Week Six!

This week was absolutely amazing! I'll be honest, I was not looking forward to having juniors after having a great senior high week, but I ended up having a ton of fun and making some great memories!

The week started off great before the campers even arrived. I've needed a haircut for a couple weeks now, and a couple of the girl counselors volunteered to cut it, and it was so much fun. They had never really done it before, but we all had a blast laughing and having a good time.

Monday night's cabin wrap-up, though, was what really started the week off right. The kids paid attention really well, and we had a lot of fun talking and laughing. One of the kids (I can't remember who) gave me the nickname "Nathanator", and it stuck for the rest of the week. No joke, the kids called me that the entire week, and I think I only heard my actual name a handful of times. It was really cool.

The most amazing part about the week, though, was that fact that four--yes FOUR--kids in my cabin got saved this week! Praise God! I just could not believe the amazing things that God was doing in my cabin and all throughout the cabin. Our summer salvation number is now somewhere around 70, which is just incredible.

The cool thing about my kids' getting saved was not only that God transformed their hearts, but he began to transform mine as well. This week God really helped me see the simplicity of the gospel. As a Bible major, I tend to complicate the gospel and think of Christ's death in terms of doctrine and theology, when the most important thing about His sacrifice is that He did it because of His love. Junior kids can understand that God loved them so much that He sent His Son to die in order to give them the opportunity to have new life.

How amazing it was the see the smile on my kids' faces when they realized that when they die they'll go to heaven. Two of the guys accepted Christ on Tuesday night after chapel, and that night was one of the most amazing nights I've had at camp. The first boy was crying and just so upset that He didn't have Jesus in his heart and he wanted to change that. The second boy got saved after telling me just that morning that he didn't care about what happened to him when he died. It was just an amazing display of God's power and sovereignty in salvation.

Another kid got saved on Thursday morning just hours before he was going to leave camp early to go on vacation with his family. He said he had wanted to talk to me after chapel the night before but he didn't come back because the Pastor hadn't given an invitation that night. Then on Friday night another kid came back and talked to me after chapel and accepted Christ, and he was just so happy that Jesus was getting him into heaven.

One of the most encouraging things about all the salvations was the fact that the staff was so amazingly excited about all of the salvations as well. From the counselors to the grithogs, everyone was so excited to hear about the life-changing decisions that the kids were making. It made me that much more enthusiastic to spread the word when one of my kids got saved.

One big thing that hit me this week was the fact that this summer is absolutely flying by. There are only three weeks left (two of campers), and I realized this week that I have absolutely no desire to leave. I just love it at Skyview, and I can truly say there is no place I'd rather be and nothing I'd rather be doing this summer.

Yesterday after the kids left my sister and I bought my Dad a birthday present and then we helped work a company picnic. I did high ropes while Lindsay helped out in the kitchen. After we finished with that we drove to Dad's house and now we're here for his birthday party. I'm really excited because I'll get to see my other brother and sister and my two nephews and niece.

One thing I realized about this blog is that none of you get a chance to see the pictures that I've taken throughout the summer. So far I've only put them on Facebook, which means that only Facebook users can see them. Not any more! I've set up a Flickr account so that anyone can see the pictures. Here's the link: http://www.flickr.com/photos/10346651@N03/

Next week is Junior Highers! This is a very interesting age group, but it's a very fun one as well. It will bring a unique set of challenges, but these kids will also be much more self-sufficient than the juniors and they'll be able to process more information.

Things to pray about:

Patience: For the girl counselors it's dealing with modesty issues, and for the guy counselors it's dealing with apathy. Pray that we'll all be able to have patience as we deal with these issues.

Wisdom: Junior highers are at the age where they're really starting to struggle with their identities and who they want to be. Pray that us counselors will have wisdom as we try to counsel them.

Week Five!

Coming into this summer, I had the mindset that no week of camp would ever compare with my senior high cabin last year. Boy was I wrong! This week turned out to be the most incredible week ever, and I'm still excited about all the things that happened!

One of the things that made my cabin so special was the fact that the guys were so diverse in their personalities and attitudes. Normally I might have thought that was a bad thing, but it turned out to be really cool. Not only did they all act differently, but each guy was able to use his strengths to complement another's weaknesses, creating a very unified cabin unit.

One of my guys was very shy and sheltered, and he said about two words to me on Monday. Throughout the week I really saw him come out of his shell and open up to me. By Friday, he and I were carrying on conversations and he would actually approach me and start a conversation, whereas earlier in the week I had to beat a sentence out of him (not literally :) ).

Another one of my guys actually ended up in my cabin by accident. I was supposed to have a different guy, but he had been with Chase earlier this year during junior high week, so he had just put his stuff back in the Dudes instead of coming with me. So, Chase sent one of his guys over to me. He was a really neat kid. Mentally, he probably had the mentality of about a 3rd grader, but he was so excited about everything and he always wanted to hang around me. He was a constant encouragement to me, and while it was frustrating that he couldn't quite understand the gospel, it was still great to see his spirit and attitude throughout the week.

