The second annual SamusCon was an all-around awesome experience!
More girls came this year and even more games were played!
And yes, some of those games involved throwing a burrito at a friend.
What? Your list of “things to do today” does not include throwing a burrito at a friend?
Clearly, you’ve never been to SamusCon!
Thanks to our fearless leaders Epona, Meowth, Kanga, and Bomber it was a wonderful weekend of gaming and fellowship.
Princess Leia Freyja even attended since she is indeed a lady dog and also loves chasing burritos.
At SamusCon, all kinds of games are played, including video games.
Here, old friends and new gather together for video game battles extraordinaire.
It was great to see summer camp friends after the long months of separation.
And get in some quality time with Princess Leia Freyja, the camp dog.
Yes, she was a bit confused when this camper decided to hold her paws, but she was happy to oblige.
Some games take hours to play, but this delightful card game is timed and each round is complete in just five minutes!
Of course, that time limit adds much tension to the experience. This one is fun to listen to as well since there is a good deal of shouting and laughter going on.
Yes, we successfully battled the Baby Barbarian!
Wahoo!
Even a fire-breathing dragon couldn’t stand against our wild card-matching prowess.
The victory was sweet and the new friendships formed, even sweeter.
During one game, these girls managed to beat their final boss with a mere three seconds to spare!
Now that is a close call!
There were fun prizes to win as well.
Including, but not limited to, these sparkly and fuzzy slippers!
Here, SamusCon campers play a card game based on the cartoon Miraculous Ladybug!
Just like the rowdy program activities at summer camp, playing games together builds friendships and trust so that when it is finally time to sit down and study the Bible together, there is a firm foundation of fun shared experiences to draw upon as campers decide whether they will ask questions about the lesson, take a risk by venturing an opinion, or ask those around them for prayer.
It is also just plain fun!
It was so delightful to watch the campers laugh and talk about their favorite games, shows, and fandoms.
To see them discover new friends who loved the same things they did and were thrilled to have the chance to analyze them together over brownies and a cup of warm cocoa.
Yep, miraculous!
Epona led a devotion about hope, highlighting moments from Fire Emblem and Antman and Wasp.
“I’ll change the future into hope!” – Fire Emblem: Engage
Ant Man: “Hope? Are you real?” The Wasp: “I’m real.”
Romans 4:17b–18 “…the God who gives life to the dead and calls things that are not as though they were. Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations, just as it had been said to him, ‘So shall your offspring be.’”
5:5 “And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out His love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom He has given us.”
Then Bomber led a devotion about finding peace through worship, which highlighted several Psalms that tell of the author’s despair and then show the peace that can be found as one turns a troubled heart to worship.
Epona ran a game of Horror Rules (the game written by our own Van Helsing) for the campers.
Boo Boo played this one with Meowth and the campers and assisted her fellow adventurers by … you guessed it, using her dog juggling skills!
A charming scarf to the rescue.
Also, this camper used her deadly hair of destruction during all-is-lost situations.
Yes, when one can juggle five angry Pomeranians and a surprisingly heavy but thankfully sweet Havanese, what could possibly stand in your way?
More acrobatic hair and climbing skills!
Epona was definitely kept hopping keeping these imaginative adventurers away from the sharks/attacking parrots and on their way to save the birthday of an innocent young lad!
One camper even brought up a game she’d made herself based on Lord of the Rings. It was hilarious and delightful in every way.
Yes, much laughing ensued.
Here is Meowth urging the campers to try a game of Shakespeare Munchkin.
Which of course they did!
All in all, it was an amazing weekend of play, fellowship, Bible learning, and connecting with other women who love everything about gaming.
Ecclesiastes 4:12–“Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.”
Junior High Winter Blast is one of our favorites here at Camas Meadows.
This is such a fun age-group to host.
Junior high campers have the incredible energy and capacity for adventure of children.
But their thought processes are maturing and they are able to hold deep conversations about life, the Bible, God, and of course snow ducks!
Or rubber duckies, depending what kind of duck is available.
This camper brought ducks with her this year because … ducks! Later, her cabin was delighted when Boo Boo found a snow duck maker and gifted it to them. More about that later.
But as was mentioned earlier, ducks are only one of the topics that junior high campers can wax eloquent about! Here, the campers worship God together with song. It was so delightful to have a quick visit from Choco and Partake as well as the joy of listening to Choco lead us in worship again. These kids know how to sing and they rattled the lodge with their voices. So lovely!
Faramir was our speaker this weekend. His topic: Uncomfortable Jesus. What Jesus doesn’t make you uncomfortable with what He says and does in the scripture? Perhaps, you should take another look!
Ah, yes. The gifting of the snow duck mold. These campers were ready for duck adventures!
One of the activities at Jr. High Winter Blast was the snow sculpture competition.
Wait a minute … that isn’t a duck is it???
Oh, my! A large duck, holding both a heart and a loaf of French bread, with smaller ducks perched upon his back! That’s a lot of ducks folks. So many!
What is this determined camper up to?
She crawls across the ice-covered meadow, on a quest to bring a helpful shovel to her cabinmates so that at long last they can construct …
The grand canyon! Plus, assorted viewing platforms and cairns. Yes, this was indeed modeled after the lovely image on a camper’s t-shirt. Great job, girls!
