November Comings and Goings

I can't quite find the words to describe the incredible noise created by a swarm of birds roosting temporarily in a part of the Kettle Moraine Forest on the Camp Joy property. 

After hearing what sounded like squealing heavy machinery for ten minutes, I finally went to investigate the mysterious noise. Behind the office, in back of the cabins, on a hill that looks down to the lake, I found the bare, end-of-autumn woods filled with birds--a rustling, chirping, stirring tumult. There must have been 1,000 of them traveling south in a flock and pausing just a moment as if deciding whether to stay or travel on.

In awe, I stood there listening until the swarm suddenly lifted and the noise hushed instantly to an eerie calm. I guess birds don't talk when they're flapping their wings. Through the silhouettes of trees I saw them wheeling around together, coming and going with the sunset behind them. The setting rays flickered as the swarm flashed in front of the sun and then past it again.

November sees much coming and going here at camp. One of our most exciting comings is a new family that will be joining the full-time staff! We're excited to give a warm welcome to Dale and Karen Innocenti and family! I know them from my home church in Illinois and am especially excited to have them join our team. Unlike the migrating birds, the Innocentis will be here to stay!

Another exciting addition to the camp is the purchase of the property on the corner next to the camp. Our new Welcome Center already has a building and drive-through, the perfect addition to the camp’s needs. Best of all, it will act as a face to the community and a first glimpse to guests arriving at camp. We're still waiting to see the funds come in to make the building ours, but I have no doubt that we will own the property before the end of the year.

Goodbye summer and autumn, goodbye migrating birds, hello future!

Nobody Would Ever Guess About the Tennis Courts

Introducing...*drumroll*... Bob Stanley!
Your average joe who has well spent his life!

I was lucky enough to get a personal session learning from Mr. Stanley, a pro photog. He once got to spend two days photographing Brett Favre.
(I'm a Bears fan, but I admire Favre.)
Favre's words to everyone were, "This guy works fast so everyone do what he says." Favre and Stanley respected each other and worked well together.

Stanley came to a retreat here and noticed me taking pictures. He told me I was holding my camera wrong.
When I sat down to hear what he had to say, he was off to the races! He's 80-years-old or so and doesn't often get opportunities to tell his story so I was his audience. He returned upon request several weeks later for a one-day tutoring session. We talked about composition and camera settings, lighting and landscapes, and his life.

He told me how sixty years ago he married his wife, Ella Jane, and they went to Europe. He wanted to bring pictures home to show his friends so he bought his first camera,
a Polaroid, I think.
...and the professional photographer was born!
He would go on to be...
a pro photog,
a professor,
and a hobbyist.
He would start several photography clubs
and spend time giving personal sessions to budding photogs. (like me)

But his story that sunk down deep was one he told about a chance meeting.
And Kalamazoo, MI has no clue what part he played or what they owe him.

A wealthy couple invited him and his wife to dinner. At the meal, he was concerned about knowing how to act at a formal dinner. His wife, Ella Jane, had told him, "Just do what I do." But when they were seated, he was placed beside the hostess and his wife was further down the table. The sympathetic hostess noticed his dilemma and told him, "Stanley, just go ahead and use whichever silverware you like. Did you see the pile of newspapers near the front door? We leave those there so people will feel comfortable when they come to our home."

As the meal progressed, he told the hostess about the school their church was building. The newspaper had recently done an article on the Christian highschool's construction compared to the public highschool's new construction. The hostess asked how the church board could pay so little for a nice building. The public school costs were much higher. He answered, "We can only spend what we have." She admired the board's attitude and remarked how she wished the city would see things that way.

Some time after the dinner, Stanley received a phone call. It was the hostess and she wanted to get in touch with the board. One thing led to another and she sponsored the construction of several softball fields and, a year later, several tennis courts. She paid to have them built on the condition that the town would be free to use them for community leagues in the summer when the school wasn't using them. The town would also provide the maintenance of the grounds...which they have done to this day!

He finished his story by saying, "To this day nobody would ever guess that those courts were a result of that fancy dinner when I didn't know which fork to use."

NOBODY would ever know...
Nobody would ever know...
Nobody...

Your life is touching people all around you. Although you can't determine the current, you can decide what boats of character to launch, and you never know where the results may end up.


*Names have been changed for the privacy of individuals and their families.

The Yes Worth the Less

I'm looking forward to a three-day trip with the girls next week, but in order to get the one extra day off, I need to work one extra day this week. No Big Deal.