Three other guys made some huge commitments to get rid of some sin in their lives, which was just awesome. I know that they truly want to change and I just pray that they'll keep the fire burning back home that they had here at camp. I remember how hard it was to make decisions at camp and then try to keep them after I had left, but I have confidence that God will give them the strength to resist the temptation and live whole-heartedly for Him.

Another huge praise was that two guys in my cabin got saved! After talking with one of them on Tuesday, it came out that though he tried to do good things, he really didn't know whether he was going to heaven. He was so excited to find out that he could know for sure that He could have a relationship with Christ and go to heaven when he died. The other boy got saved on Friday when, after talking for a little bit, he flat out told me that he didn't think he was saved. Well, needless to say he too wanted to have a relationship with Christ and know for sure he was saved. Praise God!

This weekend was also absolutely amazing. It was Refocus Weekend, which meant that the entire staff had to be here, so it was a great time of fun and fellowship. On Saturday after the staff meeting several of us went on a rugged trail ride, which was a lot of fun. Later that afternoon we did the Dangle Duo and then after supper we all watched a movie in the Dining Hall before doing paperwork for the rest of the night.

Then yesterday we pretty much hung out all day. It was a good time to relax and get to know some of the staff a little better. We ordered something like 18 pizzas, and then after supper we played Family Feud before heading to the counselor meeting.

Things to pray about:

Health: Yep, that's right, I'm sick again. I can't believe that this is my third cold of the summer!

Adjustment: Going from Senior High to Juniors is definitely not the ideal age jump. Pray that I'll be able to adjust and not pull my hair out.

Safety: As the summer has progressed I've come closer and closer to injury several times. Pray that I'll be able to have fun but stay safe at the same time.

Week Four!

Even though this week was Family Camp and I didn't have my own cabin, there was definitely plenty to keep me busy. However, amid the busyness, I was still able to have quite a bit of time to myself to pray and be refreshed by rest. It was great!

I guess I should start out by telling you what exactly Family Camp is. Basically, families come and stay in one of our cabins and it's their vacation time. The families are fed three times a day--just like campers--and they have the opportunity to do any activity that a regular camper would get to do (e.g. horseback riding, archery, etc.). In the mornings, the adults had chapel while the kids were entertained by a puppet team.

That was just the younger kids, though. Renee and I were in charge of the junior/senior highers, so we had to keep them occupied in the mornings. Some of the things we did were horseback riding, adventure course, high ropes, and various games like dodgeball and soccer. At noon, all the kids were taken to the dining hall where they met up with their parents.

In the afternoon, us counselors had several different things to keep us busy. Throughout the week, the parents had the opportunity to fill out child care forms, which give us details of who they'd like us to babysit and what they'd like us to do with the child. Many of us counselors would have the responsibility of watching these kids during the afternoon, but if there were still extra counselors, we would have other random oddjobs about the camp.

Each of us also got a day off during the week, which was amazing. Lindsay and I both got ours from Monday night through Tuesday, and we got a chance to stay at the campground with Mom and Gar. It was a great time of rest and relaxation. On Tuesday afternoon, Mom, Gar, and I came back to camp to watch the Rodeo so that they could see some of what we do at the Ranch. It was really fun, and I even got to tackle a calf. It was pretty sweet!

I also got a lot of exercise this week. On Wednesday morning, about 20 of us played a game of soccer up on the football field. All summer I've been playing Big Ball Soccer with the kids, but this was the first time I'd played an organized game of real soccer in a long time (think 5th grade), so suffice to say it was an adventure. Since I have no idea what any strategies are for soccer, I basically ran like crazy all around the field, just trying to reach the ball and kick it toward the other goal. It was still fun, though, in spite of lack of talent in that area.

The real fun came on Friday night when we played our annual softball game. We had enough people to play staff versus families, and it was a blast. First we played two innings against the young kids so that they could have a chance to get in the action. Then we played five innings of competitive slow pitch softball. It was amazing! I got to play 1st (which is where I played in high school), and we did really well. We ended up winning 9-6, and I think everyone had a really good time.

Then yesterday, after we got all of our chores and things done, 19 of went to see "Transformers" in Wooster. Last year we weren't allowed to go see movies while we were under contract, so this was a big deal. Before the movie, though, we all went to Lindsey's house, because her mom had fixed us all a meal. It was incredible! So we went from there to the movie, and I think I can speak for everyone when I say it was a really fun time.

The entire week was characterized by increased time of fellowship with the staff, and I really liked that. We don't really get a lot of staff interaction throughout the camp week, so it was nice to be able to sit down with people this week and just get to talk to them and get to know them better.

Next week is Senior High! I absolutely cannot wait, because last year senior high week was my favorite of the summer. It's nice to be able to have mature conversations and really see God working in the hearts of the high schoolers. It'll take a little time to get back in the swing of things, but hopefully everything goes very smoothly.