What is Gamgee up to here? Boo Boo was told that he was being a bear, crawling around in the woods, doing bearish things. He was also gathering sticks to use in the cabin snow sculpture!
Behold! A snowman lounging in the bathtub in shades with snacks!
This cabin put some deep spiritual thought into their snow sculpture. This is Jesus’ tomb with the hill of Golgotha complete with crosses pictured above. Notice the very nice sarcophagus inside.
Later, these campers went above and beyond to create Mt. Sinai. Their Mt. Sinai even spoke, answered questions, and entertained passerby with quips about the state of the world. Yes indeed, there is someone inside the mountain. Don’t worry, Boo Boo quizzed him sternly about his ability to breath freely.
Sometimes, it is hard to get the campers going on the snow sculpture. Especially, when a snowball fight is so easy to arrange.
However, they finally had success and this awesome snow castle was the result!
This has been a great snow year at Camas Meadows. Here, campers and counselors are climbing the icy pile that the snow sliding off the lodge roof created right in front of the back porch.
But snow sculptures are not the only outdoor activity enjoyed during Jr. High Winter Blast!
There is always the famous Camas tube hill or The Hill as we call it!
This awesome tube run sends campers zipping! Often, they come back with faces full of icy powder!
Time to take a break for puppy snuggles with Princess Leia Freyja.
Back to more tubing!
Or even sliding without a tube! These campers wanted to form a train. We do not allow trains of tubes (due to the broken collarbones of Christmas past) but when they just slide down, campers don’t get up to the same speeds and can do trains safely.
It’s always good to get a group photo before the weekend finishes up.
The ladies of Sasquatch.
The gentleman of Robin’s Roost.
The gentleman of Owl’s Perch.
The ladies of Eagle’s Loft.
And finally, the gentlemen of Bear’s Abode.
It’s not just the kids who make goofy faces for photos, ha!
Princess Leia Freyja tries to get in a quick doggy kiss before Boo Boo snaps the picture.
Children who were totally new to the camp experience sang alongside kids who grew up coming to camp with their families long before they were old enough to be campers. The lodge shook as they sang together, played rowdy games of Sit Ball and Grog, and made friendships that may well last a lifetime.
Seven kids made decisions to follow Jesus and so many more were encouraged in their walk with God or even simply shown God’s love for them and that they are deeply valued no matter what they choose to believe.
We were able to walk away from the weekend knowing that we fulfilled our call. Love kids as they are, give them a delightful weekend of fun, offer them the words of life, and give them a chance to choose Jesus.
“We loved you so much that we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well, because you had become so dear to us.” I Thessalonians 2:8
Yes, Camas Folks, we do indeed run our very own Senior High Winter Camp!
2023 is the third year for this camp and the weekend has grown in so many fun ways.
Once again, Van Helsing returned as our intrepid speaker.
And yes, his “speaks” were just as rowdy as you could hope for and imagine.
Yet, he somehow managed to take the campers deep into God’s word as we all explored what it really means to seek purity of mind, speech, and action in our everyday lives.
Add some crazy worship songs and the chapel times were full of laughter and mayhem.
There is nothing like worshiping together at camp, with the wide outdoors stretching on and on just outside the windows and a fire crackling in the lodge as a warm background to our music.
Then, after singing and our Bible lesson together, the campers and counselors broke for discussion time with small groups. Some of the most thoughtful moments of growth come as campers get the chance to ask their counselors serious questions about Scripture and what it means to follow Jesus day to day.
Of course it wouldn’t be winter camp without a few runs down our terrifying tube hill!
The pictures are not the best quality, but hopefully these blurry images will help you hear the laughter and screams, and imagine these teens break out in smiles as the icy powder flies in their faces and their friends cheer them on.
Now, we have a rule that you cannot go down in trains of tubes. So … these pesky teens asked Scruffy if they could just make a train sans tubes, ha! Of course he said yes, as they are not likely to get hurt at these speeds. Even oozing down the hill on their backsides, they had a blast! Don’t worry, the campers who took tubes down the hill went at respectably zippy speeds!
A warm fire to light up the darkness completed the evening.
But tubing is not our only snow activity. These boys enjoyed a quick game of hockey with Scruffy and Princess Leia Freyja right before a snowy walk and … an even larger game of hockey!
After running around in the snow, its time to sit by the fire and play a game with friends.
And then … cabin pictures!
What do you think happened here? Did this camper require a ride to the photo location from his counselor and his friend?
And … Here they are!
The boys of Eagle’s Loft!
The girls of Owl’s Perch!
The boys of Bear’s Abode!
The girl’s of Robin’s Roost!
And the whole rowdy crew!
It was so good to host senior high teen campers again, this time in the snow! We know quite a few of these campers from our Senior High Summer Camp and love having them back for some amazing winter fun and Bible learning. It was hard to say goodbye once more, but Princess Leia Freyja was quick to hand out doggy snuggles as the campers headed back home.
We will miss each and every one of you until the Lord sees fit to cause our paths to cross once more. However, His work continues in each heart whether at camp or at home. Set your hearts on Him and rest in His love. He will do the work that heals and gives you the strength to honor Him in all your ways!
“Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.”
The Summer Staff Winter Retreat is one of our very favorite Camas-run camps!
