Florida:

View outside the lecture hall of the beautiful trees with the Spanish moss hanging down

The moon at night 

The wall above my bed in the dorm....pictures of my family, a note from my sister, and this little advertisement from a bag of kiwis. (Mom sent it to me because she knew that I would think it was adorable, which I did :))

A fountain on campus of Jesus washing the disciples' feet

Some of my team members when we went out to lunch on the weekend after camp

My team members and I (plus our camp director's kids) greeting students on opening day

Registration on opening day with my female staff director Laura (in the white) and Katie, a fellow staffer

If I could describe the week in Florida with two words, it would be Refining and Refreshing. Our camp had 22 students which meant that some of us staff didn't lead small groups due to the small size of students, but instead worked on administrative projects during the week. My role was to organize programs in between lectures, introduce speakers, and then work on administrative projects. It was strange for me not to have a small group, but it also was such a blessing because it caused me to realize what an incredible privilege it is to get to lead a group of ladies each week. This week in Florida also helped to remind me who I should be serving. If I am seeking to serve myself then I will end up feeling dry and exhausted, But if I have a mindset of doing EVERYTHING with excellence for the glory of Christ, then no matter how small a task may be, I can complete it was great joy through Christ.

Here are my bullet points of blessing for the week:

• Florida wildflowers
• Safety on the road after 18+ hours of driving through 5 states
• Gorgeous campus in Lakeland, Florida
• Personalized gluten free meals for me in the cafeteria
• Less humidity than Texas
• Palm trees :)
• Chalk drawing contest for the students on opening day
• Gas station coffee
• Talking to my family on the phone
• Prayer walk with my roommate
• Talking to a student about nursing and geeking out with her about happy facts about the human body :)
• Giving Jayne, one of the faculty kids, a piggy back ride
• Having my laundry done for me by someone on leadership and then getting it back all clean and folded
• Blueberries in unsweetened yogurt
• Mo's mexican food (Idaho needs to get this restaurant!)
• James 4:14-17
• Little lizards on rocks
• Mail sorting 
• Honest talk with my camp director
• Time with my female staff team complete with root beer, flowers, and rice crispy treats
• Stretching tired muscles after a long day
• The epic fountains on campus
• Hearing my camp director say, "Rachel you are awesome."
• God giving cloud cover and a gentle breeze for the relay and frisbee day to combat the Florida heat
• God sustaining me after being dizzy and feeling sick during dinner one night
• Doing a skit in between lectures where the guy staff did impersonations of the girl staff and the girls did it of the guys and then the students got to guess what impersonation went with which staffer. The guy who impressionated me used the words "happy" and "epic" a lot and then talked while using his hands. I laughed so hard that I cried ;)
• Hot cocoa after a long day
• Frosted coffee from Chick 'fil A
• More freckles popping out on my face (it's my version of tanning I guess ;))

As I reflect back on the week, I am reminded of the words of Colossians 3:17, "And whatever you do in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to the Father through him." May that be my anthem as I finish out these last 4 week of the summer. 

~Rachel

Texas:

My beautiful and gifted intern for the week, Megan

Opening day before students arrived

An interesting building around where the students went witnessing in Shreveport, Louisiana

LeTourneau University where camp was held

Our leadership staff made us goodie bags after the week was done and this was what was on my bag

All ladies van ride after the Texas camp finished up


Our camp in Texas had 193 kids that God allowed us to love on for a week. My small group consisted of 12 girls who loved the Lord and desired to grow in their faith. It was certainly a busy week but also a beautiful week. :) Here are some blessings from the week.

• Happy hike in Arkansas before traveling to Texas
• Sharing testimonies with fellow staffers
• Bacon at breakfast
• My awesome intern Megan
• Texas Rain downpours
• My skin actually tanning.....well more like majorly freckling ;)
• Practicing flexibility as we had to rearrange the schedule because of a downpour and then a power outage
• Deep, deep sleep for 6 1/2 hours
• My girls' sweet smiles
• Pretty colored pens for taking notes
• Texas crazy humidity
• Not getting any tick bites during the week
• Dealing with a 1/2 day long power outage and no AC in the lecture hall
• Gluten free pb&j's
• Receiving a care package from home 
• Lighting the lecture hall with little lanterns during the power outage
• Waking up to God's glorious sunshine streaming through the window
• Programs between lectures going well 
• Sweet 1 on 1 times with some of my girls
• Putting together a spa night where my 17 year old girls got to bless the 12-14 year old girls group and get to know them.
• The fun energy that happens when 193 students compete for color team points
• Safe and productive evangelism in Louisiana
• Getting to play nurse again this week. I got to examine a student's stitches and bandage/clean a puncture wound. :)
• Encouraging text from my daddy
• Clouds that look like cotton balls and a cool breeze during the frisbee game
• Guacamole
• Sad but sweet send off of 4 of our staff team
• Free "Happy Camper" shirts from LeTourneau University
• God sustaining me after less than 5 hours of sleep before closing day
• 
  

 I loved Texas and am grateful to the Lord for allowing me to have such a refreshing, growing, and encouraging week there. :)

~Rachel

Missouri 

Color team flags flying outside the dorm during registration 

Seal of Evangel University where camp was held

I got to go to a new state and it made me happy :)

My darling roommate for the week, Katie Cook

Some of the beautiful staff women on my team.

   God showed up at camp this week in ways that blew my mind. Not only did he bless us with glorious non humid weather, an epic cafeteria to eat at during the week, safety on the road when traveling, fruitful small group times with my girls, and lots of laughter....but God also allowed a student at camp to trust Christ as her Savior and Lord this week. :) My mind has been blown as I sit back and watch my God work in mighty ways through Worldview Academy and in the hearts of students.

