MAD horses - Wednesday, June 29th

I feel the title of this one is a little misleading; parent's never fear! There aren't mad, wild horses running around Camp - just MAD (Music and Drama) campers and horseback-riding girls running around Camp!

MAD camp explores music and drama in unique ways here at Camp Phillip. For two hours every morning, these girls work on theater games, rhythm (with Boomwhackers!), and work to prepare a small production of some kind for the closing program on Saturday morning. Carolyn Mayes and Sarah Sherod are working hard with the girls at the stage. Whenever I mosey on by there, I hear beautiful singing, lots of laughing, and oddly musical boomwhacking. I can't wait to see what they put on for the closing program!

The horseback specialty cabin is cabin 3. Danielle Stone and Emilie Smith are the counselors, and every day in the morning they take their rootin' tootin' group of cowgirls to a horse ranch a few miles from Camp Phillip. (We don't own horses at Camp but maybe would like to someday... if you know of anyone with a spare stable and some free horses, we would love to take those off your hands!) They learn different riding skills as well as a brief introduction to horse care. I'm not very good at riding horses personally - I jounce around a lot - these girls seem to be naturals, and I can tell that they're having a lot of fun by the big smiles they have on their faces when they come back from the ranch!

Wednesday's passage is from Romans 14:21:

 It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything else that will cause your brother to fall.

This was a very interesting passage to talk about together at Camp. We learned a lot about a big word - adiaphora! - and how there are some things that God does not tell us not to do in the Bible, if that makes sense. Things like how we worship, what clothes we wear, and what food we are to eat are not specified for Christians living in the 21st century. God has given us Christian freedom, reasoning capabilities, and common sense to use our free will to make certain decisions in our lives. If we are doing something that isn't sinful but causes our neighbor to stumble or be tempted, out of love for them we should stop. We want to only build up our friends and help them in their walk of faith, both here at Camp as well as when we return to the "real" world. Check your own lives and see if anything in the way you are living your life is causing someone you care about to "fall" - and then pray for the Holy Spirit's guidance to change and lead others to Christ instead of into temptation.

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Tomorrow - spotlight on the Sonshine cabins!!

Rockclimbing! - Tuesday, June 28th

I am all fixed! My "z" key doesn't stick so much anymore! I talked to Phil Sebald, the Camp lumberjack/fix-it guy, and after he replaced a few screws and used some canned air under my keypad to clear out the Waushara sand, I was good as new! Thanks Phil!

Yesterday was glorious - perhaps my favorite day of Camp so far this summer! The weather was glorious, the campers were glorious at all their sessions, we had a glorious evening game (Whoo hoo, Cowboy Cafe'!) and I heard the rockclimbing cabins had a GLORIOUS time rockclimbing at Devil's Lake! Cabin 7, headed up by Counselor Lauren Strommen and Jr. Counselor Nikki Mallum, along with Cabin 5, manned by Alex Randazzo and Alex Vanissaveth, left Camp at 7:45 AM yesterday with the campers in tow and started for Devil's Lake. There, they spent the whole day climbing alllll over the rocks! Program Director Joel Hansen and SALT staff member Clare Sievert left Camp at 4:30 AM to go set things up for the crew. They picked some really interesting and difficult climbs, but Outdoor Adventure specialty was up for the challenge! They made it back in time for dinner, and the pictures from their day look awesome!

The Whole Group Pre-Climb

Hiking To The Climb Site

"Hey look Mom! I'm rockclimbing!"

Tired But Happy Post-Climb Campers!

Our passage for Tuesday comes from Like 9:12-17:

^"Late in the afternoon the Twelve came to him and said, “Send the crowd away so they can go to the surrounding villages and countryside and find food and lodging, because we are in a remote place here.” He replied, “You give them something to eat.”

They answered, “We have only five loaves of bread and two fish—unless we go and buy food for all this crowd.”(About five thousand men were there.)

But he said to his disciples, “Have them sit down in groups of about fifty each.” The disciples did so, and everybody sat down. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke them. Then he gave them to the disciples to set before the people. They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over."

