Tis So Sweet...

It is so sweet to see Jesus all day, every day, in everything that is happening here at Crooked Creek. Isn't that the way life is supposed to be - that we should see and recognize the presence of Jesus in all things. However, that is definitely NOT how I live my life on a daily basis back home. Since it is easier to just "be" here at camp with no phones, no busy schedules, and none of the craziness of life that comes from day to day, God has clearly been speaking to me - or more appropriately, I have been listening. I love being here and will return home renewed and committed to growing in the ways God is stretching me.
My sweet husband who has been working his tail off all month will probably return home tired and ready for a vacation. God has truly blessed Rob with so many gifts, especially the gift of humor, and it is so much fun to see him in action here at camp. God is truly using Rob and his team to break down walls with these kids. I am amazed by my husband and didn't think I could love him any more than I did already - but I do!

At Say So for week two, 133 kids stood up to declare that they began a relationship with Christ while here at camp. INCREDIBLE!!! God is good! Here are a few more pictures from week two at camp. Again, they are mostly pics of Sawyer. However, I did include a few of Rob in character. One of his characters is a super hero named Iron Man and his introduction is this:

"I am Iron Man. I carry double barrelled irons and starch in a can. Whenever I see an evil crease, I flatten it with one of these (his irons) Mary Kate or Ashley."
His sidekick is Helium Guy. He is armed with a fist full of balloons and hands that fly. He makes balloon animals - mostly snakes and birds of prey.
Oxygen girl joins them later.
Obviously it is not even close to being funny to you guys, but they are very good at being super heroes and very good at making the campers laugh! There is also a picture of one of Rob's characters, Manna Montana - he's a mountain man from Montana who lives in a van down by the river. It's a spoof from Chris Farley's motivational speaker character. Again, very funny!!! I don't have pictures yet, but Rob also plays a Cub Scout named Sherman who is trying to earn his Science badge.

Other pictures include our entire assigned team, the work crew, and Sawyer hanging with his peeps - all the cute girls that love on him constantly.

This is my favorite picture ever!!! What cute boys!

Week One at Crooked Creek

The Andersons are loving life here at camp and just finished week one as the first 400+ campers left last night. Almost one hundred kids stood up last night at what we call SAY-SO. (It comes from Psalms - "Let the redeemed of the Lord say so.") Around a hundred kids gave their lives to Christ this week while at camp. It doesn't get any better than that!

The new group of 400+ campers arrives today starting at 2pm. I know, a very quick turnaround. So, here we go again for another round of hard work, crazy excitement and fun, and most importantly, kids seeing, hearing about, and experiencing the amazing love of Jesus Christ!

Sawyer LOVES it here and it is obvious why. He gets to play outside all day long, he is loved on constantly by young kids and older kids, he gets to swim, play with the horses, dance to music, eat amazing meals, play in the sand, run around - everywhere, swing, go on bike rides, and take in all the excitement around him. Life will seem dull once we return home from camp.

Rob is in charge of program, so he is working extremely hard each day, especially at the beginning of each week when the schedule is packed with activities. He is so gifted and talented and does an amazing job! You will see in the pictures that he plays a few characters as part of the program.

It is difficult to describe all that happens here at Young Life camp! Nothing compares to it! Let me just say that these facilities, the work crew (high school aged kids), the summer staff (college aged kids), the assigned team (Young Life staff and their families - like us), the property staff (those who live here and run camp all year round), and this setting in the Colorado Rockies - all of this gives the kids who come each week an amazing picture of Jesus and the Kingdom. Hundreds of kids will come to know Christ while we are here - and we get to watch it happen and play a small role in the process! I am thankful to the Lord for calling us to this ministry, equipping us, and allowing us to be a part of his work. Thankfully, we don't save kids - He does!!!


Most of these are pictures of Sawyer. I will update later with pictures of camp and the events.

4th of July, Park City Style!

The Andersons love the fourth of July for so many reasons - it's in the middle of summer, barbeque is a staple for the weekend, who doesn't love a parade?, and we love spending time with our friends! This year, we went to the Bosts for a July 3rd barbeque, and then all of our friends joined us in our yard for The Canyons fireworks. It feels like a front row seat! For the 4th, Rob and I decided to ride our bikes up to Main Street for the parade. Sawyer kicked back in his trailer seat while his daddy did all the work. We left our house later than we had planned so our leisurely ride turned into a bike sprint in order to make it for the start of the parade. For those of you who don't know, Main Street is between three and four miles UP the mountain from where we live. Needless to say, we were both soaked in sweat by the time we met up with everyone. We enjoyed the parade with all of our friends - it's more fun now that the kids enjoy it as well. There was a float with real snow (the guys went to the top of one of the mountains and brought down the snow) and a snowman, and there was a donkey - random, I know. We saw the donkey on our way down to the park and Sawyer kept calling it a dog. Pretty much anything with four legs is a dog right now. Sawyer loved the parade except for the moment when the fire truck sounded its horn right in front of us. Several of the boys cried after that. After the parade, we rode to City Park and had a picnic while we watched the rugby game. We rode our bikes home and all crashed - Sawyer crashed before we made it home. That evening, we went to Silver Star for a barbeque and fireworks at Park City Mountain Resort. Again, all the kids had a blast, and it was good to spend so much time with the whole gang. It was a great weekend.
America...home of the free, liberty, hot dogs, apple pie, gas guzzling SUVs, and American flags that were made in China! Oh, America!