HoneyRock Photo Contest and Scholarship Opportunity

We are having a HoneyRock photo contest for campers
entering Grades 3-12 who are coming to camp this summer!  We will accept entries from Thursday, April 8 through Wednesday, April 28,
2010.  Entries must be sent digitally to liz@honeyrockcamp.org.  The winners will be announced in the May E-Newsletter.

Put on some HoneyRock gear and take a picture in the most creative way or in the most outrageous location!  Make sure that "HoneyRock" is clearly visible. 

If you don't have any HoneyRock gear, you can make or print a sign that has the logo or says "HoneyRock" and use it in your photo.  

1^st
Place:  $250 Camper
Scholarship

2^nd
Place:   $100
Camper Scholarship

3^rd
Place:   $50
Camper Scholarship

For questions about the contest, feel free to email Liz
or call 715.479.7474 ext. 240.  This scholarship
can only be used for 2010 Summer Programs at HoneyRock and is
non-transferable.  Only one
entry can be submitted per person.  Offer
is not valid for the children of HoneyRock staff. 

We have a winner!

Congratulations to Meghan Walter who won our t-shirt design contest and will receive a $250 camper scholarship this year.  In second place was Chilow Jarosz and Emilie Szemraj took third.

We will be announcing a new scholarship contest on the blog tomorrow, so stay tuned!

If you haven't yet signed up to receive our monthly e-newsletter, you should sign up for it.  It is full of stories, educational articles, staff bios, pictures, and information about what is going on around camp.  Click here to sign up:  http://www.honeyrockcamp.org/enews.asp?storyid=151

A New Kind of Kingdom

John Vandervelde - Program Director   

It's been a busy start to the spring season this year.  Ten days in China, a long road trip to Holland, MI, to see family, and now preparing for a full summer here at HoneyRock has left me feeling a bit disconnected, slightly overwhelmed, and overly busy. 

I really hate the feeling of having too much to do and not enough time to do it.  I think we all do.  Despite telling ourselves we can multitask or that we perform well under pressure, let's be honest--no one really handles pressure all that well.  The frantic pace of our lives is hard; hard on our bodies and hard on our souls. 

As I look outside my window today and see new life bursting forth, as the grass begins to green and the trees bloom, and as I reflect on the resurrection of Christ, I am reminded of the new life and new hope Christ's resurrection brings.  I'm reminded not just to slow down and focus on people rather than tasks, but to care about real ministry rather than staff meetings.  But what is really cutting to my heart is a conviction to give my whole life, all I have, and all I am, and all I hope to be to Christ and His Kingdom.  Christ's kingdom is not about death, despair, and destruction but about life, hope, and creation.  I'm talking about being totally committed to Christ and being an agent for his Kingdom here on earth.  I want my life to be centered on Christ and the new life, hope, and purpose he brings through his resurrection.  As an agent for his Kingdom I want my life to be about bringing healing, hope, reconciliation, love, life, and joy to the places I go and the people I meet.  Being a Christian is not just about going to heaven when we die--it's about being agents of Christ's Kingdom while we are here on this earth!  Today, I'm not only convicted of my short-comings; I'm inspired through Christ to become more.  

So in the midst of our busyness let's not only try to be less busy, let's do the hard work of really giving our lives to Christ for his purposes and living as agents of the Kingdom of God today!  New life and new hope is bursting forth all around us, let's be a part of it!

Easter Sunday

Liz Henderson--Program Team Assistant

Happy Easter!  I hope that you enjoyed a great Easter weekend with friends and family celebrating the death and resurrection of Jesus.  I love Easter for a variety of reasons.  The most important reason is that God sent Jesus to earth to die for my sins.  But he didn't stay dead!  In the words of the Easter Song:  "Quickly now, go tell his disciples that Jesus Christ is no longer dead!"  What a profound statement!  Jesus was dead, but he is no longer dead.  He's alive!  He rose from the dead so that we could have new life in him. 

I also love Easter because of the opportunity to sing some of my favorite songs and hymns that celebrate the resurrection of Jesus: He's Alive, Christ the Lord is Risen Today, Up From the Grave, Morning Sun, Easter Song, Arise My Love, In Christ Alone, etc.

