Thoughts of MK Camp

I'm back from camp, and after spending some time unpacking, missing all of the amazing friends I met at Severin, and thinking about what I learned this past week, I can safely say that the 2011 MK camp has made my list of favorites. It's hard for me to pick any specific thing that made it so amazing, but a few experiences definitely took a big part in making this camp one of the best I have ever attended: the people, the worship, and the challenges.

Seeing and interacting with other MKs always encourages me. I love going to camp because there I feel safe to talk about things that I would feel awkward sharing in other places or with other people. At camp, I know that I am accepted and understood in a group of people who know about the experiences I've had and share many of them with me. This year the conversations I had with other campers and counselors encouraged and refreshed me in my walk with Christ.

Worship is always another highlight of camp for me, and this year I especially enjoyed it. As I go to a Croatian church and rarely have the chance to praise God with others in my own language, worshiping in English was a huge blessing for me. I also had the opportunity to join the worship team for several nights; an experience I love but rarely have the chance to participate in. I love how in worship it doesn't matter if I mess up the notes or pause my playing for a moment. It's not about me and how I play; it's all about God and giving back to him the blessings he has showered on me. Standing together with other Christians and giving God praise and glory this past week reminded me of our Creator’s greatness.

On the last full day of camp we talked about extreme commitment as our theme for the day. In my small group we talked about how we can merge the lessons we learned at camp into life back in the countries we live in. So often I go to camp and live on the spiritual high there, but when I go home I fall back into my normal daily routine and let the love and joy experienced at camp fade into the background. This year I was challenged, all throughout the week as well as on the last day, to take the lessons I learned at camp and apply them to my life. I don't want to forget about the lessons I learned this week; I want to take them with me wherever I go and learn to follow Christ in the extreme way talked about at camp.

Summer Camps – Woohoo

The official camping season recently ended with our last camp, MK Camp. Our family is tired, but satisfied with the summer flurry of ministry and ready for a well-earned vacation!

The season started off early for Bonnie and Lydia. They both helped out with Camp A for 6-10 year olds. Before any camper arrived, Bonnie was hard at work, ensuring that the camp program was not, "over the heads" of the campers. But Bonnie can explain it better than I can, so here is how she describes it: "What do tetherball, baseball, a water slide, cinnamon rolls, and the song 'I Wanna Be Like a Tree' have in common? They were all new activities for Camp A this year we added an American flavor to our youngest Croatian camp. This was my first year at the 6 to 10 year olds Croatian camp. It was lovely to work with my favorite age group for a whole week and we had a great staff who was mostly from Split, a Croatian coastal city. I led the English electives, did the rock climbing instruction and assisted Kate Wurzberg, who was leading the camp for her first time. It was a great week of fun with a focus on the Kingdom of God. We had some good conversations come from the Bible study and evening talk times."

 

Next was camp B. This camp is for ages 11-13. This time Bonnie, Lydia, and myself all served at camp while Ellie Beth attended. Bonnie spoke about God as our mighty king one of the nights. She also served as a girl’s counselor and had a great room of girls who she enjoyed connecting with. I had a room of 6 guys and spoke to the campers about loving God above all else. This age group is a lot of fun to work with and it is exciting to model a life of loving God with these campers throughout the week. What strikes me at this camp is a comment a parent made to me last year. He said, "you sure do love our children, I appreciate that." It's funny how sometimes we can reach the parents through their children. That family sent their children to camp again this year, and we'll be visiting them later this week on our vacation. One of our highlights of this camp was getting several hugs from campers as they went home. Our prayer is that our lives impact these campers in such a way that they clearly see Jesus.

 

I was the only member of my family to serve at Camp C. To be honest, this was the most difficult camp I have served at. A number of campers at this camp were from a local foster home/orphanage, and it seemed that at any given moment there were two groups of campers doing something wrong. This required me to try to stop both problems while also trying to lead an activity. This constant need for discipline kept me from having the opportunity to play and interact with the campers. At one point, I simply felt that I had little or no connection with the campers. But, by weeks end, they started coming around. I spent a lot of time getting the campers to know that I expected respect for camp leaders and camp property. In time, a number of them started to get the idea that if they followed the rules, I would give them freedom and have time to play with them. I think that week was a good start to a relationship with these campers, and I look forward to seeing them next year. Our theme at camp was faith factor. I spoke the opening night from Hebrews 11:1 and encouraged the campers to spend a week exploring faith through Jesus Christ. On the fourth night of camp I was asked to fill in for another speaker. With a couple hours of prep time, I spoke on Rahab from Hebrews 11:31. I challenged the campers to see that even though God had sent the Israelite's to destroy Jericho and all inside, that Rahab still took faith in God that she and her family could be saved. In spite of the difficult week, I am ready to hold camp C again and look forward to future opportunities to engage with these young people regarding who Jesus Christ is.