This summer my camp director challenged our whole team to be characterized by consistent and faithful prayer. As we have taken time to pray daily for both the details of camp and the hearts of the students, God has so tenderly worked. One specific example happened on Wednesday of camp when the students went out and did evangelism at Missouri State University. There weren't very many people for the students to talk to, but just when I was getting discouraged, God had a whole group of about 100 football players walk across campus after practice and right past where the students were, so some of them got witnessed to. :) Later during evangelism when the crowds were waning again, God caused a fire alarm to go off in one of the buildings so all of the people in that building had to come out onto the quad on campus which was right were the students were once again. :) And that was just one example from MANY of how God worked at camp this week. 

A lesson that I learned during the Missouri camp was that I should not desire anything in my life that will begin to steal my love of the Lord or distract me from Him. This lesson came when my sweet mother sent me a card in the mail that contained this quote from Nancy Leigh Demoss. 
"I've asked the Lord not to give me any blessings that could ultimately end up turning my heart away from Him. Because to have those things if they turn my heart away from God, then those things would prove to be curses not blessings. We think we know what we need. But isn't it wise for us to say, 'Lord here are my requests. Here are the things I think I need. But Lord, would you sift these through the sieve of your love and your wisdom and your providence, and would you determine what is best for me. And Lord, please don't give me anything that I think I want, that I would consider a blessing, if as a result, my heart is going to be turned from You." As I read those words, I was and still am so convicted. God used this quote as a catalyst for me to be able to process with Him emotions that were building in my heart and then realign my heart with truth.

As mentioned earlier, the Missouri camp was filled with so many rich blessings. Here are just a couple. 

• Hugging a new state sign :)
• Shopping in happy stores in Branson, Missouri over the weekend
• Crazy southern downpours of rain
• Having the opportunity to squish a large spider in one of my girl's room. That was a moment of victory for me because I hate spiders, so I had to put on a brave face and act like killing a spider was no big deal for me, even though it totally was. :)
• Rooming with Katie Cook and being consistently encouraged by her sweet spirit 
• The blue skies and refreshing wind on opening day
• A good cafeteria with LOTS of gluten free options
• Sunday morning sermon from Joshua 1
• No stomach aches during the week
• The sweet reminder from one of the lectures that God makes EVERYTHING with a specific and intentional purpose
• Singing our girls to sleep during "lights out" with So Long, Farewell from the Sound of Music
• My flameless candle that my girls named "George"
• Doing Secret Sisters with my girls throughout the week
• Singing Phantom of the Opera with two of my girls as we walked between classes
• Sweet connections with my team members
• Getting to describe different team member's personalities as vegetables during one of the van rides.....I know, it is such a Rachel question, but it made them giggle. I mean, who couldn't when you are being described as an eggplant, avocado, or a Hubbard squash ;)
• Hot and sweaty staff vs. students ultimate frisbee game
• Free laundry machines on campus
• Having one of my girls teach me how to do "hand hugs". They are seriously one of the cutest things ever. :)

I praise God for what he has done and will continue to do this summer. He is so very good and is walking with me so tenderly.

The Texas camp starts tomorrow and the whole adventure begins all over again. :)

~Rachel

Week 1: Staff Training

Goodbye beautiful Boise........

Me with my female staff director Laura

The ladies on my team

An Oklahoma sunset on campus

If I could have a quote from this week, it would be  "God does not call the equipped, but he equips those he calls." This week has been filled with moments of brokenness, beauty, encouragement, honesty, and excitement. I am not ready in and of myself for what is ahead of me in the next 7 weeks, but I don't need to be. God goes with me and will equip me to do all that he has set before me to do.

A verse to summarize some of what God has been showing me this week, would be Luke 9:23, "And he said to all, 'If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me." I have been learning that daily dying to self is not a suggestion for following Christ, but a command. But the beautiful truth is that we are not called to follow blindly, but are instead instructed to purposefully and joyfully take up our cross and follow after the Lord who paid the ultimate price to buy our hearts. This week, Christ has been softening my heart and helping me to fall in love with him in new ways. 

In keeping with my blogging tradition, here are my bullet points of blessing from the week of staff training. :)

• Humidity that makes my hair curl in all sorts of crazy directions. There is some major puffiness going on and I can't stop it ;)
• My camp director's wisdom and honesty as he leads our team
• Eating chocolate and strawberries with the ladies from my team
• Fresh breezes 
• Worship every morning and night each day of training
• Strong and intentional hugs
• Preparing for one of my roles as program/skit coordinator for our team 
• First Walmart run of the summer
• Dirty knees and scratched legs after playing intense and awesome games of frisbee as a team
• Drinking real coffee that actually tasted like coffee :)
• Doing early morning squats and crunches with my roommate to start off the day 
• A brief phone call with a sweet friend 
• Intentional conversations with people on the leadership staff where I was able to honestly share what was on my heart and ask for wisdom.
• Winning the team frisbee game and color team competition and then getting ice cream at Braums to celebrate
• Wishing each member of my family goodnight over the phone 
• Finally starting to understand the strategy of how ultimate frisbee works and now being able to run with a purpose and not just randomly skip around the field and do nothing :)
• Dancing to happy music
• Being still before the Lord
• Team prayer time
• Teammate calling me "Hooper" 
• Daily lectures about important details of how to run camp well
• Seeing the foundation of intentional friendships forming

I am encouraged, humbled and excited to see what God does this next week at camp. Students show up in Missouri in less than 48 hours and I am stoked to meet God's kids that he has allowed us to love on this week. I am reminded that it is a precious and invaluable privilege to get to do what I am doing this summer and I wouldn't change it for the world. :)

~Rachel