Cascades Camp Blog

During our closing chapel for Brightwood Station campers, Ben “Llamando” Wickstrom would recap the highlights of the week and the spiritual theme (which, for this summer, was Christian Living).  Then, in unison, campers would recite the memory verse for their parents; a very powerful moment in the lives of campers, staff, and parents alike!

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This photograph was taken during high school camp this past summer. Worship took on a deeper significance to campers and they were able to connect with God in new ways because of it!  It is safe to say that God truly moved mightily in the hearts of these campers!

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“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.”

-Hebrews 13:8-

It is quite intriguing and sometimes unnerving the little kinks that God throws into our lives.  I often see the unexpected twists and turns of my life and the lives of those around me and wonder what the heck God has in mind-and sometimes even worse, I wonder if God is even there at those moments.  And it is at these times that I forget the sovereignty of our Almighty God.

I forget that He blessed me with a wonderful, caring family.
I forget the time that He first showed me His love at Sunrise Ranch.
I forget that He saved me from falling into the “bad crowd” in High School.
I forget the time that He pulled me out of my deep despair during my first year at North Park University.
I forget that He provided me with a job that I love, in a place where I am surrounded by people who have become my second family.

And really what it comes down to is that I forget that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and  today and forever.

Just because there is one small piece of the puzzle that I don’t quite understand doesn’t mean that God’s plan to prosper His people has changed.  It is the feeble and weak nature of humanity that causes us to think that one incident, or perhaps a series of events that don’t align with our plan, equals a God who has no clue what He’s doing.  But that is where we are wrong.  From the beginning of time it has been the delight of God to watch over us.  He us unchanging in His desire to seek and save the lost; pulling each of us out of the depths and into His arms.

I’ve been reading a book called ‘Polishing God’s Monuments’, by Jim Andrews, which focuses on the act of intentionally remembering the times that God has been present in our lives and then using the memory of those times as a foundation for our faith when we are hurting or lost.  In this practice, when our lives hit a wall, we can let Christ’s faithfulness and unchanging character speak for itself.  The memory of His strength will reign over our doubt and push away our tendency to give up.

Try it.
Keep a journal (or at least an intentional mental list) of God’s faithfulness to you over the years.  Use it as a tool for the times when you fall, remembering that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.  Amen.

Blessings,

Dirt

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Sorry for the long hiatus…it has been just over two months since our last post and things at Cascades have been going NON-STOP!

We finished off the summer with an amazing time at Labor Day Family Camp, then jumped right into some big weekends!  Covenant Women Ministries, Men of Faith, and Jr. High Thunder, and the Pastor, Staff and Spouse Retreats were held one after the other; add to that several other guest groups visiting our conference center and you’ve got two busy BUSY months.  And although things have been go go go around here, it has been an absolute blast!  Things are begining to slow down a bit and we are hoping to get back into a regular schedule with the blog.

Here’s what you can be watching for:

-HEAR the Word Wednesday
-Photoblog Friday
-Construction/Special Project Updates
-Occasional Staff Reflections
-And MORE!

Check back sometime next week to see what’s new!
Blessings,

Dirt aka Claudia

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