A Good Life

Phil and his dad at Gene's, a summertime tradition.

Phil’s dad passed away today.

 He was in the hospital about a month, his lungs failing.  We got to visit with him when we came back from Canada, and we are thankful for the time we got to spend with him.

Will called him a few nights ago and Grandpa said in his booming voice, “I find myself in the most peculiar situation.  They tell me I’m dying, but I can’t believe it’s true.”  He was such a character.

Roger Kiper was a carpenter all his life.  He was highly skilled and could finish stairs beautifully and hang doors to perfection.  He was a faithful husband to Dorothy for over 60 years.  He was a good father to his two boys: he provided them with a good life, and trained them in the ways of the Lord.  He has a whole slew of grandchildren and great-grandchildren, and he enjoyed them all very much.  He used to say often, “I have such a wonderful family.”

As I spoke at camp this summer I often referenced the movie Big Fish.  The final scene of the movie is the father’s death (the story version of it).  You can watch it here.

Phil’s dad experienced the characters of his life all coming by to see him over the last week or so.  Family and friends have been there to pay their respects. And as the movie says…

“And the strange thing is there’s not a sad face to be found.   Everyone is just so glad to see you and send you off right.”

We feel that way because we know he had great faith in his Savior Jesus Christ.  We can let him go with joy because of the great hope we have in Christ.

Like the father in the movie, he’s left us with a million stories…all of his were true.  And though in life we were sometimes tired of them, in death, they are his legacy to us… stories we will share with each other and pass on in our own ways to our friends and family.  Stories we are thankful to have in our hearts today.

"He Is Building a Palace"

I read a book of selections from the writings of C.S Lewis recently and was really struck by this analogy.  I'm thinking of some of the people I would put on a list of people who fit the description he gives.  I'm happy to know some.

"Imagine yourself as a living house.   God comes in to rebuild that house.  At first, perhaps, you can understand what He is doing.  He is getting the drains right and stopping the leaks in the roof and so on: you knew those jobs needed doing and so you are not surprised.  But presently He starts knocking the house about in a way that hurts abominably and does not seem to make sense.  What on earth is He up to?  The explanation is that He is building quite a different house from the one you thought of—throwing out a new wing here, putting on an extra floor there, running up towers, making courtyards.  You thought you were going to be made into a decent little cottage: but He is building a palace.  He intends to come and live in it Himself.

Already the new [people] are dotted here and there all over the earth.  Some, as I have admitted, are still hardly recognizable: but others can be recognized.  Every now and then one meets them.  Their very voices and faces are different from ours; stronger, quieter, happier, more radiant.  They begin where most of us leave off.  They are, I say, recognizable; but you must know what to look for. 

They will not be very like the idea of “religious people” which you have formed from your general reading.  They do not draw attention to themselves.  You tend to think that you are being kind to them when they are really being kind to you.  They love you more than other [people] do, but they need you less… They will usually seem to have a lot of time: you will wonder where it comes from.  When you have recognized them, you will recognize the next one much more easily.  And I strongly suspect (but how should I know?) that they recognize one another immediately and infallibly, across every barrier of color, sex, class, age, and even of creeds.  In that way, to become holy is rather like joining a secret society.  To put it at the very lowest, it must be great fun."

C.S. Lewis               Mere Christianity

Sharing the Treasure

I've told you that over the past few Sundays we have been watching a series called "Go Fish" by Andy Stanley.  The last part of this series was called "The One That Got Away".  It was the perfect ending because it challenged us to share the gospel as we leave our summer behind.

Andy used a story from 2 Kings 7 to make his point.  After the city has been besieged for a long time, people are starving.  There are four lepers who decide to take their chances by surrendering to the enemy, but when they get to the enemy camp, no one is there.  God has supernaturally intervened and frightened the army away.  They leave in such haste that they leave all their equipment and supplies behind.  The lepers have a feast and gather items for themselves, but in the end they think of the people back in the city.  They return to let the inhabitants know that the army is gone and there is food and treasure for the taking.

All of us who have been here for the summer feel like we have received a great treasure.  I talked about mine in my last post.  But we leave here feeling the responsibility... no, the privilege... of sharing this amazing place and the work our awesome God did in our lives this summer.  Here are some examples:

Adam left yesterday wearing his superhero cape.  He told us that at home he is an entirely different person and that this time when he goes home he is not going to slip back into his "secret identity."  He wants to be bold about sharing his life and his faith with those around him there.

Sarah and Dayna have taken all the addresses of their campers so that they can send them birthday cards.  They want to keep cultivating the spiritual ground they tilled this summer in the lives of the wonderful girls they were able to counsel.

I am returning home with many projects on my mind.  There's so much I want to do, so much I want to share with friends.  At the top of the list is returning to share our superhero theme using this material.  I can't wait to see the kids and helpers get back into the swing of things in Kids' Club.  It's going to be a great year.

Treasures of the Summer

This summer I've once again collected a few treasures from my time here at camp.  Of course there's the obligatory t-shirts and camp pictures.  But let me tell you about a few special items.  

Adam told the campers he was "The Amazing Adam," but that they
could call him "Double A."

When Adam showed up at camp wearing his "BAM" shirt I was jealous.  I wanted a shirt like that I told everyone, but I wanted one that said "PAM."  Just a few days later I was surprised at supper when I received a package containing this shirt.  Tirzah had copied Adam's shirt and made it for me.  She did a great job.  It has been so fun to see the look on the campers faces when they realize what my shirt says, and all summer people have passed by me and said, "PAM!"  It made me laugh every time.

All summer long I've gotten sweet notes from lots of different people.  This one was from two campers from Junior Week 3.

"Dear, Pam
You are the best storyteller EVER.  Keep doing what your doing.
Ryan & Morgan"

All last year I took time to send every camper a card for their birthday, containing a picture of them from camp.  The first day of Teen Week 1, Lindsay came up to me and handed me the card below.  She said her grandma told her to bring it to me since I sent her a card.  Lindsay did the artwork for the card and won 4th place in her state for her contest entry.  Receiving this card from her created a connection with her.  I was able to talk to her several times during the week.  This card is very special.

Lindsay lives in Louisiana with her mom but spends her summers
in Canada with her father.

As a gift for our service this summer, Johnnie and Becky gave us this book of beautiful pictures from the town of Sioux Lookout.  It was the perfect gift.

These are just the tangible things I could show you that I've collected.  There are so many more intangibles... walking the trails with the kids and having one of them come up and slip their hand in mine, having campers seek me out to tell me about their heroes (and sometimes having them tell me that I'm their hero), sweet moments with summer staffers at meals, seeing many boys and girls receive Christ as their Savior, beautiful sunsets... the list could go on and on.

My heart is full of these treasures.  It has been a wonderful summer.