Scrapbooking Retreat November 2009

What a fun weekend all of us ladies had. We had a great time of catching up with old friends that we have made during the past 5+ years of hosting these events and meeting many new friends as well. I have to admit, this retreat has always been a highlight for me. I really love all the ladies that have come year after year, I feel like we really are family. And this fall it was even better because we were able to invite more members into our family with 11 new ladies attending for the first time.

Most people were way more productive than I was finishing anywhere from 10 – 45 pages in their scrapbooks. (I didn’t even put down one picture but I did catch-up on some calendar stuff for my kids J) But, regardless of how much we did, we all had a fun time, at a TON of delicious food (thanks Brenda), and again, continued to build friendship with fellow sisters-in-Christ! Thanks ladies for coming and being part of the many ministries happening at SON-Life Camp.

I can’t wait until our next reunion in March (12th-13th if you want the date)!
Hope

FALL FAMILY FEST 2009

We had a chilly but beautifully sunny day for Fall Family Fest October 17. This year was the first time we held this event. We had over 30 volunteers come to help for the day. We had a ton of different activities for families including: Hayrides, children’s story time, decorating pumpkins, fishing, boating, craft vendors, a live band, and snacks that everyone could enjoy.
So a special thanks to all our volunteers and families that came to spend the day with us at SON-Life Camp.

Thank you South Christian High School

Last week at this time we had a great crew from South Christian High School out here to do work project for a couple of hours. What a great crew we had! They did a large amount of work for us which we really appreciate - I didn't hear any complaining, it was a joy to meet some of the young people in the area and see them willing to serve. I know that they had to do this for school but they made the best of it while they were here. Cleaning cabins, vehicles and taking out the Blob were their main projects and it was such a huge help to Ben and I. Also, a big thanks to Paul and Kendra for coming to camp and helping lead the different groups. Another blessing for camp - more great volunteers to help get things done.

Thanks again to everyone involved - you really are a blessing to this ministry!

Hope

Summer Camp Has Ended… But Ministry Is Still Happening

Another summer has past here at SON-Life Camp. This year we had a ton of fun with our staff. Our theme this summer was “ON THE RUN.” Campers were challenged to run from evil and run toward Christ.
We had a total of 231 campers this summer. Over 85% of our campers left saying that they had grown closer to Christ. Seven campers met Christ for the first time, and many, many more left challenged. One camper was baptized during our Teen Extreme week and another said that they had made their faith their own during their week at camp.
God did amazing and wonderful things at SON-Life Camp this summer. However the ministry at SON-Life Camp did not end there.
Three more guest groups came to our facilities in the month of August.
First Voice of Hope Church and Wayland UMC held their campout in SON-Life Camp’s Daisy Park Campground. During their Sunday morning worship service 13 people were baptized. Praise God!
Belding High School football team came for their football camp early in August and enjoyed a great camp with cooler weather.
Heritage Baptist church held their annual Wilderness Weekend to kick off their year of youth ministry. 60 people attended. They played some awesome games and had great worship times too!
Finally the Korean United Methodist Church of Ann Arbor held a retreat this past weekend. While they had a small group they still enjoyed a great weekend at SON-Life Camp.
Be sure to keep up with our blog over the next few weeks as we WILL be updating with information regarding events happening this fall at SON-Life Camp like our first ever FALL FAMILY FEST being held on October 17th at camp.

Shhhh....quiet.

It is hard to believe that summer camp is over. It is so quiet now it is hard to believe that only a week and a half ago there were kids here running around with the summer staff. After they left the football team came in - Go Belding!! What a great group of high schoolers they are, so respectful of each other, their coaches, our staff and facilities. I love working with them every year. From there we add in full weekends in the camp ground along with a few mid-week guests back there this place really hasn't stopped - until now. Yesterday and today are so quiet, a time for us to "be still" and reflect on what God has done through this ministry this summer. Many kids grew closer to Christ as we were "on the run" together; one camper was even baptized in the lake. What an amazing experience that was, her parents were able to come out and be a part of it and the excitement she had was tremendous! She came out of the water with tears in her eyes and said "I'm not crying because I'm sad - I'M PUMPED!" Truly an amazing summer when I look back and see what God did through our incredible summer team.

The quiet will not last long though. We are ready to have people arriving to the camp ground tomorrow and more families coming into the campground Friday. Also, a church group coming into the retreat area for the weekend will be welcome noise to this place. I can't wait to see how God continues to work through SON-Life Camp this fall!

