Holy Trinity

This past spring YD Adventures had the honor of working with the 8th grade graduating class of Holy Trinity for a multi-day challenge course. We stayed at luxurious Camp Eagle Fern and ate delicious food cooked by their staff. It’s not often we’re this spoiled!

As the trip coordinator, I was the one who outlined what challenge course elements and other activities we would be doing throughout the trip. I started working on my itinerary by praying, “Lord, what would You have me do?” I felt a sense of urgency toward sharing the gospel with these students as soon as possible so, on the very first night, I planned a gospel presentation. After more prayer, I scheduled one of my coworkers – Dave – to be the one to share the good news with these students.


Dave did an amazing job, sharing the gospel interactively so students would realize that they need to make a personal decision to follow Jesus. My favorite part was when Jerry jumped up and said, “Dave, I’ve decided that you’re going to be a vegetarian!” Dave responded, “Well, Jerry, you can’t make that decision for me. I’m going to have to make it for myself.” Jerry said, “Oh, you mean I can’t decide for you whether or not you’re a vegetarian or whether or not you’re saved?” “That’s right, it’s a decision I need to make on my own for myself.”

We challenged students emotionally, physically, and spiritually throughout this trip. On the last day, we led the kids on a hike. Becky asked them to take a rock and think about what is keeping them from following Jesus, attaching that significance to the rock. When we got the top, we shared what keeps us from Jesus, and threw our rocks over the edge, declaring ourselves freed of that burden.

Later, as we looked over response cards from students, we found that 21 out of 22 students made a decision for Christ: 14 first-time commitments and 7 rededications. Praise the Lord!! What a harvest!

A Sory Shared

I have just gotten back from four days spent with students. I am slightly dazed but very happy; it was a good trip. “What makes a trip good,” you ask? A good trip is one in which the Lord takes the lead and students are invited and challenged to a lifelong journey in relationship with Christ and His church (it is our mission, after all).

We began with a day on the challenge course, moved on to rock climbing, enjoyed a day on the river, and capped it with a lovely hike. Interwoven into the trip were analogies, quiet times to read our Bibles, and shared testimonies.

The trip seemed to speed by. On the morning of the rock climbing day we had a glorious thunder and lightning storm (for those of you in OR, do you remember the storm on Monday morning? I’m not going to forget it!). We were on the east side of Mt Hood but caught a good bit of rain. No one complained; instead, everyone expressed awe and delight at the storm. By the time we left for the rock site, the storm was over and blue was filling the sky.

Every chance I got I spent talking to students, “Do you have any siblings?” “What are your top 5 favorite musicians?” For the incoming seniors, “Do you have any plans for after high school?” Questions like these reveal what students home lives are like, what they’re filling their minds with, and whether or not they’re thinking about their futures, as well as a host of other details. It also helps build rapport between us and the students.

That evening I was given the opportunity to share my testimony. I shared with students the brokenness that I’d come from and the life that knowing Jesus had brought me. I shared about my current struggle with depression, and the hope and joy I’m discovering in the midst of it.

After I shared, we sat around the camp fire. One of the girls – we’ll call her Sarah – approached me and asked if she could speak to me. I could tell she was agitated. “Sure,” I said, “Do you want to go for a walk?” She said yes, and we walked away. Almost immediately Sarah began crying, telling me that she felt she could relate to my testimony, then poured out to me the story of her life. I listened carefully as she spoke but in the back of my mind I was thinking, “Oh no! What do I say? God, please give me wisdom.” It was humbling to be singled out for a conversation of this magnitude.

Sarah was looking for someone to listen to her, to sympathize with her struggles, and agree that what she’s struggling with is hard. She did ask for advice on how to grow closer to God, and I was more than willing to share a few simple ideas: some books that might make the Bible more interesting and a CD of scripture set to music. I also encouraged her to make time to read her Bible. Before we rejoined the group, I asked Sarah if I could pray for her. We stood there under the darkening sky, arms around each others’ shoulders, and I prayed that the Lord would draw her close, comfort her, and continue molding her into a Godly woman.

It is amazing to me that, in recycling my pain, Sarah was able to relate to me and find the courage to talk about her struggles. It reminds me of the importance of sharing our burdens with others because, in doing so, we are giving them permission to share their burdens with us. Praise the Lord for our burdens and thus our opportunities to connect with others in their pain.