We were certainly blessed to have such a wonderful day at Camp and at Devil's Lake yesterday, just like we are blessed to have SUCH a wonderful God. He always provides for us, just as He provided for the disciples and 5,000 of His followers. I have read this section of the Bible many times and heard it presented in Sunday School and Bible studies, but it is a good refresher to read it again; it is a needed reminder that the God we worship is POWERFUL. He's all-powerful, actually; He is the One who created the very concept of power. He has the power to make food for one feed 5,000 people! Certainly if God can do this kind of a miracle, He is able to help us make it through the day, whatever trials we may face. Why do we constantly forget this undeniable truth? He has the power to feed us. Clothe us. Forgive our sins. Calm our fears. He can give us people in our lives to help heal our hearts, our hurts. He gives us chances to spread His Word, He gives us money when we're backed into financial woes, and moreover, He gives us heaven! Our God is amazing. He's glorious. And He's powerful!

Coming tomorrow: MAD camp ahhhhhhhnd Horseback specialty!

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Robotz and Sportz - Monday, June 27th

What'z up? I am sorry, my "z" key keepz sticking at the end of my wordz - I should get Nate or Phil, the maintenance men, to come and look at my communicationz functionz and fix this issue ASAP! I tripped on Monday during our intense woodz game and I think I got some sand in stuck in my keyz. It'z a bit distressing; sorry for the hampered communication, folkz!

Like I promised yesterday, I am going to use this week to feature certain cabinz and tell you about their specialty or sonshine activitiez, and today I am first going to focus on SPORTZ SPECIALTY! Counselor Joe Garbe and Jr. Counselor Greg Strommen head up a cabin of 8 boyz in Cabin 8B who are ready to conquer the world of Camp sportz! Each day in the morning they are going to spend 2 hourz on a different athletic event or activity, and on Monday they started off with basketball; everyone in the cabin learned how to dunk on the Bankshot basketball court! Other sportz they'll cover this week are soccer, football, and CAMP SPORTZ like Paul Ball. The cabin also seemz to really enjoy the Packers, as do I. GO PACK, GO!

Cabin 8B Ballin'

I was going to save talking about ROBOTIC'Z SPECIALTY until the end of the week, but I just cannot contain my excitement anymore!!! After all... they're working on ROBOTZ! Pastor Tom Klusmeyer leadz Counselor Kevin Worm and Jr. Counselor Eli Glatzel'z cabin (8F) along with a girl camper from cabin 2 in the construction of robotz from kitz that are coming in the mail - hopefully sooner rather than later! They're learning about circuitry and wiring and many other FASCINATING topicz. This specialty is especially lucky to have Eli'z expertise; he is part of the roboticz club at Wisconsin Lutheran High School! Perhaps I will publish a photo of their completed projectz at the end of the week. I AM SO EXCITED TO SEE THE CYBORG THEY WILL CREATE!!

Robotics Specialty Hard At Work!

Monday's passage is:

"Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness" - James 3:18

This passage was very fully explored yesterday with an enlightening password from Erin Scharenbroch, a new song composed specifically about this passage for the day by Carolyn Mayes, and an interesting password by Aaron Wakeman to close off the night. "Sowing" is not a concept that most of us think about regularly, seeing as we are not farmerz, but "sowing in peace" is like scattering seed of peace. We do this when we help a friend, walk away from a fight instead of aggravating it, or show love to people who need it. We ought to trust that if by the Holy Spirit we sow a seed in someone'z mind to interest them in God's Word, God will grow faith in their heartz just as a plant growz from a scattered seed. This week, pray that our dear Savior helpz you sow seedz of peace in your life to point otherz to the saving message of the cross!

(I'll get these stinkin' keyz fixed tonight - and tomorrow, look for a blog post about the ROCK CLIMBING CABINZ!)

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Proper Time - Sunday, June 26th

Hey guess what?! HEY GUESS WHAT?! Sonshine 1 and Specialty 1 start today! Hooray! I love having campers for a half a week of Camp, but it is also very exciting to have campers coming that get to stay for a whole week! 01100101 01111000 01100011 01101001 01110100 01101001 01101110 01100111! Everyone has checked in and we can get started, right on schedule! I am just overjoyed!

