Backpack Attack in need of retreat?

We recently took 28 kids into the wild on a three day two night backpacking trip. I LOVE this trip! To see the kids challenge themselves as they pack up what they need for the trip, sharing the load of supplies and food. To see the kids challenge each other to be real and genuine in sharing what God has done in thier lives. And to see God challenge them on the mountain top, getting rid of most of the distractions of cell phones, personal music, cars, and comforts of home and personal space.

All in all, it was a great trip to see how we as Christ Followers need to follow Christ. We looked to an unlikely source to see how to do this better. According to Ghandi, if we are to make an impact in this world for Christ we need to live more like Christ, present the Gospel unadulterated (meaning we need to present the gospel as the Bible shows it, not how western washington sees it), and we need to practice what we preach!

Thank you Ghandi for those profound statements. But here is the deal...he is right. If we don't see people like Christ saw them, and continue to love them like Christ loved them, then we will not make a difference. If we don't present the gospel as the Bible presents it (a powerful, hopeful, healing message that changes our hearts and revamps our lives) then we don't do it justice; a watered down version of truth will make a watered down impact. And if we don't practice what we preach, what does that make us? Answer? A hypocrite! Lets be real with our struggles, letting people see the healing process! When we hide our pain and put on a happy face it portrays a fake joy, one that doesn't last and burns us out. This is what we talked about three miles above see level...and it rocked our faces off!

But is backpack attack in need of retreat? The title implies that backpack attack may be to aggressive...and maybe a name change is needed. I say this because one of our fearless leaders had a major accident. One that required many stiches and finger reconfiguration...yes, a trip back down the mountain and into the ER.

Billy is fine, he is up and running and has no hard feeling about the Attack...in fact, it makes for a great story. But maybe if we changed the name we wouldn't have as many accidents (lots of bee stings, scrapes, cuts, and bruises as well).

What are some good, non-aggressive names for this event? Share your comments below!

Summer Fun

The days and weeks have flown by since camp! Sorry I haven't updated you about whats going on (by you I mean Dave).

After camp, we left to Montana on a mission trip...one of the hardest ever! We then had a great day of boating and bbq-ing. There were a lot of leaders and a couple of students that went on another mission trip to Mexico. And then there were a couple of Amazing Races. And we are still not done with the Summer schedule!

As I said, Montana was very hard! It was different than any mission trip we have been on... different is good and different is bad. We had a great time as a group. Our fellowship brought us all closer together and the community that we are bringing back to the group is something I hope spreads around to the other kids and we continue to grow as a youth group! It was hard for a couple of reasons. First, the schedule was packed! We always seemed like we were tired, and that is hard to process everything that we are taking in. Second, the Native American culture is a hard culture to minister to. They need HOPE! They need JESUS! Hopefully the time we spent there made an impact, but we can't help but feel that one week there of helping clean up neighborhoods, painting houses, and working with a handful of rowdy and unruly kids made any difference. It only shows us how bad they need Jesus in their life to change their hearts! Pray for the Blackfeet Reservation, pray that people will come in there unashamed and teach them, not about "church" or "christianity" but about Jesus Christ and Him crucified!

As far as other events in the summer, who doesn't love the Harbor in 80 degree weather? We pulled some of our elders together to solve the mystery about who they are, and they then hung out with the students and towed them around on their boats. It was a blast! I loved seeing some of the kids I hadn't seen all summer long, and reconnect with kids I saw at camp and the Montana mission trip.

Mexico is a blog in itself! Come to church August 30th for the re-cap on that. :)

The High School Amazing race was yesterday! It was hard to compete with the epic two day race the year before, but I think it did okay. The sights seen and the challenges met were well worth the zero dollars the kids had to pay. Seriously, how often do you see a methane flame geyser? Or play putt putt at a hundred year old mansion? Or go to a farm to get the freshest fruit available? Congrats to the winning team of Erika Moss, Amy Moss, and Chelsea Demoss as well as Beth Moss (driver). Way to go girls!!

Stay tuned for the end of the month update where you will get re-caps on CORE groups as well as Backpack Attack!

much Love,
jp