Shining Light

One of my favorite things I did at camp this year was go to the Mountain Lore district. It was really quite neat. There were a couple activities you could do, but my favorite was making my own candle.

You'd receive your own piece of string, and dip it in the different colors of wax to make your candle. First dip it in the wax, then in the water; now in the wax again, and then the water. It was really quite fun.

The only thing about the whole process was that it was slow. I would look at my string, and only see the faintest colors on it. I kept working at it, and before I knew it the candle was growing! This continued until my candle was a beautiful creation.

When I was thinking about my candle making, I thought it was neat how close it is to our spiritual experience. I certainly couldn't tell that my candle was growing, yet I knew it was. That's kinda how our spiritual experience is; another person may not be able to tell that we're growing, but we are.

2 Peter 3:18, NIV:

"But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ."

But at whatever stage we're at in our spiritual experience, we can shine for God. We may be a big candle, we may be a small candle. That's just fine! All we need to do is to shine for God as brightly as we can.

Matthew 5:16, NIV:

"...let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven."

Come to God. Grow in Him. Shine to the world!

Animals Say: Don't Monkey Around!

What a creative bunch of blog readers I have! ;D Thank you all so much for your cooperation and input. Over the past few days I've gotten some amazing captions for the (above) picture!! Below they are listed, along with a few of my own.

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1. "Why do you think all those people continually stare at us? Hey...Lets try something! Lets all stare back at them and see how long they hang around."

2. "We're having a sit-down strike until we get a new jungle gym!"

3. "WOW Its Hot!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

4. "Whew, it is hot out today, glad it is cool by this wall!"

5. "I wonder what those people are doing just wandering around here?"

6. "He's just a chimp off the ol' block!"

7. "Don't even think of doing that. That's MONKEY business!"

The "Official" July 2010 Migration Route Report

Wow! July has sure flown on by. My aunt and uncle and cousins were just here, right? ;) And then Huntsville...and camp...and VBS...and company...and now is now! :D

We have had lots of fun company this month. July 19-26 my Michigan grandparents came, as well as some long-time family friends from California.

Mom's friend Lynda came with her daughter Rebecca to enroll her at the local university. Since I have not seen them for quite a while, it was nice getting re-acquainted.

We had fun with my grandparents as well. Of course we went to the zoo, and I was thrilled when Grandpa offered to buy me a Chattanooga Zoo/jaguar shirt! I know I will wear it a lot. :D Alison was thrilled also when Grandpa bought her a Big Wheel. Alison enjoyed Grandpa videoing her swimming at our local pool. Besides that, we did not do too much, but it was still fun being together and making more happy memories. :D

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For Miles and Miles

This is the last of 7 posts on my time at camp! This post will focus on my Sabbath at camp. Of course, Friday night is my favorite part of camp, but Sabbath is a veeeeeery close second! In the morning our cabin got together with another cabin and sang some songs, and shared Bible trivia and devotionals.

Awesome Cohutta

My Friday at camp, July 9, started just like any other day at Cohutta. An ordinary, wonderful day. But the ending was faaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaar from ordinary!

Bars No More

Recently our family went to the Chattanooga Zoo. Brilliant peacocks, funny chimps, and sleepy cougars made up part of the mix, with many others. Along with the snow leopards and jaguars, the macaws were my favorite animals there.

There were four macaws in a cage together, and they were just all soooo pretty. Especially the scarlet macaw--it's feathers were just a rainbow of beauty. (see below picture).

Under the "C"

Here's my second post on my Thursday at camp! :D The evening was a really special time--the Teen Extravaganza! At the Extravaganza there is extra special food, the cafe is very nicely decorated, and after we eat we get to play some cool games! :D

This year's theme was "Under the Sea". One staff member (left) was very creative....and literally WAS under the "C"! ;D

Water Fun

July 8 was a very fun Thursday at camp! First on the post here are some photos of the flag and line call. (This is my first post of 2 on my Thursday at camp.)

From One Zoo...to Another!