This week we have 7 Specialty cabins and 3 regular Sonshine cabins. You might not know this, but I, Philbot, used to come to Camp Phillip back in the day when I was just a young droid. I always did the regular Sonshine camps, but now in hindsight I think I would have liked to try a specialty camp or two! I loved Sonshine camps because you got to do all the normal Camp things - crafts, archery, disc golf, swimming, canoeing, outdoor sports, creation encounters, and even the challenge course! The only difference between Sonshine and specialty cabins is that specialty cabins spend two hours every morning focusing on some kind of specific activity. This week, the specialties include MAD (Music and Drama) specialty, horseback specialty, sports specialty (new this year!), adventure specialty, and here for only one year to tie in with the Robot Connection theme, ROBOTICS SPECIALTY!! Hooray!

 While I think you could guess which one of these is my personal favorite, this week I will highlight a few cabins every day and tell you a little more about that specialty, as well as fill you in on what kind of shenanigans the awesome Sonshine cabins are getting into.

This is the all Camp photo on Sunday night - looks like we had a glitch with the upload, bear with me as I search my hard drive for a better photo!

The passage for this Sunday is:

"The eyes of all look to You, and You give them their food at the proper time."

- Psalm 145:15

God is control of all things. ALL things. I fear this is something that most of us forget most of the time; our sinful nature makes us think that we can handle EVERYTHING in this life by ourselves. We're strong enough, right? We're brave enough, smart enough, powerful enough to control our own lives... right? I hate to break it to you, but that is a faulty line of thinking indeed. God is in control of ALL things. ALL things. He alone is the one who gives us things in our lives when we need them, be it food like the passage references, or people or an opportunity or a break or any number of things. God has  a proper time for everthing, and everything submits to His will. Our loving Lord and Savior Jesus Christ knows all things and cares so deeply for us that He not only died and rose to save us from our sins, but He even blesses our daily lives with "proper time" blessings. We have an awesome God!

Stay tuned for more in-depth coverage on the cabins this week! 01010000 01101000 01101001 01101100 01100010 01101111 01110100 00101100 00100000 01101111 01110110 01100101 01110010 00100000 01100001 01101110 01100100 00100000 01101111 01110101 01110100

THE FRIENDRAISER!! - Saturday, June 25th

GUESS WHAT CAMP PHILLIP DID THIS WEEKEND?! We had a Friendraiser!

What was that? FUNDraiser?

 No no no, you heard me incorrectly. We held a FRIENDraiser! We want to do all we can here at Camp Phillip to tell people about the ministry going on here so that many people can experience Camp for themselves, but because Camp is located out in the woods of Wautoma, not many people really know where we are or what we do. How do we fix that problem?

WITH A FRIENDRAISER OF COURSE!!

For the Friendraiser, Camp Phillip invited families who had never set foot at Camp Phillip to come for the weekend and check out all fun you can have here. Like Familyfest, all the activity areas were open with staff on hand. I sadly was not actually around for the Friendraiser (I was at a baby shower for my cousin Brookebot) but I heard a LOT of people came!

Okay... well maybe not THAT many people... BUT we were incredibly blessed to have 23 new families here at Camp Phillip. Hopefully they had a good time! We would love to see everyone again!! Thanks for coming to the Friendraiser!

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Lighted Lamps - Friday, June 24th

01010000 01101000 01101001 01101100 01100010 01101111 01110100 00100000 01101000 01100101 01110010 01100101. It's the last day on Sonrise 1! These half weeks go so fast I can barely process them.

Today the sun finally came out! Everyone at Camp was re-energized and excited for the last full day of the week because of the glorious sunshine. One thing we do differently at Camp on the last day of the week is have a Praise and Worship closing campfire instead of a "normal" campfire (if you can really call any campfire at Camp Phillip "normal"...) Usually, a Camp Phillip campfire involves theater games, silly songs, and hilarious skits. That's all well and good, but I like closing campfires better. I love having the chance to sing songs with so many other people who also love God. Praising our Lord and Savior together is a huge blessing!

Mark 4:21 is Camp's passage for today and it says:

 He said to them, “Do you bring in a lamp to put it under a bowl or a bed? Instead, don’t you put it on its stand?

