Support Day

Technical summer staff training is just about done. Today is the last official day. The past week has been both fun and challenging for me. I have thoroughly enjoyed working around the Ranch mowing grass, fixing sprinklers, and much more. At the same time, it has been hard at times not being with the rest of the summer staff. However, it was great to get to spend some more time with them over the past couple days and find out that I was missed as much as I missed them. The community here is great and I am certain that it will be needed this summer as we all go in different directions on different trips and seek rest when we come back together.

My first trip! By not being part of raft training I was able to fill a gap in a short trip last weekend. I was on food staff which means I prepared meals and got gear together for the group. I worked with Marji and together we fed the 20 some kids and leaders. When the graduating 8th graders arrived at the Ranch I didn’t know what to think. They seemed absolutely crazy. As I spent a little time around them though I got to know them and realized that they were just normal kids. It was fun seeing them work together on the challenge course as they came together and listened to one another’s ideas. The group had a deep bond together and could move from being off their rockers to going deep in a group setting really quickly. It was great to hear how students were holding others accountable in their faith and to get a snapshot of the community they had together. They ended their trip by going rafting and from what I heard had a blast. 

Even though I did not have a chance to sit down with a student and have a good conversation, I can only hope that Christ was seen through me in those kids. That my actions would show Christ. Please pray for the kids as they go into high school and continue to find their identity. Pray that they would find it in Christ and that they would keep walking strong in their faith.

So maybe you’re wondering why this is titled Support Day...maybe you’re not, but I’ll let you know. Today is a support day for me. It is a day to update my supporters, work on raising support, and basically work on anything support related. That is what I am up to today. I am still working on the website and trying to keep it updated. 

I’ll leave you with this today. Do not forget that your life is a ministry. The relationships you build with coworkers, the people you talk to in the grocery store, your interaction with family. It is very often hard to act Christ-like in all of these situations, but I pray that you will “not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.” (Galations 6:9-10) There is no ministry that is more important than any other. What I am doing here is not more important than your daily life. So  it is my desire that we all live our lives as living sacrifices. Thank you for all that you do. For your prayers, for your own ministries, and for being an example for others.

Working on the Ranch

So as it turns out, being a whitewater rafting guide isn’t the thing for me. The reason is my astonishing ability to get motion sickness. After the first day of training yesterday I was spent and was not feeling very well. I talked with some full-time staff and we decided that it would be the best use of my time and abilities to not continue on with rafting training. It’s hard to tell kids and Christ when you’re throwing up or feeling sick. 

I spent this morning processing what it meant for me to not be continuing on with everyone else in raft training. It was hard trying to figure out if my illness was God telling me that He had other plans than the river for me or if I was supposed to try and overcome it and try different remedies. My thoughts went on to be that obviously it isn’t natural for my body to be going down the river and that God is going to use me wherever I am. I am still trying to fully understand what this means for my time here. It has been amazing to be supported by all of those around me. Everyone has been wanting the best for me and caring for me. It is great living in a wonderful community.

Today I ended up working in the Alpine Hut for a little while and then mowing. The Alpine Hut is where we keep all of our backpacking, climbing, and adventure gear. All I had to do was put a bunch of clothes away, nothing that spectacular. However, it felt good to be used for something that needed to be done. I really enjoy working in the background and doing things that need to be done so that the big picture can be achieved. 

For the rest of the week I’ll be working around the Ranch. Keep me in your prayers as I continue to find out what God has planned for me this summer.

A Little Time Off

Yesterday was the last day of Rock Training. It was a long day of practical tests, written tests and helping out. We had all of the summer staff from the three YDA bases (Washington, Oregon, and Idaho) together for the training and it was great to get to know the people that will be doing the same thing as me this summer in other areas. As nice as it was to be with the whole group, it’s nice to be back down to our smaller numbers here at Washington. A little more relaxing.

We were all expecting for today to be our first day of raft training, but were surprised with a day off to energize and get ready for rafting for a week. Rock training was very technical, but a lot of fun. We learned the setups for a rock climbing station and for rappel stations and how those both worked. It was fun using the knowledge that I had and learning more to prepare for this summer. 

All Staff Days

For about the last week all of the summer staff from Youth Dynamics Adventures Oregon and Idaho have been here at the ranch so that we could all doing some training together. It’s been cool to see the other people that will be doing the same thing as me this summer and also to see the different group dynamics of the other bases. Along with the summer staff from other bases being here, we had All Staff Days in which all of the staff that work with Youth Dynamics came to the ranch for a time of fellowship and for some planning and brainstorming. Being new to the organization, it was awesome to see all of the staff. It allowed me to get a really good picture of the feel of YD as a whole. With that I’ll say that I like it. 

All of the summer staff did  3 days of training on the challenge course this week. It was a eye opening experience to how difficult it is to be a good facilitator on the course and that it just takes a lot of experience to be comfortable in leading a group. Tomorrow we all leave for 3 days of rock climbing training. We will be in Icicle Canyon if you want to look it up. I’m excited. Pray for all of the summer staff to have attentive ears and to retain all of the knowledge that is given to us. Thank you for your continued prayers.

Backcountry Training

Today I got back to the ranch from a week of adventures. We started Monday with meeting type things and then left the on horseback for an orienteering challenge, a week of backpacking, and whitewater rafting on the Wenatchee River.

The summer staff, all nine of us, learned the basics on horses and then went on a two hour ride out of camp. We met some staff from the ranch who took the horses and left us with a map to find where more staff was making us dinner. After dinner, we were given a small map and a pamphlet with a spot for 10 different stamps that we could find at different points. We used our map and compass and found our first point and then next and next... However, this took a long time since we didn’t start looking for checkpoints until it was around 10. We ended up walking into camp at around 5 am, putting down our sleeping pads and bags and sleeping under the stars.

In the morning we started more backcountry training. We hiked for the next 3 1/2 days and slept under tarps on top of snow each night. Yes, snow. It was between 60-75 degrees each days, but there was a lot of snow in the mountains. The snow made for some amazing views and a good change in scenery. I had a lot of fun on this trip and really began the bonding process with the rest of the summer staff and the full-time staff. It’s hard to include everything that happened. The pictures can help explain it some more.

Stonewater Ranch

I arrived at Stonewater Ranch on Wednesday and have been working around the ranch and getting settled in since then. I start my Summer Staff training tomorrow and am excited for all that it holds. 

Since I’ve been here I have been helping out around the ranch doing things from feeding horses to cleaning bathrooms. It’s a great place to be and am really enjoying being here.