rebel sword ! ! !

Wow, I  haven't been on here in forever.   And, I still don't really have anything I need  to write about...sooo. I guess I'll put on a 2 minute speech I wrote for the Communicators for Christ conference back in August.

  “Live every day like it’s your last. Because one day, it will be.”

A man named Ray Comfort spoke these simple, yet thought provoking words. Let’s take a minute to examine them. If today was your last day on earth, what would you do?

Maybe some would spend time with family. Others may visit friends for one last time. But think. Once you’re dead, will any of this matter? Will these things carry any weight in eternity? No. As a Christian, only one thing will matter in eternity: how many people did you tell about Christ. How often you went to church, how many times you gave to charity, how generous you were with your tithes, these good works which seem to shine so brightly now, will pale into nothingness in light of eternity. So, we should spend our time wisely, investing it in what will last forever: the salvation of people’s souls. Every day, 150,000 people die. Every 24 hours, 150,000 lives are ended and eternity begun for them.

1 Thessalonians 5:2 rightly states, “The day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.”

We never know when we are going to die, or when Jesus is coming back. For many, who haven’t accepted Him, it will be too late. We must warn them while we still have time.

 If today was your last day on earth, would you look back over the course of your life and feel regret? Would you wish you could go back and take missed opportunities? Would you feel ashamed because you didn’t share the gospel with your co-workers?

Look around you. Everyone that you see will one day, die. That includes your family members, co-workers, the man at the bus station. Everyone. We’re part of the ultimate statistic: 10 out of 10 people die. Everyone has a last day. It will come whether we’re ready for it or not. So, keeping eternity fixed in our minds, we must, “Live every day like it’s our last because one day, it will be.”

Recently my family has been campaigning for Charles Van Zant, who is running for state house of representativtes. We've had the opportunity to collect petitions, make phone calls, and go door to door talking to voters and handing out literature. Last week I made two campaign videos and put them on youtube. You can watch them below...and if you're in the district, please vote!

Fight for Life

Second Ammendment Rights

Wow, I can't believe it's been over a month since I last wrote! Man, I need to catch up. :-)

Hmm. Let's see. Short synopsis (that word will get stuck in your head if you're not careful :) of this summer. We worked at camp for four weeks. This past week my sister and I went to a Communicators for Christ conference. It's a four day conference, two days of debate, two days of speech. You may remember me mentioning the last conference this past November. It was a blast! One of CFC's main goals is to get kids comfortable with speaking in front of others to be able to better share the gospel. So, along with all the different workshops and classes are activities that encourage you (and make you) to come out of your comfort zone. It's so much fun! In addition to learning a lot about public speaking, you get to meet a lot of great people.

For more information about Communicators for Christ, click HERE.

This summer, Kelcee and I are working as councilors at a Christian camp called Camp Good News. On the first day of our training, I fell in love with it and couldn’t wait to go back for more. The camp’s a great place for kids to be, with devotions every day, and fun songs with solid Christian truths woven into them.

 This past week was our second week working there, and God taught me a lot over the past four days. (Since Friday was the 4^th we had one less day of camp.)

 On Thursday, I woke up very early with a sore throat and a severely stiff neck. My first thought was, “Oh no, and today I have the early morning shift.” I was assigned along with another councilor, to the 7:00 shift in a small building called Oak, which is basically big playroom. (The kids who are dropped off arrive at 7:00 and have a playtime in there until 8:30.) As I was lying in bed and thinking about this, I cried out to God and told Him, “God, I can’t do this today by myself. I can’t do it in my own strength. You’re going to have to be my strength today. Please be with me.” The alarm went off at 5:30, so I got up and we left at 6:30.

 When we arrived at the camp I went down to Oak Hall and found the first drop off just being let in. I felt a little lightheaded while playing battleship with the camper, and struggled through the game. An hour and a half and 5 kids later, Justin and Mary Anne came to take the kids outside, so I was relieved of my duty. I gathered my backpack and Bible and trudged up the sidewalk to Cypress, the main building. I walked in feeling discouraged and sick. As I made my way to put my stuff down, I spotted some of the other councilors sitting at a table eating breakfast. I walked into to the kitchen to get my food and saw Randy one of the councilors, standing with a plate in his hand. He looked up and asked, “One biscuit or two?” I didn’t know what he was talking about so I answered absently, “How about one.” I grabbed a plate and a biscuit and waited for Randy to finish dipping his gravy. He looked over at the plate I held, laughed and said, “No, this is yours, it’s for you!” He handed me the plate he had just fixed and smiled. I was very surprised and thanked him and sat down to eat.

Even though that was just something small, it really encouraged me and seemed like God’s way of saying that He would take care of me that day.

 After councilor devotions, flag raising and devotions with the kids my group the 5-8 year old girls along with the 9-12 year old girls had our field activity time. This was really the part I was dreading the most. I didn’t think that 45 minutes running around in a hot field would sit well with my queasy stomach. But, God showed me again His incredible grace. We made our way to the activity field, however, God had a surprise for me. The activity leader, Joel, called to us from the tires, so we made our way over to where he was. We found out that we were going to play a different kind of game, one that was only for the kids. The councilors always participate in the activities, but this time we were just the judges. I didn’t have to do all that running while feeling sick after all! And we were in the shade. God blessed me yet again and made it clear that He was watching out for me.

