Daily Updates

Camp Fuego Day 2 Update

Today was an amazing day of camp. Our students started off with probably less sleep than they needed, but everything was great. We started off with breakfast and a reflection quiet time on Psalm 42. Students were challenged to, again, take one step deeper. From there, we went to a morning celebration with games and…

Camp Fuego – Day 1

We’ve had a great time at camp so far. Thank you all for trusting your most valuable possessions to us. Caring for your children is a responsibility that we do not take lightly. Know that every aspect of this camp is designed to 1) keep your kids safe, and 2) provide a place for them…

Instagram Photostream

TAP

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Today was an amazing day of camp. Our students started off with probably less sleep than they needed, but everything was great. We started off with breakfast and a reflection quiet time on Psalm 42. Students were challenged to, again, take one step deeper.

From there, we went to a morning celebration with games and some worship. From there, the students dismissed for their discussion groups, and us adult leaders went on to a training by Dr. Johnny Deouren from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth. It was a great time for both groups. The students then went on to specialized ‘seminars’ of their choosing that covered everything from Christian Art to nutrition.

Then, today’s lunch was followed by an afternoon of free time that included basketball, games, swimming in the pool, and a lot of fun times. At 4 pm, we had another Discussion Group / Leader Training time.

The evening worship was amazing. David Gentiles is an incredibly talented worship leader. I’ve had some time to talk to him this week and its been great to hear his his heart for worship. We sang some of my favorite songs… In Christ Alone, The Solid Rock, Beautiful Things, and a few more. The message was about what the next step is after making the initial decision to follow Christ. The passage was Matthew 6:28-33.

The main points were that 1) God’s word provides a constant caution sign that should be used to point us in the right direction, 2) Are you treasuring Christ above everything or is something else your most prized possession? 3) Seek the kingdom of God 4) The Light of scripture helps illuminate the dark places in our hearts that need to be revealed…and we ended with John 10:10… that unlike the world, Scripture will never try to lead you astray, and that by following its caution signs, we could have a life better than anything we could have thought possible.

After worship, we had a great church group time. Tonight, our after worship event was a stand up comedy routine by Daren Streblow. He was absolutely hilarious. It was a great hour of relaxing and unwinding. We also donned our 80s garb for the comedy.

One of the awesome things about this camp is that they light up field and actually do recreation at night. Tonight was full of water games. We are now showering and getting ready for bed.

You could pray for us in many ways. Pray that God will convict the students of their sins and shine light in the darkness of their hearts. Pray that our students will use the lack of so many distractions to focus on the truths presented in scripture. Pray for our leaders that we would continue to have energy. And also pray that the things that the students learn this week will stick with them past camp and into their every day lives.

Don’t forget that you can follow our camp photostream on instagram here: http://instagram.com/refuelyouthgroup

As of Tuesday night, the camp photostream hasn’t been updated, but I’ll let you know when it is.

-Jeff

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I have been so impressed with Camp Fuego so far. The leadership is extremely helpful, the staff is incredibly energetic, and the band and speaker are amazing. We arrived right after three, and after unpacking, went straight to orientations. From there we went to dinner and straight to worship. This campground isn’t as big or as featuresque as Piney Woods…but I think this is going to be a great thing. Sometimes camp becomes more about fun things than it does about growth and the Gospel message.

Tonight, we were in Ephesians 2:1-10, and we were encouraged to go ‘deeper’ in our faith and understanding of God. I’m sorry for the short update tonight. Its 12:30 am and the lights just went off. Its been a great, yet tiring, first day. Make sure you’re checking facebook the camp fuego website for more updates. We also have pictures being updated throughout the day on our refuel instagram page: http://instagram.com/refuelyouthgroup