 

Finally, we had MK Camp. Bonnie served as assistant cook and I served as camp director. Lydia and Ellie Beth were campers. The theme at MK Camp was Faith Factor. Prior to camp, we had two days of staff training and getting to know each other. Then the campers started arriving from all over Europe. Again, I started the camp with a challenge to the campers to spend a week exploring faith, and to consider following a simple process of Listen to the speakers and Bible studies; Communicate with others about

the topic of faith; and then take Action on what they had learned. The defining trait of MK Camp is worship. These campers get together each night and worship the Lord in English. It is exciting to participate with them as they praise God in their native language. It seems that they hold nothing back. At one time during the week, nearly the whole camp chose to have an extra worship time rather than free time. What a blessing that was. If Facebook is any indicator, many of the campers are saying this was the best MK Camp ever. At the end of camp, we ask campers to help us explain what MK Camp means to them and one camper wrote this, "MK Camp is an encouraging, spiritually-renewing week filled with the people who understand you the best. It was one of the highlights of my summer". I guess the campers say it best.

Climbing Revelation

"Belay on?"

“Belay is on.”

“Ready to climb?” Uncle Linc ambled over to check my climbing harness and knots. Satisfied, MK camp's rock climbing instructor answered me.

“Climb when ready.”

“Climbing.”

“Climb on.”

 

I stood before the 45 foot wall of yellow-gray stone with my knees shaking from exhaustion after three failed attempts to conquer the unforgiving cliff. Behind me the ruins of an old mill stood, covered with ivy, and an old dam blocked the Kupa river, the border between Croatia and Slovenia. I could hear the wind rustling the leaves on the trees and the water rushing over the dam. Uncle Linc and I had just gone through the procedure which made sure of my security to the climbing harness and rope before I started to climb. If I fell from the middle of the wall as I had the three previous tries and Uncle Linc could not catch me, a horrible disaster would occur. This is my last chance until next year, I thought, and then looked up again at the wall. I was determined to make the climb, although my tiredness dimmed my resolution. The rock wall felt cool as I pressed my hands against it, a welcome change from the smothering heat of the August day.

 

I set my hands into the cleft in the wall that I knew so well from my various previous climbs. I had attempted to climb the wall many times before today, but I had never succeeded. The semi-sharp rock jutting out from the cliff felt hard, cold, and even a little wet because of the sweat on my hands. Mechanically I wedged my foot into the crack, moving my hands first and then my feet as I moved up the cliff. It was essential to scale this part of the wall quickly, otherwise I wouldn't have strength for the hardest section of the climb. When I reached a small platform where I could rest, I knew I couldn't hold on any longer. The rock which had seemed so firm and solid at the beginning of the climb started to escape what I thought was a firm grasp.  “I don't think I can make it,” I said. “I'm too tired.”

 

“Just try. If you fall, I'll catch you,” Uncle Linc told me. Okay... I guess I'll keep trying. I thought. I knew Uncle Linc would catch me, but unlike some of my friends, I did not like falling from 20 feet in the air even when I knew I was safe.  As I placed my hand into the hole, the smooth surface of the under cling brought pictures of other climbers slipping and falling from the cliff to my mind. Maybe I can do this, I thought, but I have to make my move soon. I had seen several campers fall from Revelation because they hesitated too long on this step. Looking down to make sure of my footing, I gradually extended my other hand over to the ledge. Slowly, slowly... I grasped the hold firmly as soon as I could reach it. My arms stretched across the wall to their full length, and I knew I had to move my feet soon. The three failed attempts before this one had worn me out, but ever so slowly I eased my left foot off the natural rock platform with small tufts of grass growing on it and ever so slowly lifted it to brace myself against the wall. The rough rock surface would stick to my climbing shoe if I put all my weight on it.