Hope

Last week of camp

Well, this is it. I am sitting here at my desk wondering where on earth the summer has gone. We are in our last week of camp and things are going good. After a chilly start yesterday morning we are in the midst of a beautiful day today to be at the beach. This week is day camp with campers who are entering 1st - 4th grade. Their energy is amazing - I love to hear them sing and dance around during Fusion. Their excitement for life is incredible, I just wish that I could be that passionate all the time for the things that I love doing too. This is just one of those times that I sit back and realize that I think I learn more from these campers than they learn from us. Isn't it great how God uses all of his children to make each other better?

Please pray for continued safety for camp this week.

Hope

Outpost Camp and Sunshine Community Church

This is a different week for us but it has been good so far. I got a report from up north where our Outpost Campers are at and all is well. They had a good hike yesterday and on the river today rafting. I'm sure they are having a BLAST.

Here at camp, Sunshine Community Church is here and doing their own camp program for 5th - 8th graders. So far the weather has been great for them and all is going good. We did have to replace the well bladder in the dining hall which is an unexpected expense but it was better than not having water or having to replace the pump. We were thankful that Kraai well drilling was available right away to fix the problem. It would have been really bad to have 125 people here without water in the kitchen! Satan tries to get us all down when we are doing good for the Lord - thankfully we have God on our side. It was amazing the number of people that were praying for a quick fix and there it was. I am thankful to see how God continues to provide all that we need for this ministry.

Please continue to pray for our campers that are up-north and for the retreat group that is here. Lots of great things happening - lives being changed for the Lord!

Hope

Summer 2009

Well, summer camp 2009 has all of us here at SON-Life Camp "On The Run"! With only 2 weeks of camp left after this week we can not believe how fast this summer has gone. Our theme this summer is "On The Run" based on 1 Timothy 6:11 where we are learning how to run away from evil things and run towards things such as rightousness, godliness, gentleness, faithfulness and living the way that God would desire for us.

Many campers have come to camp and we have had a great time swimming, playing field games, and learning more about Jesus. What a joy it is to watch campers and staff having fun and learning more about themselves and God in his amazing creation.

This week we have out teen campers here and they are having a blast. I love to hear a few of them sing for their mail at supper time. Right now I hear the speed boat pulling tubers on the lake. The "girlie" screams that echo across the lake always make me smile. Mike Bell, from Northwest Community Church just outside of Chicago, is here this week challenging the kids in the evenings during our FUSION times and many exciting things are happening through those lessons.

The past 2 weekends we have had 2 large church groups here where the families have really enjoyed spending time getting to know eachother in a deeper way and drawing closer to God. Daisy Park Campground has also hosted many families who loved to cook over the open fire and spend some time in the woods away from the hustle and bustle of home. What a joy it is to be able to serve churches and families in this way!

Thanks for checking in - please keep camp in your prayers. We ask for safety and continued growth for each person that comes to camp and for the ministry as a whole.

Running for the Lord,
Hope

Summer 2009

Summer 2009

Summer 2009

Summer 2009

SNOWBOUND 2009

On the weekend of January 23-25, 40 campers and staff embarked ON A MISSION at SON-Life Camp’s 2009 Winter Camp entitled SNOWBOUND.
We had a blast in the cold winter weather doing a ton of activities like: tubing, playing hockey & football, hanging out in the game room, warming up with hot chocolate, playing Goldrush, life-sized Clue and so much more. Check out son-lifecamp.org for more pictures from SNOWBOUND!
Mike Bell of Northwest Christian Community and SON-Life Camp’s own Ben Gladhill brought our FUSION lessons this weekend challenging us with Jesus Mission. Friday night we looked a who Jesus is. Saturday we talked about how Jesus was born to be wild, and challenges us to live a wild life for him. Saturday evening we saw how Jesus Mission was accomplished I his death. We wrapped up on Sunday with how Jesus calls us to be part of his mission, to reach the world for Christ.
Our weekend had fun and exciting times of worshiping God! A special thanks to Downfall from Northwest Christian Community for providing our worship music for the weekend. They brought new songs and energy to our worship times. They even teamed up with our staff for a little humor throughout the weekend!
If you missed SNOWBOUND 2009… we’re sorry you missed out on the fun. But keep you eyes open for information on Summer Camp 2009 and Snowbound 2010! Hope to see you there!