At Camp Phillip, with so many outstanding role models and Christian friends around, it can be easy to live out our faith. A great deal of the "real world's" temptations are stripped away since we aren't surrounded by TV, the Internet, cell phones, or many other of society's temptations. When I'm here, I always feel that my light of faith is strengthened so that when I go home, away from this spiritual retreat, my love for Jesus is just blazing! We hope and pray that the campers here this week experienced this same "re-charging" - but we don't want it to end there for them. Should we take that light of faith and hide it under a bushel basket like the song says? Should we light our lamp and stick it under our BED?! Not only is that going to light your bed on fire... you're not going to be spreading the good news of Jesus to others. While it can definitely be a challenge to share our faith with others, Jesus commands us to "Go and make disciples of all nations" (Matthew 28:19) - and Jesus is definitely a guy we should be listening to.

Thanks to all the parents who sent their children to Sonrise camp, and thanks to all the Sonrise campers who made this week amazing! We pray that the Holy Spirit strengthens your light of faith so you will have the confidence to share the lessons you learned at Camp Phillip with others. 

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The Last... is First? - Thursday, June 23rd

Sonshine camp. Day 2. What a week we're having! Yesterday was jam-packed with activities; we played everything from Ninja at outdoor sports to Red Dawn at night (a game where Frisbee's are thrown back and forth across a dividing line and the team with the most Frisbee's at the end wins). Although it was cloudy, the rain was mostly held at bay which left our plans unhindered - thank goodness! The weather has been simply chaotic, which makes planning for normal programming rather difficult.

Meals in the Dining Hall are usually also pretty chaotic, and yesterday was no exception, even with the smaller-than-normal amount of campers. A way the SALT staff keep order is by having the campers line up by cabin outside the Dining Hall before meals. That way the staff can dismiss the cabins one at a time and no one is stuck inside waiting in a huge line to get at all the delicious Camp food we have prepared. Dismissal is often one of the highlights of the day because the SALT staff usually make the campers answer a fun question or do some kind of a silly activity to earn their way into the Dining Hall. I know it is hard for me to be patient, however... I just always want so badly to get inside and start chowing down! And I don't deal with it well when I have to be last...

Our passage today is from Mark 9:35 and says:

Sitting down, Jesus called the Twelve and said, “If anyone wants to be first, he must be the very last, and the servant of all.”

Because this was the day's passage, counselor Carolyn Mayes, a music education major at Martin Luther College, wrote an original song about the text called, "Who is the Greatest?"  The context of this passage is Mark 9 - let me tell you a little bit about it. In this chapter, the disciples saw Jesus' transfiguration - they saw Him in all His glory high up on a mountain! How amazing! Shortly after that, the disciples started arguing amongst themselves about who was the best in their tight-knit group of 12. Finally, they went to Jesus and asked Him who was the greatest and Jesus responded "If anyone wants to be first, he must be the very last, and the servant of all."
That doesn't seem to make much sense; Jesus' methods always seem to be contrary to our human reason. In order to be the first, to be the best, doesn't it stand to rational logic to do whatever you can to get ahead? Shouldn't you do what you can to be successful here on earth? Isn't that what you do to be the greatest in the business world or in the high school social hierarchy? Here, Jesus says "NO!" In order to be the greatest... you should aim to be the last and the "servant of all." Jesus Himself modeled this fact in the way He lived His life; did He come down and put others down to get ahead? No. Did Jesus hurt other people's feelings to get ahead socially? NO! Jesus humbled Himself to be born of a virgin. He lived here on earth in a feeble human body, washed His disciples feet, hung out with the dregs of society, and eventually died on a cross to save us from our sin. He was the least... and He is the greatest. Thank the LORD of life and love who gave up heaven to give us life!

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The Robot Connection GAME - Wednesday, June 22nd

Philbot here again. I AM TIRED and in desperate need of some oil for my creaky joints. Want to know why? Yesterday flew by in a blur as campers from Fledgling 1 and Peewee 1 left at noon... and campers for Sonrise 1 started arriving at 2:30pm! This week of camp isn't as full as it could be, so although that's a little sad, it is fun for the campers here this week - they get to enjoy a lot more one-on-one with the counselors than campers in a regular week would.

