Wow, thank you Lord! That seemed to be our theme song during and after "Teen Camp 2005"!
We had planned this "first of it's kind" retreat for the youth in Saudades, and went into it with a little bit of fear and trembling. These are all kids we had reached out to earlier this year, most of whom are now believers. The Lord provided a lovely place for us, thanks to Branco and Ivete, friends in this town of mostly German/Russian/Polish immigrants. Their little "farm", became host to 3 days of intense study and fun for these kids.
Since this town is mostly Roman Catholic (at least in tradition), this was a very different event for parents and kids alike. We knew everything would be under close scrutiny, so we prayed for much wisdom in how to conduct it. We had three teams of teens, each coming up with their own "theme" poster, group name, song and call (all based on the Bible). On Friday evening, Mario and Jacqueline, friends and fellow believers from Chapecó came, and Mário gave his personal (with real impact) testimony. Vladi had worked very hard in preparing for teaching and had several sessions on Saturday. On Sunday, all the parents were invited to come and participate with their kids, so it gave us some contact and new chances to "build bridges".
Pray for these teens, as they go back to their families and friends, for God's Spirit to have free access in shining through them as they learn to walk with Him. The following pictures should give a better idea of some of our fun times:
NEW! streaming video from "TEEN CAMP 2005 DVD" PART 1 PART 2
(here's a smaller, lower quality version of Part1 if you can't load the above: smallerPart1)
SNAPSHOTS: