So I think this last Saturday was one of the best Saturdays I have had a long while. Six of us decided to start the day off by hiking up to a place called Little Brown Church. Once we got up there I found etched into a piece of wood a Colossians 1:15. After reading the verse I decided to share a testimony about my senior year in high school leading up to the first few days of college. If you know me well enough you know that the story of that year is not exactly a happy ending story.
After the hike we decided to head to lunch which was then followed by heading to the lake and Kayaking to some random spots such as the cove and the dam at the end of the lake. After about an hour and a half of kayaking a bunch of us went to the staff events which included paint balling, archery, and ended with a long night hopping from tree to tree on high adventure course.
I hated every moment of being up on the ropes during that course due to my consistant fear of heights. But once I got down I was glad that I did it. While up on the ropes it required me to have a ton of Trust not only in myself but first with everyone that was working up there. The staff that works up there were trained to the point where they could do everything backwards and with no fear. They knew every step before they made it and knew exactly what they were doing before they did it.
One thing that I took from this course was that I need to learn to Trust God more and more everyday. Metaphorically we are walking the ropes everyday when we are walking with God. It is tough and scary and at some points we can't move cause we are so afraid with the next step. But one thing that we must constantly remind ourselves of is that God has been walking the ropes that He has created. He knows every step before we make it, and is willing to offer His hand to get across the tough crossroads in life.
Let's keep reminding ourselves that the Spirit of God lives in us.
Monday, June 27, 2011
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
2nd Week
Well my first week consisted of making numerous mistakes and staying up till about 4am on some days. But mistakes were needed so that I could learn what not to do and what I need to do better. I was finally able to take a hike up a creek that had several really nice reading spots which I have to say are far better than sitting in the middle of school reading. It's nice to be surrounded by trees instead of buildings and hectic traffic.
I can definitely say that I am not here for the pay due to the fact that I am sometimes working 14 hour days and only getting credit for 8 hours of it. I have come to the conclusion that I am here because this is where God needs me to be right now. Filming and making videos is definitely a passion of mine but I would never want to be someone who is defined by there job.
I think I am up here for a different reason other than to make videos and have fun filming. I really don't know what that reason is but I am definitely excited and anxious to see what it is.
One cool thing that happened to me this morning was when I walked outside my cabin and no more than 10ft in front of me was a deer. I probably stood there for about 15 seconds before I made a move for my camera and he made a move for the hills. I can check deer off the list for now, but I am still waiting for a bear and a mountain lion.
Some prayer that I need is for my mouth sores to go away and that I will not catch the sickness that seems to be sneaking around from staff member to staff member. Other than that things are going really well.
I can definitely say that I am not here for the pay due to the fact that I am sometimes working 14 hour days and only getting credit for 8 hours of it. I have come to the conclusion that I am here because this is where God needs me to be right now. Filming and making videos is definitely a passion of mine but I would never want to be someone who is defined by there job.
I think I am up here for a different reason other than to make videos and have fun filming. I really don't know what that reason is but I am definitely excited and anxious to see what it is.
One cool thing that happened to me this morning was when I walked outside my cabin and no more than 10ft in front of me was a deer. I probably stood there for about 15 seconds before I made a move for my camera and he made a move for the hills. I can check deer off the list for now, but I am still waiting for a bear and a mountain lion.
Some prayer that I need is for my mouth sores to go away and that I will not catch the sickness that seems to be sneaking around from staff member to staff member. Other than that things are going really well.
Sunday, June 12, 2011
Past a Week
Students arrived today and everything about it being complete chaos was true. Not that bad kind of chaos but the good kind where everything is hectic and crazy but at the same time a lot of fun.
Now that I have come to know a lot of the summer staff it has become easier to hangout and not feel so alone. Most of the orientation free time I had was spent either tossing a frisbee around, playing volleyball, or editing videos for the first week.
One thing that I was challenged to do yesterday was to let go of something that was holding me back from being content and joyful for a long time. The staff did a four corners prayer and I decided to take a mile hike up to a place called "The Little Brown Church". It did not take long for me to realize how out of shape I was but I pressed on and made it to the top where the elevation was at 6000 ft.
Every staff member was given a rock and for my particular corner we were all asked to leave the rock behind as if it was something that we could let go of. By letting go of that something it would thus allow me to continue passed what had hurt me so bad and push forward with the next best thing. I think I was the last guy out of about 30 people to finally put the rock down and leave.
I told myself that by putting this rock down and not looking back that I would forget about the past and look forward to the next 10 weeks. To not let something continuously bother me to the point where it would kill any joy that I could potentially have. I asked God to help me let go...cause I could not do it alone.
Giving it to God was the best thing I could do, and already I can feel the weight slowly slide off my shoulders and into His hands. If I am going to start healing and growing why not start here...why not start now.
Now that I have come to know a lot of the summer staff it has become easier to hangout and not feel so alone. Most of the orientation free time I had was spent either tossing a frisbee around, playing volleyball, or editing videos for the first week.
One thing that I was challenged to do yesterday was to let go of something that was holding me back from being content and joyful for a long time. The staff did a four corners prayer and I decided to take a mile hike up to a place called "The Little Brown Church". It did not take long for me to realize how out of shape I was but I pressed on and made it to the top where the elevation was at 6000 ft.
Every staff member was given a rock and for my particular corner we were all asked to leave the rock behind as if it was something that we could let go of. By letting go of that something it would thus allow me to continue passed what had hurt me so bad and push forward with the next best thing. I think I was the last guy out of about 30 people to finally put the rock down and leave.
I told myself that by putting this rock down and not looking back that I would forget about the past and look forward to the next 10 weeks. To not let something continuously bother me to the point where it would kill any joy that I could potentially have. I asked God to help me let go...cause I could not do it alone.
Giving it to God was the best thing I could do, and already I can feel the weight slowly slide off my shoulders and into His hands. If I am going to start healing and growing why not start here...why not start now.
Sunday, June 5, 2011
First Days
After six hours of long driving we finally made it to Hume. My dad and I decided that I should leave my car at home until I got enough money to pay for some new tires. So when he dropped me off and said goodbye it felt weird to think that I was literally stuck up here without a way of getting down the mountain. To my surprise I became homesick very fast and the only thing I could think to do was walk the half mile from my trailer to the lake and sit.
While sitting there I did the typical pray to God and ask Him to help me get through the summer. I have had a lot of trouble praying to God so I am going to try and make this summer about improving on that. I think I am the only guy in my section of the trailer that actually sleeps in my trailer. I have yet to meet any of my roommates so I have no idea who I am bunking with.
Other than that work has been keeping me busy during the day. They went over camera usage and how to use audio with the boom mic. All stuff I knew already but it was fun to help the other guys get used to it. I guess the most interesting thing that has happened up here was watching Pocahontas again for the first time in like 5 or 6 years. I met a security guard who had been going 40 hours straight without sleeping so while watching the movie him and I were shouting shinanigans and making fun of the movie until about halfway when we were pretty much falling asleep.
The food here is good and the community is growing on me. One thing I am sad about is that I will not be able to watch many of the summer blockbusters like X-men, Transformers, Green Lantern, or Super 8. Guess it will all just have to wait until I get back.
Alright thats all for today, thanks for reading!
-Paul
While sitting there I did the typical pray to God and ask Him to help me get through the summer. I have had a lot of trouble praying to God so I am going to try and make this summer about improving on that. I think I am the only guy in my section of the trailer that actually sleeps in my trailer. I have yet to meet any of my roommates so I have no idea who I am bunking with.
Other than that work has been keeping me busy during the day. They went over camera usage and how to use audio with the boom mic. All stuff I knew already but it was fun to help the other guys get used to it. I guess the most interesting thing that has happened up here was watching Pocahontas again for the first time in like 5 or 6 years. I met a security guard who had been going 40 hours straight without sleeping so while watching the movie him and I were shouting shinanigans and making fun of the movie until about halfway when we were pretty much falling asleep.
The food here is good and the community is growing on me. One thing I am sad about is that I will not be able to watch many of the summer blockbusters like X-men, Transformers, Green Lantern, or Super 8. Guess it will all just have to wait until I get back.
Alright thats all for today, thanks for reading!
-Paul
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