But when I fill up a day...and then a week...and then several weeks in a row with "no-big-deals," I get tired and my mind does strange things. Lately this has been happening, and I regret the disorder that led to my anxiety. So (yet again) I've been looking for ways to keep my schedule manageable.

I read these two quotes about time recently. They expressed my thoughts much better than I could.

"Time is free, but it's priceless. You can't own it, but you can use it. You can't keep it, but you can spend it. Once you've lost it you can never get it back." ~Harvey MacKay

"Whenever you say yes to something, there is less of you for something else. Make sure your yes is worth the less." ~Louis Giglio

The first quote made me think of someone offering to pay for your meal. Who of us would order the extras we don't when it's our own money we're spending? None. Our mothers teach us to be extra careful when a kindness like that is offered. Neither does your time belong to you--God gives you today! You want to make every moment count.

The second quote made me think of a story about a woman named Gladys Aylward who rescued children in China around the time of the Japanese invasion. One of her girls brought home a tiny orphan boy name Les. The little girl said, "I know we don't have much, but I thought if we all ate a little less, there would be something for Les." And so they did and Little Les became part of the family. He was worth it!

I certainly do fill my time with trifles, and just as certainly my time can certainly go further than I've made it. With so many people around me and so much bigger than me, the time I can wisely invest outside of myself will not be poorly spent.

...And by the way, a three-day get-away with the girls is certainly a yes worth the less!

Web Hosting: Not an Online Party

I recently inherited a job--a lovely, challenging, rewarding, influential job...that often leaves me feeling perplexed. 

When I received the role of writing the text for a new website, I was elated because I love writing! But soon the job began to require more than writing.

I studied writing in college so I know how to conjugate a verb or diagram a sentence. I know how to structure and balance sentences for the greatest possible emphasis. I know how to use big words (that I don't always understand) to make my writing sound more photosynthesis. But all this computer work is new to me. You might say it's all Python or C++ or RubyonRails to me.

Finally, just when I thought I had the website under control, I saw a curve ball coming at me--web hosting! 

Now web hosting is no online party, even though there are servers involved. In essence, you purchase a subscription to part of a company's computer, the company stores your website for you, and you do a lot of hoping. 

You hope their up time is 

reasonable and support has a live chat. 

You hope they speak English and are 

not so busy fixing other bugs that you have 

to get a ticket and wait. (The problem doesn't.) 

You hope that the support can fix the 

problem quickly once they do get to you. 

You hope that NO other customers 

on that computer server get blacklisted. 

You hope that if they do, the host has 

a plan for removing you from that server 

while the problem is getting resolved.

You hope you can figure out what-in-

the-world they're talking about. 

You hope!

I hoped all these things and more. And then as I flipped between Google (defining mysterious abbreviations) and the back end of our website, suddenly...ding! The customer support team member was ready to chat and answer all my questions in excellent English. He directed links my way for quick reference. The computer stored my conversation for both parties to refer to later. It was beautiful! 

And when I sat back and closed the conversation, I checked my watch and thought, "Maybe I can take care of that other thing really fast." 

Living in Constant Whitewater, WI

I just read the book Who Moved My Cheese? by Spencer Johnson who coauthored The One Minute Manager (next on my reading list). I think most people could sit down and read it from start to finish in a short sitting--it's an easy read.

This is the kind of motivational writing that gets you off the couch and onto the track. He persuades his readers when change comes, to move with it not against it. In the foreword, Kenneth Blanchard who is the other coauthor of TOMM says, "As you know, living in constant white water with the changes occurring all the time at work or in life can be stressful, unless people have a way of looking at change that helps them understand it."

YES! Now I finally know why the city I live in is called Whitewater. It's not because of the sparkling lake beside the camp. It's because of the perpetual chaos of life!

Here are the seven "cheesy" mottoes from the book that help people deal with change.

1. Change Happens...They keep moving the cheese
2. Anticipate Change...Get ready for the cheese to move
3. Monitor Change...Smell the cheese often so you know when it is getting old
4. Adapt to Change Quickly...The quicker you let go of old cheese, the sooner you can enjoy new cheese
5. Change...Move with the cheese!
6. Enjoy Change...Savor the adventure and enjoy the taste of new cheese
7. Be Ready to Change Quickly and Enjoy It Again & Again...They keep moving the cheese

 I hope I've whet your appetite to read the book. And if you say, "But I don't even like cheese!" Then, my friend, it's time to change.

