Preacha Chick's Camp Report

Kansas Naz Kid's Camp 2008 was AWESOME! I think the pastors and leadership team had MORE fun than the kids did! :) This picture is of the back of my shirt with my new nickname, "Preacha Chick." I went by "Pastor Kwisty" since my arrival on the Kansas District but one of the teen counselors could not remember my name and asked another pastor, "Where is that preacher chick?" Some assumed I would be angry about it but I thought it was funny and laughed. I think this nick name is going to stick.

The chapel services were God inspired... and my favorite memories of camp happened about 45 minutes before chapel. Where the 3 camp speakers, Matt Wells (Chedda), Dewayne Horner (Sloppy Joe), and myself (Kwisty) would come together and petition to the Father on behalf of whomever was speaking that chapel. Those moments before God are my most precious memories... for it was in each other's presence that we were able to look into the face of God and feel God's love and value for us, through our experience of the other.

In the very first chapel service Dewayne and I preached tag team and it was amazing. It was probably one of the hardest things either of us had to do since we had to stay true to our transition lines so the next person knew when to sit and when to stand to preach again. We prayed all day, that God would help us to be one voice, the Lord's voice, instead of two very different voices. I think God answered that prayer and it was one of the coolest things ever. God used our differences to hit a variety of learning styles. It was a really fun way to kick off camp.

The next time I preached, I went on stage by myself but the other two speakers might as well have stood with me simply because of our responsibility and involvement in each other's preaching. Just before this sermon, two of my kids found out they had to go home because of lice. They cried and I was hurting for them. It was heartbreaking and sad they had to go home. So back stage, as I was getting ready to go up and preach the Word, the other two speakers stood next to me, quite literally holding me up and encouraging me. It was like the story where Moses needed his arms held up... as these other speakers were holding up my arms to go out to preach the Word.

When I went out on stage I think God took over and spoke through me. I talked about the mountain top experiences of camp being sweet... and how each person needed to be willing to give up what they want for what God wants. The reason mountain top experiences, where we encounter the Holy One, are sweet is because it is not about what we GET or HAVE. It is about giving up getting and having. When we encounter the Holy One we give up what we want, for what God wants. I read from scripture and showed how the disciples were a model for us of the self-sacrifice God asks to follow Christ as they gave up their boat, their fish to eat, their fish to sell, and even their families to follow Christ.

The very next chapel, Dewayne was to preach about humility and God was asking him to preach something other than his notes. He wrestled for awhile, praying and petitioning to God in front of the kids. And ask he spoke a message (different then he prepared), I heard God say... "Hey, Christy. It's me, God. Yeah. I'm going to need you to give up your sermon too." I about freaked out... "DO YOU KNOW ME GOD? I mean, I am organized. I've had this sermon DONE, researched, and ready for like 2 months." And God said, "Give it up."

So that evening, I had Dewayne sit on one of the set's prop rocks next to me and I said... "Last night I preached to you about giving up what you want for what God wants and this morning, we got to see someone we know and love do that right before our eyes. " The kids clapped, excited to see Sloppy Joe doing what God asked him to do. And then I told them how God asked me to give up my sermon and how hard it was for me. And then I said, "After I thought about it some more, I realized that Sloppy Joe and I wanted to preach and speak to you ABOUT humility and servanthood and God said, 'No.' Don't you see... I want you to SHOW them by giving up your sermons." And so with sensitivity to what God was doing, beyond our best plans... Dewayne, Matt, and I watched as God called several kids into the ministry, kids were sanctified as they gave up everything, and God worked on kids, adults, and teens alike that night.

It was that night at camp, we handed out white cards and I said to the kids, "Write on this sheet, what God is asking you to give up. Is God asking you to give up fighting a call into the ministry? Write it down. Is God asking you to give your whole life? Write it down." Then we had them bring their white cards to the front, laying them before the Lord. One little boy walked up to me and held up his white card. It read, "My Life."

God was doing something awesome at camp... and we were all so excited to be a part of it. The three of us had prayed together before chapel, "God do whatever, use us. We give you all we are and all we hope to be" and then we were blown away as we watched God do whatever because it was more than we could have ever done ourselves. We were able to show the kids that God can quite literally make you more than you could ever make yourself.


The final Junior Camp sermon was another tag team sermon... but Dewayne was so funny with his song of lament about the end of camp, I could not pull it together to speak. I laughed and laughed, trying to compose myself to just speak that ONE transition line. I couldn't do it. The whole entire chapel was laughing and laughing. Before that chapel, the three of us had prayed... God, show us how to preach about community. And God said, "watch as I SHOW them community through you all." That chapel was so fun. The kids are still talking about it. If you want to see pictures of that chapel see http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=45780&l=b0a70&id=679255776 Look for the pictures where I'm wearing a white shirt.

The other pictures on that link are of the incredible Cindiana Stones set! It was like preaching from a movie set, it was so amazing. You will also see the logo designed by Dewayne Horner and some pictures I snapped of the leadership team doing early prep work.

