IfYouGiveAMindensenABlog

First off, I'd like to apologize for my VERY non-creative titles as of late...but for right now, it's quite descriptive as this blog is about the month of June. I know that June is not quite over, but I feel the need to give an update before I forget...

June 12th was the day I started working at Lake Ellen. Until that day, I had never been North of WI (in regards to the MI/WI area)... I've now lived in the UP for almost 3 weeks, and I LOVE it!!! The nearest Walmart is 40mins. Every morning I get to wake-up and watch the early morning sun glisten off Lake Ellen. We're SURROUNDED by acres of a National Reservation, and the landscape is just BEAUTIFUL.

The camp itself has been going really well also. I am a Co-Area Director, and we're in charge or the Main summer program. Our camps range from 2n&3rd graders-High school students. My partner and I are responsible for creating the schedule for all 5 weeks of camp. It's been challenging, but we're learning lots. We're on our 3rd full day of our first week. There's been lots of rearranging and changing of plans, but we're learning and the campers are having a GREAT time. 5 of our 20 campers have already found Jesus this week. Praise God!

Please pray for energy, confidence, and opportunities to share Jesus with ALL the people who come on grounds this summer. Thank you all for your support encouragement.

God is GOOD! ♥

I feel like I've slightly summed up May in my 'Ode to 21', but at the same time as that was not strictly speaking a 'Newsletter' update, I will attempt to quickly sum-up the month of May now...

Camp-wise, the beginning of May=Mens' Retreat weekend. Which went amazingly well. It was Baseball themed, and the speaker was the Chaplin from the Detroit Tigers. From what I saw and heard it was a successful weekend. At the end of that weekend we had two people join 'the staff' as early-arrival summer workers. One, is officially apart of the Senior Staff on Maintenance, and the other will be 'Interning' this summer as 'The Nature Guy'. I'm excited to see how things go with the Nature Center this summer. He has a lot of GREAT ideas.
A week or so later, my fellow Outfitters and I left with the Stiles on a surprise trip to the Detroit area. It was AWESOME. We went to Greenfield Village, which I'd never been to before. We also got to stay at Sarah Stile's parents house. They were so welcoming. Spending time with her parents was DEFINITELY one of the highlights for me. We also visited the Detroit Holocaust museum, and spent one of the evenings in Greek time. We ended our surprising traveling by going to Shipshewana(sp?). We went to the Mennonite museum, and to the Flea-market (I've wanted to go there for awhile, it was great!) All-in-all, it was a fun time being together.

Another 'main event' was my launching party. Bair Lake exists as a launching pad for people to make Jesus Christ known to their communities and world. Therefore, since I was getting ready to 'graduate' from the discipleship program, it was thus dubbed as getting ready 'to launch'. I had ZERO part in the planning. They decided to completely surprise me, and I was certainly surprised. I made it almost through their entire 'surprise' breakfast without suspecting a thing...they had to tell me what was going on...I LOVE my fellow Outfitters...it was certainly a VERY special day for me...THANKS GUYS! (if you're reading this...) ...the day closed with a big cook-out with the rest of staff and other friends. I was very touched, and it has certainly been a privilege to have worked these last two years with such godly, loving people. I'm going to miss them all dearly.

My younger brother Caleb graduated High School on the 25th, so I went home for that. I returned with a car! :)

Memorial Day weekend, found all four of us Outfitters working camp's Open House, but once we shut-down, we all piled into my car and drove the FOUR hours (which turned into 5) down to where my family was camping for the weekend. Camping Memorial Day weekend is one of my personal highlights of the year. I was really excited to be able to share it with my fellow Outfitters. It was fun having them be able to interact with my family and our friends for the weekend...I think everyone had fun... =D

So, this isn't turning into a 'quick' summary...oh well...I'm almost finished! =D

I was able to spend my 21st birthday at camp, but then on June 3rd (after driving home to switch vehicles/pick-up my younger brother), I moved back home from camp. My younger brother, Caleb is on the Senior Staff this year, so I moved him onto camp, and he helped me load the van with my stuff. It was a bittersweet moment, but I'm excited for his time at camp. I pray that his experience at camp will draw him close to God as well.

I'm currently in that 'awkward' in between stage. I'm not officially doing anything right now. It's hard, but it's kind of nice. I've been able to set-up my room, so I don't have to do that when I move back again in August. It has also given me a chance to kind of reflect and process through some stuff before moving onto the next thing. My time at camp has been good...not always easy, but good. I've learned a lot. I've been challenged, and I've grown. I know that I am much stronger now in my faith then before, and have a greater peace about who God is; specifically who He is to me...(Psalm 113) and I look forward to all that He is going to continue to do in my life and in the lives of the people around me. To those of you still at camp...Keep in touch...for those of you who aren't...SAME! =D

I love you guys! Thanks for all the prayers, support, and encouragement! ♥

God is GOOD!♥

So, I was planning on writing this ON my birthday, but that just didn't happen. Well, now that it's been 5 days, I've really been able to 'soak-in' the fact that I am indeed TWENTY-ONE years old! Yes, I can now buy guns, alcohol, go to a Casino, apply for my concealed weapons license (at least in Michigan I could)... However, really and truly what another birthday means is a whole other year coming and going. Yes, 'New Years' happens in January, but for me the new year starts in June. Man, oh man, what a year it's been too.

I was diagnosed Gluten Sensitive just before my last birthday. My older brother got engaged. I was AV Director for Bair Lake Bible Camp in the summer. I started dating my first boyfriend. Went to Detroit for the first time. Had my program kind of sort of split. My 'home' church go through another MAJOR transition after which it changed name in order to become a 'new' church again. Thought my first 'Bible Class'. Went to NYC, and actually got to walk around Time Square and go up in the Empire State Building. I went through my first break-up. Got back on Facebook. I made a REAL gingerbread house. My mom and sister were diagnosed Gluten Sensitive. I was placed on an ACTUAL phone plan. Was accepted to TWO colleges. Signed up for classes. Searched for, found, changed plans, and found another summer job. Cultivated a deeper relationship with God and the people around me. Started the 'launching' process from my Discipleship program. Went camping (HAHA **winky face** for those who get it...) Turned 21! ...Read LOTS of books. Made lots of memories. Learned lots of lessons. Got angry, became sad. Took pictures. Laughed, cried. Loved...LIVED! (still loving...still living) =D

This is the day the Lord has made; Let us REJOICE and be glad in it! Psalm 118:24 NIV (emphasis MINE) :)

God is GOOD!♥

"What do I get?" isn't the issue....
"What do I give?" is what should matter to you...

God seeks and desires us to love Him
and that is NOT a sin
b/c He GIVES more than Anyone
just to prove His Love.