The End of an Era

We performed our last Fun Time tonight and reality began to sink in. This is the last week of summer camp! Everyone heads home on Saturday. Next week we will be back to regular 8-5 workdays and the quiet will be DEAFENING!! I will probably have no reason to walk all over the campground like I do now. I'll eat from the leftover shelf a lot more. I will sleep normal hours at night.

Soon we'll pack up the boats and close up the lakefront for cold weather. We'll load the horses into the trailer and send them back to the boarding stable. We will clean up and close up the gym snack shop. A cold wind will blow over the campground and a heavy fog will settle while we remain suspended in time and space like Brigadoon only to reappear on weekends for retreats…

…okay, so maybe I'm overstating things. But it is really such a different place after the official "summer" ends. Soon we'll be busy with school camps and private retreats, and we'll be working on maintenance to spruce up the facilities.

This particular summer exodus takes some of our full-time staff with it. It's hard when you realize you've come to the End of an Era. I remember when I worked at Camp Joy during my high school and college years. At the end of those five glorious years, I began to realize I needed to get a job to pay for school. I thought then that I would never return to the CJ summer staff.

But God had a better plan for me! Now I enjoy being a part of the Full-Time CJ staff, and I've got my fingers in way more than I ever thought I would. The care-free days of before are gone and there's a new Era to behold. That sun has set and a new day breaks at Camp Joy!

The Place of Small Things

Two weeks of summer camp down and a third one coming. Tomorrow teens will influx the camp—young people who are passing through (yes, just passing…) that stage of life where nothing seems certain, they wonder what’s wrong with their mental health, they struggle with working together with the older generation, and they look for a way out or at least someone with a sympathetic ear and maybe some good answers. (Good is relative.) We’ve all been there.

Campers often think, “I love camp! I wish I could stay here forever!” or say “You have such a wonderful job! It must be so wonderful to be here all the time.” And the truth is…that IT IS wonderful. I AM so blessed. But I can’t help but think when I hear that, “You have no idea if you think the fun you enjoy is all there is to it.” What a relief when I can finally pause! I love going to bed. The days seem full to bursting.

Tomorrow the camp staff will roll out of bed and head to morning services at our local churches and then after lunch prepare for the onslaught of enthusiastic campers who will step off the bus or climb from their cars fueled up on Mountain Dew and fresh and ready for fun. Two weeks already feels like a lot more to us, but we’re constantly reminded that every week is the first week for the campers that come. If we had to do this on our own, we’d have to change something. But God likes to use little things…to His credit.

If I could type 100wpm, weekly film and edit award-winning videos, drive mint-condition boats for pleasure in the afternoons, and knowledgeably and seamlessly run the soundboard each evening in the service, you all would be impressed with my ability. As it goes, I can’t type that fast, my videos don’t always turn out as I think they should, the boats sometimes malfunction and don’t start at swim time, and I forget to bring the files I need to the soundbooth.

Yet!...yet, God works all things together for good. (What a relief!) Responsibilities are taken care of. Videos are completed. Boats get fixed while campers enjoy other activities. And best of all—campers get the message. I mean, they hear God’s word and they believe it. And He has the chance to change their lives!

Zechariah talks about the way God likes to use humble people (meaning: not those who can do it "like a boss”) willing to do whatever He asks. He says it’s “not by might, not by power, but by my spirit…for who hath despised the day of small things?” Zechariah 4:6, 10

I am used to fill a small roll in a big ministry. If you are willing, God is able.

Living the Olympics

The Lord has His own plans in giving me this job. It seems like I'm daily running into software and technical problems that I am sooooo not qualified to fix. This is when I step back and call for reinforcements. I'm so thankful for the team of people I can go to for help, but then I often have to get back at it and work out the kinks it until it's fixed.

Life gets to feeling like the Olympics (only without regulation equipment and courses…and I didn't train for years for a single moment. I'm lucky if I get ten minutes to prepare for some things.) There are no pace cars, few time outs, and the only referees are usually part time sub-in players.

And my medal, my trophy for this feat called life is the prize of the high-calling of God in Christ Jesus. (Phil 3:14)

The Next Best Thing

My very first memories of Camp Joy would be something like playing put-put (aka driving range), discovering a "secret" trail through the woods, obnoxiously harassing the junior church teachers, spending my hard-earned quarters on ice-cream or candy, and other trivial memories that are meaningful to kids.