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• If you can’t find the info you need in this document, click the banner image above to go straight to the Camp Fuego website.
• Be here @ 10:00 am Monday.
• We’ll be back around 4 PM on Friday.
• It will have been a great, but long week for students and leaders. Please try to have your student picked up in a timely manner.
• Bring enough money for 2 meals on the road (Lunch on the way TO camp and the way HOME)
• Bring extra spending money for the week of camp
• NO ELECTRONICS (Gaming Devices, mp3 players, iPod/phones, iPads, computers, CD players, Tape Players…etc.)
• Your CELL PHONE will be taken before we leave for camp and stored in a lock box. You will be allowed to call home on Wednesday evening during Church Group Time (8:00 PM)
• The Adults WILL have their phones during the week. You can contact Jeff at 903.926.9912 or Sarah at 903.926.9918
• If we have excessive behavior problems or dishonesty about electronics, parents will be contacted. If it continues, parents will be asked to come and get their students from camp.
• Monday, wear your neon ReFuel shirts if you have one. We still have a few left for $5 each if you don’t
• Also, our whole youth group is wearing crazy knee-length socks on Monday
• Tuesday is 80s day at Camp. Wear your best 80s clothes
• Camp Fuego will have photographers at camp updating their photos page throughout the day. If you want to see what your student is up to, check it out: http://campfuego.com/#/camp-photos.
• We’ll be updating our facebook page throughout the week with daily updates, photos and videos. Make sure you’ve joined it here: https://www.facebook.com/refuelyouthgroup
• We also have a text message system to keep you aware of all the youth group announcements and events. You can sign up for student or parent updates. They will be sent directly to your phone. Follow this link to sign up!

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Making the right choices can mean the difference between life and death, so it’s important to help kids connect their choices to real-world consequences. Showing off in a car may impress friends, for example, but it can also put lives at risk. The developmental challenge is that the part of the brain that processes cause and effect isn’t fully developed in teenagers. Although kids sometimes have to learn things the hard way, we still need to show them grace and compassion, as well as loving support and guidance.

Parents may not be able to make decisions for teenagers, but we can equip them with the right tools so they can make wise choices of their own. The solid foundation for decision-making is God’s Word. Jesus urges his followers to spend time in prayer and to “seek first his kingdom and his righteousness” (Matthew 6:33).

Making good decisions can be hard, and the pressure can leave kids stressed out. But God offers an alternative: peace. He wants to give us extraordinary peace in the midst of making easy or hard decisions. All we need to do is seek him and his wisdom.

Fast Facts – The Teen Perspective

• A majority of teenagers say they’d make more responsible decisions than their peers from 20 years ago did. (girlscouts.org)
• More than 9 out of 10 teenagers admit to making poor decisions while driving. (cnn.com)
• 46% of teenagers say parents most influence their decisions about sex, while 20% of teenagers say friends most influence those decisions. (thenationalcampaign.org)
• 71% of teenagers say they feel prepared to make ethical decisions when they enter the workplace. (gactaern.org)

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Forgiveness is a process…

… made possible by the redemptive work of Christ Jesus (Romans 3:24). For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). In Christ, God was reconciling the world to himself (2 Corinthians 5:19).

… which creates a state of grace in which believers gather together for glad hearted, God exalting worship. We call this gathering the Church, the family of God, and the body of Christ. The ground at this gathering place is level, it is leveled by His grace so that we can show the world who He is, not who we are (Colossians 3:11).

… which empowers believers to walk in grace even though we have made mistakes. We should not deny God the opportunity to create a new work in our lives by not accepting His forgiveness for our failures. By acknowledging our mistakes before a holy God, by trusting in His promise to forgive, and then proclaiming that I am forgiven (Psalm 51:3-17) I can live in freedom and in power. Freedom from feeling as if I owe something for my transgression. Power that is like the working of God’s mighty strength which He exerted in Christ when He raised Him from the dead (Ephesians1:19).

… that creates a culture of Grace all around us. We become willing participants in the forgiveness of others. This is not to deny the wrongness of someone’s actions nor does it deny the pain. Forgiveness cannot restore a relationship on its own (even though it cannot be restored without it). The culture of grace causes me to look beyond actions to the root of sinful behavior and see that in the thoughtless, indifference of hurtful intentions there is a person in need of grace just like me. The presence of Christ cannot coexist with the presence of unforgiveness.

Beware the bitter root (Hebrews 12:15). “Bitterness is such a potent paralysis of mind, soul, and spirit that it can freeze reason and emotion. Our attitudes turn cynical, uncaring, critical, and caustic. Where once we ventured to place faith in others, now we trust no one. Optimism darkens to pessimism. Faith grays into doubt.” (Freedom of Forgiveness, David Augsburger [pg. 17])

Augsburger continues, “God’s forgiveness gives us the freedom to leave and live creatively. The rush of God’s strength, which brings forgiveness, gives in turn the ability to forgive, and forgive, and forgive.” (Freedom, pg.19 and Matthew 18:21-35).

Thank you God for forgiveness, may we be willing to forgive.

