July Update!

 "As far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us." (Psalm 103:12) 

This is our theme verse for the summer, and God has been faithful in making it real in the lives of the kids that have come up here!  We just finished our third week of camp, with two more weeks to  go!  The first three weeks have gone so well, and God has been at work in so many ways.  The first week was full of first through third-grade kids from Los Angeles, Watts, and Fresno.  Since these kids are younger, for many of them it is the first time they have heard the gospel and had a chance to surrender their lives to Christ.  Many of them made first-time decisions to follow Him with their lives--Praise the Lord! 

Our second week of camp we had kids from a ministry called Signs of Hope, an urban ministry run by Menlo Park Presbyterian Church in the bay area.  These kids are all in the state foster care program, and range in age from 6-12 years old.  Surprisingly, the state of California allows them to attend a Christian camp and hear the gospel!  This is the second year that Signs of Hope has brought kids to THE OAKS, and it has been a privilege to work with them and to see how serious the ministry is about following up with the kids and discipling them throughout the year.

Last week, our third week of camp, we had fourth through sixth- grade campers from World Impact ministries in Los Angeles, Watts, and Fresno, as well as some from other urban ministries in those areas.  We had a full camp with 150 kids and staff!  It was so fun to see so many familiar faces that we have gotten to know in the past few years, and to see how they are growing in their walks with Christ.  We met a lot of new campers as well, like Kiah (pictured here).  Kiah is from Fresno and was in one of Jared's nature classes all week.  She immediately latched onto me and wanted to know all about my pregnancy and the baby!  She struggled at times but overcame many challenges during the week, and ended up having a great week.  She can't wait to come back next year and hold our baby boy!

Jared has been busy teaching nature classes to the kids in the mornings, overseeing the media side of things, as well as preparing for the next Outdoor Ed season.  This summer we hired a boat driver, so thankfully Jared has been relieved of that responsibility and has been able to stay on camp and focus on things here! 

I have been continuing to manage Camp Grounds Coffee, which is open more during camp days.  I also led a week-long "coffee class" for some of the Leaders-in-Training (LIT's).  LIT's are a group of teens from the inner city (Dallas, San Diego, L.A., Watts, and Fresno)  that commit to a three-year leadership training program.  They spend their summers up at THE OAKS where they have the chance to get away from the city and get mentored on a daily basis, as well as practice their leadership skills helping in different areas of camp.  In the "coffee class," the LITs learned how to use the espresso machine at Camp Grounds  Coffee, practiced making some of the drinks, and got to see a live coffee roasting demonstration.  The class was mostly for fun but also gave the teens some practical knowledge that they could use if they wanted to work at a coffee shop in their neighborhood (a couple of them were already talking about applying at Starbucks). 

We are so thankful for what God has done so far this summer, and we can't wait to see how He will work the next couple of weeks!  Next week we have Junior High Camp and the following week is Senior High Camp.  Please be praying for these teens as they hear about God's forgiveness and have the opportunity to experience it for themselves!

Please also continue to pray for the rest of our pregnancy...we are already at 32 weeks!!!  Pray for a safe and healthy delivery in God's perfect timing. 

Lastly, we'd like to introduce you to Tara the Tarantula, who is presently living in our house!  Our director came upon the tarantula as he was helping his wife clean out a closet.  Jared's plan is to use it for his nature classes this week, and then set it free.  I'm thankful that Tara's stay in our home will be short-lived!