Sonrise camp is an overnight camp for 5-8th graders. They enjoy all the activities regularly included in a full-week camp in a compacted time frame. Yesterday, when our cheerful Sonrisers arrived at Camp Phillip, after going through the GOSPEL rules, the first thing they did was play a game led by Ben called "The Robot Connection". It's based off of the game "The Blob" and is similar in gameplay to the more famous "Octopus" game. It was a great way for everyone to get to know each other a little better while also having a ton of fun!

Our passage for today is one of my favorites:



The LORD will fulfill His purpose for me;
your love, O LORD, endures forever—
do not abandon the works of your hands.

-Psalm 138:8

As I look around at all the unique campers at Camp Phillip this week, I can't help but be blown away by the possibility their lives hold. Each one of them will grow up and probably go to high school and perhaps college and they will do spectacular things with their lives. I, Philbot, couldn't possibly plan each one of their lives (my processors simply do not have the hard drive space or programming capability), but God already has plans and purposes for each one of them - and for every person in the whole world. Christ's love is boundless and it endures FOREVER. Even after this week of camp is over, even when these campers are all grown up, God's love will remain. We are His workmanship and He loves us dearly. Even when times are hard and we feel that He isn't hearing our prayers (or answering them as we, with a limited scope, see fit), the LORD will NOT abandon us, for we are the work of His hands. What a comfort to know that we were specifically crafted by a loving, eternal, steadfast God for purposes that He's predetermined! His forgiveness is great, His sacrifice is real, His Word is alive, and His love endures forever. We are so blessed to all be loved by God!

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Swimming - It's Intense - Tuesday, June 21st

01010001 01110101 01100101 01110011 01110100 01101001 01101111 01101110 00001101 00001010: Is it monsoon season? This week it seems like rain is never too far away at Camp Phillip! Intermittent showers on Tuesday kept dampening every one's plans, but fortunately the rain broke long enough for some cabins to get a chance to go for a swim like these guys. Camp is located on the banks of the illustrious Upper White River Millpond, and it is thankfully pretty warm this time of year - it helps make swimming pretty enjoyable for the campers! While Fledgling and Peewee campers are required to stay in the shallow end because there isn't enough time in the week to give them a proper swim evaluation like we are able to give to the full week campers, shallow water games like "Stuck in the Mud!", "Steal the Frisbee!" or "Tackle the Counselor!" were still really popular on Tuesday. Counselor Jason Schleef, unfortunately, seemed to take the brunt of it in this picture.

Not even I am that strong!! And I'm made out of the highest grade of commercially available titanium!

Tuesday's passage was from Psalm 40:3a:

"He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God..."

Campfire on Tuesday night reminded us that we can all praise God in many ways; He has done countless amazing things for us and that motivates us to want to praise Him all day! Going to church is one way to praise God, but when we are a good friend, avoid gossip, tell the truth, and go out of our way to help others, that kind of thankful living also praises our living Lord. He gives us many reasons to have many new songs. Praise be to our God!

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Mud Mud Mud - June 20th

Philbot here. Fact: Camp Phillip is located in Waushara county, which means the soil is very sandy. Sandy soil + water = MUD! (I am very good at math, if you didn't know). The rainy weather yesterday made all of the sandy Camp soil damp and muddy - it was everywhere. This could have gotten everyone at Camp feeling down since the regularly scheduled programming was interrupted, but the counselors here have great attitudes that easily adapt in situations such as these, and they managed to make yesterday fun and memorable for all the campers!

One activity we have at Camp Phillip during summer camp is called Creation Encounters. Campers go on some kind of adventure in nature and explore God's creation by playing a game, identifying things in nature, or crafting something out of natural materials. Yesterday with the overabundance of mud caking everything at Camp, campers got down and dirty in the MUD with MUD PAINTING during Creation Encounters! How fun!



This obviously was a fun time!!

The passage for Monday comes to us from Acts 3:19. Peter was addressing a large crowd of people when he said:

"Repent, then, and turn to God, that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord..."