Today my family, grandparents and I spent some fun hours at the Chattanooga Zoo. It was really really fun, as I had not been there for a couple years. Mom thinks we just went from one zoo (our family) to another, but we still had a grand time! ;D One of the first things we saw were the Zoo's famous chimpanzees, including one well-known resident, "Hank". (below)

Animals Say

Today when we went to the Chattanooga Zoo we found these 4 chimps just sitting up against the wall thinking. We thought they might be having a board meeting!

Anyway, what do YOU think these chimps might be talking about? What would they be saying? E-mail me your favorite captions or comment on this post, and in about a week or so I'll post them right here on this blog.

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VBS: VolleyBall Siesta?!?

This past week I helped in our church's Vacation Bible School program. This year was the first time I got to help, and it was a lot of fun! The theme was "Under the Sea", or something like that. The whole gym was decorated with painted cardboard animals hanging from the ceiling; a boat and dock, and huge blue "waves" hanging from the ceiling. With the lights off and ocean sounds playing, it got quite authentic.

Clouds

It was about a month ago. I was almost ready to go to bed when I chanced to look outside at the sky. “What?” I asked myself. I couldn't believe what my eyes saw—the sunset was SO pretty!! While I couldn't see the whole sunset, just the clouds illuminated by the sun, the sky was absolutely gorgeous. As I gazed heavenward, I whispered a prayer, “Thanks, God for the beautiful sunset you are giving me!”

Happy No Matter What

So! Finally I have some more time to blog about my camp experience this year. :) This is the fourth out of 7 posts on camp, and naturally this post will focus on my Wednesday at camp, July 7.

So before we dive into the photos, a little note here. I did not have any time to take any photos all day, until the campfire program, which is what you'll be seeing. I had already taken photos of camp council, so I didn't take any there. Of course I didn't take any during my Spiritual Body-Building class, and I didn't take any photos in the afternoon because we were doing all water activities. And as you well know water and cameras do not mix well! ;D

Honor Cabin of the Day

Here's another post about my time at camp! :) This post focuses on my Tuesday at camp, July 6.

July 6 was actually a really great day for me at camp. My cabin got "Honor Cabin of the Day", which is a really big award. "Honor Cabin of the Day" goes to whichever cabin was on time to everything, was the best behaved, knew the memory verse, cleaned their cabin, etc.

BEARly a Flag Lowering

So here's my 2nd camp post, out of 7! ;) In this post I will focus on the Monday I was at camp, July 5. Some of the pictures in this post are of the Camp Council. After breakfast and before morning attractions, the whole camp gathers in an amphitheater by the lakeside. We all sing songs, and then two cabins recite that day's memory verse. Then the camp pastor (for that week) will share with us a wonderful message.

For my 2-hour morning attraction, I choose "Spiritual Body-Building".

"And the Rocket's Red Glare..."

I had an awesome Fourth of July! I spent it at my favorite camp in the world, Cohutta Springs Youth Camp. I went there last week, and in the next few posts I'll share some comments and photos about my time there. This post will focus on the first day I was at Cohutta, July 4. There are pictures of the flag lowering, the campfire-less campfire, and some fabulous fireworks!! Enjoy!!

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^^I really liked this photo! :D

^^The staff did a wonderful flag-lowering.

(above and below): singing awesome camp songs!

^^Most every night there was a "Camper Challenge", where each village would compete against each other in some silly game. It was really cool!

^^Every evening two staff hosted "Cohutta Springs News Network", where they would talk about sports, weather, a really cool true story, as well as a fact or fiction game.

^^Each night there was a really funny play, but with a thought worthy point. It was all based on a professor and his student traveling in a time machine. On Sunday night, they traveled to a medival battle.

^^One of the knights told how he and his friend (below) did not win right away because at the last minute they went on opposing teams, instead of being together. The point of the play was to choose your friends wisely.

^^And the wonderful fireworks! :D

More articles and photos on camp coming soon! :D

"That's One Small Step for Man..."

July 2 our whole family had light years of fun. We went to the U.S. Space & Rocket Center in Huntsville, Alabama where von Braun and his team designed the Saturn V rocket that would take America to the moon.

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Before being stationed in Huntsville, von Braun and his team were forgotten in Fort Bliss, Texas. But when von Braun accidentally sent a rocket into a Mexican cemetery, Washington relocated von Braun and his team to Huntsville.

