Tim has covered these last 36 hours well, so I'm not going to add much in the way of details, other than to say that these are critical days (aren't they all!) for extending relationships, as shared before.  Not only did we have gorgeous settings (I kind of take-for-granted the mountains around here, and we watched fireworks over the valley [we saw at least 6 different firework shows from one spot (it is Bastille Day, after all)]), full activity, and life learning, but we also had solid long bus rides ... great opportunities to go farther with our new friends. Great stuff.

Please pray for the final few days. They will be classic full days at Champfleuri. Every day is precious to our Lord, and to his work here in many lives. Thank you for praying.

Everyone on your team is fine ... a touch of a cold for Peter, and Jeremy had some nausea (you'll have to ask him how that came about!), but a bright spirit for all  (and those two are pretty much back to health, I believe)... a great blessing. Life here is a wild amount of new experiences for all, completely wrapped in the experience of meeting new people in a new culture ... and doing so with the purpose of serving our Great God.  Our students are growing in their own faith as well, as the time in God's Word around here is excellent (large groups, small groups, devotions, etc).

Blessings to our home churches ... and particularly our many prayer supporters!

In His Grip,

Jim (for the team)

:O

Hello family and friends!
        Today we got back from an epic multi-day adventure-fest.  The first day was filled with plenty of bus travel and high ropes madness.  The courses ranged from baby pink to super-ultra-mega-death black.  After warming up on some of the stuff in the middle of the spectrum, 10 'Murikans and Frenchies set out for the torture-death-ultra-mega black course.  I finished last.  Few found it fun.  The favorite course was probably the two purple courses which both had extremely long ziplines; I believe several videos were taken, you may be able to see those on Facebook or when we return.  The second day we woke up at 6:45 (not cool), and headed to a kayaking place.  This was the same one that we went to two years ago for you parents that may have heard stories.  The kayak pirates (Myself, S, and T) were reunited and we wreaked havoc on the open sea.  The only problem was that the leader of the line (The well known E, cough cough) forgot to stop for lunch, so we didn't get to meet up with any other groups.  Let's just say our group was never dry.  Overall, two extremely fun days with some once in a lifetime activities (France really tunes up its outdoors adventure activities well above the American standard).  Much love to y'all back home.  Pray that we get the rest we need and accept whatever amount of sleep we end up with as God's will, and the rest of our energy will have to come straight from His provision.  May we also prioritize the French over the other Americans and continue to push outside of our comfort zones, rather than ramping down as we get close to the end of camp.  Personally I would ask for a non-judgemental spirit as I continue losing sleep and start nitpicking others' weaknesses.  I see this trip's purpose even more than two years ago, and it has been extremely good for faith.

Much love to everyone back home (Especially you mom;)

Tim Shack

God is our reason to love (Jim)

Hey Home Team -

Corey and Andrew did a nice job of reviewing activities from the day, so I'm going to give a bit of teaching overview, and prayer requests:

1.  I Corinthians 13 today ... the Love chapter.  The Corinthian Church was struggling with understanding spiritual gifts and with putting some people (with certain gifts) above others.  Paul felt they were starting to prioritize their religious behavior over their desire to love like Christ did.  He goes off in verses 1 to 3, exaggerating about tongues, prophecy and knowledge, and monetary giving to make the point that without love, these are all worthless.  Love is necessary, not optional.  Then, in verse 4 to 7, Paul expresses the character of love (lovely, check it out).  We realized (with the help of a simple skit) that our lives must emanate from a relationship with Christ ... if we simply want to fit in with the 'Christian' crowd, we are not relating to the love of the Father ... and not reflecting behavior that results from Thanksgiving and love for the Father.  In fact, if you re-read verses 4 to 7 with God's name in it, you get the idea that he initiated any love we reflect.  We concluded with the permanence of love ... in the fact that faith and hope will no longer be necessary in our eternal dwelling place, but love will be there ... in the nature of God. 

