Ladera Goes to Winter Camp

What a great crew... what a great weekend!

This weekend was Winter Camp! I can say that it was the best winter camp I have ever gone to, not only because the camp was great, the food was good, and the people running the program were amazing, but the kids and leaders we brought were the best! It was a weekend I won't soon forget!

Octoball got crazy!

Oakbridge is a very special place. It's not the typical semi-rugged youth camp... but more like "Club-med" for middle school kids! The place was built just for them, and everything, from the octoball court, to the skate-park, to the fields, to the room for club... everything was built just for them. 

The songs at club were awesome!!

For a lot of the kids, this was their first time at Oakbridge, and for some of them, it was their first time going to "club." Since we haven't been able to find a place big enough to host us in Ladera this year, we haven't been able to have "club," but we did at camp, and it was awesome! From the songs to the games, to the funny skit guys, to Sullivan teaching about Jesus' love, it was amazing! The program was seriously one of the best I have ever seen.

Taylor got to go mattress surfing!

Mackenzie and Jack chucking cheese puffs at a leader.

Club was awesome

The 6th graders got shacked

A part of what makes camp so special is that it gives kids a chance to get away from normal life, and out of their "comfort-zone" while making sure they are still safe, and even comfortable. They are treated like they matter, and they can tell that everyone at camp really cares about them.

Dog-pile Andy!!

Pic with Mrs Santa for scavenger hunt

The first night started with club, and then a pizza party at 10pm! After we got to go back to our cabins and talk about what Sullivan had shared in club about Jesus. These are called "cabin times" and they happen after every club. Its a time for leaders and kids to go back to their cabin and reflect on what they just heard at club. 

Group selfie at the archery range

The first night Sullivan talked about how we all come to camp with a picture of what Jesus is like. Some think of him as a Santa Jesus, others as a Police Jesus, others as their Homeboy Jesus, and others as a far away, distant Jesus. Sullivan talked about how Jesus was so much more than any of those, and how we can come and get to know him. She shared about Zacchaeus, and how even though everyone hated him because he was cheating them out of their money, Jesus sought him out and had dinner with him at his house. Jesus isn't like what we would expect, he is so much more, and when we have an encounter with him, it changes us... it makes us better us'.

Jail break... Brandon got into it!

Henry and Matthew thought the food was awesome!

The next club, Sullivan talked about the difference between "sins," or bad behavior, and "sin." So often this is something that people miss-understand, or as Sullivan talked about, miss-diagnose. Sin is separation from God. Its not trusting that God loves us and is taking care if us. Sins are a symptom of this, but if we just treat the behavior, or the symptoms, we don't get down to the root cause and nothing gets better.

Sullivan shared about getting diagnosed with Lyme Disease early this year, and how she had been sick for 8 years, but doctors kept treating her symptoms instead of looking for what was causing them and nothing got better... she just kept getting more sick. She compared this to the story of the "Bleeding Woman" in Mark 5:21-43. In this story Jesus is asked by a man who was extremely important to come and heal his daughter, as he was on his way to this guys house he got held up by a woman. This woman had been sick for 12 years, and spent all she had on doctors who were not able to figure out what was wrong with her. As soon as she touched Jesus, she was immediately healed. Jesus knew something happened and stopped to hear this woman's story. Even though he was on his way to do something important with someone important, he stopped for this woman that no one cared about and then took the time to listen to her story. That is what Jesus is like, and he does the same with us. He can heal the deep sickness that we have, and he can fill the longing that every human on earth has. We were created to long for a relationship with God, and we will never be completely satisfied until we are in it.

All camp tug-of-war!

The start of the messy games

It got crazy!

The next club Sullivan talked about God's rescue plan for us. It was awesome seeing kids respond to the fact that Jesus died on the cross for them because he loved them, and that he would have done it just for them. In the 6th grader cabin time that night, a few of the kids started talking about how they couldn't believe that Jesus loved them that much. They couldn't believe that Jesus stayed on the cross when he could have gotten off at any time.

Andy

Henry took some shaving creme to the face

Grace, Taylor and Natalie had a blast!

