Year End Giving!

Merry Christmas! This is the time of year when we all think about giving. We give gifts to our family members and friends. Then there is the person who delivers our papers and collects our garbage or cuts our hair. Let’s face it; it’s the season to give. But, why do we give this time of year? I have been considering my own giving habits and how God wants me to give. He has taught me not to hold on to things with a grip of ownership. I have learned to live with open hands and realize that He owns it all and I am only a steward.  I have concluded that He wants me to be a joyful, obedient, faithful steward. He wants me to be set free from ownership and have a heart that is rich toward God. I think we give more this time of year because we follow God’s example “for He so loved the world that He gave…” He gave sacrificially; He gave His only Son that we might have eternal life with Him.
 

Here is a link to our newsletter that tells about all the great things that are happening in and through God’s ministry at CLW. Would you take some alone time with God this week and pray about what He would have you do this year in your year-end giving?  Whether you give a gift to a neighbor, to your church, to a family in need, or to help Camp Living Waters bridge the gap through our leanest time of year, my prayer for you is that you will find joy in your giving, because you were obedient to what God called you to do with His resources.

The staff and Board of Directors of Camp Living Waters are thankful for you and your involvement with Camp Living Waters and are wishing you a Merry Christmas and a very blessed New Year

Give a gift today to make a difference.

I Have Two Families

Last week we went to Brayden’s Christmas program at school. In between songs they asked the students two questions; what is your name, and what does Christmas mean to you? Then my anxiety rose as they handed Brayden, our five year old son with autism, the microphone. In words only a mom or dad could understand Brayden’s answer was, I have two families. I heard all of the parents around me ask; what did he say, because his speech is very unclear. At first I thought he was referring to the fact that he has an open adoption and a loving birth family that we visit often. Then I thought about the question, what does Christmas mean to you. Maybe, just maybe he was referring to the fact that he is also a child of God and is adopted into His family as well. I wish that more parents at Brayden’s elementary school could have understood what he said and asked the question, what does that mean to have two families? My prayer for all, as you celebrate this Christmas, is that you spread Brayden’s message of the birth of our Savior that everyone can have two families too.

Posted by Michella Saxton

Did I Just Meet Jesus?

Most of you know our 5 year old son, Brayden. He is as big as they come, smart as a whip and slightly Autistic. Brayden is developing a great personality and we are so excited to see him come out of the shroud that is Autism.
 

On Sunday most of our family headed over to a live nativity event called, Follow the Star. In the car Brayden asked us what we were doing and we tried to explain that we were going to see a play about the first Christmas and the birth of Jesus. Brayden was so excited to see the animals and ride the tractor pulled wagon. The first station we went to was Isaiah standing at a campfire foretelling the birth of our Savior. For most of the presentation Brayden was looking off somewhere and catching snowflakes on his tongue but Brayden just beamed when Isaiah said the name Jesus. After his presentation Brayden went up to the man playing Isaiah and said “hey, how are you doing?” then he scurried back to me and asked “momma, did I just meet Jesus?” No matter what I said, Brayden insisted that he had met Jesus at that campfire and maybe he did. As you go about this busy season remember that you too may be Jesus to those who come up to you with a simple greeting and an open heart.

Posted by Michella Saxton

Qualities of a Quality Staffer

With summer just around the corner (optimism at its finest) we’re starting to look at staffing! We hope every year to find just the right people for the ministry God has given us here at CLW. If you’re interested in being a staffer, here are some qualities we look for!

First and foremost, we are looking for believers in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. The denomination the staffer chooses isn’t as important as a few keys. We believe in a Triune God. We believe that Jesus Christ came to save us from our sins by His death and resurrection. We believe that the Bible, both Old and New Testaments is the Word of God. These basic beliefs are the foundations on which CLW was built and we seek those who agree.

Next we look for people that are excited about the prospect of spending hours and hours each week surrounded by kids! There is very little time at camp to be alone as nearly everything is done with people nearby. Therefore, our staff should be people oriented rather than task oriented. You won’t simply see cabin leaders connecting with campers but every staffer taking a hand in making the camp week an awesome experience.

Staff need to be patient and kind, living out all of the aspects of love as laid out in 1 Corinthians 13.

• Patience
• Kindness
• Encouraging
• Joyful
• Humble
• Peaceful
• Willing to try/learn new things
• Teaching the right way
• Rejoicing with the truth
• Bearing, believing, hoping, and enduring

They also need to be fun! We’re not looking for the fun that the world is trying to portray but fun that pleases the Lord! We want staff that teach and guide not only activities but life lessons through the word of God and their own experience. That said, we know that not everyone will have all the answers which is why it’s so helpful to have all the other staff there to support each other!

At CLW we’re looking for other qualities too! Integrity is a must as staffers are setting the example for campers. Willingness to build unity with everyone on staff is very important too. We need each other to face the tough task of ministering to children. Creativity is important as well. Whether it’s in the arts, teaching bible study, or leading activities staff members have multiple opportunities each day to get the creative juices flowing!

So, maybe you’ve got someone in mind that lives out these qualities or perhaps you’re that person! Prayerfully consider contacting us for information on how to apply to be one of our summer staff members! You can contact Dan Gilson at dan@camplivingwaters.org or call (231) 797-5107.

Big Transition: Guest post by Hunter Taylor

The following is a guest blog post from Hunter Taylor a summer staff from the past 2 summers. You can see more of his posts at http://straightupchristianblog.wordpress.com/

Big Transition

Posted on November 18, 2012 by straightupchristianht

 

Alright, this is my transition from living the life of first, to living the good life of Second!!

Lets back up to my childhood.