Scruffy started this camp in 1999 and over the years we have seen so many staff and potential staff form strong bonds of friendship and grow in their relationships with the Lord as they get the chance to be campers!
Yes, our counselors and the support staff that keep camp running behind the scenes work incredibly hard. This camp is their chance to be campers and to just enjoy being together as friends after a long summer of focusing on work and ministry.
Princess Leia Freyja is always thrilled to see the staff she remembers from the summer come back to give her pets and belly rubs. If this were a painting, I think it would be titled “Leia Rampant” as she gives a little hop before charging into the game of hockey.
Princess Leia Freyja is a puck hog and whenever she plays, she bursts straight through all of the whacking hockey sticks to grab the puck and spirit it away. We usually leave her in the main lodge, but she occasionally escapes and rushes to join the fun.
Scruffy was our speaker this week and between hockey sessions, snowball fights, and games of King Elephant he led the campers in thoughtful discussions about living in the tension of following God.
Yes, this is a game of King Elephant. It is harder to play than it looks!
What did Scruffy mean by the tensions involved in following God?
Have you ever read Bible verses that say we should be smart with our money and talents? Have you ever read Bible verses that say we should trust God completely to take care of us?
Exactly!
Another one is God’s call to selfless sacrifice and God’s call to Sabbath rest and self-care. Jesus Himself urged His disciples to get away from the crowds to eat and rest and Jesus Himself urged His disciples to pick up their cross and follow Him in a life of sacrifice.
We are uncomfortable with God’s word when it is confusing. But what if God wants us to live in that tension?
Yes, it is 100% true that He calls us to live faithfully.
Yes, it is also 100% true that He calls us to rely on His grace.
We had some amazing discussions as we dug deep into God’s word and the confusing but amazing ways that He shows His love, power, and care to His people.
There were also some amazing snow forts built and a spectacular snowball fight!
Rowdy games of chair basketball.
Quieter moments of board games, crafts, and time spent sipping cocoa and talking around the fire.
It takes an incredible team of volunteers each year to make our Camas-run camps happen.
Taking the time to pour into the lives of those volunteers and potential volunteers is vital.
Yes, they need to be strengthened and have the chance to grow closer to their Lord just as much as the non-staff campers do.
Time to rest and talk.
Time to enjoy Princess Leia Freyja snuggles or a raukus game of Grog in the dark.
Time to boldly guard a piece of firewood from the attacking team.
Or dig snow tunnels together with friends.
Yes, even time to be amazed that this tree fell a whole inch away from this camper’s truck and not flat on top of it!
Scruffy and I are always exhausted this time of year. We go straight from Christmas to Summer Staff Winter Retreat the day after, to a rental camp that arrives the same day that our summer staff campers leave.
However, this camp is so important. An important time of learning, connection, and just plain fun together in God’s creation. The camps this summer will be all the better because our staff had a chance to grow and connect during the winter months. Yes, God has called us to both carry our own load and to bear each other’s burdens!
Boo Boo, Heather, and Becca at the ACFW Conference in 2012
Once upon a time, there was a young mother who refused to write a camp blog.
Her husband Scruffy was a camp director and he thought that a camp blog was an amazing idea … for her to write. But she was busy with her three young boys (ages 9, 7, and 5) and attempting to revise her angsty YA novel for the 16th time. She told the Lord that if He wanted her to write a camp blog, well, He was going to have to make that VERY clear.
Now, she loved camp ministry. Loved hearing the stories of camp adventures from staff, campers, and speakers. Loved taking photos and writing. Plus, she had always dreamed of being a photojournalist. However, none of this occurred to her as she stared at the overwhelming idea of starting and writing a blog for the camp where they lived and worked.
Then, some good friends who knew that she loved to write gathered the funds from an amazing group of helpful folks and sent her to the American Christian Fiction Writer’s Conference in Texas! She was so thrilled! What an adventure. Now she could take that angsty YA book manuscript and maybe get an agent and maybe even find an editor who loved it!
The ACFW conference was amazing! Boo Boo zoomed from class to class learning new writer things, meeting agents and editors who were sadly destined to reject her manuscript, and even finding a critique partner! She and her critique partner have worked together on story after story for over ten years now. It was an amazing time.
During the keynote address each day, the conferees would sing worship songs together. During one of those worship sessions, they sang, “Our God” by Chris Tomlin.
Now, Boo Boo learned that song at camp. Worshipping with the wonderful camp counselors and a room jam packed with rowdy children. There is something completely unique about standing in a log lodge on a mountain meadow while fifty children sing at the tops of their lungs around you. Camp worship is Boo Boo’s favorite!
But there is also something incredible about standing in a room of several hundred women (and a scattering of men) and worshipping the same God together. The God who is our creator. The God who gave each one in that room a passion to write, to tell tales, to create beauty and laughter and story … just like Him.
As Boo Boo sang she was overwhelmed until she couldn’t sing anymore. So she just stood there and she wept.
And suddenly, that wasn’t enough. The incredible weight of having so many stories to tell, but not knowing if she was good enough, talented enough, if what she wrote would ever find a publishing home … the weight was so heavy.
Writing is a risky business. One can easily spend a lifetime penning words and never see “success.”
Added on to that weight, Boo Boo thought of that camp blog that she’d refused to write.
