And the Lord Blessed It.

 “A trusting response includes Me in your thoughts as you consider strategies to deal with a situation.” -Jesus Calling

Week 2. My oh my what a whirlwind. We jumped from 250 kids to 1300 in just a matter of days.  Talk about reality check.  I had a really good group this week.  Some great kids were in my Bible Study.  Very energetic and seemed to really enjoy themselves.  Lots of them made some really awesome decisions.  Some even felt like they were being called into full time ministry!  Praise the Lord!  It made me so excited for them!  While this week was really great, I still felt like there was a huge burden in this place.  I felt like there was a lot of Spiritual Warfare going on.  With that being said, Our God is still greater than all of that and he proved himself to be sovereign.  My prayer is that the decisions these kids made will be genuine and authentic decisions for the rest of their lives.  I hope this week was a defining moment in their life.  Major positive of week two was that my family came and visited!  That made my heart happy.  They were able to see the Hannah piece and the AM show and get a small taste of camp life.  Yay for family!  

This weekend was fun!  Lots of us took a mall trip on Saturday night!  Praise for Chick Fil A, Old Navy, and a new dress!  (SA, don’t be alarmed... it is black and white. I couldn’t help it!!)  Then on Sunday (Happy Father’s Day, Daddy!) we went to Cracker Barrel (Praise the Lord) and to see Toy Story 3.  Yes I cried and content in that.  I have no shame.  It was the end of an era. Finally it was time to do laundry and get some rest!  Yay weekend!

Here we go.  In the middle of week three.  Our biggest week of the summer.  On one hand that thought frightens me and stresses me slightly.  On the other hand, it makes me so excited because that means 1600 kids are going to hear the name of Jesus and encounter Him this week!  Praise the Lord.  That makes me so thrilled!  It’s delightful!  

Monday:  Oh hey Monday!  I just love registration day!  I say that with complete sincerity!  We welcomed about 65+ churches in about three hours.  That was exciting! I love Monday’s because a lot of these kids are getting their first taste of camp ever and many of them are returning so they are pumped up about what is ahead.  Opening Celebration was explosive this week!  Todd Agnew is leading worship and it has been such a blessing to get to know him and to worship with him.  Praise the Lord.  Then we meet our Bible Study Groups!  I have such an exciting bunch this week!  They are chatty but so much fun!  I see myself in one of these girls completely.  I feel the need to go apologize to everyone of my teachers for talking excessively in class.  So teachers.... if you are reading this, I’m sorry!  Oh yeah.... I met Jeff Slaughter (you know, the VBS music DVD guy...)  That was a KAIROS moment. 

Tuesday: This day hated me... I think. I don’t know what I did to June 22, 2010 but I am hoping I figure it out VERY soon so I NEVER do it again.  So many different obstacles were put in my way on this day.  It was a struggle.  I struggled personally, emotionally, and spiritually.  Basically if there was a way to be down, upset, frustrated, or hurt... it found me.  However, I had a pretty decent Bible Study and I had good tracks!   The Lord still protects his children!  He holds them up!  And I had two conversations with two of my dear friends, SA and Jeanette.  I have never been more thankful for the two of them in my life.  Thank you girls.  Praise the Lord.  In retrospect, I now know why the Lord made Tuesday so challenging... because Wednesday was fabulous and if Tuesday did not have hurdles, then Wednesday would not have been so great.  

Wednesday:  Dear Wed. of this week.  I love you.  Thank you for existing.  I, Katherine Anne Roberts, am forever grateful.  My kids were outstanding today in rec.  They participated so well and cheered their little hearts out.  I to the N to the F-E-R-N-O we are Inferno!  What what!?  Sorry for that side note.  Bible Study was fantastic as well. It was Rack, Shack, and Benny day and I love this story.  I think it’s such a great story for kids to learn from.  I had two really awesome conversations with students!   For protection of their privacy, I am not going to say what they were about but just know, the Lord does things for reasons we cannot understand.  I now realized why He did some things in my life and caused things to happen  I was able to better minister to this girl because of these circumstances I have faced in my life.  Praise the Lord.  My tracks were really good today too and worship was fantastic.  Rob brought it tonight.  I think the sermon was for the two students I talked with today.  The Lord worked in a mighty, crazy, exciting, awesome, I could keep going but I’m not way!  It was so exciting.  