But there are a woman and a man who stand out in my early camp memory. He woke us up in the morning with corny jokes and music over the intercom. She gave me a ride in a golf cart once and taught me to read my Bible through every year. Mr. Jack and Miss Aleatha are these two special folks. If you've ever been to Jack's Cabin or Aleatha's Bungalow (the screen houses), these are named for them.

Mr. Jack recently passed away. He is now with Jesus Christ and God the Father in heaven. I am sad that I will never see him at camp again, along with many others that are far away or in heaven. What a special camp reunion we will enjoy some day!

Mr. Jack is also remembered for writing the Camp Joy theme song.

At Camp Joy we are taught Bible principles

About the Son of God

How to live, work, and play by these Bible truths

And walk the narrow way.

Camp Joy! Camp Joy! You mean much to me.

My life is full of fun.

May Christ be seen as I work and play

Winning others to God's Son.

Despite the changes since my childhood, God continues to give me His BEST! My past was best, and my present is best. This song reminds me of those best days at Camp Joy, growing up surrounded by godly people and fun activities. Although much has changed since then, it is still that special best place. And now I have the opportunity to give to others through Camp Joy!

Camp Joy! Camp Joy! You mean much to me.

Something Smells! Light a Candle.

This has all happened before, and it will all happen again; but this time it happened behind the oven. 

The triplex at Camp Joy, the humblest of dwellings, is a place we affectionately call…Home. (Well, what would you call it?) We sleep there, hang our clothes there, occasionally eat there, and if we’re lucky get to spend free time there.

Our home has all the modern conveniences of a smart house—the electric washer, the noiseless dryer, the touch lamp, and a little round radio on the ceiling over the stove that plays music when I cook—each item with its own unique qualities adding to the ambiance of a house full of gals. Of course the décor, wall hangings, pillows, and candles also add something to that effect. We like it.

But when something smells in our house, there’s only one thing we appreciate—a candle!

Who can say what goes on in other dwellings, but in ours candles serve both to create and conceal aromas. Sometimes the troubling smell is that of the centipedes sucked up into the vacuum. Other times it’s the vegetable brine brewing in the bottom of the garbage can. Once it was the noxious odor of something unpleasant dying behind the refrigerator. These things take their place in triplex history.

Recently, the intense smell that greeted us as we entered was both familiar and serious, and—this may surprise you—No candles were lit!

The smell was gas leaking from our oven. We decided that we really didn't mind the smell and preferred to keep our little house. Thankfully, the local handyman—I mean, one of the camp guys (he’s done much for us) came over and turned the gas off so we could breath. Since then, we have lived to tell the story…and burn more candles! 

One Thing

We all know how one little thing can make a big difference – like whether you pay the bill today when it’s due or tomorrow when it’s late. So it should be no surprise to us that procedures are in place for us when we choose to follow the Lord.

I was eating with my grandparents one day, and they were telling about a time one of the kids had knocked a part out of the freezer while filling up an ice chest. This tiny part happened to direct the water flow into the dispenser. Because the part was missing, all that water was shooting into the ice tray and freezing. By the time they found it, the icebox was a solid lump. What a difficult mess to try to clean up!

The problem was not a mechanical or electrical one. The water was available for use, but because one thing was missing, all that effort was wasted as it continued to shoot pointlessly into the icebox.

Christ spoke to a rich, powerful young man once about one thing he was missing (Mark 10, Luke 18). All his life, this young man had striven for success. He kept every rule he knew! But Christ said to him, “You still lack one thing.”

Like that disconnected water hose, all the young man’s efforts were spraying out vainly. He was incomplete by the Lord’s standards.  Chambers’s book My Utmost for His Highest says, “The one thing necessary by Jesus Christ’s point of view is union with Himself and nothing in between…not to save [our] soul (only one thing saves a man—absolute reliance upon Jesus Christ)—but in order to follow Jesus.”

One day Jesus was welcomed to the home of His good friends—Lazarus, Mary, and Martha. As usual, Jesus spent time teaching those that loved Him about eternal life. Martha had much work to prepare for her guests and became frustrated. She told Jesus, “Bid Mary to come into the kitchen and help me.” Jesus’ reply demonstrates the value of the one missing element. He says, “Mary has chosen that one thing which is most important, and that will not be taken away from her.” (Luke 10)

Mary’s heart was full of love for Jesus. She had chosen to sit at His feet and hear His words. Christ does not commend those who skip out on service. Neither does He condemn good works. He says that the one thing we lack is a heart of love for our God—a heart that causes us to choose Him before anything else we could desire.

