Bears vs Packers Game

Watching the bears vs packers game I the newly renovated Neale lodge!

Sunday @ Wintertainment

Please continue to keep us in your prayers as we have reached the halfway point of our trip. Students could be found (yesterday & today) skiing, snowboarding, tubing, cross country skiing, ice skating, & playing games in the newly renovated neale lodge! I'll post some pics of the beautifully updated lodge tonight. 

Our speaker, Norm Hubbard, continues to challenge us with evidences of faith in Jesus from 1 John. Norm has told us, "these exams are not pass or fail in the sense that I am not saved if I do not show these evidences in my life, but rather a person who has truly been brought by God the Father to salvation should exude these characteristics." He has described these evidences as both sides of a coin. It would not be natural for someone to claim a quarter as only the "head" side or the "tails" side. Rather, a quarter has both tails and heads together. Our faith in Jesus is similar. Faith in Christ and obedience to Him should go hand in hand and not be separate or optional. It has been thought provoking and challenging for us all. 

Temperatures are scheduled to dip into the negative degrees tonight and into Monday morning. Please pray for the attitudes of the students as we plan and adjust the schedule for their safety.  

Razzleblast

Razzleblast = a mix between soccer and football! 

Wintertainment 2013 Session #1

The first session at Wintertainment 2013 is in the books! 

Our speaker for the week, Norm Hubbard, is on staff with the Navigators at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He proudly displayed his love for the Green Bay Packers. Our group booed him like the proud Bears fans they are. Ok, maybe not, but you get the point! We decided not to hold it against him. ;) 

Regardless of his nfl fandom, God has brought Norm here to Wintertainment 2013 for a specific reason. He will be sharing with us this week from 1 John & answering a question that many people, especially students, struggle with. How do I know without any doubt that I am truly saved? How can I tell if I'm a true follower of Jesus if I don't "feel" like it sometimes?

 He introduced the topic tonight by asking whether people would know if we are followers of Jesus by looking at our everyday lives (our actions) the last few weeks. Would the evidence stacked up be able to convince ourselves? He encouraged the group by telling them that they can know for sure whether or not they are a true follower of Christ. 

1 John 5:13 "I write these things to you who believe in the Son of God so that you may KNOW that you have eternal life."

Would you continue to pray for each of us, including Norm? Pray that we would be encouraged yet challenged in our relationship with Jesus. 

Here are a few pics from our session!

Wintertainment 2013

We arrived safely at camp forest springs around 3:30 this afternoon. The students settled into their cabins, ate dinner, & are enjoying various free time activities before our first session later tonight. Pictures to follow tonight's session!

Please continue to pray for the heart of each student to be touched by God in a special way this week.  Thanks for praying for us as we traveled today!

On the Road

Yesterday (Friday) was our last full day in New Orleans. It was hot (although every day this week has been hot with temperatures in the mid-90s, feeling around 100 with humidity) but the students worked very hard despite the heat! We finished as much as possible at our worksites and then had an evening of sharing highlights of the week with the entire crossroads group. 

Unfortunately, we also discovered a broken van window when getting ready to leave one of the worksites on Friday. Thankfully, nothing was stolen out of the van! The cause of the broken window remains a mystery but we did have to wait several hours for the police to come and file a report. A huge thank you to the students who volunteered to stay behind and wait at the site - your patience there was a testament to God's work in your lives!

Today we left Camp Hope early and spent all day driving. Everyone was thankful to arrive at our hotel for tonight and many enjoyed swimming in the pool. We plan to arrive home mid-afternoon tomorrow (Sunday) and will keep you posted on a more specific time during our drive.

Thank you for all of your prayers this week!

The "before" picture of 55 yards of mulch to spread.

The "after" picture!

Thursday

Today was another hot, sunny day! We have been working on 2 different houses all week, so some of our group went to those worksites and the rest went to a charter school to spread mulch around their playground. We came back to Camp Hope a little early to pack up the vans for our outreach night at St. Roch Park from 5-7 p.m. Lots of people from the neighborhood showed up for games, free hot dogs and chips, and face painting for the kids! The students served with smiles on their faces and did a great job. We enjoyed a trip afterwards to get sno-balls, a local favorite.... it is similar to tropical sno but we can get them stuffed with ice cream inside... Yum!

Tomorrow is our last full day in New Orleans- the week has flown by! Please pray that we could get as much done as possible, for safety and health, and for the people and the ministry of Crossroads to continue to be blessed after we leave here. 

Wednesday

On Wednesday we all pitched in again for camp chores and then left for the neighborhood of St. Roch, a few miles down the road from Camp Hope. We passed out flyers to people outside, inviting them to our outreach night at St. Roch Park on Thursday night. After lunch was our free day to do some sightseeing around the city. First, we went on a swamp tour and saw lots of gators! Then, we drove to the French Quarter and walked along the river, ate dinner at Polly's Crazy Lobster, visited some tourist shops, and enjoyed beignets at Cafe du Monde (the best ones around). It was a great night enjoyed by all!