She felt the panic of it, the added burden of what she should be able to do and couldn’t. There were so many things to get done, and the list never dwindled.
She didn’t hear a voice. Instead, she felt a twinge, a nudge, an unease.
And that not-a-voice in her heart was so very clear.
“What if I want you to write the camp blog?”
She was the one who lived right there at camp and had been looking for a way to be involved while still parenting her three small sons. She was the one who loved to write, collect stories, and take pictures. And despite it being one of the hardest jobs she or Scruffy had ever done, Boo Boo loved camp.
Who else had a front row seat to the Glory that God accomplished at camp every single week?
What if she’d been slogging along for the last eleven years, learning how to craft her words just right … for something other than a book contract?
What if God had stirred in her the desire to tell stories for such a time as this? A time when people needed to be transported to camp, to laugh, to cry, to wonder at all that He could do in the lives of simple people who ran smack into Him and were changed. Did God still send Esther moments? What if those moments didn’t look like one expected? What if writing and life and ministry didn’t look at all like you thought it would?
Boo Boo felt a new weight on her heart. Now that she had considered the possibility that she was called to this, she suddenly knew something for certain.
She was disobeying God.
Sometimes, it is easier to tell when you are disobeying God than it is to tell that He wants you to do something in the first place. With that weight of disobedience … not guilt … not outside pressure … actual disobedience to Him … Boo Boo knew for sure.
God wanted her to write the camp blog.
Weeping, she hit her knees in the middle of that crowded room and she said yes.
Yeah, she absolutely would write the blog.
Now, God didn’t say not to write novels, angsty or otherwise. He just said to write the blog and that He would give her the time for what was important. Sometimes, it is harder to trust God with our limited time than with other more tangible things.
On December 22nd, 2012 Boo Boo posted her first blog post for Camas Meadows Bible Camp. That was ten years ago today.
No one ever bought Boo Boo’s angsty YA manuscript … or the one she wrote after that.
Boo Boo plugged away writing her stories and very few of them were published. In fact, she has 27 unpublished book manuscripts languishing on her computer. But she wrote that blog, week after week, year after year, cataloging what the Lord has done at a little Bible Camp hidden on a remote meadow in the Cascade Mountains.
She told the story of that time Scruffy worked all week to befriend the grumpy kid … and found out at the Friday night campfire that he had hidden away a gun and a bullet at home. He’d told himself he would go to camp and when he got home, he would end his life. But that kid stood up during the campfire and said that he’d changed his mind. He was going to go home and he was going to live.
She wrote about that incredible off-trail hike where a whole cabin worked to get a camper who used a wheelchair through the woods, over logs, up a hill, and to the top of the ridge to see the amazing views.
Every single week contained so many stories, more than could be recorded. The bully who became a friend. The broken kid who started watching out for others. The one who learned to apologize. The one who learned to forgive. The camper who came to Jesus and the camper who did not … but for the very first time met Christians who were determined to live a life of love, no matter what their campers believe. Endless stories, endless beauty, endless work to do.
This blog is ten now. That means it holds a decade of those stories. Now, this photo was taken the year before Boo Boo started the blog. But it is still a good representation of what she and Scruffy’s life was like at the very beginning. This was the year she refused to blog, after all. Those busy little boys who kept their parents hopping are all taller than Boo Boo now. In fact, they all worked at camp last summer.
Ten years later, Boo Boo may not have sold any angsty YA novels, but she has Scruffy and three tall and sarcastic teenagers, and the knowledge that she obeyed. She wrote the blog. Then she kept writing it for a decade. God has used her simple words and quickly snapped photos to do His work. Sometimes ministry looks totally different than what you expect, but if it is God asking you to do it, it is important all the same. Obedience itself is success. So please, enjoy the blog. Each story and photo is a gift of love, even the ones that are blurry or weird (see foot photo above). God is so powerful and gracious, that He still makes beautiful things out of our fumbling attempts to serve Him. Thank goodness for that!
Let’s end this 10th Anniversary Blog with Boo Boo’s favorite Bible verse.
Jonah 3:1–“And the word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time.”
Thank the Lord that we serve a God who gives second chances!
The Lord of the Rings Camp: Fellowship of the King, of course!
There were fun costumes and action figures the campers used to make amazing stories and LOTR adventures!
Even Princess Leia Freyja dressed up. Clearly, she is a warg, complete with her grim warg rider buddy.
As well as leading us in many amazing Lord-of-the-Rings-themed activities, Van Helsing taught several chapel sessions that took the themes from LOTR and then explored scriptures that reflected those same themes.
Did you know that J.R.R. Tolkien was a catholic believer and that his friendship was instrumental in C.S. Lewis’ journey to God?
Not only did he write some pretty amazing books, but Tolkien’s faith shows in the themes, characters, and storyline of his fantasy epic.
Of course, there had to be some rowdy hobbit songs to dance to before chapel began.
Plus time to spend hanging out with good friends and even the chance to make new ones!
During the crazy LOTR obstacle course, participants had to build their team.
There were dangerous safety cones to battle with the sword.
As well as “the mines of Moria” to traverse …
… and the giant squid to battle!
Of course, what is a LOTR obstacle course without the Bridge of Khazad-dûm?
The giant squid went totally berserk when Van Helsing approached the obstacle course.