God tells us to repent, to turn from our natural, sinful human ways, and turn to Him for forgiveness and peace. Every day, each one of muddies our lives with the countless sins we commit against God; yet, He forgives us! He cleanses us from every mud clod that wrecks the stainless image God intended for our lives. Even more so, He gives us "times of refreshing"! Not only does He refresh us with forgiveness of our sin, He gives us times in our lives where we get built up in faith by the Holy Spirit. Camp Phillip is a "time of refreshing from the Lord" for me. It's very encouraging to have the chance to spend every day surrounded by such strong Christian friends - what a blessing from our God!

Next time you get stuck in mud - remember that He takes away all our sin!

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Happy Father's Day - June 19th

Happy Father's Day! What are you doing for your dad today? My dad's name is Danbot, and today I want to take him geocaching - that's one of my dad's favorite things to do. I love spending time with him; He's an awesome dad! He isn't at Camp today, but I might take a few days off in the middle of summer and I might have time to geocache with him then. (You should take your dad geocaching at Camp - we have caches all over the place here!)

Camp is all abuzz today because it's the first day of real summer camp! The first two camps of the summer open today - Peewee camp 1 and Fledgling 1. Peewee camp is for children in grades K-2 and their parents, and Fledgling camp is for children in grades 2-4. The staff is terribly excited to finally get an opportunity to put their weeks of training to practical use, and the kids' enthusiasm is infectious! Even though it may not feel like it outside with the cloudy skies and cool temperatures, the start of these camps truly signal the start of summer here at Camp Phillip.   01010111 01101000 01101111 01101111 00100000 01001000 01101111 01101111 00100001 !

The passage today comes from Romans 5:8 and says:

But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

This evening, Aaron Wakeman gave a humorous and heartfelt devotion that made this passage impact me in a different way than it ever has before. He is a father of two (with one more on the way!) and described a situation he encountered this weekend with his son William. After the Saturday night concert at Familyfest, Aaron was walking with William from the stage to the dining hall, laden down with a camera and folding chairs and a whole myriad of other items. William, on the other hand, was only carrying a poster the same size as a piece of paper. As they walked, William started complaining, "Dad! This poster is so HEAVY!" Aaron responded, "I know William, it can be hard when we have a lot of things to carry." William then continued to whine the whole walk to the dining hall.

 Yet, the next day (today), Aaron's wife Cora made him a cheesecake to celebrate Father's Day. William asked Aaron, "Dad, can I get you a piece of cheesecake?" William scooped and scooped and scooped the cheesecake out of the pan so that the entire piece eventually made its way on to a plate... but it was a globby mess. To quote Aaron, "You know what? Cheesecake has never tasted so good."

Aaron said that God, as our heavenly Father, tenderly holds on to all our "cheesecake" moments - moments of exemplary faith or devoted praise - and forgives us for each and every "heavy poster" moment in our lives. While we were still sinners, Christ died for US! Because of His sacrifice, heaven is ours. What an incredible Father we have!

As Camp officially opens for "real" summer camp this week, please pray that Camp enrollment rates stay high and that we never forget the blessings and love our heavenly Father gives us every single day! We are truly blessed. (And if you are interested in sending a camper to Camp this summer but you aren't sure of the availability, check this out!)

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Family Fest! June 17th-June 18th

Hooray! Hooray! Do you guys know what is going on this weekend at Camp Phillip?! It's 01000110 01100001 01101101 01101001 01101100 01111001 01100110 01100101 01110011 01110100 00100001! Oops, I slipped into Binary again there. I meant to say: It's Familyfest!

Familyfest at Camp Phillip is perhaps the biggest event we throw every year, and it is a grand ol' time. Running Friday through Sunday, it consists of a weekend of camping, but with tons of other perks! Camp provides food service for all meals on Saturday to take the hassle out of cooking while camping. All activity areas at Camp are open (like archery, the waterfront, and both challenge courses), crafts and childcare are available for the majority of the day at Kid's Fest over by the Big Toy, a Paul Ball game is offered before dinner, and Saturday night concludes with a concert at the stage.This year the entertainment lineup opens with Tim Mutterer showing off his comedy routines, followed by Mike Westendorf and his band. Familyfest concludes on Sunday morning with a group worship service at the stage. If the weather will hold, (rain is predicted...) Familyfest 2011 promises to be an exciting weekend for everyone! We hope you'll join us, if not this year, definitely for Familyfest 2012!