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The first thing you notice at the Space Center is the full-size mock up of a Saturn V rocket, standing straight up in front of the ticket booths. It’s so high you almost can’t see it in one gaze—actually; the Saturn V is 363 feet high!!

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Did you know that Frank Borman and his crew of Jim Lovell and Bill Anders were the first crew to ride a Saturn V?? Their mission, Apollo 8, was the first manned mission to the Moon. After circling the Moon 10 times, they headed home. Apollo 8 was an outstanding success.

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After we bought our tickets, we entered into the Davidson Center for Space Exploration, in which is housed a real, restored Saturn V laying sideways, suspended so you can walk right below this mammoth of a beast. As one observer of a Saturn V launch noted, “After the deafening, earthshaking launch, the question wasn’t whether the Saturn had risen but whether Florida had sunk.” I also enjoyed the pictures, videos, and displays telling about the Saturn V creation and design.

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Did you know that the Saturn V is the second loudest thing ever created by man?? The Saturn V is only knocked out of 1st place by the atomic bomb.

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Another cool thing was viewing a Mercury and Gemini simulator. (Mercury and Gemini preceded Apollo.) I also really liked (barely!) squishing myself into an Apollo simulator….I now understand how the Apollo crews had to be very good friends!!

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When NASA was developing their space program, they referred to it as “MISS”, or Man in Space Soonest”. However, wisdom prevailed and NASA revealed the program to the public as Project Mercury.
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Though one of my favorites was the original Apollo 16 Command Module, Casper. I just thought that it was SOOOOO neat that the Space Center had the real thing there.

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Ken Mattingly almost flew on Apollo 13. But he got exposed to a sickness, and doctors were afraid that he would get sick on the mission. So Jack Swigert took his place, and Mattingly flew on Apollo 16.
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So far I’ve only described a third of the Space Center. After seeing the big Saturn V, we went outside where I enjoyed seeing a model of the Lunar Module as well as a V-2 rocket.

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When Grumman Aircraft Company was building the Lunar Module for Apollo 11, they forgot to install a handle on the outside of the door. So to avoid being locked out of their spacecraft, Armstrong and Aldrin had to make sure and leave the LM’s door cracked open.
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Then we went inside another building, where Alison enjoying climbing into models of spacecraft. She also climbed the Mars climbing wall twice. I landed the Shuttle Discovery 4 times (on a computer.) The first two times I crashed. But the second two times I really landed perfectly!! That game was really cool.

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The Hubble Space Telescope was launched in 1990. But it had a faulty lens, so even telescopes on Earth could pick up better pictures than the Hubble could. It was 3 years before NASA could send up another Shuttle to fix the lens.
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Right after lunch our whole family watched a really cool IMAX movie on the Hubble Space Telescope. Of course the movie talked a lot about the Hubble, and stars and how small we are, but I especially enjoyed the shots of the Space Shuttle taking off!! That was just awesome, amazing, cool….the sounds, the sights, the feelings…

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Did you know that John Young, a moonwalker, was on the first crew of the Space Shuttle??

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Hope you enjoyed my pictures and article!

The Israelites' Camps

Since I’m going to summer camp this summer, I thought it’d be neat if I did a Bible search on camps in the Bible. First I started with a list of the 41 camps the Israelites camped in their 40 years of desert camping, found in Numbers 33. Below is a list of the more notable Israelite camps.

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After leaving Rameses in Egypt and camping at Succoth, the Israelites camped at:

Camp Etham: On the Edge of the Desert (Exodus 13:20)

Camp Pi Hahiroth by the Red Sea: Pharaoh thinks one thing, God thinks another (Exodus 14)

Camp Marah: The Camp of Bitter (Ooopps!) now Clean Water (Exodus 15:23-26)

Camp Elim: The oasis of 12 springs and 70 palm trees (Exodus 15:27)

The Desert of Sin: Where the Manna first fell (Exodus 16)

After camping at Dophkah and Alush…

Camp Rephidim: The Camp with No Drinkable Water (Exodus 17:1)

Camp Sinai: In front of the Mountain (Exodus 19:1, 2)

Camp Kibroth Hattaavah: the burial sites of people who had craved other food (Numbers 11)

Camp Hazeroth: Where Siblings Oppose Each Other (Numbers 12)

After camping at Rithmah, Rimmon Perez, Libnah, Rissah, Kehelathah, Mount Shepher, Haradah, Makheloth, Tahath, Terah, Mithcah, Hashmonah, Moseroth, Bene Jaakan, Hor Haggidgad, Jotbathah, Abronah, and Ezion Geber…..