It’s a difficult choice, and He often tests us by requiring from us the most precious of our possessions – not because He does not love us, for He often returns them once they are given, as He did with Abraham when called to give up his only son (Genesis 22). Other times God gives us something better. But He wants us to choose Him above every other desire.

If this sounds difficult or unpleasant to you, open God’s word the Bible. You will learn Who He is that asks this from you. As you come to know Him and love Him, you will find this is not so hard to do.

A Winter Festival at Lake Geneva

Angie and I went to Lake Geneva for a quick trip on our day off. We visited the museum, slipped along the slushy sidewalks outside the shops, viewed the giant snow carvings at the winter festival, inspected the smaller blocks available for the public to try their hand at sculpting, and then drove through the neighborhoods admiring the houses in that quaint little town.

At the Geneva Lake Museum, visitors walked through a timeline of replica buildings full of household implements and curios. Nearly everything was hands-on. Yippee! It was fascinating to learn how we in our little town fit into the grand history of the world.

One of the homes on the lake had been built with materials from a Chicago World Fair Exhibition. Parts of it were displayed in the museum. Another neat attraction was the 1880/1920 kitchens built side by side for comparison.

Outside although the streets were slushy, folks were making their way up and down, sipping their Starbucks to stay warm. Angie and I spied the bookstore at the same moment and popped in for a look. We didn't find Waldo though. Angie's hoping to find the book sometime.

Just a block or two from the museum, on the frozen lake was the winter festival--helicopter rides, four-wheelers, and the amazing 10-foot snow sculptures in front of the Riviera. After viewing the variety of lions, eagles, and fairy-tale characters, we saw a shop advertising Blackhawks paraphernalia across the street. Angie and I decided to browse. Go team!

We hurried quickly back to the car when we couldn't feel our toes anymore, then drove around a little to see the beautiful homes. Not a row of cookie-cutter monstrosities, each one was uniquely shaped with porches, windows, and ornaments and seemed to come from a different era. But mingled with the other houses, they blended to create a pleasant vacation-town array.

Summer or Winter, Lake Geneva is an attractive spot to enjoy a day off.
Click here to see the pics at Angie's blog.

The Perfect Retreat

What makes a perfect retreat?

The particular group that came this weekend loves outdoor winter activities, and the weather was very accommodating. A light fluffy snow fell all weekend long, covering every surface with a sparkling white blanket. The tubing hill was noisy with shouts of adults and children alike riding oversized inner tubes. The toboggan hill and the sky glide provided fun for those more adventurous. At the other end of the camp ground, the lake was frozen solid and availed itself for activities like skating and ice fishing by enthusiastic "polar bears." One enterprising young boy caught a fish and cooked two inch-long filets over the fire at the tubing hill.

Everyone that visits camp, enjoys the opportunity to relax and enjoy time with family and friends. In the fireside room, folks sat by the fireplace or played ping-pong and pool and enjoyed quite a bit of coffee. Kids chased each other up and down the hallways and through the dining room. Meals were enjoyed as families with parents and children interacting with ease.

Services were meaningful with good messages to encourage Christians in their walk with the Lord, and serious attention was given to God's word.

Yes, the snow did make some travel treacherous, the chapel did overheat once, one batch of meatballs did cook a bit too long, but no one seemed to mind much. The air of fellowship, fun, and rest was a blessing to everyone, and the beauty of nature refreshed minds and bodies. Yes, it was a perfect retreat!

It's (not) All Up to Me

Teachers, parents, and whoever you are responsible for the development of other people: Do you ever watch the up and down progress of your charges and wonder if you’re messing up, ruining them? It’s such a big responsibility to oversee the growth of a person. My influence on a person affects the next stage of their life and the next.

As a teacher, I know I am responsible for my students’ care. I know that what I do can determine how they advance. I know that it requires much more than I can give, and that as a human I am prone to inability, to weakness, and to failure. Sometimes I think of King Solomon and pray what he prayed.  

O Lord my God, thou hast made thy servant king instead of David my father: and I am but a little child: I know not how to go out or come in…give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge this thy so great a people? (I Kings 3:7, 9)

In other words: You gave me this job. It's beyond my ability. Please supernaturally enable me to do it.

Today’s Schedule of Responsibility: 

1. Identify the required activities for my position today.
2. Decide which I can do and which I know I can’t. 
3. Pray begging God to intervene in the ones I can't do.

He is now responsible for the results. And that’s a pretty safe place to leave it!