So it seemed strange to me this morning when the kids told me it was the first day of fall. What? Hasn’t it been fall for weeks now?

On the other hand, maybe it’s just the rain, but I couldn’t help but think the mountain is less green this morning than it was last night, and yellows are beginning to show up more clearly.  In the next six weeks, the leaves will all but disappear from the trees, and over 1200 people will come and go off the mountain. I guess fall has arrived.

Caleb will be remembered for many things, among them whoopee pies, pretzel rolls, teriyaki rattlesnake, sugar sculptures, and so on and so on. More importantly, an incessant sense of humor, in season and out of season- there was no stopping it. To know him is to know that if he wants you to laugh, it’s going to happen.  He also has a serious side, and has deep convictions that I know will be an asset to him as he serves the inmates. We’re sad to see him leave, but we are excited for him and his family as they follow this new opportunity.

If you have a funny or meaningful memory of Caleb at CrossRoads, a picture you could share, or a favorite meal or recipe, click below to go to the CrossRoads Facebook page and comment on this post as a parting blessing for Caleb and his family.

Click here to go to Crossroads\’ Facebook page

I can already tell a difference, and things are looking good! There are nice new colors in some of the rooms, and brush and debris is disappearing at an unbelievable rate. It is such a blessing to have so many people who love the Lord in one place, helping our ministry because they believe in what we do.

I know all of the staff, full time and part time, year round and summer staff are encouraged and uplifted by the smiling workforce all around. If you can join us for Saturday, come on! A little possibility of rain isn’t going to stop activity or dampen our spirits! (pardon the pun).

Click here to go to Crossroads’ Facebook page and view the Extreme Makeover photo album.

Right around the corner is summer camp- but it seems so surreal to think of it now. The empty buildings, the pervasive silence, the whole property seems to be in denial that the crowds and commotion are on their way.

The staff team is hard at work getting ready, and we would all appreciate your prayers for the upcoming summer ministry. Pray for the summer staff, for the volunteers, and for lots and lots of campers! If you know someone who would enjoy camp at CrossRoads, tell them about us!

I was so proud of our team and the way we were able to impact the whole experience. I got such great feedback from the group leaders for every area of ministry- from the help along the way in planning and preparing for registration, to the facility set-up and the beauty of the location, to the quality of the meals.

What I heard over and over from the students themselves was how friendly and helpful the staff was, and how it was so great to feel welcomed and loved, even though we were crowded and busy. My thanks go out to everyone who helped this weekend, and who helped set up for several weeks before hand.

Seeing the name of the Lord lifted up, and people learning to trust him deeper and better is what it’s all about, and that was evident this weekend.

There was even a baptism of a brand new believer in the Little Piney River! (did anyone shiver from reading that?)

Twelve students came up to CrossRoads for a weekend focused on Christian leadership earlier this month.

We used games and challenges as conversation starters and interactive object lessons as we discussed the need for Christian leaders to be connected to God, selfless, courageous, controlled and magnetic, and we had a lot of fun along the way!

It was good to see some of the LIT’s I knew well, and get to know some others for better. I felt like I learned a lot as well, from the Bible studies, from the discussions, and from the whole experience.

I look forward to repeating and expanding it for next year!

We start out in some spring, and we drop from rock to rock, until at some point there’s a stream, but no exact point, just generally, now it’s a stream. And we bounce off rocks, and get stuck in little eddies of doubt, pretentiousness, and pride until suddenly falling through to the next pool of rest in Him.

Faith grows and needs bigger rocks and longer drops and through the noise and commotion of rapids we end up in a quiet pool and realize, it’s a creek. There’s depth. There’s life. And we’re content, but God pushes us further- crashing into bigger rocks and swirling through deeper eddies, until there’s a river.

And at no point in the course can you see the beginning or the end, nor can we gauge how far we’ve come or how far it will be until we reach the ocean.

Reuben Todd and Chad Davidson collaborated on this blog post.

I had made sure that the pet’s food and water dispensers were full earlier in the day, because that was more than enough to get them through the week. However, I must have done something wrong, because when I put the chickens into their coop the night we left, I noticed they were out of water. It was late; there was still a lot of packing to do, so I decided to refill it in the morning.

I didn’t.

In fact, I didn’t think of it again till three days later, around 11:30pm, but it was too late to call Chad to ask him to check on them, so I decided to call him in the morning.

I didn’t.

The next time I remembered was at 3 am, I decided to wait till morning to call, and you guessed it, I didn’t. On the way home, I was worried, since I undoubtedly killed our chickens by leaving them a week without water. The rooster didn’t crow when we got home ( he usually does), and when the sun came up, I saw no movement. I went down to clean up the mess before the kids found them, but I was surprised to find they had all managed somehow to get out of the enclosure, and they were surviving quite well.

It’s a pretty well built cage, if I do say so myself, so I still have no idea how they got out. Except maybe verses like Mat 6:26, 10:29-31, and Luke 10:24.

It was exciting to spend time with other camp and conference center professionals from across the nation, fellowshipping and sharing ideas for ministry.

We came back with lots of great ideas.

Currently we are planning our 2010 summer staff reunion for January and we can’t wait to see all the counselors again! Applications for 2011 Summer Staff are now on the website! Merry Christmas!