Much More Than Just Mountain Biking

John Vandervelde
Program Director

During Wheaton's fall break we had 10 students participate in our Mountain Biking class.  This 1 credit hour course offered through the Applied Health Science department teaches students basic to intermediate skills in mountain bike riding, bike maintenance, and safe trail skills.  But here at HoneyRock the course is about much more than just mountain biking. 

As is the case in all our programs, the instructor for this course, Rick Masters, led the course with a vision to develop people holistically.  Mountain biking skills were taught, and through that activity we developed character in young people.  Students learned valuable lessons about themselves and each other as they were challenged and stretched.  They spent time reflecting on how these lessons could be implemented in their daily lives.  One night during the class Rick took the students on an overnight camp out.  During that time students shared what God is doing in their lives, what they're struggling with, what they are learning and how they desire to grow.  Students encouraged each other and built a community of care and support.  Rick also gave the students time to spend in God's Word while surrounded by His beautiful creation.  Students today live in a hectic, fast-paced world that barely gives them time to sleep and eat, and students consistently comment on how their schedule allows for very little time alone with God.  Giving students time to rest their bodies and renew their spirits has become an integral part of the program.  Here are some excerpts from papers written by two students as they reflected on this year's course:

"In my life, I often spend my time either as a student or serving my fellow students as a leader in my church's college ministry. And, I can easily ignore the heart posture of Mary and exchange it for Martha-like work. Additionally, I plague myself with the anxieties of graduating in December and trying to find a job. Remembering to rest in Christ's sovereign rule is often forgotten. But, I am often reminded when I pick up my bass guitar and sing affirmations of Christ's identity as Lord that He is indeed sovereign: I re-enter the Sabbath rest inaugurated in Christ's finished work and remember Eric Liddell's words: "I believe that God made me for a purpose, but He also made me fast. When I run, I feel His pleasure." All of life, then, whether as a student, as a servant in church, or a struggling, beginner-level mountain biker can be offered as to God as a living sacrifice (Rom. 12:1-2) when I rest in His sovereign rule over all the cosmos, yea even my life."

"[As I reflect on the course] the concept of 'work-play' hits a lot closer to home than I initially thought. I sometimes struggle with the sin of busyness, and am very guilty of compartmentalizing work from an atmosphere of play. My newness I believe to faith is to blame for such phenomena. Striving to force change in my life when I accepted Christ along with confusion about what was acceptable recreation caused me to develop a somewhat hyper-work ethic, which I esteemed was safe. This was certainly not without the encouragement of my youth group workers to scrutinize my use of freedom, though there was certainly a time when that was needed. Just the same, to this day I have difficulty justifying planning time to relax or enjoy leisurely activities, and am unsure how to feel when faced in these situations. It wasn’t always that way, but attempting to make changes so radically is bound to breed such hypersensitivity."

It's About Time

John Vandervelde
Program Director

There's an interesting book I read not too long ago called The Dance of Life by Edward T. Hall.  Hall was an anthropologist who spent a great deal of effort researching how people think about, react to, and understand time.  In his book he compares and contrasts how different cultures view time and how their lives interact with time.  Hall shows that Western, industrialized cultures have very organized views of time.  In American culture we are constantly talking about saving time, losing time, making up time, respecting time, and giving time.  Good or bad, we have placed a very high value on time. 

Because of our high value on time, we often blow through life being more concerned about not being late or saving time for ourselves that we often miss spending time on the things that are most important.  The world around us screams to us that we need to spend more time on ourselves--more time buying stuff to make us more comfortable, more time decorating our houses, more time driving a nicer car, more time on vacation, more time watching TV, more time playing video games, more time on our iPhone, more time focused on "me."  I think many of us today are convinced that time is short and that we better enjoy it as selfishly as possible.

Because of these cultural values we're often shocked and moved emotionally when people give up their agenda and spend time helping others.  When people selflessly give of themselves for a meaningful cause or to help someone out, we're moved because we get a glimpse of the Kingdom of God.  We can all think of examples of times when people sacrificed and gave of their time generously--it's moving, isn't it?

Today I'm moved by the amount of time donated to HoneyRock.  We are a blessed ministry: people give so generously to this place.  One of the most moving and inspiring donations we receive is people's time. There is hardly a place at HoneyRock that hasn't been built and maintained by volunteers.  In the last month alone we've had volunteers paint rooms, build cabins, make curtains, mop floors, clean up brush, fix equipment, split firewood, work with the horses, and help with interior design ideas. 

Volunteers give over 3,000 hours of service every year to HoneyRock.  Wow!

Wheaton College Students Volunteering over Fall Break

So special thanks to all those who've given of their time to this ministry--it is a blessing to me and to the whole team here.  Also, a word of encouragement: let's bless someone by giving them our time today! 

PRAYER REQUESTS/PRAISES

>Today in staff devotions we prayed for those close to us who are struggling in their faith, particularly those who are walking in doubt and are questioning God's love.  We prayed for God to touch them in a special way today.

