The sunrise this morning took my breath away. Along the horizon there were a few clouds, metallic pink on the backdrop of a pink and yellow sky. A nice cold morning here at camp! The breeze was invigorating. I felt so alive. I knew God was with me.
Read Romans 6:8-11. Notice verse 8.
When do you feel most alive? In nature? With friends? At a worship service?
Are you aware in those moments that God is with you? Why or why not?
Do you think God gives us those moments to remind us of the truth that He is always with us, even when we do not feel Him?
How do you feel knowing God is always with you, living with you?
What does it really mean to live with God?
Are you aware that Christ is with you at school? At the movies? Everywhere? Explain.
How is it that we still are tempted to sin even though we died to sin?
Today’s verse tells us that because we died with Christ to sin He now lives with us. When you live with someone, they know all the very best and the very worst about you. They know what you do and don’t like. They know what buttons to push to make you instantly furious. They know what fills you with happiness.
Christ knows all about you, inside and out, and still loves you thoroughly. As today’s Scripture passage points out, while our sin is the reason for Jesus’ death, we did nothing to bring about the resurrection—yet we get to share in the fruit of it, eternal life. What a miracle! Let that truth sink in today. Live each moment for God!
Camp is a pretty awesome place. So awesome, we sometimes wish that things that we only do at camp, we could actually do in “the real world”. For example, cabin clean up. I know every single one of you misses those chores you have to do every day and working with 9 other girls and your counselors to help keep that cabin sparkling clean! It can be some quality bonding time. Okay, so maybe you don’t miss that so much (or maybe you do!)….Check out the video some of our 2011 staff made for some other things that we don’t normally get outside of camp, and probably miss a little more than cabin clean up!
When you hear the word slave, what picture pops into your head? I see a poorly clothed man or woman who is skinny, bruised, and ashamed. Hands tied behind the back. Head down. Eyes on the floor. There is no hope and no escape in store for him or her.
Read Romans 6:5-7. Pay attention to verse 6.
What comes to mind when you read the phrase “enslaved to sin”?
Do you believe you have been freed from the slavery of sin? Why or why not?
Did you live yesterday like your old self had been crucified with Christ? Explain.
Is there something you would have done differently yesterday if you had remembered you are no longer a slave to sin?
Do you have a habit that you are unable to break even though you have accepted Christ into your life? If you do, consider asking someone you can trust to help you with it.
How will your life be different today by remembering you are free from sin?
The words “for we know” in our passage (v. 6) today are so important. Often that is the reason we stray back to old, sinful habits: we forget what we know. And when we forget, we act as slaves, helplessly doing what our sinful desires demand. We have to remember what we know! We know that our old selves have been crucified with Christ.
I have a ring a dear friend gave me. I wear it to remind me of what I know. Every time I look at it, I am reminded of whom I belong to and how I should honor Christ with my life. Would a symbol help you remember what you know? What will you choose, and what will it remind you of?
During 1B 2011, 17 girls were tapped out for the Belle challenge by Ashley and Debbye. Kacey cuda, Grace Valentine, Rachel Spivey, Emily Boggess, Abby Hani, Miranda Andrews, Madeline Gaffney, Hannah Joel, and Hannah Daughtridge all achieved the rank of Trekker. Heather Francis, Savannah Bowker, Robyn Cothran, Mackenzie Bowlin, Hannah Norman, Lauren Amos, Morgan Perry, and Mackenzie Bolton achieved the rank of Belle this session.
Are you getting excited about this summer yet? It won’t be long till we have campers at camp again! We’ve been spending a lot of time thinking about our theme for this summer. We have finally made a decision and it is “The Well”. The theme verse is John 7:38, “Anyone who believes in me may come and drink! For the Scriptures declare, ‘Rivers of living water will flow from his heart.” NLT
We are currently trying to think of a design for our theme. We are having a little trouble so we’d like your help! From now until Friday, February 17th, we will be accepting submissions for the potential theme design. The person who submits the best design will win $50 to our clothing store this summer. We may even put that design on our theme shirt! You can send submissions to rscamps@ridgecrestcamps.com. Submissions can be drawn by hand, designed on a computer, etc.
Finally, after two months, the helicopter spotted you and rescued you from the tiny, forsaken island! Relief flooded you from head to toe. Last night was the first night you spent back in your own bed.
When the morning sun flooded the room, you opened your eyes. Laid out on a chair were new jeans and a T-shirt in your favorite colors and brands. You smiled. As you got up to put them on, you saw in the trash can the tatters that had been your clothes as a castaway. You pulled them out, smelly and torn. You stared at them fondly for a minute. Then you put them on and walked downstairs.
Crazy? Yes! But not as crazy as living in death and defeat after you have received new life in Christ.
Christ has rescued us from sin and given us a new set of clothes to put on each day. When we get up each day, we have a decision to make. We can reach for old tatters (like an old attitude that constantly reminds you that you aren’t worth anything)—or we can reach for the attitude of Christ that reassures us we are significant because He loves us and has rescued us.
Do you have a favorite attitude that you put on each day? What is it? Now think about what attitude Christ would have you wear instead. You have been rescued from that! Live like it today!
And so it continues….Miniature tanks. The game that no one can really figure out. The game that for some reason we find entertaining. The game that gives the participants a reason to crawl on their hands and knees. The game that has been played on grass, slip ‘n’ slide, wood decks, and other surfaces. The game that makes participants look, honestly, quite funny. The game that provides on-lookers a humorous picture. This game is all of these things, and yet it lives on. Bring on Summer 2012!
Iknow it’s silly, but I have to ask: Does an apple tree bear oranges or a grape vine produce strawberries? The answer is a big, obvious “NO!”
Now let me ask you this. What kinds of fruit should a Christian bear?
Read 1 John 3:4-6. Focus on verse 6.
What is the law being referred to in the passage?
How did John define sin?
Who is the sinless One who was revealed to take away your sins?
What did John mean when he wrote that anyone who sins has not seen God?
In what ways has your life changed since you became a Christian?
Do Christians never sin? Is that what John is trying to say in today’s Scripture passage? Not quite. We may belong to God’s family now, but we’re still in this world. Sooner or later, we’re bound to mess up. But we know for certain that when we became God’s children, we were also freed from sin’s tight grip. Through the Holy Spirit’s power, we can choose to stop sinning and start following Him.
So it is a problem when you can’t (or won’t) stop sinning. Think about it. As God’s child, you’ll genuinely want to leave old, sinful habits behind. Of course that’s not easy—but God knows that. But that’s why He gave you the Holy Spirit. He never expected you to escape from sin in your own strength. Instead, He has provided the way out and the means to stay out. What great love is that!
This blog actually isn’t about MY favorite things, necessarily, though I do enjoy many of the activities mentioned! Here are what some of our 2011 starter camp campers and staff said their favorite things were….It seemed like waterfront activities seemed to win out in this clip! What are some of your favorite things?
Did you know that we had go-karts in camp a long time ago? For a couple years, you could ride the go-karts as a skill. The track was located in the riding ring by the barn. How fun would that be! You wouldn’t have to go to Fun Depot anymore if you wanted to ride the go-karts! If you had a chance to ride the go-karts at Crestridge, we’d love to hear some stories!
The sunrise this morning took my breath away. Along the horizon there were a few clouds, metallic pink on the backdrop of a pink and yellow sky. A nice cold morning here at camp! The breeze was invigorating. I felt so alive. I knew God was with me.