Now I shall be going.  It is almost time for nightlife.  It’s time to hangout with some kids, eat some ice cream at the Nibble Nook.  (Grandmother, if Mom reads this to you...  Know that the ice cream is still delicious!  Some of the workers in there remind me of you so much.  They are so precious and so sweet.  They cannot replace you in any way shape or form, but they are taking care of me and making sure I always have something delicious to eat!  They have been such a blessing!  I miss you and I’m being careful!)  

It is now after nightlife and I am adding to a short part to this post.  God. Is. Moving.  Period.  I got to talk to a guy tonight about everything that went on in their church group devotion.  He could hardly contain his excitement and his passion for what the Lord is doing in his life and in his group!  God is SO good. 

Hope all is well in your lives.  Miss you all! 

-kar

Well Hello, End of Week One

Oh hey completion of week one!  It's hard to believe that an entire week of camp is done and done.

Thursday
Today was a really good day.  The Bible Study was about Hannah and that story just blows me away every time I read it.  I cannot fathom what she went through.  My kids did a lot better today with getting involved and excited about rec and their cheer today.  Thanks for your prayers.  Voice has been going going going all week.   I got to perform the Hannah piece tonight.  It's such a pretty monologue.  Very tender but very emotional at the same time.

Friday
Friday was by far my favorite day this week.  My kids did really well today at rec and won the spirit noodle!  I was so proud of them!  They were really active and participated today in Bible Study!  It was really exciting!  Finally, the highlight of today was Mega.  I was really nervous about my kids participating and did not have high expectations at all.  Somehow though, they managed to win their heat for seventh and eighth grade!  I might have tackled some people!  I was so excited!  That whole "don't yell, use your whistle" rule I was given kinda got thrown out the window... (bad idea). Sooo my kids got to compete in the championship heat against the 3 older groups that won their heats.  My kids came in third!  I was so proud of them!  In the spirit circle, some of my boys in my group decided that it would be a great idea to grab a water cooler while closing out mega and douse me with water.  I was drenched but felt so loved.  Worship was great on Friday as well!  We took up the missions offering and to see kids just so openly give was amazing.  Praise.

Saturday
Just like that, in the blink of an eye, it was over.  We had closing Bible Study and Closing Celebration.  It was kind of bittersweet for the kids to leave.  It was exciting because I know they are going to go out and use what they have learned, but at the same time, they are so much fun and I will miss them dearly.  Must start focusing on Week 2 though!  Today I also tried to make it to Rachel's wedding.  I didn't make it to the ceremony but made it to the reception.   Loooong story.  I also got to see my best friend in the whole wide world. Unfortunately it was while she was in the hospital but none the less.... I got to see her beautiful face.

Today was a day of rest and then we moved our stage from the Arc to Spillman because we go from 250 kids this past week to wait for it.... 1300 kids next week.  AHHHH!  It's going to be crazy!

So what have I learned this week?  I learned that first and foremost I cannot rely on myself or my own strength but my strength must come from the Lord.  That was proven more this week than ever before in my life.  Strength of family was definitely affirmed this week.  I am so thankful for my fuge family here. I have never in my life met 30 more incredible individuals in one place at the same time.  Praise the Lord that we are going to be serving together all summer.  I learned that it's probably not the best idea in the world to yell at rec when you have to perform everyday.  That's kinda sorta difficult for me.

Please cover this week in prayers.  Pray that there would be opportunity after opportunity to have intentional conversations.  Pray that these kids would just experience the Lord in ways that they never have before.  Pray for strength and endurance for our team.  Please continue to pray for team unity.  Please.  Also pray that we will not grow tired or grow into a routine.  Let us keep things exciting and fresh for these kids.  It's been a great summer so far!  I can't wait to see what's yet to come!

