Camp Alandale Prayer Update

Session 1 Summer Camp Update June 20-24, 2011

Dear Prayer Family,

    Greetings to you from your friends at Camp Alandale! We are writing to share about the blessed week that we had at camp. It was a great kick-off to the summer as the 4th through 6th graders heard about the love of Jesus and learned about the Armor of God.

    For many returning campers, we were blessed to see God's hand in growing and softening their hearts. Moses, for example, was a previous camper who was known to cause trouble and pick fights with other campers and was often defiant to his counselors. However, this week Moses was more respectful to the campers and counselors. He participated in the Bible studies and worship with a joy which was absent in the past. It was clear that God had softened his heart. On Thursday night, Moses broke down in tears during the Pinecone Ceremony where he asked God to take an area of pain in his life. Pray that God would continue to draw Moses unto himself and fill him with the love of Jesus.

    Crystal was another returning camper who had gained much growth in Jesus since her first visit to Camp Alandale. Throughout this week, she was more compliant and demonstrated self-control compared to her previous two years at camp. At first she would alienate certain campers from her team, but as the week went on, we saw her heart began to soften towards others in a way only Jesus can do. Crystal really began opening up when she and I just gazed at the stars and she realized how big God really is. She started letting down her defenses toward everyone and was a little bit calmer at the end of the week. Pray for Crystal to let go of past hurts, and for God to soften her wounded heart. 

    We also had the privilege of welcoming new children to Camp Alandale.  Angel was one of those. He is the oldest boy in his family and since his father is in prison he feels responsible for his family. It was amazing to see him open up as the week progressed. During one-on-one time he confided to me that his father will be in prison for fourteen more years and when he gets out Angel will be twenty-six. He told me that once his father gets out of prison he will make him go wherever he goes and he will make sure that he never gets into trouble again. Angel never goes to church and he has only learned a little about the Bible from his mom. It was a blessing to see his knowledge of God greatly increase as the week progressed. He was sad to leave camp and told me he can't wait to come back next year.

    Camp Alandale was a new experience for Nicole as well. Her actions and demeanor reflected a child who was filled with fear and insecurity. She would express feelings of fear in many of the camp activities such as the ropes course and hikes. However, God had given her the perfect counselor. Leah pushed and encouraged Nicole to conquer her fears during the week. Her encouragement helped Nicole to participate in nearly every camp activity despite her fear and apprehension. She even was one of the few campers that shared her testimony during campfire. On the last night of camp, she accepted Jesus into her heart with her counselor Leah. In an effort to make sure that Nicole knew what she was doing Leah had her draw out what she had just done. She really did get it, below is the drawing.  God truly does amazing things in the lives of these campers at camp. Praise God!

Thank you for your prayers and support,

Counselors: Zach, Brian, and Kayla