Things to pray about:

Energy: We counselors get very little sleep during Senior High week, as we play a lot of night games and we have a very flexible bed time. Senior Highers are easily bored, so I need to make sure I get them excited and energized.

Transformed Lives: Many senior highers will come in with a lot of baggage due to bad decisions or problems at home, so just be praying that God will transform their hearts and lives.

Wisdom: As I said, many of these high schoolers will be struggling with a lot of different issues, and I need to be wise in what I tell them when we talk.

Week Three!

This past week was, without a doubt, the most challenging I've had since I became a counselor last summer. I had junior kids--mostly 6th graders--and I had a great experience with that age group the first week, but this week was just one huge problem after another.

I think the biggest issue was that my guys just couldn't focus for anything. Whether it was cabin devotions or dinner announcements, they just would not pay attention to anything. Consequently, it was I whom they would come to in order to find out what was going on, and I of course got frustrated because it had just been explained to them not two minutes before.

Along with not focusing, they would also have a hard time settling down. Chill time (aka nap time) was always a chore, because they just did not want to lie down in their bunks, even for 30 minutes. Trying to get them to settle down at night and think about God was also not easy. All some of them wanted to do was laugh and goof around.

Another big frustrater was that a couple of the kids asked, no joke, about 1,000 questions about everything. I know that doesn't sound so bad, but it can be really frustrating having to listen to all those questions when it's a constant stream. You'll just have to trust me on that one.

On a good note, a couple of my guys did really want to make some changes in their lives, which was really encouraging in spite of the other distractions. Two boys in particular were kind of my shining lights in the cabin. I see a ton of potential in them, and I just pray they keep walking with God and growing in the grace and knowledge of the truth. One of my big hopes for all of my guys is that they'll one day want to come back and work at Skyview so that they can have a chance to impact lives for Christ.

Well, this was the first week that my cabin didn't have the best guys' scores for cabin cleanup. A couple of the days I decided to do my devotions while they were cleaning, and they weren't exactly as motivated as I'd have hoped. Oh well, they still did okay, all things considered.

One thing that I found really interesting about this group of guys was that really enjoyed having ownership. Let me explain. Ownership is the camp idea that the kids want to feel like they have a part in and/or control over what they're experiencing. Obviously I can't give them complete ownership in the sense of letting them schedule all their activities, but to a certain extent I can make them feel like they're in control.

For instance, we schedule cabin challenges before the week begins, but the kids think that they're the ones who are figuring out what to do. Most of the time all I have to do is throw in a little suggestion of what to play or who to challenge, and they think they did it all by themselves.

This particular group of guys was big into being in control. On Thursday there was a scheduling change because of some bad weather the day before, and after having mandatory shower time (believe me, it was getting pretty smelly in that cabin) I didn't know what to do next. My guys had already gotten on my nerves that morning, but I decided to try to let them have a little ownership to see what would happen. It worked like a charm. When I let them pick what they wanted to do, they totally loved me!

They really wanted to play dodgeball, but when I called to see if it was open I found out that it had been reserved for a cabin challenge between two of the girls cabin. I told them that, but I promised that I would do my best to work something out with the girls. Well, I talked with and they let us play with them, and the guys loved it! They were enthusiastic and they paid attention, and it was great. So, all the stuff about ownership that we learned in staff really was true.

As you can tell by the tone of the week, this weekend was definitely a welcomed one. It was particularly so because I got to go to an Indians' game last night with my dad! He and Mom came to pick up Lindsay and me, and while Mom and Lindsay hung out at the campground, Gar and I went to see the Tribe play. It was a great game and a great time to hang out with my dad.

Today we went to church and ate at Pizza Hut before going to Wal-Mart and getting a new shaver. It was my belated birthday gift, and while a new shaver might not sound too exciting, my current one is a piece of junk, so it will be nice to have a working shaver, especially now that I need to shave pretty much every day. After that a lot of us hung out for awhile, watched a movie, and now I'm in the dining hall updating this before our counselor meeting at 9:00.

Next week is Family Camp! I get to work with the Jr. High and Sr. High kids who will be here with their families, and I can't wait! It will also be more of a relaxing week since we won't have kids with us 24/7. I get a day off on Tuesday, so I'll be able to be at the campground with Mom and Gar and just have some time away from camp to relax.

Things to pray about:

Rest: I'm healthy now, but I've got to learn to be disciplined enough to sleep when I need it. There's always so much I want to do, but sometimes I just need to relax and recuperate.

Focus: Even though it's only family camp, I still need to push off some distractions and focus on God and the needs of the families who are going to be vacationing with us.

P.S. Here's my address at camp:

Skyview Ranch
c/0 Nate McKanna
7241 TR 319
Millersburg, OH 44654

e-mail: njmckanna@gmail.com

Any and all letters/e-mails would be much appreciated! Whether you have a question or just want to say hi, hearing from people is always a big encouragement!