Re -start

I am home from CYC,  off hiatus and back to blogging.

Now, how do I explain the last two weeks? I can't possibly, not in any meaningful way, so over the next few days, I'll just tell a few stories and post a video or two. Someone asked me for stories of victory, so I will start with one of those.

I'll tell you about a camper who arrived anxious and homesick. When I say anxious, I don't mean run of the mill anxious. I mean the "I can't quite function" type anxious.  He was feeling lost and not quite sure what to do in any given situation. He needed some extra support.  He kept asking to go home. His parent said "no".

His counselor worked with him. The camp nurse did all she could. His teachers tried. Some of us put our professional skills into action. We enacted some advice from his family. We all prayed.  But by the middle of camp, some of us felt we should simply send him home. Others were on the fence. First thing second Monday morning, we were ready to make the decision, but decided to ask his counselor first.

His reply: "Yesterday, I would have sent him, but last night he was laughing and joking in the cabin and intereacting with the other campers. Let's keep him."

So we did. It took some extra effort but we kept moving in the right direction. He was so proud of one of his accomplishments, that he sent the original home to his parents.

There was one more major incident that took a ton of effort but, by the end of the conference, he was friendly, occasionally confident, and even laughing regularly. He was talking about coming back. A victory for sure.

His wasn't the only story of transformation. We have several dramatic stories that ended well.

It's what comes of letting God work through our community and it is amazing to be a part of it.

Have you ever witnessed a transformation wrought by God's power?






CYC is a two week conference for teenagers that exists to strengthen the Christian faith of young people. We meet the middle two weeks in August on the beautiful southern coast of Maine and have smaller events in New England throughout the year.

On Hiatus

On the heels of completing a challenge that required me to write 31 posts in 31 days, I am going on hiatus. I will not be writing posts for two weeks.

I will be at the Christian Youth Conference at Ocean Park. I don't meet any group's definition of "young"these days. I'll be working.

It is work I love. I wouldn't trade it. Not even to keep up my blog. I am just going to be too busy learning, growing and stretching myself.

There is still room if any teens want to join us. Just register on the site, pack up, and come to Maine. We'll have forms for parents to sign when you get there or we can do something with email and fax if you are taking the bus.

Anyway...hopefully those of you who follow me won't forget me in two weeks. :)


God bless!!!

Jesus loves....

I saw a bumper sticker this morning which read:

Remember: Jesus loves all the people you hate. 

Based on the other bumper sticker on the car, I think this was probably aimed at a particular political group, which makes it a bit tinged with irony, but political agendas is not where I am going.

That statement is arresting. Of course, Christians aren't supposed to hate others -- only evil. We're supposed to love.  There is temptation to hate though.


Think about it. That statement means that Jesus loves:


People who disparage our ministry, thwart us at work, dismiss our opinions, or militantly hold political or theological views that are radically different from our own.

It means He loves those who:

Who walked out on us when they shouldn't have or when they had no obligation to stay but we wanted them to, who have lied to us, who have caused us harm


And He calls us to love them, too.

What does that love look like? There is no easy answer to that. It will look different in every case. It will mean forgiveness, and perhaps repentance, on our parts. Sometimes it will mean listening when we know we are right or acting to help someone with whom we disagree.

It does not mean staying in physical danger from flying fists and drunken tirades, but it does mean seeking the best for all the people in our lives even when that is uncomfortable or requires confrontation .

It's challenging. It's downright hard. But it must be done.








I will be exploring this and other themes at the Christian Youth Conference at Ocean Park beginning on August 5. Still room for teens to join us on the beautiful southern coast of Maine!!