Going into this week our team knew it was going to be a big camp, around 75 campers. Kim was also not going to be with us this week, she was joining the other team in Coaldale. Instead we had another female coach from SEAC called Steph. She had volunteered last year at her own church but has never coached before so my team and I had to brief her on a lot of stuff the night before camp. Just planning for the week was a bit of a challenge for this camp simply because it was so big. Our camps are designed for 60 kids and it usually gets pretty messy after that. Throughout the week we had to adjust a lot of our games and had to do a lot of extra work because of the size of the camp. The week went by quickly but the days seemed long if that makes any sense. Camp was still a blast but yea, just a lot more tiring and exhausting.
One of the highlights of my week was in my small groups. I had a boy called Dustin in my group who told me he went to church. It was pretty confusing because I found out later that his mom and his grandma go to a mormon church, but his mom also goes to the Airdrie baptist church sometimes too. So I wasn't really sure on where he stood in his faith. But I found Dustin different from all the other Christian kids in my group, because he actually liked to pray. Everyday I would ask if anyone wanted to pray and only Dustin raised up his hand. Not only was he excited to pray but he was excited to share with me all the things he remembered from coach's corner. On the day I presented the gospel, I drew a picture. We tell the kids that we are all on the wrong team because we have sinned against God, and that means we are separated from him. But because God loved us so much he sent down Jesus to die for us to we didn't have to, and if we choose to we can now be on God's team. I explained that to the kids, and most of them were probably already hearing it for the millionth time. I told all the kids in my small group to close their eyes, and to raise their hand if they have already chosen to be on God's team, and everyone but Dustin raises their hand. I then asked them if anyone would be willing to be on God's team, and once again everyone raised their hand up again, including Dustin this time. So I prayed for lunch and then I told the kids, if they were serious about their decision to come find me at lunch. I've done this for 3 weeks, and no kid has ever stayed behind to talk to me or talk to me at lunch as soon as I tell them they can go eat. Halfway through lunch this wednesday though, Dustin taps me on the shoulder and says, "Coach crunch, I want to be on God's team". So I took him aside, and I had him explain to me, the gospel essentially, and he did. I made sure that he understood what he was about to commit too and what he was believing in. After going through all that, it was still a step he wanted to take, so I prayed with him and Dustin accepted the Lord that day!
So it would be awesome if you guys could pray for Dustin! Pray that God will nurture the seed that has been planted in him and that he will continue to grow!That he will continue to have this passion to learn more and to be on God's team!
Saturday, 27 July 2013
Week 3 Whitecourt
So volunteer orientation started a lot earlier this week because the pastor there wanted a whole service/potluck for the orientation. We got there early and had dinner and met up with lots of the volunteers and church members there. Afterwards they prepared a mini worship service there and the whole church prayed for the coaches and the camp in general. It was really something I enjoyed and appreciated. Our AIA ministry is more than us coaches coming in and doing the work and leaving. It's about partnering up with the church and working together to help reach the community, and the churches that understand that are far more effective with their camps. So it was really encouraging to see lots of church members at the service just to pray with us, even if they weren't volunteering at camp. That night I found out I would be separated from Ty again, I'd be staying with pastor clay*(coordinator) and his family.
*Actually met pastor clay in edmonton once when I was asked to share my summer with AIA at a church
First day it rained HARD. Before camps even started it was already raining, but it started to clear up as the day went on. The rest of the week was beautiful and we had great weather. We had about 50 some campers this week which was good, especially for a church that was doing it for the first time. Everything ran pretty smoothly this week. (Except thursday where I was sick and had zero energy all day) But we had some great volunteers and one of the best volunteer appreciations I've ever been to. We had a pizza party with the volunteers and had a pickup soccer game with them and some people from the community which was really fun. I found that this week our team connected really well with the volunteers. Us coaches try make it our goal to really build into the volunteers that we work with as well. I found that the younger volunteers in this camp really seemed to look up to me so I tried my best to be a good example. It was sort of interesting because I never really remember how old I am until I talk to the volunteers. I never really feel like I'm that much older until I realize some of them are just starting high school or something. Then I start to realize I have some bits of wisdom that I can offer, and that a lot of the will actually listen to what I have to say. So it was pretty cool week, I felt like God was using me in more than one way. Not only was I reaching out to the kids but also to the volunteers. I felt like I really made an impact in whitecourt this week, and I'm really happy with how camp went.