-kar

Oh Hey First Week!

June 7th (Monday)
Well, there it was!  The first day of camp!  It's come and it's gone and it was crazy.  So much energy!  I was a little nervous at times, but God works in crazy ways and got me through it.  Met my Bible Study Group for the first time!  That was exciting!  They might think I'm slightly crazy but that's to be expected.  I can already tell they are going to be a great group of students to work with!  Tomorrow the fun really begins!  We crank it up with the AM show then we head to rec and Bible Study.  Then track times, worship, and Fuge County Fair!  It's going to be a great day but I definitely make sure I prepare my coffee before I embark on this adventure.  Our camp pastor and band this week are fantastic!  They hang out with the campers and staff.  They are so genuine and intentional.  Today at registration, Meg, Brandon, Drew, and I greeted a van that wasn't full of campers.... twice.  The two men who were in there were not very excited about being greeted for camp.  I cannot explain how great of a first day this was!  Incredible!  Day 2 here we come!!

June 8th (Tuesday)

Today started out with my alarm not going off because I set it for 6:15PM.  Fortunately I woke up in time to make it to the morning meeting!  We had our first AM show so that meant my debut of Double Mags.  It went really well.  I made me realize how much I miss performing.  I am so thankful that the Lord has blessed me with this opportunity to use my talents for his glory.  After the AM show, we went up the mountain to rec!  Woooot!  It was a great day at rec!  I am trying to get my group motivated and excited about rec.  If you guys could pray for energy and excitement for them, that would be great!  After rec, we headed to Bible Study.  Today's word of the day was love and the students learned about Jonah and how he was called to love the people of Nineviah but fled.  Hopefully the students had a fire spark that will continue to grow into a fire for him in this week.  Then we had track times,  Track time rally was underway.  I am teaching Beginning Drama and I have a track of nine girls.  Praise the Lord.  How exciting.  They are absolutely precious!  After that, we switched tracks and I am teaching Spiritual Gifts as well!  Then it was hang time and I worked in the store!  While I was in there, I received some mail from Christy and Jeanette!  That made my day!  Girls, you just don't even know!  I almost cried!  (CC- that picture is in my Bible Study binder so I can see it ALL THE TIME)  Then it was dinner and worship!  It was nice to just be able to be in the presence of God and get away from the hustle of camp.  After that, we had Fuge County Fair.  Yeeeeeeeeeee haw!!!!  The night ended with a game of Little Sally Walker at the Nibble Nook!  Praise the Lord.

June 9th (Wednesday as of about 2ish)

Today began with a slightly shaky AM show.  It went well and we still had a blast!  My kids were a lot more excited today about rec!  They cheered a lot and yelled a lot!  I yelled a lot as well so if someone could throw up some prayers that I could keep my voice, that would be appreciated more than you know.  After that, we learned about obedience in Bible Study and how Shadrach, Meshac, and Abendigo were thrown into the furnace but still obeyed God.  I am excited about tomorrow, we are learning about Hannah.  I really just cannot wait!  It's my favorite day!  Lunch was really hilarious!  I ate at a table full of males... middle school males.  A hoot that was.  Right now, I am fixing to go teach my tracks.  I just had a few minutes in between!  Keep praying!  Keep the faith!  God is good!!!

-kar

Training Week... That's a Wrap? Whaaaat?

Wow... training week is almost over!  I can't believe it!!!!!  Time is flying by!  This time tomorrow, we will be anticipating the arrival of campers!  It's crazy!  Months of praying, planning, and preparing is fixing to come alive!!!  It's kind of surreal.  God has done so many things already and the fact that He doesn't even have to use us but is choosing to is continually blowing my mind every single day.  He could do all of this and more himself, but He chooses to use us as instruments and that's flipping awesome!