Aside from the club talks and cabin times, these kids got to be exposed to Jesus' love through their leaders, and the staff at Oakbridge. They got to do things, like through flour bombs and chicken feed at each other, and then watch their leaders be super silly.

Caitlin and Kailey got worked!

Tyler was into it

Matt and Riley came out clean as a whistle... or not.

Everyone had fun!

This pool looked so inviting... but it was about 50 degrees!

It didn't stop kids or Grant from going off the diving boards!

Mackenzie did a cannon ball off the high dive!

Frisbee golf was a huge hit

Hunting for rams.

Little sunset adventure

Sometime you just don't use your hands to eat dessert

At the end of the weekend they were given the chance to say "yes" to Jesus and begin a life-long relationship with him. Sullivan talked about how Jesus didn't stay dead, but came back to life. She also talked about how Jesus will love them no matter how they respond to him. Even if they say no, Jesus loves them the same and will never stop pursuing them.

Jade got to pie Grant in front of everyone!

Russian Ribbon Dancers... From Russia

This guy was awesome... especially when he would play Taylor Swift

Sullivan was amazing sharing Jesus with everyone

The girls' last cabin time

The 3 hour tour of San Clemente on the way back

Camp was such a blast this weekend. I can't wait for summer camp this year! Be sure to mark your calendars because we will be going back to Oakbridge this summer , June 24-29!

Can't wait for summer camp,  June 24-29

Ladera WyldLife: Truly Thankful

Nathan went to work on the Red Velvet cake!

I never know what the Friday before a long break will be like. I didn't know if we would have a smaller group today, if it would be the same, or if kids would be excited or tired or what... but today was awesome! 

Jack and Shane were super bummed they had to eat cake this morning... not!

We had a lot of amazing kids come out this morning, and there was so much energy... it could have had something to do with all the sugar, but who knows!! The game today was inspired by one of the 7th graders, Skylar. Last week Skylar was a little late and the doughnuts were all gone. When we asked him what his favorite doughnut was he told us it was "double fudge cake." Grant was inspired and suggested we play a game called, "Let them eat cake!"

Friday mornings are so great.

Basically, it goes like this: Kids, in groups of 10 or so, sit at a table with a cake in the middle. They are given a dice and when the game starts they must roll the dice. The keep rolling until they roll a 6, then the person who rolled the 6 starts eating the cake. They keep eating until the next person rolls a 6, then that person starts eating and the person eating before stops. 

The girls weren't scared!

The game continues until the cake is gone. Today, some of the cakes were giant, so there was for sure cake left over. I think the halls of LMRS might have some cake crumbs today! I think the 6th grade boys won; they demolished a homemade cake made with love by Grant.

Skylar, bottom left, was the inspiration for this game!

While this game was fun, today was all about being thankful. After the game we broke up into our typical small groups, and looked at several verses in the Bible that give us some things we can be thankful for. 

In a place like South Orange County, and almost anywhere, it can be so easy to see everything we don't have, or everything we want and lose focus on all that we have. I know I am like this often. I love getting into new hobbies, so there is always a laundry list of toys that I want, from new running shoes, to different surfboards and snowboards, I always have a list.

It goes deeper than that though. Often I find myself thinking about all the things I don't have that I think I should have, or that I think I need. More money, a bigger and better place to live, a better car, more for our kids, more time for Candice and I to spend with each other... more, and more, and more.

There was once a cake there.

Thinking too much about what I don't have or what I want is like allowing myself to get sucked into a black hole. It really doesn't do anyone any good, and I find that my attitude becomes worse the longer I think about it. Its natural to have desires and to want things, that's not wrong and I think God enjoys dreaming with us, but when it becomes compulsive, or leads to an overall feeling of entitlement or that what I don't have is more important than what I do have, it can become toxic for my heart.

