or outdoor or both, I have seen God work through me, I have had so much affirmation, and I simply love what I am doing so much…and that is really cool. I have never had such a feeling of impact as I ha
d this last week with my group from Spartanburg, South Carolina. I wish I could tell all about this group, my love for them, and all that they taught me…but that would be near impossible. However, I will write about them in the very near future, as soon as I get a hold of some of their pictures and videos so that I can put them on this blog. In fact I am planning on dedicating an entire blog post to the SCC (Spartanburg Community Church) youth group. I miss those guys…I haven’t washed my dusty car because they wrote on the windows with car chalk. Such a great group, what a blessing. The two courses we had before that were Quest, 85 sixth graders from World Outreach Ch
urch in Murfreesboro, TN, along with their 25 adult leaders, and the youth group from Cannon Community Church in Woodbury, TN. Quest was awesome. I really saw God work in the lives of many of the kids throughout the week. My group, the blue team, was made up of two smaller groups of 10 boys, 1 teen helper, and 2 adult leaders; overall that made a group of 26. I began to really enjoy these guys and have some really good talks with them. Even with the adults I had some very cool conversations getting to know them. I have also noticed while being here that my position is such a platform for all sorts of connections. One of the leaders wants to take me out to eat when I come visit the church, another one taught me some about cars
, I got a bunch of pictures of the week from Mr. Dan, and a request to have me as a lead next time he came from Mr. Pat. The youth pastor of Cannon sells cameras and camera equipment on Ebay for a living and he might be able to hook me up with a good deal on one. SCC wants me to come visit them in the fall and speak to their youth group, and I can’t wait for that. There are also really good connections within the staff, the ability to get equipment through NF cheaper, Raymond wanting to detail my car, finding a cheap place to get Chacos in Cookeville, etc.If there is someone that I really want to remember from Quest, it is Sam…he was such a joy to have in my group. God has such an awesome plan for his life. He was such a servant, such a learner, so willing to listen and to push himself past his fear of heights. Multiple people told me of the pure delight he was to them. Sam was the man! Canon was a such a strong communal group. They really loved each other so much, even though they were so different from each other. I wish they had been at camp for me than just the weekend because they were so great. They were a big breath of fresh air in a very busy time and they definitely were a joy to have around. I know that they were impacted and pushed beyond their comfort zones, and they loved it. They were so grateful to us and to me, it was such a blessing.
Hopefully I can write in more detail about those two courses later on, but for now I am really tired and am going to hit the bed.
Word,
Loho
PS- All these pictures are from the Quest week...thanks Mr. Dan. (By the way, Sam is the one climbing the ladder.) A shout out to my Quest boys : Sam, Aaron, Jeff, DJ, Sean, Tyler, Lee, Brady, Weldon, Adam, Andrew, Troy, Shane, Alex, Devin, Dalton, Cameron, Keaton, Lincoln, Brandon, Heath, Dan, Pat, Tim
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