Camp Kadesh: In the Desert of Zin (Numbers 33:36)

Camp Mount Hor: Where Aaron Died (Numbers 33:37-39)

After Oboth…

Camp Iye Abarim: On the border of Moab (Numbers 33:44)

And after Iyim, Dibon Gad, Almon Diblathaim, and the mountains of Abarim…

Camp Jordan: On the Plains of Moab, Just Across from Canaan, the Jordan River and Jericho (Numbers 33: 48-49)

And then…under their new leader Joshua, the Israelites with God’s help conquered Canaan!

Tennessee: Where Floridaians Go On Vacation :D

Between June 20 and July 2 our family enjoyed the company and fellowship of my Aunt Christa, Uncle Dan, and Cousins Melissa and Michael, who reside in Florida. Hence the name of this article, as in Tennessee is where Florida residents come to vacation! ;)

We all had a lot of fun. My sister Alison enjoyed playing Lincoln Logs and Zoo Tycoon II with Melissa. Mom and Christa (who are sisters) of course enjoyed talking. And I enjoyed playing with Michael and watching Uncle Dan play Sim City.

I played the most with my almost-teenage cousin Michael. We both had a lot of fun. (sometimes!) We played the computer games Hover, Polar Bowler, and my Flight Simulator 2004: A Century of Flight. (AKA as "FS9".) Michael and I also viciously competed at games such as Air Hockey, Foosball, and of course SORRY!

Both Michael and I were pretty good at Polar Bowler and Hover. Michael also learned some nice flying knowledge on FS9. Though the real fun was in Air Hockey, Foosball and SORRY!! (Michael and I are both very good SORRY players, and....let's just say that we're not in the least bit SORRY when we "must" SORRY the other player!! ;D ) We were pretty much tied in SORRY games.

It got real interesting when Michael and I played Air Hockey or Foosball......he is awesome in Air Hockey, and I am terrible! We would play up to 15 goals...and he would have 15 vs. my 0-7.....he would just completely slaughter me, but it was still fun playing with him.

However, the tables were completely reversed when we played Foosball....I am a pro at it, and Michael was terrible at it. Focus on the WAS!! By the time he left, let's just say he was immensely pleased that he beat me at Foosball!! And he earned his win fair and square..it was really fun playing with him, it gave me great fun and great challenge!

Overall, we had a great time. Busy and crazy, yes. But even more fun! :D

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All From the Bird's Beak

Here's another story about Lola, the parrot we've been parrot-sitting. We've learned that she actually speaks! Sometimes when we say "hi" to her, she'll say "hi" right back!

She also says, "step up!" That means she wants somebody to play with her (preferably Dad.) What's really funny is that when we are ready to put her back in her cage, we'll say "step down", but Lola promptly replies, "step up!" She doesn't want us to stop playing with her!

When I thought about it later, I thought it was interesting how Lola was illustrating a spiritual/moral truth, even if she may not realize it. I feel that there are many times that we do not "step up" and do the right thing. Maybe we feel like it is too hard, or maybe we don't want to.

If you see that someone is being bullied, do you "step up" for the little guy? Or do you leave him friendless? If you hear that your friend is being bad-mouthed behind their back, do you put in a good word for your friend?

For me, if I see chores that need to be done, do I (or you!) "step up" and do the chore happily, even if we're not asked? If you go buy something at the store and you receive too much change, and it's in your favor, do you go back to the store and give back that change?

In Matthew 25:35, 36 Jesus says:

"For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.'"

There are many other ways to "step up" and do the right thing. Can you think of any? Try this coming week to "step up" and do the right thing.

As I said, it's all from the bird's beak!