 The rest of the day went pretty normal, and at the end of the day I was exhausted, physically and mentally. Keeping track of kids is definitely mentally taxing. (But very worth it. :) I looked at the chore list and saw that I (along with another girl) was assigned to mop all of Cypress and the kitchen. Once the building had been swept, I retrieved the mop and bucket and set to work. There was no sign of the other councilor, and I discovered it was because she was assigned to watch the kids outside that day. So my spirits sunk a little lower. My neck was still very stiff, my throat felt constricted. I felt overwhelmed with the job ahead of me. I began thinking about how long it would take and thought how nice it would be if I had one more person working with me. I thought it was kind of a selfish prayer, so I didn’t pray it. Just then Stephanie, another councilor, came up behind me, didn’t say anything, but grabbed a mop and began mopping. I stared at her in awe, that God had given me my desire, selfish though it was, and helped me when I was sick. We were about halfway done when my brother walked in and told me that they were here to pick us up. I went outside to the car and asked my mom if I could finish mopping. She said that would be fine so I trudged back inside and continued to do my job. After a few minutes, I saw two hands suddenly reach from beside me and pull playfully on the handle. I looked up and saw Randy once again. He took the mop from me and said, “I’ll finish up here, you go on home.” He smiled and began mopping. I was very surprised and so grateful to Randy for relieving me of the rest of this chore. He didn’t know I was sick, or how bad I was feeling, and how he had known that it was time for me to go home I don’t know, but God used Randy to bless me that day.

 I told my mom later that night that that day had been the "best day.” Sure, it hadn’t been the most fun, I hadn’t felt the best, but the Lord taught me a lesson that day. He showed me that He’ll always provide for our needs, and meet us wherever we are. That day when I couldn’t carry on in my own strength, he met me where I was and blessed me. I had been working at camp in my own strength up until that day, and God showed me that, when we let Him take over, He’ll pour His blessings out on us. If that’s the only reason why I got sick, it would be well worth it.

I found this clip on the Way of the Master Radio website. It is so cool. The clip illustrates grace really well. Take a look,

I’d heard this verse for a long time, but last week while I was working at Camp Good News, I heard it with new ears. It was early morning, mid-week, I was fighting a cold, and spiritually, I was worn out from pouring out everything I had each day at camp…

God urged me on thru that verse, and it kept me in the Race for the rest of the week. He told me not to hold back from serving because I was tired, but to faithfully work and count on His encouragement – the watering that will surely come from Him.

• 75% of Americans say they are willing to listen to someone talk to them about Christianity.
• 88% say they would enjoy an honest conversation with a friend about religious and spiritual beliefs, even if they disagree.

With the odds in our favor, why not start that eternal conversation today??

My top 5 favorite conversation starters:

5) Do you have a Christian background?

4) So do you have a home church?

3) (If you are concerned a professing Christian isn’t saved) I’m interested to find out, how did you get saved? OR What is your testimony?

2) What’s going on spiritually in your life?

1) Can I ask you an interesting question…what do you think happens after you die?

I'm surprised every time how much people appreciate an honest conversation about spiritual things we all think about. Try the "chat approach" to witnessing next time you have a chance.

Times I use it:

- On friends and acquaintences

- Waiting in line

- Telemarketers

- Any time you're around people!

This week, Mon. thru Fri. (today) Kember and I began work as counselors at Camp Good News (CGN). CGN is a Christian day camp with the motto “the camp that changes lives! CGN seeks to teach kids about Jesus who might not have a chance to learn about Him otherwise. I had a blast my first week of work! I was assigned to work with the 5-8 year old boys along with another counselor named Randy.

Our day would start at 9:00 AM with staff worship and devotions. For half an hour, we would sing praise songs accompanied by the bongo drum, read the Bible, and close in prayer. Meanwhile, the bus rolled in and kids started filling up the auditorium. Once the staff devos broke up, the counselors picked up their kids. Randy and I took our little guys – ten of them - out to the basketball court to do devos with them. I loved getting to spend that time teaching them about God...but we had to find creative ways to get the boys to sit and pay attention.

Some of the other activities that filled the days were daily swim hour in the lake, art, Bible lessons, and missionary story time. On Monday morning, our group played with the slip-n-slides. A huge sheet of thick plastic was stretched out on the hill with three slip-n-slides set up near the top. The boys went wild! They ran and slid and splashed all over the place. Randy and I had fun racing them down the hill on our stomachs. We all were soaked when we came inside for Bible! We had a daily field activity - classics like ultimate frizbee, and some homemade ones, like the “marble toe crunch”. Creative play in Oak Hall was also a part of every day. Oak Hall is one-room building full of checker games, puzzles, blocks, books, and a humongous bin of Legos. The possibilities for fun in there are endless.

Although working at camp IS tons of fun, it’s also challenging. Keeping discipline, order, and peaceful relations between ten little boys gets interesting. Like on Monday morning. Right before Randy started the devotion, a couple boys were walking around the edge of the concrete pad, one or two others drifted off in search of acorns or stray marbles, and the others chatted. As I watched the scene unfold I thought “What should I do? What have I gotten myself into??” Although the task looked daunting Monday AM, we found ways to accommodate our campers’ individual needs as the week went on. Breaking into two groups during devos helped the boys focus, and making 8 yr. old Alex (our wanderer) my “special helper” prevented him from wandering. :-)

As I spent some time in the Word early this AM, I read a verse from Exodus: “Take this child away and nurse him for me, and I will give you your wages.” God spoke to me thru that verse. It was like He told me “Take care of those kids at camp in my name – for ME. I will repay you in my own way – I will bless you and give you what is right.” He truly blessed this first week at camp...I can’t wait to see what He is going to do at Camp Good News in the weeks ahead!