 

Now came the hard part. I had to stand on my foot “smeared”  on the wall only two or three feet below my left hand, pull with my left hand, and reach with my right further up the crevice that served as a handhold. I had never been good at smearing, at pressing my whole foot flat on the wall instead of standing on a ledge. I took a deep breath and then put all my weight on my left foot to stand. It held, contrary to my expectations of slipping and falling: never before had I come this far! Maybe I can actually be the second girl ever to climb Revelation, I thought again. My breath came in short gasps as I stood up, and surprisingly my foot stayed firm! I stretched out my right hand to grab the crevice and found it, groping to secure a firm handhold. My left hand moved up the crack and my right foot found the place it had held to stand on. I moved my left foot up next to my right, all the while “walking” my arms up the cleft, and finally I stood on the ledge after successfully climbing the hardest step of the hardest rock climbing route available at MK camp! Birds chirped cheerfully around me, echoing my joyful reverie. The air gently and coolly whispered on my sweaty face, blowing my hair under the dirty white rock climbing helmet. The plants growing on the ledge I stood on smelled green and wholesome. Nothing existed at that moment to dim my happiness but my own tiredness. My first blithesome thought consisted of three words: I'm almost there! My second came with a sinking feeling: I can't hold on much longer.

 

The easiest and final stage of my journey stood before me, but could my weary arms and legs take the strain? I needed to find out.  After standing on the narrow ledge for a moment, I started to ascend the cliff once again. Move my hands, move my feet. Thank you, God, for helping me climb this far. Slowly I made my way up the giant wall of stone until I stood at the top and touched the carabiner that held my lifeline in place. I had finished my quest! I made it! I made it! The joyful thought exploded in my brain over and over again. I really made it! I leaned back into the rope to look over the trees towards the Kupa river and see Slovenia on the other side of the rushing water. No sight could have refreshed me more than the cool, flowing water and green, bushy trees from the top of Revelation. The knowledge that I had achieved my goal backed the marvelous spectacle and made the view all the more wonderful.

Despite the beauty of the view, I had to come down sometime. Reluctantly I released the rope and braced my legs, ready to descend. I sat back in the harness, allowing my feet to gently bounce off the wall as I descended, and upon reaching the foot of the cliff I nearly collapsed. After letting Uncle Linc untie my knots I walked down the makeshift wooden log stairs of the dirt path from the climbing platform to the van, tired but satisfied. At the start of the climb I didn't believe I could make it, but I kept on going. I thought myself too tired, but I climbed on and succeeded. I am so glad I kept on climbing in spite of my fatigue. I learned a lesson in perseverance that day, a lesson I don't think I will ever forget.

Highlights of 2009

We thank God for a good and growing year.  Some highlights of 2009 include, but certainly aren’t limited to:

• Our relatively easily obtained one year work permit!
• Helping our church launch EPIC – a week long mix between VBS and AWANA
• Completion of the fire pit project at camp and the fellowship while working on it
• Lydia’s 2nd place finish in her 1st Croatian archery tournament
• Seeing God working in hearts and lives at camp
• Becoming more involved at our church -Dan helping lead a boys’ group for 12-14 year-olds and Bonnie teaching Sunday School for 6-12 year-olds during the Bible Study time
• A time to reconnect with Dan’s mom and step-dad on their trip to visit us this fall
• Beginning a small home school co-op that Bonnie and the girls are involved in
• Dan’s 40th birthday and those painful shingles – could there be a connection?! 
• Ellie Beth joining a fencing club
• On a sad note, Bonnie’s dad Gene is struggling with Lewy Body Dementia with Parkinson’s disease. Being so far away is hard.  
• The completion of the carved verse sign in the dining room – thanks Terry!
• Cooking and hanging out with Jane, Donna, Carrie and Nancy during MK camps
• New co-workers, Juice and Beth Ortiz
• Another hard thing, our team mates, the McCollum's, resigned from SEND and returned to Minnesota
• Bonnie working on her Croatian and ping pong skills with Rahela
• All of us being together at the EBS camp this summer
• Catie, Zelphia and Aurora Peterson’s visit in February

Thoughts of Camp

Our family has always had a passion for camping; the fact that we serve at a sports and Bible camp in Croatia might point back to that passion. Dad used to say about trips to the Boundary Waters in northern Minnesota, "As soon as they can walk, they can go camping." At the esteemed ages of two and four my sister Ellie and I experienced our first annual Boundary Waters trip. These camping trips provided a time of rest, laughter, and peace, as well as helping us to draw nearer to our family and see more of God's wonderful creation. In Croatia we have a substitute for these camping trips since we can't fly back to the States each year just to go camping. We have found another unique place of nature, rest, tranquility, and friendship here. Although not the same as the Boundary Waters, the peacefulness, relaxation, and fun at camp in Severin na Kupi formulate an ideal place for making and renewing friendships as well as offering a way to "... spend time away from the routine of daily life in order to hear and obey the truth of God's word," quoted from SEND International Croatia.