I found it quite interesting because just a few weeks ago my boss was telling me that one of the qualities that I've improved on and one that I need to continue to improve on is my leadership skills. And so far this summer I've had many many opportunities to step into leadership roles. Mainly because I'm the only other coach besides the head coach on my team that has had any experience so I've been sharing a lot of head coach duties. It's been great so far and I'm excited for the rest of the summer.
I found it quite interesting because just a few weeks ago my boss was telling me that one of the qualities that I've improved on and one that I need to continue to improve on is my leadership skills. And so far this summer I've had many many opportunities to step into leadership roles. Mainly because I'm the only other coach besides the head coach on my team that has had any experience so I've been sharing a lot of head coach duties. It's been great so far and I'm excited for the rest of the summer.
Saturday, 13 July 2013
Week 2 Crossfield/Edmonton
First of all I'd like to thank you guys who read and comment on this blog. It's good to know that I'm not just typing this out to nobody! It's encouraging for me to know that some of you genuinely care about what I'm doing in this ministry and hopefully this blog inspires and encourages YOU as well!
So after Cochrane Ty and I stayed at Kim's house over the weekend because the next camp was at her home church while Katie went back to Calgary. We actually had volunteer orientation this week in crossfield, yay! I got to see Louie (from last year) again, love that guy haha. We had several young volunteers but most of them had done it before so they knew what they had to do. That night Bev (my boss) was also there and told me that she might be moving one of the coaches to edmonton to help run a AIA soccer clinic. My team decided that I would go if it ever came down to it. That night Ty and I headed to our billets house. We discovered that we would be staying inside an old trailer, which made it pretty inconvenient. We had to go in the house to shower, and use the bathroom and stuff like that. The beds weren't the most comfortable, and that night I was freezing and really hoping I'd be moved to Edmonton LOL.
So day 1 at crossfield we had just under 30 kids with lots of volunteers, which included my head coach from last year. (so 5 AIA coaches) We ran the typical day of camp while Bev was on the phone with the big boss deciding my fate for the week. After a while it started raining REALLY hard and we had to pack it up. We drove the kids to the church and actually managed to have lots of fun still with random games. Just before lunch Bev told me that I would be heading to Edmonton not for the soccer clinic (fell through) but to join the other Alberta team. It was a bitter sweet moment I guess. It sucked that I would have to ditch Ty in that terrible trailer and that I would have to leave my team for the week. It was also kind of disappointing for me because I was really starting to making a lot of connections with the kids at camp already. On the other hand I'd get to head back to Edmonton, and work with my old teammate Lane, who is now head coach.
So after almost 3 hours of driving with my boss (and her trying to convince me to be head coach haha) we finally get to Edmonton. I wasn't able to be billeted with Lane and Esteban (the other male coach) so I stayed with Bev's good friend in the south side. I was told the camp was near taylor seminary and the church partnership was with Renessiance church.
So I started camps in Edmonton on a tuesday because I did monday at Crossfield. Right away there were a few diferences, the field had no nets, the field was also in pretty poor condition. When I arrived on the second day, I gelled really well with coaches and volunteers but felt like I couldn't gel with the kids. It was a really weird experience for me because that's never happened to me before at a camp and I always connect really well with kids. I asked a few kids if they wanted to play pass before camp started and they pretty much all said no. I felt like the camp was lacking energy, and a lot of the kids didn't really want to be there. My small group was pretty difficult to handle too, mainly because i had a group of 5-6 year old girls who either wouldn't be listening or would be chatting away. At the end of the day I shared a bit of my frustration with my team and my boss, and we prayed about it. Throughout the week I continued to try to find one kid to connect with but without much luck. Usually kids come up to me at lunch or while I'm setting up stations just to talk to me and bond but there wasn't much of that this week, and I must admit I was a bit discouraged. I just convinced myself that some camps were harder to work in than others, and this must have been one of those camps. But to be fair it wasn't like the camp was terrible, everything ran smoothly and the kids weren't bad. A lot of the younger ones just didn't want to be at camp, so it was like pulling teeth to get them to participate.
I was so excited on friday that it was the last day. Surprisingly on this day, some of the kids started opening up finally and it was great to finally be able to connect with them. When camp was over, a lot of them even came over to give me hugs and say their goodbyes, which was something I didn't expect. I was pretty sad to see them go too, as I am at the end of every camp. Of course you do get pretty attached to the kids you spend a week with no matter who they are, the weird ones, the cute ones, the good ones, and even the too cool to talk to you ones.