Earlier this month I watched a movie called, "Ragamuffin," about the life of a singer/songwriter named Rich Mullins. The movie is super low-budget, but the story is wonderful. There was a part in the movie when Rich is being asked about a song he wrote for his wedding day. Rich never got married and the song was called, "Doubly Good to You." The guy asking the question said something to the effect, "How can you say God has been doubly good to you when you never got married?" Rich's said, almost without hesitation, "Well, God doesn't have to be good to me at all, but he is."

This is the amazing thing about God. He doesn't have to care for us, love us, give us gifts or anything else... but he does, and he always will!

The first verse we looked at today was Psalm 136:1-3. The Psalms were prayers and songs that Israel would sing,. They are beautiful and can be a great way for us to interact with God even today. This Psalm goes like this, "Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. His love endures forever." No matter what is happening in our lives, we can be thankful for God's love. While love is often thought of in relation to an emotion or desire, this is talking about something deeper. This is talking about a self-sacrificing love that works for the other person's interest. This is the love God has for each of us. It is an active love that is never-ending and extremely powerful.

The second selection of verses came from the book of Psalms again. It was from a Psalm that has been speaking to my heart for a few weeks now, Psalm 139. If you have a chance, I suggest you read it. If you don't have a Bible, you can just click here Psalm 139 or google it. The whole thing is about how deeply God knows us, and how we are made on purpose. The section we looked at dealt with how God is always close, and there is nowhere we can run from him. That God is a God who pursues, always, that he never leaves us, and will follow us even as we walk aways from him... that is something to be thankful for! Its hard to imagine that kind of God, most of us have never known a relationship with another like that, but that is the truth about God. He will never leave, and we can't run from him. Even when it feels as if we are in the dark and God is nowhere to be found, he is right there... even if we start getting angry and doubting him or trying to push him away, he is right there, actively loving us as we are.

So with this in mind some of the groups read Hebrews 13:5, "Keep you lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, 'Never will I leave you, never will I forsake you.'" Why is it so hard to be content sometimes? I know I am not always content, and at times it seems that it isn't possible to be content. At times it seems like being content would be foolish... but what I have to be content in isn't the "stuff" I have, or related to wealth or lack of it, but God's presence and love. That, I have more than I will ever need. 

I don't know how this is hitting you right now, maybe this seems like some sort of "pie in the sky" positive thinking deal. Maybe you don't believe God is loving, that he cares for you personally, or that he even exists. Maybe you are having a really tough year, and it seems what you have lost is leaving such a hole that life seems unmanageable. Or maybe you just really like having nice things and lots of toys... I don't know, but I do know that there isn't enough stuff or things or even people on this planet to truly fulfill a human's desire. We are wired to desire something so great that only the creator of all of creation can fulfill it... and he loves doing so. 

So, if you find yourself ungrateful right now, I hope you don't feel guilty. That is where you are, and God loves you just the same. I would encourage you to try to think about one or two things that you can be thankful for. Being ungrateful is like a prison, it keeps us from experiencing life, but it doesn't take much to escape that prison. Thinking of one thing to be thankful for can change the course, and often lead to other things to be thankful for... and this will lead to a freer way of living, one that feels lighter.

I pray you do come to know and trust the love of God for you this season. I pray you can be thankful that God knows you, loves you like crazy, and will never leave you no matter what. I pray that if you haven't experienced this you open to the possibility that you were made to be in a loving relationship with a Another so much greater than you.

Finally, if you want to talk with your kid about WyldLife this morning, ask them about the cake game, and how much cake they ate, and then ask them about what we talked about being thankful for. I pray and hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving, and that you come to be truly thankful for all that you have.

Giving thanks.

Ladera Ranch WyldLife: Bigger or Better

From a penny, to a dog ramp, to a snowboard...

Bigger or Better was so much fun last night! We had about 40 kids join us at Founders and then broke up into teams of 5-8 kids and spread out through Ladera. It was such a good night on so many different levels.

Matt Wright got a new bike... he was amped!

Having the group split up into smaller groups, each with at least one leader, gave us the opportunity to get to know kids better. The team I was with were kids that I hadn't gotten the chance to hang out with a lot before this. 

We traded a chocolate Christmas tree ornament for this iPod!