Oh yea, and an excellent night of worship tonight (the worship is outstanding ... and I find that the constant diet of excellent singing, prayer, testimonies [one young French student shared tonight of losing his sister to a lung clot in March ... devastating, but God being gracious in the midst], and messages is excellent for spiritual growth!).

2.  We are virtually in the home stretch, for we only have 4 or 5 days left, and a number of fine, friendly relationships have been formed in many directions.  That's both an advantage and a disadvantage, for it is easy to get complacent in this, and forget that God desires us to continue on in our relationships (as He leads, not mechanically or without love) for His glory.  It may be to encourage someone to come closer to a salvation decision (for example, didn't believe in the worth of the Bible before camp, but now sees the worth), or make a salvation decision (glorious!), or grow as a disciple of Christ (now looking to share their faith with others, and growing in grace and truth individually).  Please pray for all of the American students, in their awareness of God's work in people's lives, and joining Him in this work.

3.  Also pray for our next two days, as we are going to the highest ropes course in France) tomorrow (long bus rides, perfect for extending discussions to greater meaning), and then kayaking in 2 days (again, bus rides).  This timeframe is significant, for our students are stretched (lot of growth here for our students).

4.  A decent amount of fatigue throughout camp currently, due to sleeping under the stars, and high energy activities.  Please pray for sleep in the near term, and awake time for discussion.

Love to you all!
Jim

Daily Wrap-up: We're back alive from the mountains!

Hey everyone!
It's the afternoon of yet another beautiful day here at Champfleuri. Today, we all woke up bright and early after an amazing night of sleep surrounded by God's beautiful creation. The night was a bit chilly at the top of the mountain, but that didn't change how awesome it was (you all will hopefully see the pictures soon!). After breakfast, some of the more daring campers decided to jog all the way down the mountain. Just like on the way up, our hike back down was lovely. After an exhausting  30-40 minutes (well, that's at least how I felt), we arrived back at Champfleuri and rushed to the showers. The other groups came in about 40 minutes later at about 9:30 AM. We were supposed to have a soccer tournament down at Froges (the town right under us) but we all came to a consensus that we were too tired to make the hike back down and up. The rest of the day went on like a normal day. Following lunch, we had several different smaller games planned. The highlight was definitely that large group game we did at the end. It's called 'Steal the Bacon'. There were four teams lined up on all four sides of the square and an inner tube in the middle. Every person on the teams was given a number; when their number(s) were called, they all had to run to the middle and try to get the inner-tube the their side. I'll tell you firsthand, a lot of blood, sweat, and tears went into that game. That's basically it for today. Tomorrow we will go a high-ropes course about two hours away and then camp out again that night! Thanks so much for all of your prayers! Please pray for safe travels and good weather (there's a possibility of rain tomorrow). More importantly, pray that God will give us the strength to continue pursuing relationships with the other campers and that we can all glorify God with all our actions. God is truly at work in all the hearts here and the results are visible. Love you all!
- Andrew 

Crazy Awesome Camping! (Corey)

So yesterday was a typical day (breakfast, small groups, large group, lunch time, workshops) until 5 o'clock when we decided to venture off into the French wilderness with nothing but our backpacks and each other to stay alive. Just kidding! We left camp in three groups led by different counselors and went for a nice 1.5-2 hour hike through some woods and on the sides of some roads. Thankfully, the first two groups made it safely to the field where we were to sleep, but the third group (the one I was in) took a few wrong turns and ended up basically hiking through the uncharted wilderness for a while. But we made it eventually! The field where we set up our tarps and sleeping bags had the MOST BEAUTIFUL view I have ever seen in my entire life! It was unreal. On one side of the field we could see the same mountains we see at Champfleuri, but facing the other way there was a valley with a few houses spotting the thick forest. And behind that thick forest were amazingly huge and awesome mountains with snow on the top of them!! My poor description does not do the view justice; it was truly amazing to be surrounded 360 degress by God's beautiful creation. And then we got to sleep under the stars, with no tents! It was for sure one of the best nights of my life. And now we are going to a ropes course and camping out again on Friday, followed by kayaking on Saturday. Everyone is super excited!
Thank you all again for your prayers! Please pray that we won't burn out before camp is over!

