Day 1... Are We There Yet!?!

Well, we have officially kicked off our week away at the soft sands of Surf City! We had a quick and un-eventful bus ride to camp... that is except for our lunch stop.  Most of the middle school boy's minds were blown because the Burger King had FREE video games in it. I thought I would never get them out of there.

We made it to camp and were greeted by our very own Surf City Olympians who led us though vigorous training to make this week the best it can be. Once we got settled in and beds made we took our swim test and everybody passed with flying colors. After our test we decided to walk around and show the new crew the camp. Our first stop was the gym with air conditioning and a carpet ball table. Needless to say, that is where our tour stopped and never really got going again. There's something about the competition of carpet ball that sucks a middle schooler's brain in. (For those of you who don't know...Carpet Ball is a lot like shuffle board with billiard balls.)

After Dinner we headed to Club. Club is the "bread and butter" of what we do at Surf City. At Club, students get to hear an amazing band who leads them in some great music. There is also a hilarious skit to get the students laughing and telling stories... this year we met two cowboys who have Gallagher-like tendencies with fruit and tennis rackets. They are trying to fight off the evil Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders who want to make Surf City their new practice facility. At club students also get to hear a great message lead by our very own Jayson Samuels. Last night he challenged them to not "check-out" this week because God wants to show them something amazing this week.  That is my prayer for each and every one of these students... that they would realize that God has something incredible in store for their lives. I can't wait to hear how God will use this week to encourage these students and challenge them to make wise choices and grow in their relationship with Him.

We ended the night last night with a Carnival complete with game booths, popcorn and even fireworks! Students had all kinds of opportunities to win tickets for prizes. Jake Lee went "Bass Bobbing"... Yeah, you guessed it... he attempted and succeeded in catching a live bass with his mouth. Gross! I cheered him on, until I found out that you could use your tickets you won to pie your leader in the face. Thankfully tomorrow I will seek my revenge on 'The Blob."

I realized this morning that I forgot my camera cord. I took some great shots last night but you will have to wait to see them. Now that I know, I will take some more on my phone and have them available for tomorrow's post. Thanks so much for your prayers. Be praying today that God would use the activities to build relationships that will last a lifetime and provide opportunities to share His truth.