Pouring Down Rain...

Hey Everyone,

Rain just came out of nowhere...

But it hasn't slowed us down a bit. It is a welcomed cool down!!!

Tuesday June 11th --Day #3

Hey Everyone,

I just wanted to give you all an update.

First of all I have been overwhelmed by the presence of the Holy Spirit today. It has just been such an awesome week. A few minutes ago one of the camp managers that I have gotten to know a little bit came up to me with tears in his eyes just reinforcing to me how great our God is. God is so faithful, He is so good all of the time. He loves us so much. I have physically seen with my eyes this week our Lord Jesus Christ working through people. God is real and He wants us to be in a passionate relationship with Him. I am so thankful that he has given me the opportunity to be here this week. This time has been so amazing and has strengthened all of us.

Yesterday was a hot, busy, and a lot of fun. Some of the POI (points of impact) activities were: field games, water skiing, tubing, rock/tower climbing, pool games, & kayaking. Breakfast was great. Lunch was chili dogs! w/ Pastor Gregg. We had chicken tenders, mashed potatoes, green beans, and rolls for supper. C4 games involved relays and tiger ball.

The theme for the week has been BLUEPRINT. Day #1 was looking "Behind the Design" ---God is holy. God is perfect. Everything He does is right. He is lacking nothing. Colossians 1:16 says He created it all and holds it all together. Day #2 was "Lay the Foundation" --Everyone is building something. It all depends on your foundation. Matthew 7:24-27 says that who ever hears the words of Jesus Christ and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the ROCK. Day #3 was "Unpack the Tools". --God has made available all of the necessary tools we will need to build. 2 Peter 1:3 says that Jesus Christ's devine power has given us everything we need for life and Godliness...Day #4 (today!) we will look to "Expect the Storm"---Everyone should expect a storm, but the good news is as it says in John 16:33 Jesus says In this world we will have trouble, but take heart!! Jesus has overcome the world!!

Please continue to pray for us as our time at camp is growing to a close.
The power of prayer has been reinforced to me this week.
Amy Dunn shared with us yesterday that she now knows for sure what the Love of Jesus Christ truly is and she has accepted Him as her Lord and Savior. One of the girl's Bible Study leaders (Candice) lead Amy to the Lord yesterday and Amy wants to get Baptized! Taylor's grandmother continues to get better (She sat in a chair on Tuesday Night and we all layed our hands on her and prayed for her and her Grandma. I have seen all of the kids go through a growing confidence in Jesus Christ throughout the week and when we pray & when they pray out loud. As I mentioned in an earlier post Nicole Capps has accepted Jesus as her Lord and Savior. We (Tracey, Prissy, Dallas, myself,all of you all, and all of the camp employees have been praying for your children all week. Nathaniel Cunningham lost his eye glasses earlier in the week and his parents & brother & others have been in prayer for him and that he would find his glasses. I thought Nathaniel's glasses would be found in our room, but we have not had any luck. I walked over to the the camp manager (Corky) this morning who I spoke about earlier in this post and asked him if he had known about any eye glasses that may have been turned in. Out of all of the employees at camp to ask, he was the first and only one I asked, and he said, "yes I have them and they are right here in my golf cart". Corky found them in laying in the grass. Nathaniel called home using Corky's phone and then Nathaniel's mom (Danielle) called back to Corky's phone and thanked him and testified to him how they had been praying and how good our God is and how faithful and wonderful our Lord Jesus Christ is. We also had the opportunity to view a teleconference call with Zambia and how Crossings is partnering with them to help children in need. It was once again evident how good we have it and how much we take for granted. A story of a little boy (about 5 years old) stuck out to me: he was given a sandwich and the video showed him tearing it in half and putting half of it in his pocket b/c he was not sure if he was going to eat later that night or the next day...

When I took the long walk to take the photo of the Cross above, I got a chance to pray for each of the students and adults at camp from Crossland by name and also to reflect on what the Cross has meant to me personally. I really felt Jesus walking with me and I am just so thankful and I am in disbelief of ALL that I have been given in Jesus, my family, my church, my friends, and my opportunities.

Also, please pray for Taylor Johnson. She has some eye irritation in her right eye and is going to get checked out to make sure it isn't anything that needs medicine. Pray for Tori Johnson. She has not been feeling too good today, but she is resting and hopefully be better soon.

Well, thanks so much for checking in. Your prayers truly mean everything. I am so greatful and thankful for all of you. I apologize for being so long winded today :) , but please know that I love you all and I love your children.

God is so good,

Matt

Time Alone With GOD

Every day at camp students spend some alone time with God. This is a chance for them to connect with the Lord and get into the Word and to Pray. I am so proud of our kids and their willingness to read, pray, and learn.