Corey

3 testimonies and a hike! (Jim)

Hello Home Team! -
Today we head out on a hike further up the mountains (reaching approx. 800 meters) and sleep out under the stars ... whew!  Therefore, you won't hear from us for a 24 hour period or so.

Peter, Liz, and Andrew have now given their testimonies in the last few days ... all have been well received (you'll have to ask those students if others have commented to them afterward) and have initiated some conversations. 

Peter commented on God's work in his heart through his sports involvement ups and downs, and significant moments at Camp Sankanac (it is very cool to have a faithful camp nearby).  Liz also shared of sports highs and lows, but mainly how she has been aware of her need for men and women's (peers mainly) approval, and how God was moving her away from that addiction (if I can call it that ... I can relate).  Andrew shared of the significant impact of Champfleuri in 2010 ... and he wasn't even here!  His brother Kris was here, and God had continued to make Kris a changed man in the timeframe at Champfleuri.  Andrew noticed, and via G3 youth group, God began to bring Andrew to an understanding of His great love, and Andrew's sinful nature.  Apparently, our Fall 2011 retreat was quite a turning point.  Sweet!

The talk this morning concerned suffering ... and how God uses it for a number of purposes.  He works to grow us in Christlikeness, to make us aware of God's work in us (how we respond reflects how we believe), and to bring us together in community to name a few. 

Pray for ongoing and growing intentionality in our team and the other American teams.  Time is seemingly always short!

Blessings,
Jim

Thunderball and Rockpainting !!! (Liz)

Today was day 5 of camp!! Our large group meeting today was full of wonderful songs, followed by a great talk by Buan. We talked about how we are not to make others stumble in the faith, and how to make wise decisions (based on I Corinthians 8). The afternoon was started off with a Thunderball Tournament!!!! (and you know how much our youth group loves thunderball! :)) It was a lot of fun and a good time to build stronger relationships. During workshops I led rock painting! It was quite a hit, providing girls and guys with an activity they had never seen before :). I had the opportunity to share my testimony on Sunday, and have talked to a handful of students and friends about it since. I am praying that God is able to work through my testimony in the students hearts! Hope all is well at home! ~ Liz

Update from "Phillyfrenchies"

Hi guys! Whass'up? [expression learnt from Steph]
Tuesday is an awesome day so far: very good small groups discussion and talk [by Buan] about the relationship between freedom and love, the nature of freedom we have in Christ and how sometimes we need to give up doing something if it turns out to be a challenge to someone's faith [choosing not to do something in an act of love to the other] . Debora [one of the French counselor] gave her testimony sharing how TED 2009 changed her life and how she became a Christian. Praise the Lord!
This afternoon was amazing with a thunderball tournament which was really fun [go team 6!!!], we laughed a lot!!

Thank you all for your prayers. The Philly team is really awesome with the French teens!

Cecile


Hi everyone!
I'm so glad to be with the Philly team this year. It's always a blessing to work with them. It's also amazing to spend times with good friends. It reminds me the great time I spent in Philly !!
Three teens of the team gave their testimonies the past two days. It was so encouraging to show how God is working in their lives and how God answers prayers. It also shows that persevering always pays.
They are sharing so much love with everyone in this camp!
Jim preached yesterday morning and did a really good job.
We went swimming and they all mixed up and split in small groups to play card games which was great!

We are really blessed to have them with us. Thanks for your prayers and for letting them come in France :)
Be blessed!