>We pray for the Ribbe Family in South Carolina and ask that God would give Rob focused time to research and write.  We also ask that God would be with and Rob, Jackie and the kids as they are continuing to adjust to a new school, church, and neighborhood.  

INTERESTED IN VOLUNTEERING AT HONEYROCK?

>Contact Pete Sailhamer at psailhamer@honeyrockcamp.org.  We have lots of ways you can get involved.

BECOME OF FAN

>Have you become a fan of HoneyRock on Facebook?  If not, click the link and do so today.

Some thoughts on love

John Vandervelde
Program Director

Today in our staff devotions we read 2 Peter 1.  The verses we focused on were 5-7 which say, "For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; ⁶and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; ⁷and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love."

I have a beautiful 18-month-old daughter named Annika who is slowly beginning to learn words and communicate with the world around her.  Her favorite word right now seems to be a strange version of the word "banana"; but she enjoys trying to say just about anything you ask her to say.  She usually gets the first letter out and then sort of mutters the rest with a smile on her face looking for approval for simply trying to talk.  We've been teaching her to say "love you" when she greets us in the morning or when Daddy goes to work and other times like that.  There's just something about a little child saying "love you" or in Annika's case more like "muv woo" that melts your heart.  The stress and troubles of the world seem to melt away for a moment and we feel so good.  This morning as I gave my little girl a hug while she was eating breakfast in her high-chair and when I kissed her cheek, which was covered by a bit of banana mush, she mumbled, "wuv woo dada".  Oh man, so amazing!!  All was so good in my world.  I wanted to stop time.

Who in your world needs to hear that they are loved?  Maybe you need to tell someone "I love you" today--someone who hasn't heard it in a while.  Maybe someone needs to hear, "God loves you."  Remember there is something powerful about love.  Love draws people to Him.  Love heals.  Love protects.  Love makes things all better.  God is love.  

So today let's share love.  Parents, tell your kids you love them.  Kids, tell your mom and dad you love them.  Friends encourage each other through love--let those close to you know God loves them.

The words to an old song I used to sing as a kid come to mind, "...And they'll know we are Christians by our love, by our love, yes, they'll know we are Christians by our love."

PRAYER REQUEST / PRAISE:

>We praise God for the group from Philadelphia Biblical University (PBU) who was here on Saturday for a day of team-building utilizing our challenge course facilities.  It was a fun group that encouraged our staff greatly.  Their spirits were high despite the cold and rain.

>We continue to pray for healing for Ethan Welsh and Edee Williams.

IMPORTANT NEWS:

1. The website has been updated with new dates and prices for 2010.  Online registration is now open.

2. Don't forget to come to HoneyRock Round-Up on November 7 on the Wheaton College Campus.

HoneyRock Blog to be updated every weekday!

Hi Everyone - It is John Vandervelde
writing today!

This week we're launching a
new plan to be more diligent about communicating with our friends through
the HoneyRock Blog.  As you may know, we send out a monthly e-newsletter, we update our FaceBook fan page every so often, add videos to our YouTube page when we get a chance, and work to
keep our website current.  But, we also have this great HoneyRock blog,
and it frequently gets checked by those interested in what is happening
at HoneyRock despite the fact that it is not updated regularly.  We've
realized we need to be more diligent about updating it and interacting
with people through this blog. 

So, we're now going to be
updating our blog every weekday! Our plan is to share with you our
prayer requests, what we're thinking about and learning, what programs
are coming up next, events you can get involved in, and other things
that are a part of our ministry.  Things are going to be a little different
than they've been in the past on this blog.  We're going to attempt not
only to communicate more regularly, but also communicate more of our
heart and the things God is doing in our lives and through this place.

On with today’s update...

Each morning at 7:45am we meet
as a staff around the fireplace upstairs in the Chrouser Center Dining
Hall.  We spend 15 minutes in a time of group devotion to God.  We open
his word and we pray together.  Today we read Ephesians 2:1-10 and I
shared some thoughts about our spiritual "Regeneration" -
how God, by His grace through Christ, makes us Alive again.  We were
once dead in our sins, but now we are alive.  We are regenerated.

This weekend I was down in
Wheaton taking a class called "Evangelism and the Local Church"
led by Nancy Grisham.  As a part of this class we attended Willow Creek's
Saturday evening service.  It had been about 10 years since I had been
to Willow Creek and in addition to the many structural changes to the
building; I also noticed many other changes.  As I approached the building
the door was opened for me by a greeter who said, "Welcome to Willow
Creek."  As I stepped inside another greeter in a bright red Willow
Creek greeter jersey welcomed me, "Hi, we're glad you're here this
evening."  A third greeter, stationed at the door to the sanctuary
welcomed me and handed me an "outline" for the sermon.  Finally
a fourth person guided us to our seats and asked if we were comfortable. 
I was amazed.  For years part of Willow's strategy for reaching "Unchurched
Harrys and Marys" who were potentially seeking after God was to
allow anonymity.  Meaning, in the past, you could drive into the Willow
Creek parking lot, park your car, walk into the building, take a seat,
stay through the service, and leave at the end without anyone from the
church even saying hello to you. 