 

As I walk down the meandering village road that leads to camp the noises of car horns and loud engines fade into the background, replaced by the more relaxing sounds of buzzing bees and twittering birds. The peacefulness of camp begins to draw me in as I walk towards my destination. Now the sand volleyball pit at the bottom of a hill of beautiful wildflowers and fresh green grass appears, inviting me to run down the hill and squish my toes in the wet sand. A set of makeshift stairs rises from the pit to the green grass area in front of the DPB (Društva Prijatelja Biblija) kuća, an old house that contains the kitchen, dining room, bedrooms, and meeting room for the entire camp. A double set of aged cement stairs with a rickety railing stands in front of the house, the front entrance preceded by a small porch. Behind the house a sturdy wooden frame stands silently; laughing kids surrounded by their friends swing leisurely on the three red plastic seats suspended from the frame. The morning dew still glints on the fresh green grass, and presently more teenagers join the group around the swings after doing their morning devotions in the peace and quiet of God's creation. A climbing wall about nine feet tall and twelve feet wide dominates the space at the back of the house, shielded from rain and heat by a pale red tile roof. On the right side of the house an old wooden door sits rooted into the basement wall, the passageway from outside into the dining room. I can see an old ropes course, a vivid green field used for archery, and numerous forested hills as I stand in the doorway. These silent, unperturbed reminders of God's magnificence make camp an enjoyable place to spend the summer.

 

Besides its peacefulness, camp offers a place to grow in my faith and in my walk with God. I have found that morning supplies the best time for devotions. In addition to the small group devotions  with my room later in the morning, I enjoy doing private devotions before the day starts. At about 7:30 I grab my pink Bible and my notebook and walk quietly down the hall, through the small area with two couches that will invariably serve the purpose of seating card-playing teenagers later in the day, down the stairs, and out the back door. Even now a few of my friends stand talking around the swings, but I walk down the worn brick path, under the climbing wall roof, and across the still-wet grass to the bonfire area. There I can sit on a wooden bench, read my Bible, and watch the sun come up over the hills of Slovenia. I might read the verses we studied last night at the meeting and look at my notes from whoever spoke.  The splendor of the forested hills by camp, the clear blue sky, the sound of birds chirping, and the feel of the springy green grass under my bare feet helps me to relax and center my thoughts on God. I can worship him here without distraction and pour out my heart to him, praising him for his majesty and power. At camp I can focus on what God has made and think about the wonderful things he has done for me. The serenity of the morning, the laughter in the daytime, and the beauty of the evening make a perfect atmosphere for thinking about our creator, God.

 

Friendship and fun envelop me at camp, while two friends and experiences in particular stand out to me. On the first day of camp last year I met a girl with the same first name as me, Lydia, and we hung out together for the rest of the week.  We roomed in the Blue Room and discovered that we shared many common interests. I met other friends last year as well, but my friendship with Lydie, as we nicknamed her to avoid confusion, will forever stand out to me as something special. I will always remember the last night we had at camp together. Sitting in the wet grass and looking up at the sky, we surveyed it for any groups of stars that looked like animals. We talked about one group of stars for a long time, thinking up an absurd animal to go with it. The wonder of camp consists of memories like this, at least for me. Hanna Szymczak, whom  I met on the last day of camp, provides another of these vivid memories. We went to the evening meeting together, and afterwards we went outside to do the special activity that always happens on the last night of camp. The speaker for each evening meeting stayed at a station with verses posted on the wall. Campers could freely sit down, pray, and think. Hanna and I took longer than normal doing this, and later when everyone else had gone to sit by the bonfire we sat on the swings and talked. The more we shared about ourselves, the more we found out how much we resembled each other. We must have talked for more than a half hour, because when we finally came over to the bonfire we found that it had ended. We had even missed the s'mores. This might sound like a bad memory, but not for me. I had made a friend, something definitely much more important to do than eat s'mores.

 

This poem by Henry Van Dyke, an American author and clergyman, perfectly expresses the way I feel about camp:          

Every house where love abides          

And friendship is a guest,          

Is surely home, and home sweet home          

For there the heart can rest.

 

This poem flawlessly describes the DPB kuća . Love abides there in that many campers that come to camp love God, and in loving God I believe that we cannot help ourselves in loving others. I have never seen someone truly alone at the end of camp; by then everyone always has a friend. Our foreignness and differentness in the countries we live in draws us together and strengthens our friendships afterwards. As it says in the poem, at camp we can rest even if we do sports all day. We can hang out with kids our age and do what we like to do; we can learn about God and see first-hand his marvelous creation. We can forget about obligations and troubles back home in the city to focus on more important things such as our relationships with God. Camp presents a place that draws me nearer to my friends and to God; it supplies a place of faith, fun, and friendship. Camp at Severin na Kupi truly provides a place where my heart can find rest.