We were also able to have conversations with different people in the community about what WyldLife was and what we were doing at their door. So many of the people we talked with were excited to know that something like WyldLife was happening in Ladera Ranch. Most of them were excited about finding something funny for the game.

Rolling in the golf cart

It was pretty incredible to see what some of the teams came back with! One team came back with a fully functional bike, a scooter, and a toddler bike. Another team came back with a mattress, a dog house, and a hockey stick. The 6th grade boys team were able to snag a whole case of snack-packs and a plastic candy cane that there were super excited about. The all girls team were able to somehow get a golf cart (I'm thinking it might have been a pre-made deal)! The 8th grade boys team got a really nice baseball bat, a ton of candy, and a giant lacrosse goal. My team came back with a complete snowboard and a fully functional iPod.

It was great seeing everyone have so much fun last night

On a whole, the night was blast, kids and leaders got to know each other much better, and we were able to do more work in earning the right to speak into their lives with the truth and love of Jesus. These events go so far in getting into these kids' lives. As we show them we enjoy doing fun things, and letting them do things they haven't done before, we earn their trust, and end up getting the opportunity to help them make better choices in life and share the love of Jesus with them as we go. 

The 6th graders were so psyched on this case of pudding!

Friday Morning in Ladera: Jesus and Blind Bart

Friday mornings are the best!

I am constantly surprised at how many kids are excited to wake up an hour, or more, earlier than usual and come hang out at Founders Park before school. This last week I have been meeting with different youth workers from different churches in the area, and can say that what we are experiencing here in Ladera is both unique and special. Kids are coming for more than the doughnuts, that much is for sure! Getting a chance to talk about Jesus with so many kids on Friday mornings is something I look forward to all week.

Nolan and Ben being goofy

This morning's game was a brainchild of Grant. He made a square in the field using cones and then had kids line up side by side around the perimeter. He would then say something like, "If you are wearing shorts, cross the square!" Kids would have to try to move to the other side of the square without touching anyone.

Grant demonstrating the "sumo strut"

It got a bit more interesting when Grant started telling the kids how they had to get across the square. My personal favorite was the "sumo strut" where kids had to walk like a sumo wrestler as they made their way across the square.

"Cross the square if you are a girl!"

Today after breaking up into small groups we read and talked about the time Jesus healed a blind beggar named Bartimaeus. Over the past few weeks we have been looking at the way Jesus sees people in contrast to the way others see them. This is another one of those stories... its also another story of Jesus healing someone and making it possible for them to have a more full and real life. I am beginning to see these stories as a picture of what Jesus does for everyone. He ALWAYS leads us into a more full and real life. Sometimes its as obvious as restoring actual sight, and sometimes its different but just as real and powerful.

Best way to start the day.

In this particular story, found in the Bible in Mark 10:46-52, Jesus, his entourage of people following him around, and a big crowd from the local city are leaving a town and have an encounter with a man we called Bart. Bart was blind, and because the options for a blind man were extremely limited back then, he was a beggar. He was set up on the entrance to the town and would most likely call out asking people for money whenever he heard them passing by. He would be pretty similar to the people posted up on the off ramp at Crown Valley... but it seems that he may have been a little more persistent than just sitting quietly with a sign.

Its probable that Bart had been in this spot for years, possibly for most of his life. This was who he was,  the blind beggar at the entrance to town. That was his identity, the life he knew, and how everyone else saw him.

As he heard a big crowd passing and then that Jesus was a part of this crowd he started to call out. By this time Jesus had a reputation, and people were hearing about everything he had done. So, when Bart heard that Jesus was in the crowd he started calling out, "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!"

I imagine that he wasn't bashful about it, but that he was loud, and even a bit obnoxious. People in the crowd following Jesus began to yell back at Bart, demanding that he be quiet, but the more they yelled at Bart to be quiet, the louder Bart yelled for Jesus.

Bart was blind. Bart was a beggar. Bart was nothing. He was a bother, something to be put up with, something to be tolerated. He was barely a person, and for sure not someone that should be bothering someone as important as Jesus. Didn't he know his place? Perhaps he had a reputation for being one of those beggars that was a little more aggressive than the others, maybe he was just persistent enough to make people feel uncomfortable... and to have someone like this YELLING at someone like Jesus, not acceptable. Didn't he know his place?