A few months ago I was introduced to a song by Keith and Kristyn Getty called "The Power of the Cross."  While the song itself is actually several years old, it was new to me and has quickly become one of my favorites, not only because of the beautiful music and instrumentation, but because of the powerful lyrics. 

Oh, to see the dawn

Of the darkest day:

Christ on the road to Calvary.

Tried by sinful men,

Torn and beaten, then

Nailed to a cross of wood.

Chorus:

This, the pow’r of the cross:

Christ became sin for us;

Took the blame, bore the wrath—

We stand forgiven at the cross.

Oh, to see the pain

Written on Your face,

Bearing the awesome weight of sin.

Ev’ry bitter thought,

Ev’ry evil deed

Crowning Your bloodstained brow.

Now the daylight flees;

Now the ground beneath

Quakes as its Maker bows His head.

Curtain torn in two,

Dead are raised to life;

“Finished!” the vict’ry cry.

Oh, to see my name

Written in the wounds,

For through Your suffering I am free.

Death is crushed to death;

Life is mine to live,

Won through Your selfless love.

Final Chorus:

This, the pow’r of the cross:

Son of God—slain for us.

What a love! What a cost!

We stand forgiven at the cross.

Today, let's live in the joy and reality that we stand forgiven at the cross.

Spring Break in Moab, Utah--Mountain Biking

Craig Miller--Southwoods Office

This past Spring Break saw a new chapter in HoneyRock
adventure trips with students having the option of participating in Mountain
Biking, Backpacking & Orienteering or Downhill Skiing.  All of these classes have been previously
offered through HoneyRock but the catch this year was the location.  Moab,
Utah and Winter
Park. Colorado were
the destinations as 23 students loaded into vans and headed out west.           

I had the opportunity to lead the mountain biking trip to Moab along with “Patch” Pollick, a friend of
Rick Masters, who joined us in Denver.  Despite some inclement weather in the
beginning of the trip, Patch and I along with the three intrepid students
enjoyed a wonderful week of biking and hiking through the surrounding deserts,
mesas, and canyons.  From watching the
sunset at the Delicate Arch in Arches National Park to biking the Slickrock
Bike Trail—one of the most renowned (and difficult) biking trails in Moab—our week
was filled with adventures, challenges, and breath-taking scenery. 

In addition to acquiring a new set of skills, each of the
students relished the opportunity to get out in creation and find time for
solitude. Several of the students had never been out West and for them, it
seemed the excitement at the new setting would never get old.  We set aside time each morning for personal
devotions, which provided a relaxing rhythm to the week.

 As on all HoneyRock trips, the time we spent off the trail
proved to be as valuable as the time on the trail, whether that was spending
time making meals together, cleaning the bikes off at a local car-wash, or just
sitting around the campfire in the evening. These were fruitful times of
discussion and discipleship as we talked about faith, life, relationships,
college, and many other things.

We will be taking a day off from the blog tomorrow for Good Friday.  Have a blessed Easter!

Stuff Christians Like

Becki Henderson--Administrative Assistant

This week my sister and I have been leading
HoneyRock devos
in the morning.  We have been reading out
of a book called Stuff Christians Like which was just released last
week.  The author, Jon Acuff, started a blog called
Stuff Christians Like about two years ago and it has grown into a
fantastic
blog with a worldwide following—I think over a million people read it
(although
I could certainly be wrong about that.) 
Jon was raised in a Christian home and does a great job of
pointing out
some of the funny things about Christians and things that those of us
who grew
up in that context kind of take for granted—like Vacation Bible School,
and
summer camp, and that guy in the youth group who plays guitar that all
the
girls like, and giving little kids fire to play with at Christmas Eve
services,
etc.

My favorite thing about his blog is what he calls
his “Serious
Wednesday” posts.  Each Wednesday he
writes a post that, although funny, contains a beautiful or insightful
thought.  He often looks at Bible stories
I am very familiar with (like the Prodigal Son) and points out something
amazing from a completely different point of view.

I would highly recommend this blog and also this
book, but I’m
not sure that his sense of humor would be funny to everyone.  I encourage you to check out a Serious Wednesday post and see what you think.