Was it his Aragorn costume … perhaps the wig?
The campers jumped into the theme with gusto and learned something about Jesus’ legendary sacrifice for them in the process.
This is a camp that many have repeatedly asked for over the years. Thanks to Van Helsing and his many creative uses of LOTR lore in both Bible teaching and costuming, Fellowship of the King was finally a reality!
We enjoyed four CamasCon camps this year. These retreats to connect Christian (although anyone is invited) tabletop gamers with each other and with their Lord. They are a highlight of the camp season. April, August, September, and November all host a CamasCon.
April and November have the normal CamasCon experience with campers who are thirteen + or campers who are 10 + but accompanied by a parent. In August, we have Family CamasCon where we provide child care for children five-and-up until dinner time, when families game together. In September, we offer a calmer CamasCon where all of the attendees are adults and hopefully no one needs supervision to keep them from flipping over the game board when they lose!
Since I am blogging about our recent fall camps, I will highlight photos from both our September and November CamasCon retreats with a few thrown in from the other camps for good measure.
There is such a variety of games and gamers at CamasCon! From those who love a long ten-hour grindy game that is heavy on strategy, to those who are more like myself and only play as a way to connect with others.
Now, Parks definitely has strategy, but since these ladies talked me into playing, you can be confident that it is also easily accessible and lends itself to a relaxed and friendly type of game play.
Twilight Imperium … well that is a whole different animal. These gamers are sitting down to an experience which may well involve planning their strategy in minute detail for ten hours, only to have Scruffy, Ragnar, or some other aggressor blow up their home planet two seconds before they win the game.
There are those who live for that epic battle experience and there are many, many games just for them!
There are also just as many games that fall somewhere in the middle.
It is pretty amazing the number of games that get played in a single CamasCon weekend.
But even with all of those games that need to be played, CamasCon campers pause during the day to connect with their Lord. Here, VanHelsing leads the chapel time at the spring retreat.
He also plays and teaches games. I am not completely sure if this moment is chapel related, game related, or just Van Helsing related. You be the judge. What exactly is he doing?
For those whose brains begin to ache after hours and hours of gaming, there is always the option of taking a quiet walk out in God’s creation or sitting beside the fire with a good book and a furry friend.
Our cook, Ragnar, kept everyone extreamely well fed during their gaming adventure.
Sitting around a table together and connecting over a game is such an amazing way to make new friends and to draw closer to the friends we already have.
I have watched people connecting over boardgames both at CamasCon and in our own home for many years and I cannot express the great value of playing a simple (or brain-numbingly complex) game together.
I have even had multiple teachers from our local public schools ask Scruffy and I to bring in boardgames to play with their students.
Why?
To teach math skills and even more important, the skill to communicate with others and to both win and lose with grace.
Gamers need not be quite as close as Princess Leia Freyja insists on being, but nonetheless, CamasCon is a meeting of the minds, hearts, and passions of Christian tabletop gamers as they seek to grow closer with one another and their Lord.
Historically, we have always had our fall work retreat over the Labor Day weekend.
But for several years now, the increased fire danger in our area means that we cannot operate chain saws in late summer. The burn ban doesn’t lift until October and one of our main projects during the fall work retreat is to fell trees, split rounds, and stack firewood so that campers are toasty warm during the long, cold winter nights.
After several years of hoping that the fire danger would be better and we would be able to keep our Labor Day date, after attempting to have two fall work retreats one for wood and one for other projects, Scruffy finally chose an October date for the fall work retreat.
It was so wonderful to have the camp full of workers again!
There was a lot of work to do and God provided the hands to get it done.
The camp woodshed was almost totally empty.
Campers love to sit by the wood stove on chilly nights, chatting and drinking cocoa. This can’t happen without a dedicated wood crew toiling away to fill up that woodshed before the snow flies.
Everyone worked so hard.
From the people who felled the dead trees that had been killed by a pine beetle infestation, to those cutting rounds, hauling rounds, driving the camp truck, splitting rounds, and stacking wood, our crew got grubby and tired but accomplished so much.
Some of the rounds they hauled were so big that it took three people to carry just one.
Just getting them into and out of the truck was hard.
And it is a good thing our wood splitters had young backs.
Thankfully, Ragnar, our cook kept everyone well fed.
In the end, they got that woodshed filled up! We are now ready to host campers this winter. It’s a good thing too, we got over fourteen inches of snow all at once in November!
Thanks to all of these hard workers, when a camper comes in after tubing The Hill and grabs a cup of hot cocoa, there will be a warm fire for them to sit beside as they unthaw. Thank you!
People often tell me they wish there were camps for adults at Camas Meadows Bible Camp. Well, I have good news. There are! The Mountain Muse is one of those camps and I am happy to report that instead of getting dunked in the dunk tank or throwing mayo-drenched cheese at each other (please volunteer this summer if you are interested in these things) this camp involves sitting by a warm fire and creating worlds and words that honor our Creator!
We are writers and this camp is all about writing!
The goal of this retreat is to Escape, Renew, and Create. When writers can escape the pressures of everyday life that so often squelch the creative process, when we can be refreshed and renewed in God’s glorious outdoors, when we can learn new techniques and tools of the trade, when we can simply take some time to rest, then that is the perfect recipe for getting some amazing creative work done!