Look who dropped by for lunch!!

The kids were all so excited when they saw that Pastor Gregg was here to spend some time with them. Thanks so much Gregg!!!!

Reinforcements HAVE ARRIVED!!!!

He Everyone,

Dallas is HERE!! He arrived a few minutes ago and now I have an extra pair of hands to help corral these wild boys!!

Tuesday June 10th Day #2

Hey Everyone,

Day #2 is gone and it is already Wednesday!! Tuesday was packed full of activities starting with Breakfast, then Bible Studies, Lunch, Connect, C4, POI's, Dinner, Worship, The Shack, and lots of other stuff...

We have some awesome praise reports. We are growing closer together as a group and the kids have really bonded with each other. I can see our group growing closer to each other and growing closer to God right before my eyes! Nicole Capps has made the decision to be Baptized, she knows that she knows that she knows that she has accepted Jesus Christ into her heart and He has accepted her as well!! We have spent a lot of time praying for each other and Taylor's grandma has been sick and we have been praying for her. We found out yesterday that Taylor's grandma was taken off of a respirator and is doing much better!! God is doing some awesome things in our lives. We are having so much fun and this is going to be a week that all of us will remember for the rest of our lives. God is Good!! Thanks for checking in. There is a slideshow below of new pics. Love ya'll --Matt

C4 camp games - WET & WILD!!

C4 is an assortment of fun competitive games that the Bible Study Groups (The Hammers, The Saws, and The Drills) get to be a part of. The games today were Supersized Jenga, Blanket Vollyball, and Super Slip and Slide!

Monday Night Worship

Here are some photos of before and during the powerful worship service on Monday Night.

Monday Officially Day #1

Hey Everyone!!!

Monday Day #1 is officially in the books. Here is a recap of our day:

* 7:00am - rise and shine and headed to breakfast! Food was great: Eggs, Sausage, waffles, cereal, muffins.....
* 8:20 - Morning Celebration!! - Funny skits, announcements, games (price is right spin off, just a great, fun, laid back time. They picked a YMOD or youth minister for the day. This is something I DO NOT want to get. They have to wear a toilet seat around their neck and carry a plunger around ALL day!!
* 9:00 - 11:00 - small and large group study covering the 1st day of "Blueprint" - Stduied "Behind the Design" -- God's creation and His Perfection
*11:00-1:00 - Lunch and freetime (sub sandwiches and kettle chips)
*1:00 - 5:00 - Connect Time (we spent time alone with God and made time lines of our own lives) C4 (dodgeball was part of the C4 games today) POI (points of impact) - our kids engaged in climbing, kyaking, waterfront games, arts and crafts, and tubing!
*6:30 - Dinner is finally here!! It was great: chicken breast, rice, brocoli, rolls, and cake!
*7:00- 11:00: Powerful, Powerful worship tonight. The presence of the Holy Spirit was all over us. Great message and connect time that followed.
STAY TUNED!!!

CAMP PICTURES!!!!

Jonathan Creek Camp Opening Day!

We Made It!!!

We made it to J-Creek and it is so impressive. We are having a blast so far. Here is a little recap of how Sunday went:

We arrived at about 4:00 and were welcomed to camp by screaming enthusiasm from Camp Employees. A staff member opened the side door to the van(s) and prayed with us before we entered camp.

Everyone settled into their rooms and we all got acclimated until around 6pm and we ate. The food was great! (rigatoni pasta, corn, salad, bread, brownies). At 7 we went to opening night. It was power packed with worship and a short message. The kids loved it!

Next we met and prayed together as a group. We went over announcements and prayer requests. We discussed John 5:24: I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death into live. This is where the name Crossings came from and the goal of J-Creek is for students to become fully alive in Jesus Christ.

Next they got to hang out at the Shack. This is a place to get drinks and snacks and meet new people.

Wow 11pm came fast and it is time for lights out. The day blew by!!! Stay tuned for updates and hopefully some pictures if I can figure it out.

Please pray for us daily as we experience Jonathan Creek. Here is a list of us, Please pray for us!:
Dalton Federico, Lucus Lindsey, Ian Hitch, Brennan Monroe, Nathaniel Cunninghan, Phillip Weber, Matt Johnson, Collin Iverson, Max Erskine, Matt Willgruber, Morgan Martin, Amy Dunn, Tori Johnson, Kaitlyn Burden, Carli Stuart, Sloane Stuart, Nicole Capps, Taylor Johnson, Chandler Dinsmore, Emilee Coffman, Emily Schuette, Abby Harnack, Jordan Basham, Kelsey Lopez, Prissy Martin, Tracey Stuart

Thanks for Checking in!

In Jesus Christ,
Matt