The second change I noticed
was the style of worship music.  In the past Willow Creek has not been
much of a singing church. The songs were chosen to be seeker-sensitive
and more entertaining than drawing people to worship God with their
whole hearts.  This Saturday I stood with about 5000 other people in
the Willow Creek sanctuary, many of them with hands raised high, and
sang 3-4 deep, meaningful worship songs—including 2 hymns.

Another change I noticed was
in Bill Hybels’ sermon.  Known as being an incredible speaker who is
authentic, dynamic, and speaks to the heart-needs of people, Hybels
and his seeker-sensitive messages were used to fill the seats at Willow
Creek.  Not known for tackling issues like sin, hell or doctrine from
the pulpit, Hybels’ mission used to be to draw people back to the
church and into small groups or mid-week services where they would give
their lives fully to Christ.  The Bill Hybels I listened to on Saturday
preached on doctrine.  He opened Ephesians 2 and did a beautiful exegesis
of the text that was challenging and meaningful to me, a committed follower
of Christ.  He even preached about hell, and he unveiled a list of the
"doctrines of the Christian faith" and explained how belief
and understanding in the Doctrine of Regeneration is necessary to be
a follower of Christ.  He used a diagram to powerfully show the difference
between the life of someone who is dead to God and the life of someone
who is alive through Christ.  He preached for nearly 45 minutes.  It was
powerful, challenging, relevant, and not what one would have traditionally
thought of as "seeker-sensitive."  

Finally Hybels concluded his
sermon with an altar call.  That's right, an altar call at Willow Creek. 
He asked people who knew they were dead to God in their sins to come
forward and give their lives to Christ to be made alive.

There's a phrase I heard recently
in regards to the idea that no church is perfect, it goes something
like this: "If you find a perfect church, don't go there, because
than it won't be perfect anymore."  Truly no church is perfect,
including Willow Creek.  But I do applaud their efforts and the changes
they've made.  We need to constantly be evaluating the methods we use
to share the Good News with others, and we always need to keep God's
Word at the center of what we do.

People in today’s world are
hungry to hear God's word and are hungry for the Truth.  They are still
hungry for the gospel after 2000 years, maybe more so today than ever
before.  There is an openness in today's culture to spiritual things,
and spiritual conversations are not something completely outside of
normal for most people, even the unchurched.  What an exciting and adventuresome
time to be a follower of Christ!  What a cool time to be involved in
a ministry like HoneyRock that not only shares the gospel with people
but also further encourages Christ Followers in their walk with him. 

My prayer for us today at HoneyRock
is that our lives and our words (our words and our deeds) would point
people toward Jesus—that we would have the boldness to live lives
and have conversations that testify to God's love and grace in our lives
and that people (young and old) will be drawn closer to God.

TODAY'S PRAYER REQUESTS / PRAISES:

We praise God for a great weekend
working with 5th graders from Three Lakes and Sugar Camp (our local
school district).  Despite coldness and rain kids had a fun and challenging
time learning how to work as a team and care for each other.

We are praying for Edie Williams
(Bud Williams’ wife) who was recently hospitalized and in critical
care with fluid in her lungs.  Edie is doing better but is still in the
hospital.

We pray for 7-year-old Ethan
Welsh (nephew of former staff members John and Lauren Welsh) who was
recently hit by a car.  Ethan has swelling of the brain and also contracted
H1N1 in the hospital.  Pray for healing for him.   

HoneyRock Chapel

HoneyRock Chapel was on Monday, September 14 in Edman Chapel on the Wheaton College campus. It was a great time of celebration of the work that God did throughout the summer, and was filled with worship, a slide show, and testimonies from a counselor and a camper.  If you would like to watch or listen to chapel you can go to  http://www.wheaton.edu/wetn/chapelfall09.htm 

HoneyRock and Wheaton College Saddened By Loss of Student

The HoneyRock / Wheaton College community is saddened by the death of sophomore Alex Heidengren. Alex, 18, had participated as a counselor in the Summer Leadership School at HoneyRock. Local authorities began a daylong search for him on Saturday morning, August 8, when camp officials became aware that he was missing. His body was discovered late Saturday evening, in Long Lake by underwater cameras operated by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. An investigation into the cause of death is ongoing.

Other departments participating in the search and recovery operations included the Three Lakes Police and Fire Departments, the Oneida County Sheriff’s Department, the Wisconsin State Patrol Air Unit, Oneida County Emergency Management, and canine units from Three Lakes Police Department and the Vilas County Sheriff’s Department. Volunteers also searched the area.

HoneyRock is the Northwoods Camp and Campus of Wheaton College (IL), located in Three Lakes, Wisconsin.