This year, we were incredibly blessed to be taught by award-winning Christian fantasy author Morgan L. Busse!
This is my favorite of her books, but I enjoyed them all!
For The Mountain Muse, we have just a small taste of teaching. At each meal, Morgan gave us about fifteen minutes of info on how to improve our writing craft. Then it was off to the races! Or rather, the chairs and couches. In the main lodge we enjoyed hours of silent writing time and in the small lodge we had space for those who love to listen to music or chat.
We got so much done and yet were also able to connect in deep ways about our writing craft and the God who gave us the ability and desire to write in the first place.
There was even time to sit and read quietly by the fire.
But lest you think that the entire weekend was a sedentary affair … behold! Proof that we went outside. In fact, this was a late night hike to Inspiration Point when the moon was so big that it made shadows and lit up the night so brightly that we could actually see pretty well even in the dark.
One of the best ways to help writers get more creative work done is to feed them! It is so wonderful not to have to worry about meals. Ragnar, Mithril, and Prism did all the work for us, leaving mealtime as a delightful opportunity to connect.
Then it was time to get back to work!
On Saturday afternoon, we took some time for creation appreciation. Princess Leia Freyja led the way as we took a short hike into the beautiful world God made. Mountains, meadows, and forests are all part of the environment at Camas Meadows and we got to see all three on our short, two-mile walk.
After a short break enjoying the autumn colors, you guessed it, we went back to writing!
And finally, after a full weekend of escaping, renewing, and creating … it was time to head home. Princess Leia Freyja sent us on our way with a bark and a wag. It was hard to say goodbye, but with any time of refreshment comes the strength to move forward with new energy and thoughtfulness. We made new writer friends, gained new writing tools, got down a bunch of new words, and are already looking forward to next year. Thank you so much, writer friends, each of you was a delight. I can’t wait to see all of the amazing things that you write in the year to come!
What do a camper’s grubby feet have to do with being an action hero? Those who attended chapel at Senior High Teen Camp know. But for those who didn’t, there is still hope, if you keep reading you too can discover the answer to this vital question.
Behold, in all their glory, a camper’s feet. This particular camper won fame or at the very least notoriety, for being able to contort her feet in this amazing manner. She also chased down hapless bystanders with these dusty toes. Some were impressed, some were horrified, all were amazed. I was so amazed that I snapped this photograph to save the camper’s talent for posterity. At the time, I did not realize that this picture and these feet would play a vital role in telling the story of Senior High Teen Camp.
Van Helsing’s theme for the chapel sessions this week was The Action. His theme verse for day one, James 2:17–“In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.”
Of course, such a theme demanded watching some film clips that featured explosions, taking a quiz concerning the many action hero idiosyncrasies including why they are inclined to hold a pistol sideways (the bullets hurt more!), and holding a contest where campers and staff competed at holding the best action hero pose!
What? These things don’t seem very . . . Biblical? Stick around and I’ll share one of the great mysteries of camp ministry. Some things may look less heroic the more you investigate, like actors and/or campers posing in front of a flaming backdrop in full costume.
However, there are some things that seem less impressive initially, but suddenly grow amazing when you see the whole picture.
Camp chapel sessions may appear rowdy and haphazard at first glance. Give them time. Stay for the whole week. You won’t be disappointed with the things God can do with a handful of props, a flaming backdrop, and a few good workers intent in investing deeply in the lives of teens.
Teen campers are absolutely amazing!
Consequently, Senior High Teen Camp is also amazing. However, running a camp for teens is incredibly difficult. Why? Today’s teens are dealing with adult problems before they’ve even had the chance to grow up.
They have already walked dark roads by the time they rush into the lodge on that first day of camp. For many, their parents have already divorced. The family circle they thought they could count on is showing cracks. Teens have to make adult choices when they are still children. Alcohol, sex, drugs, the pain of toxic relationships, the pressure of sports, the stress of scholarship, the need to decide on a career path and take the steps necessary to attain their goals. Add to that the weight of all their friends problems as well. Being a teen is exhausting and incredibly high-pressure.
So many teens come to camp already deeply broken. They may look grown-up and have many grown-up decisions to make. But because they are children and do not have complete autonomy, many teens are also struggling under the burden of the choices made by the adults in their lives. Being a teenager is incredibly difficult. I am so proud of the many amazing teens that I know. Hug your teen, folks (or try to, ha!) they are superstars!
After a long school year, summer always comes, and you wouldn’t guess at the pain they carry watching these brave teenagers march through the doors of the main lodge at camp. The entire room crackles with energy and you should hear these kids sing!
Epona led worship this year and when she started playing the opening chords of the song “Stars” by Skillet I heard several campers say “yes!” and even saw a fist pump. There is something breathtaking about worship at camp, it always blows me away.
In the summer of 2016, Epona was a counselor in Bear’s Abode cabin.
Counseling a cabin full of campers is physically exhausting and emotionally draining. It takes all that you have and then some to care for these children with a parent’s eye for safety, a teacher’s eye for growth, a party planner’s eye for fun, a therapist’s eye for emotional health, a pastor’s eye for their spiritual journey, and God’s own love for each of them as His precious sheep.
Not an easy task. In fact, without the Holy Spirit, I don’t think any of us could do this job.
