Day Five - It is Not Goodbye

 This morning we picked up where we left off in the account of Jospeh’s life.  Joseph is in prison, God enables Joseph to interpret the dreams of two of the pharaoh’s staff, and ultimately interpret the dreams of the pharaoh himself.  The pharaoh’s dreams predict 7 years of a rich harvest and 7 years of famine. Seeing God’s favor on Joseph, the pharaoh makes him second in command with the responsibility of preparing for the famine. 

Camper is putting on the Joseph costume to be a part of the story

Just as predicted, the famine hits and not only affects Egypt, it affects those in the surrounding area.  This includes Joseph’s family. Joseph’s brothers travel to Egypt to ask to buy food, Joseph recognizes them and tests his brothers see they have changed hearts from when they sold him into slavery, seeing their hears have changed,  Joseph reveals himself to them and provides food and land for his father and his brothers in Egypt.  

Buddies play the part of Joseph's brothers seeking food

While Joseph suffered in the beginning, God used those circumstances to save his family and provide for them.  Joseph states, “And now, do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you.” Genesis 45:5 NIV

If you want to learn more about Joseph, follow this link.

During this week, the camp drama team has been regaling the camper with the story if Bandyanna Bones and the Search for the Tree of Life.  The small band of travelers makes their way through the jungle in search of the Tree of Life, while facing many perils including a brush with an anaconda. They do find the Tree of Life at the end of their journey and agree that each person must make their own way to find the Tree of Life. 

Left to right: Native, Bandyanna Bones, Dr Banks, Prissy, and Lensy Lew 

The underlying message, that is spoken throughout the play is, if you want favor with both God and man, and a reputation for good judgment and common sense, then trust the Lord completely; don’t ever trust yourself.

Kid Royale hands out crocodiles

As in years past, the camp mascot, Kid Royale provides toys as a reward for campers doing Acts of Kindness. These acts can take on many forms, sharing toys, holding doors open, cleaning tables, the list goes on. All campers are recognized throughout the week and this year they received a stuffed toy crocodile. Kid Royale is a camp favorite. 

With today being our last day of camp, we packed up, had lunch, and traveled home.  Every year we preform a couple of songs for the campers’ care givers. This year we sang two camp favorites, My Lighthouse and Jesus Loves Me, the Go Fish version. 

There was also a video of the campers’ week that showed the fun events in which they participate.   Then the campers were off to finish their summer.  At camp we don’t like to say goodbye, rather, we say until we see you again.

Day Three- Hello Sunshine

What a difference a day makes. The campers were greeted with sunny skies and warmer temperatures today. Good weather means more opportunities to enjoy the camp's activities. Fishing continued to be a favorite activity, but campers spent time riding the zipline and doing woodworking.

Camper rides the zipline

The zipline was a new experience for some campers and it took a bit of courage to take that first ride. But once the new campers did so, they were hooked and took as many turns on the zipline that time would allow.

Dollhouse with people

There was also a lot of activity in the woodworking booth.  Dollhouses and birdhouses seemed to be popular today. Tom our woodworker gets custom requests as well.  Creating a tank from pieces of this and that is not out of the question for Tom.  

Custom tank built by Tom 

Birdhouse with lookout

Shirts were not the only thing being tied died today

Yesterday we learned that Joseph’s brothers had sold him into slavery. Fast forward to today, and Bible teacher Sue asked the question, “What did Joseph lose when he was sold into slavery?” The campers replied with family, pets, love of his brothers, mom, dad, his coat, and ultimately his freedom.  Our campers can experience a similar losses to Joseph’s which makes his story very real to them.  We know that the story ends well for Joseph, but during his struggle, it would be hard for Joseph to know this.  We will continue with Joseph’s story over the next two days. 

Camper playing Joseph when he is the head of Potiphar's household  

Camper set to walk the plank

Beside the story of Joseph, we also have object lessons. In today’s lesson we learned about facing challenges while carrying the weight of hurtful things we have experience in life. In essence, it is like trying to cross a thin plank while holding a bag of potatoes and being blinded fold.  We have to opportunity to give those hurtful things to God, ask for his healing, and address life’s challenges free of the burdens.  In our lesson, the camper was able to walk the plank from end to end, when he was not weighed down with the potatoes and with the help of Sue by his side.

Camper performs his talent of balancing a ping pong ball on a paddle while in flight 

If it is Wednesday during the week of camp, it is time for the Give it a Go show, where the campers perform for their buddies and staff. The acts ranged from songs, to art shows, with a mixture of dancing and puppet shows in-between. Each camper was cheered on as they performed.