How often do we see people this way. How often to we put labels on the people we see and them treat them as whatever label we gave them. From the people at the corner, to the person behind the register, to the person at work, or church, or the other parent at your kids' games... how often do we treat them as a thing, and not as a person.

How often do we just accept the labels that others have given us.

For kids, this is very real. They may live out of several different labels depending on where they are. At home they may be one way, at school a totally different way, and then still another when playing sports or doing something else. The kid that is an awesome soccer player, might have confidence on the soccer field, but the second he steps on campus at school, where he isn't known, or isn't seen as a star player, be totally different.

The way people see them, or even just the way they think people see them, has more to do with the way they act than they know. I would say that, to a certain degree, this is true of adults as well.

Bart was over it though. He wanted something different, and he wasn't afraid of making a seen.

And Jesus stopped.

In all the commotion, all the yelling and pushing, people probably trying to just hurry Jesus along so he wouldn't be bothered... Jesus stopped.

Jesus heard Bart. Jesus saw Bart. He didn't see the blind beggar, but the man.

Jesus told the crowd, "Tell him to come here." I love this. Jesus made the crowd turn and treat Bart as a person. Jesus didn't go to Bart, but told the crowd to ask him to come be part of the group... and the crowd's reaction to Bart was a 180 from before. "Cheer up!" they said, "Come on, he's calling you!"

And now Bart had a choice. He could get up and leave his entire world behind. Or he could stay in his comfort zone. I often overlook this. As Bart got up, threw aside his coat (the symbol of a beggar) and began to make his way towards Jesus, he was leaving behind everything he knew. For a few moments, he no longer had an identity. What would happen once he got to Jesus? Would Jesus heal him, or would Jesus just say some encouraging things and then leave Bart to find his way back to his spot? But Bart got up. He was desperate enough to give it all up in order to get in front of Jesus. This was big faith in a person he had never seen, but only heard of.

Once Bart got in front of Jesus, Jesus asked, "What do you want me to do for you?" Without hesitation, knowing exactly what he wanted, Bart replied, "My Rabbi, I want to see!" He went big! Not, "Jesus, could you give some money," or, "Jesus, could you help me out..." but, "I WANT TO SEE!"

Jesus' reply? "Go, for your faith has healed you." Instantly, Bart could see. Instantly, Bart had a new identity.

But Bart did not go, Bart stayed and followed Jesus down the road.

Jesus saw Bart. The whole time. Jesus restored Bart, gave him a more full life, and let him and everyone else see that Bart was a person, that Bart was worth Jesus' time. Jesus feels the same way about each of us. He sees us the way we truly are, VALUABLE BEYOND OUR LABELS, better than what others think, and worth enough that Jesus gave his life for us.

Just like with Bart, Jesus invites us into our true identity. It might mean that we have to leave the identity others have given us, the identity we have lived most our lives out of behind, or even the identity we have spent years creating, but what lies on the horizon is FAR BETTER than what we leave behind.

Freedom awaits!

A life lived being truly human, truly loved, and truly loving. Its not always comfortable, its not always easy or safe and secure, but it is free, and it is better than any life anyone else could give us. Jesus speaks truth into our lives, he said that  if we follow him, "You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." This is the truth that we are loved as we are, that we are more valuable than we are told, and that we can have a full life in Jesus. Its not a life of rules and regulations, but a life of purpose and love and adventure.

Jesus and the "Wrong" Kind of Woman

Stolen phone selfies

It was another fun Friday morning!! 

One of my favorite things about Friday mornings is greeting kids as they show up, and hanging out while we eat doughnuts. A huge part of what we want to do in WyldLife is get to know kids, and show them that we are interested in them as people, for no reason other than just because they matter. As we do this, we show them that they are valuable in and of themselves. We show them that God thinks they matter, and we get to earn the right to be a positive influence in their lives... hopefully we get to help them meet Jesus, but we are there with and for them no matter what.

