Day four, Hawaiian Day, of Adventure Camp is winding down. As we prepare to sleep one last night in the peaceful setting of Tel Hai Camp we have been reminded that God's Call for each and every person's heart is irresistible. Today's adventures began with a lively challenge of tug-o-war, cabin versus cabin. The gals of Goshen proved themselves to be the strongest campers in camp. The final round of our tug-o-war challenge was campers versus counselors. The outcome of that round is that even though the campers are many, the counselors are strong. The counselors being strong and triumphing over the campers illustrated the idea that when God's call is truly heard, it is irresistible. Mr. Ethan further illustrated this idea with a magnet and a wand, showing the campers that when a magnet comes near the right kind of surface it is automatically drawn together. So it is with God and his word, when our hearts come near to the truth of God and his love for us, we are drawn close to Him and he is irresistible. It is difficult to resist the pull of God just like it is hard for a magnet to resist being attracted to a magnetic surface. Today's WORD UP! was "God's Call is Irresistible". The one person Mr. Ethan talked about from the Bible to illustrate this idea was the story of Saul becoming Paul in Acts 9. As Saul was living in sin, God called out to him and changed his life in an amazing way. Because of the change in Paul's heart he went on to tell about Jesus and live a very different life. This evening Mr. Ethan further explained that by answering God's call Paul became gentle and humble, patient and kind (Ephesians 4:1-3). In the end the campers were challenged with questions of how they care for others, treat their siblings, and treat others. Does the Call of God in their life show how great God is? Today's theme verse was from 2 Chronicles 20:6 which says:
"Lord, the God our ancestors, are you not the God who is in heaven? You rule over all the kingdoms of the nations. power and might are in your hand, and no once can withstand you."
Jesus' work on the cross for our sins is the only way we are saved. Believing in what Christ did for us is the only thing that makes us great. When Jesus died on the cross he showed us how valuable each person is, even in their struggles. The love God has for every person is IRRESISTIBLE! Have you, will you, accept it?
Besides being drawn closer into the love of God and his call for our lives, today was spent enjoying more time in our elective classes, creating one more craft project, making ice cream in concoctions class, trying one more time to conquer the difficult route on the climbing wall, and playing water baseball in swimming games. Everywhere you walked you heard the sound of kids laughing, playing, and enjoying the outdoors of camp and letting us know they saw one more turtle at the lake! We have enjoyed being with each camper this week and seeing God work in their hearts in very specific ways. There is still one more day of adventures to experience and we pray for God's strength and encouragement to help us take a hold of every opportunity to know Him more. May God have all the glory!
