Closing Down The Season
August 12, 2009
Just over two months ago we at Crossroads Braced for our typical summer season. That amounted to two trips for our students, one to the ALIVE Festival and one to Michigan’s upper peninsula for a week at Hiawatha. It also meant that I would be speaking 35 times at two churches and three different camps. My family would cap off the “Routledge Traveling Suitcase Tour” with a ten day stint in the north woods to breath and rest. Now here I sit at the close of that season. This has been my traditional seat at the picture window as I watch the last chalk-like sky etching fade into night. The end of a movement by the composer of life.
I am reflecting on God’s goodness through this summer and it has been an incredible showing of God’s hand. I had no preemptive sketches or notes as to how the summer was going to play out. Just for your consideration, as friends, I wanted to give you a peek into his blessings.
At the Alive Festival God spoke to three of my guys on one night and another three girls on that same night. We trudged through the slime created by three days of rain. We worshipped with 25,000 others along with David Crowder and usured out the Peter Furhler era of the Newsboys. It was a great beginning.
I was home just long enough to wash my clothes and sleep on a real bed for a day or so and then we (all) headed to Fairview, Michigan and Camp Barakel. Over the years the camp has been a source of encouragement to Dawn and I in that its founder (some 65 years ago) had taken opportunity to embrace us at some level. No matter how difficult this ministry has been over the years, I recall his words of encouragement. He had almost walked away from the camp in the fourteenth year of operations. Johhny passed on to his heavenly home a few year back, and despite of the many wonderful friends that we have gained over the years, I still hear him say into my ear just before I got up to speak, “It’s all big stuff.”
I spoke and God moved hearts again. Somewhere around twenty campers prayed to receive Christ on Friday night.
Home for a few days and then on to Camp Michindoh for Madison and I. My two younger daughters were attending junior camp at Hiawatha. God again proved his faithfulness when another twenty or so students prayed to receive Christ. I will never get tired of seeing that happen. My prayer as I left camp that week was for God to hedge these kids’ lives. We will get to experience a reunion with a band from both Michindoh and ALIVE at our own Murder Mystery in October. Shine Bright Baby is coming.
A week between and Madison was off to camp again. The garden and animals had to be tended and then we packed into a 30 foot RV for a week of meetings in North Carolina. I would be selling it short to say that God did anything but break lose that week. On three of the four nightly sessions the altar was packed with crying, pleading and praying students and adults. It is humbling to be a small part of that. My prayer for that week was simple as well. “Lord begin the spiritual revolution of North Carolina here, with this.”
Vacation has been short but God has restored a bit of my vision. Now I pray that he will bring the revival home with me.
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