Elodie

Marriage and lake trip ... Jim

Hey All! -

Today was classic and pleasant.  Following breakfast, we moved through small groups and large group from I Corinthians, chapter 7.  This included a talk on 'consumer' relationships, marketplace type ... and 'covenant' relationships, God's intent for marriage (along with parent/child and other).  The latter type is significant in two directions, horizontal (with our marriage partner) and vertical (commitment before God) ... ever notice at a Christian wedding how there are questions from the minister (will you take and will you care for?) and vows to the marriage partner?  The first is before God and the second to the spouse.  In the latter, the relationship is more important than the benefit to each individual.  We are called to maintain that relationship above any benefit to us.  The world has often turned marriage into a consumer relationship (see Cruise and Holmes, etc.), not at all what God intended, obviously.

We followed large group with lunch and an afternoon trip to a local lake, which every student seemed to enjoy thoroughly.  We are very blessed this year to have an awfully pleasant bunch of campers relationally.  God works through any circumstance (difficult campers, dating relationships, etc.), but this year I would emphasize the smooth relationships throughout camp (at least so far) ... and therefore solid relationships are being formed at a quick pace it seems to me.

Please continue to pray for the American campers to hold to an 'intentional' mindset.  It is easy to simply 'have fun' and not listen to the Spirit's lead that we use pleasant relationships and fun to further His Kingdom, and bring others to a saving knowledge and relationship with our Lord.  It really is a critical time, even though camp is going very well, imo.  I will tell you that I received a couple of nice comments from Champfleuri leaders about a couple of our students today ... in the area of reaching out and loving others.

Really appreciate the prayers (Kari is fast improving ... and is an excellent communicator with others in the meantime!)!

Blessings,
Jim Shack (for the team)

Lake Day and update from camp

Hey y'all!

We just got back from a lake today that we all had a fun time swimming, playing volleyball and cards. Andrew (AP) and I got to have a little taste of home that we were missing, french fries! We ordered a huge plate of fries with the help of M. It was something that we had both been craving and once we got it we downed it within a few minutes. Aside from going to the lake camp has been amazing so far. It's been awesome to wake up and see the Alps and know that it is all God's creation. I've been getting to know my roommates better and have been blessed to have 3 roommates who speak fluent English so talks can go more in depth without having to translate. They all have a strong faith it seems from the talks I've had with them in the mornings and at night. I have also been blessed to get to know M, A, and X. They all speak English fairly well even though X is a bit shy but is starting to break out of his shell. X is in my small group and is someone that is an extremely kind person. He was helping me the other day in small group get through reading a passage in the Bible, in French. It was a rough process for me but it was an opportunity for X and I become closer and to also gain a feel for what the French kids experience by having to read and speak in English. A prayer request I have is that G would open his heart up to the Lord because he believes the Bible is what man thinks God would be. My other request is that M would be more open to people talking to him. I thank all of you for your continued prayer because I know it is helping all of us. God bless.

Jeremy Holland

American Football in France!!! (Peter)

Greetings from Champfleuri!

This afternoon footballs were flying around the main field in Champfleuri. Today, I had the chance to lead a workshop for about 10 French and 2 American campers. After practicing throwing the football to each other in two different small groups, it was time to teach the French campers about the somewhat unusual rules and objectives of American football. A few of the French were familiar with the rules of rugby, which I learned is actually played by many students in high school. With the help of a good English speaking French camper, the other French students were able to understand the different aspects of basic football that I was trying to get across. Before long everyone was feeling comfortable with the new rules, and we started playing a game of two-hand touch football (players would touch the person with the ball instead of tackling them). At first the game started slowly, and not very many passes were completed. But before long, every time the quarterback threw the ball someone would usually catch it. It was truly encouraging to see that everyone was  starting to learn the game and that they were also enjoying it. The final score of the game was 2-1 (my team was the other that scored 2 touchdowns... oh yeah!!).

Everything at camp so far has been awesome, and everyone on the G3 team has been really getting to know all the French campers. Meal times have been great opportunities to sit with different people that you might not know as well; its been exciting to learn more and more about the many French campers as well as the other American campers. With each new day, we have all looked to find new opportunities to engage in a conversation about God and/or the Bible. Another encouraging sign to see is that many of the French campers have been open and willing to listen and sing during Worship time. I'm so very excited for tomorrow, and all the wonderful opportunities that God provides each day!