I grew up in the church. Small city, actually classified as a village, small time church.
I was what I call “born into” Christianity.

I never understood much of why I believed except its what my mom believes it and she wants me to.
That went on until about middle school. I was a victim of society. I was classified as a “nerd” and that had a big impact on my teenage years. I was bullied, didn’t have many friends, and I was a teachers pet. Being a teachers pet is a great way to be a “loser” in society’s mind.

On a Christian standpoint, I was going to church, going to youth group and I was apart of a puppet ministry.

Fast forward to 8th grade year.

I had the idea of worldly manhood pounded into my head for 4 years and I wanted to achieve that.
So I joined football, started working out, and started hanging out with the “cool” people.
They partied, drank, did lots of things that my mom would be upset with me typing in a “Christian” blog. They were “cool” and I wanted that. The thing was, I was a good kid at heart and didn’t actually want to do those things, so I told people I did. I lied to all my “friends” about a lot of things. I told them I partied, I drank, I frequently got into fights. I told them I went out of town for the weekend so they couldn’t back track my stories. I had quite the elaboration going on. It was tough keeping up with everything but people thought I was cool.

Throughout high school, I still went to church, slowly stopped that puppet group, and completely stopped going to youth group. I wasn’t quite the Christian I should have been.

The summer before my senior year I got a job at a church camp as a maintenance worker. This was probably the best thing that could have ever happened. That got my life on track. I soon learned that sometimes you need to lose something to gain something better, and that’s what happened to me.
I went back to school and lost pretty much all of the worldly popularity and worldly friends that I worked so hard for…but I was surprisingly alright with it. I was genuinely happy with life.

The following summer I went to camp as a counselor and grew closer to God more that summer than ever before.

Since then I have been continuing to grow.

It’s an everyday thing.

Not just a Sunday thing.

Not just an “At Home” thing.

This is fairly broad in comparison to the details I could get into, so if you have questions just ask.

If I have learned anything, it’s that trust God, He is in control.

Mine Fields

(The last month or so at CLW has been exciting and exhausting. From coffee shops to weekend retreats to dry-walling the new lodge, we’ve been pretty busy! Though this is a great thing, we’re behind on blog posts. We want to apologize. Fortunately, God is inspiring us to keep writing and we hope this blesses you!)

Today Braden Saxton was in the office playing with some of the random stuff that inevitably collects in a camp office. Blank DVDs, bike helmets, cotton balls, sunscreen, old arrows and lots of bug spray are amongst the many things on and around my desk. Braden grabbed a stack of orange construction cones and carefully set them around my chair. “Now, you can’t pass.” I began to laugh and think about a certain activity I once did with a group of middle school students.

The activity is called “mine-field” and involves the group guiding each student across a field of obstacles. The problem is, the person on the course cannot see. I intentionally set up a starting line with two cones and an ending line with two cones but don’t tell them that side boundaries exist. Inevitably, the students guided other students through the mines and typically succeeded in getting each person through, though not without quite a few explosions.

Typically, the last student is either shy or not wanting to participate so I use them as an object lesson. Very quietly I blind-fold them and say, “No matter what anyone else says, just listen to my directions.” Then I slowly proceed to take them “out of bounds” by going around the outside of the mines and then back into the goal line. Never once is that student in danger of exploding because we’re not even close to the mines. I never set side boundaries so it’s perfectly legal.

It’s great when you hear the frustrated students, as they attempt to guide the other yelling, “Hey HEY! You’re out of bounds!” or “Why aren’t you listening!?” or even “Follow MY voice! Who are you listening to?!” What an awesome opportunity! During the last part of the team building process I can give those questions back to the students. “Who are you listening to? What is guiding your path?”

My favorite talk is saved for the end. “A lot of times in life, we are faced with obstacles that can be dangerous. Sex, drugs, alcohol ect. can be very dangerous mines in your lives, leading you away from a joy-filled existence and your hopes and dreams. Do you remember the last student that went through the course? What happened there? They avoided the obstacles entirely. Were they ever in danger of exploding?” I love the life applications that we can draw from this exercise.

So, who are YOU listening to? What mine field are you allowing yourself to brave when you can avoid it entirely? Proverbs 4:14-15 says this, “Do not enter the path of the wicked, and do not walk in the way of the evil. Avoid it; do not go on it; turn away from it and pass on.”

By Daniel Gilson

Reflections By The Lake!

Psalm 46:10a Be still and know that I am God...

The window in my office overlooks Stewart lake. Some days it can be quite the distraction. I often take time to look at the lake and reflect. On occasions I will walk down to the observation deck and spend some quiet time with God. The views are always gorgeous and you can see God's creation.

Stewart Lake-Camp Living Waters

 

This past Friday the lake was completely still. You could see a perfect reflection of the trees around the lake in the water. It was a mirror image of Gods creation. It was hard to tell which was the actual and which was the reflection. There have been days where the reflection is broken and not very clear because the water is wavy and not still. I began to think about my reflection of Christ. Are people seeing me or Jesus when they look at me. 2 Corinthians 3:18 says And we all, who with unveiled faces reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. As I thought further God revealed to me that it is the stillness that causes the lake to reflect the trees. The trees, like Jesus, are always present the water needs to be still to reflect the beauty around it. Wow! I can get so focused on the doing, that I don’t take time to be still and often reflect a broken or clouded picture of Jesus or no resemblance at all. When I am still and spending alone time with God I am more likely to be reflecting Christ to others. Just like the stillness of the lake. As the sign says as you enter Camp Living Waters Psalm 46:10a “Be still and know that I am God...” Take some time to be still each day and ask God to help you reflect the perfect picture of Jesus to those you come in contact with.