So after Cochrane Ty and I stayed at Kim's house over the weekend because the next camp was at her home church while Katie went back to Calgary. We actually had volunteer orientation this week in crossfield, yay! I got to see Louie (from last year) again, love that guy haha. We had several young volunteers but most of them had done it before so they knew what they had to do. That night Bev (my boss) was also there and told me that she might be moving one of the coaches to edmonton to help run a AIA soccer clinic. My team decided that I would go if it ever came down to it. That night Ty and I headed to our billets house. We discovered that we would be staying inside an old trailer, which made it pretty inconvenient. We had to go in the house to shower, and use the bathroom and stuff like that. The beds weren't the most comfortable, and that night I was freezing and really hoping I'd be moved to Edmonton LOL.
So day 1 at crossfield we had just under 30 kids with lots of volunteers, which included my head coach from last year. (so 5 AIA coaches) We ran the typical day of camp while Bev was on the phone with the big boss deciding my fate for the week. After a while it started raining REALLY hard and we had to pack it up. We drove the kids to the church and actually managed to have lots of fun still with random games. Just before lunch Bev told me that I would be heading to Edmonton not for the soccer clinic (fell through) but to join the other Alberta team. It was a bitter sweet moment I guess. It sucked that I would have to ditch Ty in that terrible trailer and that I would have to leave my team for the week. It was also kind of disappointing for me because I was really starting to making a lot of connections with the kids at camp already. On the other hand I'd get to head back to Edmonton, and work with my old teammate Lane, who is now head coach.
So after almost 3 hours of driving with my boss (and her trying to convince me to be head coach haha) we finally get to Edmonton. I wasn't able to be billeted with Lane and Esteban (the other male coach) so I stayed with Bev's good friend in the south side. I was told the camp was near taylor seminary and the church partnership was with Renessiance church.
So I started camps in Edmonton on a tuesday because I did monday at Crossfield. Right away there were a few diferences, the field had no nets, the field was also in pretty poor condition. When I arrived on the second day, I gelled really well with coaches and volunteers but felt like I couldn't gel with the kids. It was a really weird experience for me because that's never happened to me before at a camp and I always connect really well with kids. I asked a few kids if they wanted to play pass before camp started and they pretty much all said no. I felt like the camp was lacking energy, and a lot of the kids didn't really want to be there. My small group was pretty difficult to handle too, mainly because i had a group of 5-6 year old girls who either wouldn't be listening or would be chatting away. At the end of the day I shared a bit of my frustration with my team and my boss, and we prayed about it. Throughout the week I continued to try to find one kid to connect with but without much luck. Usually kids come up to me at lunch or while I'm setting up stations just to talk to me and bond but there wasn't much of that this week, and I must admit I was a bit discouraged. I just convinced myself that some camps were harder to work in than others, and this must have been one of those camps. But to be fair it wasn't like the camp was terrible, everything ran smoothly and the kids weren't bad. A lot of the younger ones just didn't want to be at camp, so it was like pulling teeth to get them to participate.
I was so excited on friday that it was the last day. Surprisingly on this day, some of the kids started opening up finally and it was great to finally be able to connect with them. When camp was over, a lot of them even came over to give me hugs and say their goodbyes, which was something I didn't expect. I was pretty sad to see them go too, as I am at the end of every camp. Of course you do get pretty attached to the kids you spend a week with no matter who they are, the weird ones, the cute ones, the good ones, and even the too cool to talk to you ones.
Sunday, 7 July 2013
Week 1 Cochrane
Our first week started off a little rough. This camp had about 60 kids registered (which is a lot), but the coordinator did not want to do a volunteer orientation. She said that because the orientation would fall on July 1st, that no one would come anyways. So basically we had a whole bunch of volunteers who did not know what they were doing on the first day of camp.
Another challenge we faced at this camp was that there were so many younger kids and not many older kids. We had to split out groups into 5-6 year olds, 7 year olds in their own group, and 8-12 in one group. (which is a huge range) Another thing about this camp was that it was only 4 days because they didn't want camp on July 1st, so we couldn't run our normal 5 day camp. We had to combine some of our lessons and rush some of the skills that were supposed to be taught.
Despite not having orientation, the volunteers were really helpful. We even had a man in his mid 70s help us out. He had a pacemaker done a few weeks ago, so obviously he couldn't play the games with us. Instead he sat in his lawn chair under the tree and took care of any injured kids, any kids who needed rest, and lead a small group. Great example of how God can use you no matter what, you just have to be willing to serve.
The week went pretty smooth besides the first day. The kids were well behaved, and good thing too because 60 kids are quite a handful. I met a lot of kids from camp last summer as well, and it made me glad to know that they remembered me too! My small group this week was pretty chatty but I would like you guys to pray for 2 boys in particular.