I think all of the leadership team cried when camp was really over, the set was torn down, and the water cart was returned. We spent 7 months planning and investing in camp and it was over. But the community we now have with each other, the things God did in the lives of all of us, will last forever. We (adults and kids) have left kids camp ready to actually GO BE THE UPSIDE DOWN KINGDOM. But we are finding as many excuses as possible to get together and love on each other in person too! :)

We enjoyed working together so much that if you ever need a speaker or know someone who needs a speaker, you may be able to convince our preaching team to take our God inspired fun on the road. :)

Breath of Life

The sermon on my heart these days is about the Breath of Life. I first preached this to my kids a couple months ago, again to a group of kids at another church nearby, and again on Father's Day, I preached this message to my entire congregation (adults included).

I started by talking about the book and movie "Holes." It is the story about a young boy, named Stanley who is innocently walking one day when a pair of shoes comes flying from the sky and hits him in the head. It turns out these shoes are Clide Livingston's shoes and are worth a significant amount of money. He is caught by the police and is taken to court where the judge does not believe he is innocent. The judge sentences him to Camp Green Lake, where there is nothing green and certainly no lake.

At this camp the boys (sentenced there) are to dig holes, 5 feet by 5 feet. Their shovel is their measuring tool. They dig holes in the hot sun. Sweat pours from their face and their hands crack and bleed. Digging holes is a nothing, hopeless situation.

The situation in Holes reminds me a lot of situations we see in scripture. In Genesis 1:1-2 we see formless void and nothing. What kind of an image does that create for you? Not a good one. It is almost like you can hear the scraping of Stanley's shovel in the dirt. Can you hear it? Hopelessness.

But what does God do with the formless void and the nothing? Genesis 2:7, "then the Lrod God formed man from the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life and the man became a living being." God breathes life.

In Ezekiel we see this crazy prophet set before dry bones. Dry bones... that's a nice mental picture, isn't it? It is almost as if you can hear the scraping of Stanley's shovel in the dirt. Can you hear it? Hopelessness.

But what does God do with the dry bones? Ezekiel 37:10, "I prophesied as he (the Lord) commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived, and stood on their feet, a vast multitude." God breathes life into the dry bones.

In John we see the story of Jesus dying on a cross. He bows his head and breathes his last. It is hopeless. It is almost as if you can hear the scraping of Stanley's shovel in the dirt? Can you hear it? Nothing. Hoplessness.

But what does God do with the formless void, the nothing, the dry bones, and EVEN death? God breathes life. John 20:19 says, "Jesus" (who had just died in chapter 19) "came and stood among them and said, 'Peace be with you." This shows that God breathed life into death! God is a God who breathes life into nothing!

When we look at our lives, we see some fairly hopeless nothing situations. Maybe its our family life. Perhaps you have looked at your family situation and wondered how in the world God was going to act. No one listens to you. Nothing goes right and it makes you feel the nothing. You feel the void. You feel the darkness. You feel the dry bones in your life.

Maybe someone in your life has died. You want to spend time with that person more then anything else. You miss them. You miss the relationship you had with them. It makes you feel the nothing. You feel the void. You feel the darkness. You feel the dry bones in your life

Maybe people have been mean to you. People you thought you could trust betrayed you and you are really hurting. It makes you feel the nothing. You feel the void. You feel the darkness. You feel the dry bones in your life.

Perhaps it is finances. No matter how many times you look at your books, it just does not work out. In fact, talking about money makes you feel sick. You feel the nothing. You feel the void. You feel the darkness. You feel the dry bones in your life.

There are some pretty helpless situations we find ourselves in that cause us to feel the death, darkness, formless void, and dry bones. BUT... when has this ever been the end of God's story?! WHEN?! God is a God who breaths life into the nothing.

When I preached this sermon to adults I gave them a card in their bulletin. This card had a picture of a flower coming out of snow with the word "hope" written under it. The sentence above a blank line read something like, "What do you need God to breathe life into the formless void, darkness, nothing, dry bones, and even death in your life?" And I played Jeremy Camp's song, "Letting Go," as I allowed them to think about what they needed to let go of and give to God for God's life-giving power and breath.

I am typing this out on my blog because I need to hear my own sermon. I need to hear God's Word to me... that no matter what happens, God is a God who breathes life into hopeless situations.

My pastoral prayer the morning I preached this sermon to adults was...
"Dear Lord God, the one who breathes life into our hopeless, darkness, void, and nothingness, Come near to us even now. May we sense the presence of your Holy Spirit's breath in our lives and in this world. And may we actually BE your hands and feet in the world where people feel so much hopelessness, darkness, and void. But God, sometimes we hurt. And it makes it really difficult to BE the Church when we hurt so deeply, when we suffer so much it takes our very breath away. Sometimes we are in so much pain we have no words to speak them to you. Come near to us in those moments. Remind us of your life-giving breath that you breathe out on all of us. That there is no situation too hopeless for you. There is always hope-- because you are a God who breathes life into our nothing. We are completely dependent on you each day. God we love you and confess together, Jesus Christ is Lord. Amen."