Since I have blogged last, we have had our day off which was used to sleep in, do laundry, and spend time and fellowship as a family!  We had our mega run through as a staff.  Good times!  In the past week, we have had two birthdays!  Yay!  Meg's and Justin's!  What a blessing to celebrate with new friends!  We also took a little field trip!  We were told that we were going to practice our County Fair Nightlife in costume and we needed to meet all dressed up.  When we arrived, we were informed that we were not going to be practicing nightlife but instead taking a trip to Coldstone... in county fair attire!  It was absolutely hilarious!  You can check out pictures on facebook!  It was a good time!

Today and yesterday consisted of lots and lots of run throughs.  Today is dress rehearsal day! I am currently sitting backstage listening to Brandon yell as Ted the Tech.  It's quite comical.  As I go out and perform, I can't help but think that every chair in the audience symbolizes a student that will come to camp. Many of these students will be seeking something, whether they know the Lord or not.  Some will have lots of issues that they need guidance on.  Hopefully for them, camp will be a defining moment in their life where they surrender their lives to the love of God.  I pray they choose to be obedient in whatever God is calling them to do, even if it means making a sacrifice of some sort.  I hope they grow as men and women of integrity and remain committed to Christ.

The rest of the day consists of dress rehearsals, staff dinner, and prayer walk through campus then that's it folks, campers get here tomorrow!  I cannot believe it!  Praying for HUGE things!!!!!  I'm so blessed to be a part of this!  Hope you guys are well!!!!!

-kar

This is Crazy!

FUMan oh man the Lord is good.  That's it.  There is just absolutely no other way to put it.  In no way shape or form could I have asked for a more incredible staff to serve with this summer.  They are such an amazing, solid group.  I will echo what my dear friend Lizzie Frye said on her blog.  Praise the Lord for the Godly men on this team.  Us females are outnumbered.  In the short week that I have known most of these people, I have learned about them as people, their lives, and moments in their lives that defined them as people and their walk with the Lord.  Today was a good day.  It was filled with a morning of recreation, lunch, coordinator time with Kyle, Bible Study room decorations (praise the Lord for two of the guys on my team that volunteered to hang some stuff while I practiced with Brandon), Rehearsal, Dinner, Meetings, and then later tonight there will be family time.  It's so busy and we have something basically going every minute of the day but it's so incredible.  I'm thinking of quitting school so I can work Fuge year round.... if only.  That would be the life.  I'm so thankful for the busy schedule because I feel so prepared going into the first week of camp that starts on Monday.  Our leadership team is amazing and has done an incredible job of preparing us and informing us of all the necessary information we will need.  I can't wait to meet campers!  It's going to be so much absolutely awesome.  Tomorrow we have a day off.  Praise for laundry time, sleep time, and just more time to hang out with people on staff.

I am quickly beginning to realize that as much as I don't want this to happen, it has.  I had every intention of coming here and staying in touch with people back home as best as  possible.  Unfortunately, that is not going to be the case.  I mean, yes I can occasionally facebook or text them, but as far as seeing them or calling them, there just simply isn't time.  My prayer for them is that they have an incredible summer as well.  That Christ ignites a fire in them to do something bold for Him.  That they use their time wisely and that they make the most of every moment.

God is so good.  The other day, I wasn't really down but I just had a lot of things on my mind.  I was sitting by myself working on my Bible Study outline when a man comes up to me.  Ridgecrest was hosting a biker rally so this man was there for that.  He just randomly started talking to me about what I was doing this summer at camp and what my story was.  He was so encouraging and such a blessing.  I had never met this man in my life, but God put him in the right place at the right time.  Then, the next morning before he left, he found me at breakfast and prayed with me.  What a blessing.  Alan, I know I will never see you again, but thank you for your encouragement!

Please keep us in your prayers!  Pray for strength and renewal everyday that doesn't come from ourselves, but comes from Christ.  Pray that our staff continues to build relationships and unity remains and that Christ remains the center of our family here.  Pray for the campers that we will meet next week and throughout the summer.  Pray that Christ will work in their lives and that this will be a defining moment in their walk with the Lord.

You guys are incredible!  Miss and love you all!

Song of the Day: Mystery: Charlie Hall