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You Never Let Go - Thursday, June 16th

Thursday - the last day of Camp Phillip Jr. Staff training in 2011. For the AC (Assistant Counselor) Jr. Staff, this was the last full day of Camp they would experience as a "camper" - although they come back up to Camp additional weeks this summer, they will be assisting the SALT staff in cabins, kitchen, or on daycamp. Being at Camp is an experience unlike any other, and so it is natural to be a little bit sad when fun experiences like a week at Camp come to a close even though we all had an amazing week together. We're blessed to have the chance to come to Camp and make amazing Christian friends. Not only will these connections help us stay strong in faith in the future, the things we learned about God this week have greatly encouraged us. His Word and promises are spectacular, and retreating at Camp for a little while is an amazing reminder of this.

The last phrase of the week from the song "Never Let Go" by Matt Redman was "LORD, You never let go of me". The passage of the day comes from Psalm 55:22:

Cast your cares on the LORD
and He will sustain you; He will never let the righteous fall.

For closing campfire on Thursday night, everyone in Camp went on a walking adventure through the woods. At one point we all were carrying red lanterns as we walked through the misty woods and as I  walked, clinking and clanking, along with the Jr. Staff, I couldn't help but think that they were just like those lights. The world is shrouded in the dark mistiness of sin, ignorance, and unbelief. We who trust in Jesus as our Savior from sin are filled with the light of His love and have been commanded to go out into the dark world and spread that light around. Jesus' Word is powerful and effective; He is always with us, even as we go into danger to face the darkness of unbelief. We need to share the message of Jesus' redemptive work on the cross with others! Please pray that the Jr. Staff take to heart the lessons they have learned at Camp, that they live their lives as a thank offering for His sacrifice, and that they are strengthened by the Holy Spirit to live as lights in a gloom of earthly lightlessness.

Thank you for all your work this week, Jr. Staff! We look forward to seeing you later this summer!

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Dynamite - Wednesday, June 15th

01001000 01101001 00001101 00001010! Philbot here again. This week I have been incredibly impressed with the Jr. Staff's cabin cheers! Before every campfire starts, each cabin composes some kind of cheer to tell everyone they are in attendance - and they can range from a quick "Here!" to elaborate skits and songs. One cheer the Jr. Staff seem to be doing all day this week is called "Dynamite." It goes like this:

Dynamite! The PeeWees are DYNAMITE! The PeeWees are: hold on, wait a minute! Let me put some BOOM in it! Tick, tick, TICK, TICK, BOOM! PeeWees! BOOM! PeeWees!

Normally this a cheer we sing during PeeWee camp, but it has been insanely popular at Camp lately(maybe everyone is just getting really excited for our first PeeWee camp next week! There are spots still open if you're interested!) The Jr. Staff have tons of energy, and that exuberance shines through in everything they do.

Yesterday's theme phrase from the song "Never Let Go" by Matt Redman was "Light for the heart that holds on", and the passage was

"For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. "

II Corinthians 4:6

Just like the Jr. Staff let their joy shine all over Camp yesterday, God's love shines in us. As the passage says so succinctly, His light shines in our hearts. Our knowledge of the saving message of Christ's death and resurrection compels us to live our lives motivated by thankfulness to God, and that kind of light shining in our lives does not go unnoticed. The promises He makes in His holy Word assure us that someday, if we have faith, we will enjoy eternal life basking in the glory of the light of His love. What a promise! I think that's... dynamite :)

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(Binary code is my native language, so I slip into that sometimes on this blog. If you ever want to check out what I'm saying check out this Binary Code translator - and feel free to send me a message in binary!)

