πάντα ἰσχύω ἐν τῷ ἐνδυναμοῦντί με

One more week till the end...

I'm sitting in the staff lounge at Covenant Hills Camp in Michigan on one of the most comfortable couches my butt has ever touched...This week has been great...We play for the youth in the morning and we had a worship concert on Wednesday...That was so much fun and so cool to be able to play with that many people around worshiping with us...

With only one week left I'm starting to reflect on the last six or seven weeks...How much I have been blessed with and how much I was able to be apart of...I also realize I have been apart of things that I have no knowledge of...I still have never been able to help anyone receive Christ directly...But I am content in knowing that I have been a piece of the puzzle for some...Maybe in a line of fourteen I am number six or number ten...Who cares...As long as they see Jesus...

I am happy with where my mindset is with God...This summer has taught me to break down walls of doubt and walls that made me second guess my motives...I have started to just tell Satan to shut up and really believe that God can protect my heart and mind...This may be elementary and trivial, but it's something I needed to conquer...




"I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want."
Philippians 4:11-12

Sanctitatis...

So this week went well...I was the speaker for the youth at the camp we are at this week...

Who am I? That is what was running through my head all week...God spoke through me this week guys...It was awesome to see how the teens responded as the week went on...We didn't do any altar calls or anything like that...I would have loved to, but with the service being in the morning the kids already didn't pay attention half the time...But I tell you, I loved it...I was sitting in a coffee shop half the week for internet doing research and looking up the New Testament in the original Greek language...And I loved it...I'm a nerd...Diving in like that and preparing a week's worth or stuff was awesome...

It was great to have the free time this week to do it too...Being at a family camp gave the whole team time to rest, which was well needed...Awesome to see God's plan for our summer in that way...

But I've been fishing around in this calling as well...I know I am called to youth and maybe college age ministry, and speaking this week has helped affirm that calling and also made me realize I love to stand in front of people and bring the Truth on...With my personality, I don't like to beat around the bush, even if I may say something that someone is not the fondest of...So this week I did just that...I told it like it was, and it went over well...God shone through...

If you prayed for me this week, thanks so much...God is faithful eh?



"God doesn't call the qualified, He qualifies the called."




The guys on the team:

A Calling Explored...

So it's been awhile...Hard to get internet often and have enough time when we do to post here...

To catch you up...My summer job is touring around in a worship band to a different camp every week...

It's been a wild and fun ride so far...I'm still in awe everyday that I am getting paid to do what I do...It really makes me look at the future and want to really make sure I don't have a desk job...I would be ok with the traveling lifestyle for sure...The last few camps have been really different but good in their own right...We were at Sky Lodge in Wisconsin a few weeks back and I loved it...We were counselors as well as playing the music and I didn't know how I would handle the little free time, but I was fine...Living with and investing in the kids' lives was so rewarding...It fits who I am and what I want to keep doing with my life...The boys in my cabin were all solid and really wanted to make a difference in the world, especially one of the kids...I got to spend some extra time at night one on one with him and talk with him...Seeing how young they are and how they want to do so much is encouraging...

Last week's camp was way smaller and had a completely different style...A lot of the kids come from broken homes and less wealthy backgrounds...Most of them thought divorce was just another part of marriage...And some of the kids in my cabin were awesome too and had a desire to be more than the average Joe...They wanted to look different than the rest of the world...

The camp this week will be way more laid back...It's a family camp and we don't have to be counselors...Free time will be higher than average...For me it will mean preparing for the next day...I am the speaker this week for the youth...Everyday I speak after we lead worship...I feel like this a step towards the calling I am living in right now...For now and for the future...I understand the gifts God has given me and I am excited to explore this one even more...I love to share God and the Bible to anyone, especially to a room full of half-attentive students...

But I ask you to pray, if you believe in it, for me...I'm pretty sick right now and have been for a few days...I just honestly want to speak God's words and truth...So whether I am in good health or not is secondary, although it would be nice to not feel weak and have a fever everyday :)

Peace and Love in Christ,

:jake




"I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in an and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength."

Phillipians 4:11-13