And so in 2016, while her campers slept, Epona stood alone on the Bear’s Abode stairs looking up at the night sky and singing “Stars” as she recovered from the tasks of the day and sought her Lord for strength and wisdom for the one to come.
In 2021, Epona was our worship leader. She decided to teach “Stars” to the campers that year. We worshipped outside that whole summer and it became a favorite of both campers and counselors. At the campfire on Friday, we looked up at the stars above and sang about God’s great love for us. It was such a beautiful moment. This song speaks so clearly of God’s power in our lives.
It is that power which enables us to take action that glorifies Him. To actually live out James 2:17 and be a people who don’t just believe in Christ but act on that belief in tangible ways.
On Tuesday, Van Helsing’s theme was Fists of Prayer! He spoke on how the Christian life takes strict training and hard work, but when you put in the time you get a huge payoff . . . especially with prayer!
I Corinthians 9:25–“Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.”
During the chapel times, Van Helsing had a lot of fun with the action hero theme.
Action heroes are over-the-top awesome. The drive too fast and never crash . . . or if they do, that crash mysteriously propels them to safety. Action heroes are always witty, always find love under the most unlikely circumstances, and never seem to need to sleep, stay properly hydrated, or comb their hair for that perfect windblown look.
However, the cinematic explosions and ability of action heroes to only get a single decorative scratch on one cheek when a whole building and/or dinosaur falls on them only emphasizes what Jesus said about the kingdom of God not looking like we expect it to.
Jesus is the one who called us to action and His idea of what constitutes a hero flies in the face of what we normally see in a summer blockbuster.
Matthew 20:16–“So the last will be first, and the first will be last.”
Matthew 23:11-12–“The greatest among you must be a servant. But those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”
Luke 22:27b–“But I am among you as one who serves.”
Sometimes we think we know what a hero looks like . . . and then we see Jesus.
John 13:4–“so He got up from the meal, took off His outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around His waist. After that, He poured water into a basin and began to wash His disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around Him.”
Sometimes an action hero looks less like someone walking out of an exploding building and more like someone taking over a tired volunteer’s spot on the dish crew.
One of our support staff crew shared how meaningful it was that the support lead watched out for them and made sure that they got breaks when they were tired. A hard worker, she was used to being valued for her work ethic, but not always simply for who she was.
This same girl talked about how she had struggled to glean meaning from sermons in the past, but had soaked up so much from the chapel sessions. How much easier it is to hear of God’s love when His people sit right beside you, showing love in ways that you can see for yourself.
Sometimes a hero looks less like someone flying a fighter jet to inspiring music or battling a marauding mummy in foreign lands and more like a counselor letting his rambunctious crew of boys rearrange the bunk beds every single day for cabin inspection.
After a week of crazy ga ga ball games, slip-n-slide antics, the “bushwhacking hike” where half the camp followed Hiccup down from Weathertop straight through the bushes as he made a way with his machete, and the most insane skit of all time . . . of course his campers would let him pray for them around the campfire after they stood up and shared.
Truly, our Lord knew what He was talking about when He commanded us to serve rather that strut. To love when anger is the sensible reaction. To look to the needs of those around us, trusting that in His great love, God would care for our needs as they arose. We are indeed called to action, but as a different kind of hero.
Sometimes being a hero looks like respecting the person you disagree with.
Two of our senior staff believed differently about what the Godly course of action looked like when a decision needed to be made. I remember praying, stressing, wondering what God could do when the way seemed so clear to two different people. But what was clear to one individual who was faithfully following Christ was completely different from what was clear to the other who was also faithfully following Christ.
They talked, and you know what, both still hold to some version of their same opinion. However, they listened and showed respect. A third senior staff member was asked to attend their meeting to provide an impartial view of the discussion. She told us that it was one of the most powerful moments at camp for her. Not because they came to an agreement, but because they disagreed, were able to talk about it in a humble fashion, and left the discussion having honored their Lord despite their opposing opinions.
You never know how God will use you. Sometimes, the mightiest work of the day may come just from simply keeping your temper.
We do a lot of crazy activities at camp. From whipped cream pies in the face to zombie-themed night games, camp life is rowdy from sunup to sundown.
Then there is the fact that teen campers will make everything even more rowdy themselves. Yes, a simply day swimming in the pond, can turn into a mud bath for no apparent reason.
During Wednesday’s chapel session, the theme was Lock ‘N’ Load. God provides an arsenal of high powered weapons to help us face the enemies and challenges of life – the Bible.
Van Helsing pointed out that many action heroes have a black bag full of important action hero gear. When the bullets and exploding cars are zipping right past the hero’s ears and it seems like all is lost, they reach into that black bag for just what they need at just the right moment.
Just like Arnold packing his black bag for a final showdown, we can be confident that God has not left us defenseless. He has called us to action, but has also given us the tools we need to learn what actions please Him and why.
On Thursday, Van Helsing’s theme was The A-Team. The Action is not a solo mission!
Ecclesiastes 4:12–“Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.”
Van Helsing talked about how we are part of The Body of Christ, we were never meant to act as lone heroes, we are part of a team.
For him, he has four different kinds of people who have been a huge support to him in his journey with God.
THE MUSCLE: the one who prays.
THE BRAINS: the one who studies the Word (and provides Godly counsel).
THE HEART: the one who makes sure your needs are taken care of.