Thomas. Great kid, very strong soccer player in his age group. He was very confident in everything he did and said. But when it came to our gospel presentation, and I explained how we were all on the "wrong team" because of sin and I think that really troubled him. I said that people who have decided to follow Jesus (Christians) become on God's team because we decide to follow his master plan. He then told me he was not a Christian, he was a mormon. In fact he said his dad was the "priest" or I guess one of the leaders in their mormon church. When I asked what was the one true way to heaven, Thomas told me that we had to do good things. When I told him that the only way through Jesus, he told me that he agreed. When I talked to him on the last day, he seemed really conflicted. I think he was conflicted with the beliefs he was brought up with and the message that us coaches were telling him. Pray that the Lord will work in his heart, and help him realize that Jesus Christ is his true savior, and only by believing him can he truly be saved. Pray for the desire for truth in Thomas' heart. He may continue to ask questions and question his mormon faith. That he will not be deterred in his quest for truth even when his parents of the mormon community teach him lies. And finally pray that in the pursuit for truth, Thomas will find Jesus Christ our Lord.
Matthew. He was at camp last year and he was not a believer. His family does not go to church, but him and his sister always go to the soccer camps. Both siblings have extensive knowledge about the bible and about the gospel, especially for non church kids. To me, Matthew had a better grasp of what Jesus did for us and why he did it for us than any of the church kids in my group. Yet when I asked Matthew if he was a follower of Jesus Christ he said not yet. But you can sense that they have a hunger for the word of God. Especially his sister who goes around at lunch asking coaches to read out of the bible to her and goes around asking questions. Pray for these two siblings that as they seek, God will reveal himself to them. Pray that whatever it is that is standing between them and God be taken away. Pray that these two kids will just be a light in their family, that because of their curosity and thirst for the truth, that they will bring family members to the Lord.
Another challenge we faced at this camp was that there were so many younger kids and not many older kids. We had to split out groups into 5-6 year olds, 7 year olds in their own group, and 8-12 in one group. (which is a huge range) Another thing about this camp was that it was only 4 days because they didn't want camp on July 1st, so we couldn't run our normal 5 day camp. We had to combine some of our lessons and rush some of the skills that were supposed to be taught.
Despite not having orientation, the volunteers were really helpful. We even had a man in his mid 70s help us out. He had a pacemaker done a few weeks ago, so obviously he couldn't play the games with us. Instead he sat in his lawn chair under the tree and took care of any injured kids, any kids who needed rest, and lead a small group. Great example of how God can use you no matter what, you just have to be willing to serve.
The week went pretty smooth besides the first day. The kids were well behaved, and good thing too because 60 kids are quite a handful. I met a lot of kids from camp last summer as well, and it made me glad to know that they remembered me too! My small group this week was pretty chatty but I would like you guys to pray for 2 boys in particular.
Thomas. Great kid, very strong soccer player in his age group. He was very confident in everything he did and said. But when it came to our gospel presentation, and I explained how we were all on the "wrong team" because of sin and I think that really troubled him. I said that people who have decided to follow Jesus (Christians) become on God's team because we decide to follow his master plan. He then told me he was not a Christian, he was a mormon. In fact he said his dad was the "priest" or I guess one of the leaders in their mormon church. When I asked what was the one true way to heaven, Thomas told me that we had to do good things. When I told him that the only way through Jesus, he told me that he agreed. When I talked to him on the last day, he seemed really conflicted. I think he was conflicted with the beliefs he was brought up with and the message that us coaches were telling him. Pray that the Lord will work in his heart, and help him realize that Jesus Christ is his true savior, and only by believing him can he truly be saved. Pray for the desire for truth in Thomas' heart. He may continue to ask questions and question his mormon faith. That he will not be deterred in his quest for truth even when his parents of the mormon community teach him lies. And finally pray that in the pursuit for truth, Thomas will find Jesus Christ our Lord.
Matthew. He was at camp last year and he was not a believer. His family does not go to church, but him and his sister always go to the soccer camps. Both siblings have extensive knowledge about the bible and about the gospel, especially for non church kids. To me, Matthew had a better grasp of what Jesus did for us and why he did it for us than any of the church kids in my group. Yet when I asked Matthew if he was a follower of Jesus Christ he said not yet. But you can sense that they have a hunger for the word of God. Especially his sister who goes around at lunch asking coaches to read out of the bible to her and goes around asking questions. Pray for these two siblings that as they seek, God will reveal himself to them. Pray that whatever it is that is standing between them and God be taken away. Pray that these two kids will just be a light in their family, that because of their curosity and thirst for the truth, that they will bring family members to the Lord.
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