We’re officially in the swing of these here at Red Rock Bible Camp’s Summer Sizzler week. The campers have been here for a full day, and everyone is starting to get back into the feel of camp, or in some cases starting to figure camp out for the very first time. It’s been a lot of fun so far, so why don’t I just walk you through the day.
Campers woke up yesterday morning to some delicious french toast that is always a fantastic way to start the day. After finishing their plates and cleaning their tables, it was time for Morning Watch, where they met up with different staff members here who are their “Big Brothers and Big Sisters” for the week. The campers talked about truth with their older “siblings”, and this time is always a great time for campers to open up in a smaller group setting.
Morning Watch is a great time to learn about God, and also experience His creation, which is why it will always be a part of our scheduling here. From there we broke up into our cabin groups for Discovery, which is basically team-building with a message. Campers participate in activities that almost always use at least a couple blindfolds to help them to trust each other, and trust God. These kids were likely playing “Hug-a-tree” which has one person lead a blindfolded person into the bushes for them to hug a tree. Then the kids then go back to the basketball court and the person who was blindfolded needs to try to find the tree they hugged. It’s very cool how they often end up figuring it out.
And whenever there’s time left over, you gotta utilize the human knot.
From there it was skill time, which the kids were excited about since it wasn’t all going to be about orientation like it was yesterday. Take the archery skill for example. On the first day, you learn a lot about the parts of the bow, and how to shoot. Because it’s all introductory, your accuracy is usually pretty awful in the first few shots. But by day two, these kids end up being old pros.
After the first skill of the day, it was time for lunch which was chili! The chili was delicious, regardless of how strange it made Daniel look. For those of you who have been following the blog for a few months now, you’ll know that Daniel is an…interesting character. He used to have a mullet, and I’m pretty sure that everything he does now is just trying to compensate for losing the sweetest part about him. Just kidding. Daniel is a gem. He just makes strange faces sometimes. And has big muscles.
After lunch it was time for skill two, where we caught up with the Arts and Crafts crew who were working on their week-long projects. This girl here is working on her sock puppet, which actually ends up looking pretty cool by the end of the week. Maybe we’ll have an update on Friday, but for now we’ll focus on the intense concentration that goes into such a craft.
From there it was time for Swim, Boat, and Tuck which came in handy since it was so hot outside. For those of you who don’t know what Tuck is, well, it’s candy. One girl a couple weeks ago actually said it stands for Totally Unnecessary Candy for Kids. Pretty self aware for someone in elementary school. Regardless, tuck is great because the sugar keeps your energy at a nice high for a couple hours before you head back to your cabin to rest. Also, candy tastes good. Tuck is a fan favorite.
Hey look! It’s a tucknic.
During Swim, Boat, and Tuck we also have sports tournaments this week! We were going to have basketball and volleyball, but we had a whopping 32 campers sign up for a volleyball tournament, so the basketball didn’t make it out alive. Regardless, the volleyball tournament has been really fun so far, and has attracted some fans as well.
After the kids were all swimmed, boated, and tucked out, they went back to their cabins for FOB, which stands for Feet on Bed. For the most part this is used as nap time, but this week, a lot of the kids are memorizing verses during this time, as it is part of our Olympic camp wide game. It’s really cool to see these campers learn God’s truths, and actually memorize them for their lives. It’s a beautiful thing.
After the campers recharged in their cabins, they went back out to their skill areas for skill three. The Water Ex skill got the privilege of continuing where they left off from Swim, Boat, and Tuck as they were back in the water enjoying the simple pleasures of the deep dock.
The Red Rock Olympics continued on yesterday, as the kids started to earn some medals for their hard work. We actually made podiums that entire cabin groups can fit on, and Trembling Aspen got the pleasure of standing on top above everyone else, as they were the winners of cabin cleanup yesterday. What a moment.
The campers also enjoyed another great message from Kent in our second Chapel service of the week. Kent talked about how “the Truth hurts” and that being a Christian isn’t always going to be easy aswe all fall short of God’s glorious standard. However, we do have hope in Jesus, which is something that Kent will be focusing on in his message tonight.
However, the night didn’t end after Chapel, as once it got dark outside it was time for our Night Game. This year, the game is called Conspiracy, where cabins stick together to complete a photo scavenger hunt around the camp. The catch is that one of their teammates is wearing a bright orange shirt, and the cabin has to protect the orange shirted VIP from getting their picture taken from the paparazzi. It’s a great game, and a lot of cabin bonding was done last night. The best part? No injuries!
It was another great day at Red Rock Bible Camp. Please pray for Kent, and all of the counsellors, that the Holy Spirit can speak through them to connect with these campers. We’ll keep you updated again on the blog tomorrow. Until then, have a great day!