Its crazy what a conversation around a doughnut can lead to.

After eating doughnuts and hanging out we played a game from summer camp this last summer. Kids paired off, one was designated a tree and the other a bird. As the music played they walked around in counter-rotating circles and when the music stopped the "bird" had to find the "tree" and jump on its back. It was fun and some of the kids really connected with their inner bird-ness. Unfortunately I did not have an opportunity to get any pictures, so you will just have to ask your kid to show you what that looked like!!

After the game we got into the story of Jesus hanging out at with a "promiscuous" woman.

Jesus often spent time with the wrong kind of people. One might think that Jesus would have spent most of his time with religious experts, or people much like we would find in churches today, but he didn't. Jesus was constantly shocking the religious experts with who he hung out with. This is one of those times.

Jesus and his disciples were traveling and had to go through Samaria. Jesus and his disciples were Jews, and Jews HATED Samaritans. As they were walking through Samaria, Jesus got tired and took a rest next to a well. The disciples went on ahead to get food, leaving Jesus alone. As Jesus was resting, a Samaritan woman came up to the well to draw water. The fact that this woman was coming at this time suggests that she was a social outcast. Most women would come together to get water, but this woman came at time when no one else was around. We find out why later in the story.

As this woman came close, Jesus asked her to give him a drink. Seems simple enough, Jesus is thirsty, and this lady could give him some water... but that Jesus asked a Samaritan woman for water is incredibly scandalous. Jews hated Samaritans so much that if a Samaritan touched a Jew's dish, the dish would be destroyed. The reasons for this were deep, and religion was a huge factor. So that Jesus, God, was talking to someone with differing religious beliefs is a very big deal.

The woman was shocked that Jesus asked her for water. She replied, "You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?" Jesus caught her totally off guard. As they talk Jesus began to explain that if she knew who he was (God) she would have asked him for living water. This is a reference to eternal, true, real, and everlasting life, but she didn't get that and asked for "living water" so that she wouldn't have to keep coming to the well to get water. 

So Jesus asked her to go home, get her husband, and then come back. The woman told Jesus she didn't have a husband, and Jesus let her know that he knows her better than she thinks. This woman had been married 5 times before and was currently living with a man she was not married to. This woman was not the kind of woman people would expect Jesus to be talking to, but she was exactly the kind of woman Jesus came to talk to. 

Jesus constantly looked for the kind of people the religious system of that time marginalized. Jesus didn't wait for people to get their act together before he came to them. Jesus came to be with the "wrong" kind of people. 

This woman was so rejected that she had to come get water at a time when no one else from the town would see her. She had to live a life full of shame, but not with Jesus. Jesus made sure that she knew he knew her, and he came to offer her living water. Jesus didn't point a finger at her, he didn't tell her he knew what she was up to and could give her living water as soon as she cleaned her life up. No. He first gave offered to rescue her, and then let her know he knew everything about her. Its so easy to get this flipped around. Its so easy to think we need to clean ourselves up before we can come to Jesus... but Jesus comes to us in the midst of our mess.

Just like with this woman, Jesus isn't waiting for us to get things "right." Jesus meets us where we are, as we are, and he loves us in that place. 

For a middle school kid, the truth that they can be fully know and fully loved, as they are, is life changing and powerful. They live in a world of labels. A world where they are what they are know as and for. Their experience, more often than not, tells them that if people really knew them, they wouldn't be loved, or have many friends. To understand that Jesus sees them, knows EVERYTHING about them, and STILL LOVES them like crazy can completely change the trajectory of a kids life. It can set them free and bring a truth centered confidence that displays itself in care for others, and acceptance of themselves. 

It is equally powerful for us adults. To know that Jesus isn't keeping score, isn't using guilt and shame as motivation, and isn't holding our past mistakes against us can open us up to a life of freedom. Just like Jesus met this woman, this woman that Jesus had no business talking to, he meets us. He meets us where we are, good and bad, clean and unclean, in the midst of whatever is going on in our lives, and he brings the gift of living water.