Bro. David

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June 10 – 14, 5:30 pm-8:30 pm

Join Usfor VBS

Click to RegisterLearners

Click to RegisterLeaders

For ages Kindergarten – 5th grade; VBX for 6th Grade with Jeff Stapleton. COME JOIN THE FUN!

VBS THEME:

Colossal Coaster World will challenge kids to face their fears and trust God as they zip along the roller coaster of life. Through every twist, turn, and dive kids will learn that God has not given them a spirit of fearfulness, but a spirit of power, love, and sound judgment. At the end of the week, kids will want to do it all over again!

THEME VERSE:

Our Lord is great, vast in power; His understanding is infinite. Psalm 147:5 (HCSB)

MOTTO:

Facing Fear! Trusting God!

SPECIAL DAYS:

Family Night: Friday, June 14th @ 6:00 PM

SCRIPTURE VERSE:

2 Timothy 1:7 For God has not given us a spirit of fearfulness, but one of power, love, and sound judgment. (HCSB®)

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Join Us For The Annual Crossroads Baptist Church Family Picnic!
Sunday, May 19, 4:00 pm to 7:00 pm

The church will provide fried chicken and drinks. Everyone bring a side dish or dessert. There will be domino games, volleyball, etc.
A GIANT blow-up waterslide for the big kids and little pools for the little kids. We’ll also have a wiffleball game for elementary school students.
Come join the fun and fellowship!!!

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Click below to Sign up for Parent and Youth Text Message Updates:

 

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Did you ever find yourself looking up and suddenly discovering that you were in the wrong place, heading in wrong direction, with little sense about how to get out of the mess you got yourself into? Well, just sit right back and you’ll hear a tale, a tale of a fateful trip.

It was a beautiful afternoon in the Peruvian village of Huayacundo Arma, we had just finished sharing Christ with a classroom of teenagers in the local public school. We had a couple of hours to kill so five of our group of eight decided to take off on an adventurous hike up to an ascendable peak overlooking the small village. Upon our arrival and after our recovery from the scant amounts of oxygen available to us, we beheld a view that left us awestruck. We shared together in a time of prayer, we talked about how awesome God was, we participated in some unfortunate moments of juvenile horseplay, and we had a blast.

Upon further investigation of our surroundings, there were other equally grand sights available for our exploration and so we literally frolicked around the tops of these mountains, stopping only to take a few deep breaths and then continue on being boys and worshipfully appreciating our surroundings. Along the way we picked up two more travelers for our journey, a dog named Bronco, and a Peruvian teenager named Antony. Memories were made, pictures were taken, and at that point we realized it was time to return to the village. We asked Antony how to get home. A conversation ensued of our broken Spanish and his broken English and we translated that Antony knew the quickest way to get us back to the village. We turned away from a trail that we could see to follow Antony where there was eventually no trail. “Vaye, Vaye” Antony cried out, which we understood to mean “Let’s go gringos, what is taking you so long!” Soon Antony led us over a sheer cliff, to a tiny ledge where we had to make a leap to continue.

Yes, that is right; we had to jump from the tiny ledge onto a landing spot about as big as a home plate. This was the point of no return. Soon after we all made “the leap” we realized that Antony had no idea how to get down. We were now on the backside of the mountain, out of sight of the village; our surroundings had changed from lush mountain fields to steep grades of briars and cactus. The sun began to let us know that daylight was waning, our shadows began to grow long, we had no idea where we were in relation to the village. At this point resolve set in, we were getting back to the village, lean back into the mountain, slide on your rear as much as necessary, if you slip grab what you can even if it is a cactus. The road leading back to the village grew closer. An aqueduct carrying water to the village interrupted our descent and became our path home. Honestly, when my feet landed on the solid, level footing of the aqueduct I almost cried. As we rounded the mountain our restless, waiting friends came into sight. Antony scampered off into the dusty streets of the village without saying a word. Jeff and I were met by Terry Gresham, the third member of our team in Peru. I remember Terry saying, “What were you thinking?” over and over. I had no explanation except that I probably was not thinking at all. The next hour was full of more explanations and stories and tears and apologies and forgiveness and man-hugs. We were safe, and our mission in Peru went on with great success.

Maybe you find yourself in a similar jam. My advice to you is get back home as a fast as you can. Resolve to yourself to come home, face the music for your actions, apologize, seek forgiveness, find what God is doing and get involved in that. There is a way home, it may be difficult, but it is the place where God is waiting for you with loving rebuke and restoration. He is not finished with you, you can still play a part in His wonderful purpose. Come home.

Bro. David

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