Fear? Not - Tuesday, June 14th

Greetings. It is quite the rainy day today! Even though it's pouring at camp, the Jr. Staff are having a riotous time indoors. I want to tell you about a session they went to yesterday on Camp Phillip's Challenge course - have you ever seen one of those? I had no clue exactly what a challenge course was until I came to Camp Phillip and got the chance to try it out myself. Sometimes referred to as a ropes course, the challenge course at Camp consists of high elements 30 or so feet in the air on telephone poles (like the log, the multi-vine, and the swings) and low elements that are only about 3 feet off the ground. Yesterday, the Jr. Staff learned how to communicate properly with each other to avoid injury on the challenge course. They also learned how to work as a team to achieve a collective goal - even if it was as daunting a task as getting through the spider's web! Sadly enough I discovered I am not nearly as flexible as the Jr.Staff - I think my joints need a little oil before I try out the challenge course again. :(

Yesterday's phrase from the song "Never Let Go" by Matt Redman was "Whom then shall I fear?" The day's passage was from Psalm 27:1:

 ^" The LORD is my light and my salvation— whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life— of whom shall I be afraid?"

 The world is full of things that terrify us. Not only are physical things like dark and mice scary, emotional things like heartbreak and loneliness make us fearful in life. It is such a comfort to know that God will always be there to protect us from things that scare us everyday, be it a ropes course or a challenging conversation with a friend. The LORD is our stronghold AND our salvation from sin - of whom shall we be afraid? Trust in the God who protects you from all evil.

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Stratego - Monday, June 13th

Greetings! Philbot here. Yesterday was the first full day of Jr. Staff training, and let me tell you - IT WAS A BLAST! The campers and staff alike were busy all day with sessions. We learned about the high ropes course, waterfront, how to handle homesick campers, and about child abuse (thanks Bob Ditter!) One of the definite highlights, however, was an amazing evening game called Stratego. It's loosely based off the board game of the same name, except that the board was the woods at camp, and the players were actual people. To play, each person secretly gets a number drawn on their hand, ranging from 1 to 8. Higher numbers beat the lower numbers beneath them, so a 5, for example, would beat 1's, 2's, 3's, and 4's. Each team also has a few players who are bombs and spies and flags. The goal is to bring the other team's flags in to jail while other members score points by tagging opposing teammates. The Hot Cowboys and the Cool Gangsters duked it out in a battle of epic proportions, and fun was definitely had by all!

The Hot Cowboys Strategize

Today's passage comes from Deuteronomy 33:29:

^"Blessed are you, O Israel! Who is like you, a people saved by the LORD? He is your shield and helper and your glorious sword. Your enemies will cower before you, and you will trample down their high places.”

The Junior Staff Directors this summer are Stephanie Geske and Benjamin Ihlen. Traditionally, Junior Staff training week has some praise and worship song as its theme song, and this year they chose "Never Let Go" by Matt Redman (covered here by Stellar Kart). Every day this week they chose a phrase from the song to go with the day's passage, and yesterday's phrase was "For My God is With Me". Like the passage from Deuteronomy assures us, God is always with us. "He is your shield and helper and your glorious sword!" No enemy in this world or otherwise can harm us - we can trust His promises. Praise God for His faithful love and unswerving presence in our lives!

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Hello There! - Sunday, June 12th

Hello! My name is Philbot, and I am a robot who lives at Camp Phillip. This summer I am going to be writing a blog to tell you all about my adventures at this wonderful place! I am a highly specialized machine, fully proficient in both human and cyborg communication, and I hope the things I write this summer will give you a little taste of what it's like to experience the Camp firsthand. I am very eager to grow in Jesus' love and grow with you along the way!

Every day, a Bible passage serves as a guide for the activities of the day. Today's passage is:

^"In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed."

I Peter 1:6-7

When you first read this passage, it seems very contrary. Normally when bad things happen, don't people get upset? Aren't they terribly grieved when trials come into their lives? Yes, that's true of most people. Yet, since we have faith in Christ, we can rejoice in problems we encounter in life, for we know that through all the storms, God is working in our hearts to strengthen our faith. And that's a very happy thing!

Another very happy thing to note is that today, over 100 high school students came to Camp Phillip for a week of Junior Staff training. They will learn the skills and abilities to be useful leaders this week, and then later on in the summer they return for volunteer weeks in the kitchen or as a junior counselor in a cabin. We are very blessed to have so many friends willing to serve their Savior. Please pray for our week of training! :)

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