Peter

TED day 2!

Hello blog-readers! Today has been a great day so far. It was very cloudy and gray this morning but the sun came out shortly after breakfast. Woo-hoo! We had small groups after breakfast, then a large group meeting with worship and a discussion about 1 Corinthians 6:1-11 (Lawsuits among believers). Lunch was pork chops and mashed potatoes, the most American thing we've eaten so far, with a weird custard-y thing for dessert that everyone hated except me and Peter. After lunch was the today's afternoon activity, the Champfleuri Olympics, consisting of ping-pong, volleyball, human foosball, and running A LOT. And workshops followed that. I was part of the frisbee golf workshop while others from our team led American football, and large group games.
Thank you everyone for your massive amounts of support and prayer thus far!! We truly appreciate them. Please pray that we will have impacts on the lives of the French campers and live out camp in a way that pleases the Lord!

Corey
Colossians 3:17

Update (we are involved with alot currently!) ... Jim

Hello again Home Team! -


With this first full day under wraps, our days are now officially 'smoking,' with small group discussions, large group talks (Buan on 'fairness' today (was the cross a fair thing for Jesus? ... an example of grace, not fairness ... I Cor. 6, and games (today was a TED olympics, rotating among 4 different stations of games. These all lead in significant ways to relationships (with our Savior, and with each other). Oh yea, and Liz gave her testimony today just prior to Buan's message.  Sweet! Let’s see if I can give a good overview of some typical daily events, using yesterday as an example.

Yesterday (Saturday) started off with a simple breakfast (bread, cereal if desired, coffee, and fruit), followed by our first small group hour. The small groups are classified by English speaking ability, with our team spread out completely among the 8 groups (11 each, full camp!). Although English speaking ability helps, this can be significant time for every member to form deeper knowledge of each other, and have meaningful conversations. Tim and Josh and others are with barely-English speaking groups. Large group follows small groups, and was an introduction to I Corinthians, Paul's letter to the church at the wild city of Corinth ... represents contemporary challenges well.


Lunch followed, so far it's been a fairly American cuisine, with a lot of cucumber and tomatoes for good measure. Fun afternoon as well … we ran 'Ultimate Frisbee' down in Froges (probably a 1 mile hike down and up the mountain the camp is situated on.  Workshops followed, with Liz, Corey, Nate, Jeremy, and Peter all leading one.  Workshops consist of American Campers or French Counselors instructing French campers in an activity ... lasting 45 minutes or more.  Another great interaction (and leadership building) activity.  Showers and dinner followed … and then the evening was consumed by ‘Pictionary down the Lane,' a wonderfully engaging activity for the whole group (ask your team member when they get home). A great relationship building day.  By the way, camp leaders were really sweating weather when we got here ... supposed to rain a lot.  Well, the forecast has improved drastically, and we haven't seen rain yet, other than once in the middle of the night.  Thanks for praying about this as we go forward.


I couldn't be more appreciative of the fabulous Sr. Highers that we have sent over to serve in France.  We just had a brief meeting today among our team, and they have handled any awkward moments well, and really have breezed through the 'getting to know' stage. Please pray that we would stay on course, not just falling into being a 'camper' for the next week or so, but that we would continue to listen for God's lead where we can be 'intentional campers,' those who will reach out and serve ... for the purpose of extending God's kingdom on earth, and to raise disciples that love our Lord.  


Here's what I am most proud of. These 11 are outgoing (even if it doesn't come naturally) in order to help those French who also don't know any others, and because they know they will not integrate if they give up on getting to know their French peers. That is a difficult ... and worthwhile effort!


So ... blessings to the homefront.


Oh, and pray for Kari, who has a sore back (but not really sure yet how it happened).  She lost a bit of sleep last night, and is taking it easy today.


Blessed,
Jim