THE RECON: the one who is an accountability partner
With these four specialists on your team, answering God’s call to action becomes much less overwhelming. God did not design us to work alone. He calls us to support one another and expects that we will need and accept help from others as well.
On Friday, Van Helsing’s theme was Blockbuster!
Imagine the moment in a blockbuster movie when all the heroes band together and charge the great evil that threatens to destroy the world. Like this epic scene, when we live our lives the way God wants, we can accomplish the truly incredible through His amazing power!
John 14:12–“I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.”
As Scruff and I worked through the highs and lows of the week, what many people don’t know is that we have many other tasks weighing upon us.
This year we are still grieving the loss of a beloved staff member and sometimes the pressures of these additional tasks combined with that loss means taking a moment to simply hide and weep.
And then life goes on.
Scruffy goes back to direct camp and work on projects and I wipe my eyes and haul my camera out to where the campers are having a water fight.
During one such moment, I had just stopped the tears of stress and grief long enough to head back to camp, my trusty dog at my side.
Princess Leia Freyja heard something on the lawn up ahead. Her ears came up, her tail started wagging, and she hustled me toward a camper who sat by herself sobbing.
Isn’t it just like God to get you through your tears just in time to hold another as they weep?
So, Princess Leia Freyja and I sat beside the camper while she cried and listened to her once she could talk once more. Why was she weeping? Because everyone had been so kind to her.
Let that soak in a minute.
This camper wept because of the kindness of the body of Christ. There are those to whom kindness is something they do not expect to encounter. No wonder it is a fruit of the Spirit. No wonder gentleness is one of the great actions God calls us to. No wonder patience and self-control are products of His presence in our lives.
God has called us to action. He wants us to be heroes. Just be careful to remember what Jesus says a hero actually looks like.
John 13:14-15–“Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you.”
In the spirit of this, Van Helsing asked Scruffy if he could wash his feet during chapel.
Now, up at camp with all of the sweat, dust, and outdoor play that occurs people’s feet get nasty dirty. We may not be in Bible times back when only the lowest servant washed people’s little piggies, but we are still highly aware of the general uncleanness of feet. We do this job ourselves, in quiet solitude, letting someone else do this grubby task is incredibly humbling.
But isn’t being humbled what Jesus actions were all about? He was God. God Himself with us in this dusty and broken world. He humbled Himself because He was the greatest among us and needed to show His sometimes unreliable followers what being a leader really meant. Being humble, stooping to do the untidy job, maybe even allowing someone you love and respect to do that job because they have asked to. Each of these is humbling. It puts us right where Jesus wants us, serving as He served.
So Van Helsing took action, humbled himself, and washed Scruffy’s feet.
Then Scruffy, recalling our Lord’s words of: “Go and do likewise” asked one of our new C.I.T.’s if he could wash her feet. She was a camper that week and yes, it was ironic because she had been chasing people around with her grubby toes all week long. In fact, I took a picture of them because of her antics and her feet are featured in the photo at the beginning of the blog.
Now this was awkward and initially she laughed and joked . . . but she has also known Scruffy for a long time. He was important to her and we love her very much. And somehow what had seemed so silly took on a gravity that she didn’t seem to expect. This camper began to cry as Scruffy proceeded to wash her dirty feet.
Then some left for cabin time and some stayed to pray for any who wanted support and one brave camper came forward and Van Helsing washed her feet, too. The same camper who had wept on the lawn with Princess Leia Freyja and I.
Yes, there are action heroes among us. You just might not be warned that they are around by the sound of an exploding car.
We saw counselors and campers taking God’s call to action seriously. They went from pranking each other’s cabins one moment, to standing with one another in prayer and tears the next.
Camp forges close relationships. So close that campers trust us with their hard questions about God. With their heartache and brokenness. Even with their dirty feet.
Teens carry incredibly heavy loads. At the very least, here at Camas we can give them a raucous week of rowdiness and laughter. Gazing up at the stars together, singing praises to God. Finding friendship and fun in a cabin full of kids who may be wildly different . . . but deep down are just like them. Experiencing kindness from the staff. Gentleness and a listening ear.
These simple joys seem small when compared to the rising tide of anger, hurt, and darkness that threatens to sweep teens away. But take heart, God uses the simple things of this world to shake nations and change hearts.
Again and again we watch the impossible occur at camp, right before our very eyes. God takes the simple joys of rowdy games, new friends, kind counselors, and a listening ear and He produces greatness out of our humble service. Once again, Scruff and I sat weeping at the campfire on Friday night as the campers shared.
They loved the food and the games and the dog . . . but they also felt safe, found friendship, and told us they had found a home.
“This is the happiest place I’ve ever been,” one camper said. “The happiest place in the world.”
They learned things about God that made their hearts burn. They opened their Bibles for the first time in years. They heard what the gospel actually was. They sang. They wept. They saw the stars. They gave Christians another chance. They gave themselves another chance. They realized that they were loved.
God calls us to heroic action.
Then He steps down among us and does the work before our very eyes with nothing but a group of broken people, our humble bumblings, and insistent attempts to love like Him.
Behold, the power of the action hero!
Philippians 2:5-8–“In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death—even death on a cross!”
*To preserve their anonymity, I do not post a camper’s story below their photograph.