Hello family and friends,
I would encourage you to click this link and read the official newsletter. Another week at IVLI has come and gone. This week went by very fast.
I will share some images to give you a feel for the camp.
This is my cabin. I live in it with four other guys.
This is the view from outside my window.
This is the main teaching area.
This is the library.
The teaching area and library are on the right, with the lodge/dinning hall in the background.
Dinning hall
Pool
The iconic Cedar Campus sign
Beach
This canoe is named the voyager. Cedar Campus has lots of references to The Chronicles of Narnia.
I will summarize the previous week.
Mondays discussion topics are below:
Accepting God’s Unique Love
Accepting Our Unique Sin
Accepting Our Unique Calling
Tuesday through Thursday was spent in evangelism training.
On Wednesday, we ate breakfast burritos in the morning. For lunch, there was gumbo, cajun rice, and corn bread. I took a sauna with my family group. Londa, my family group mother, is from a family that is 100% Finnish. She pronounces the au in sauna as oww, like what you say when you hurt yourself. The s-oww-na is heated to 170°F. To make it warmer you throw water on top of the hot rocks. This adds heat and moisture to the air. After warming up in the sauna, you jump in the lake. Somehow your body doesn’t go into shock.
On Friday, we woke up early to go to Mackinac Island. After taking the ferry across, we met with the pastor of the church we would be representing. We learned about Mackinac Island and his ministry. After eating lunch, Ivanna and I set out to do conversational evangelism. Unfortunately, I didn’t get to share the gospel with any one. We got to pray for the health of a housekeeper on her smoke break. After praying for her, I met a young man sweeping a trail. He had worked on the island for two months and wasn’t sure what he was going to do with his life. I offered him a water bottle. He was very thankful for the offer, but didn’t need it. Ivanna eventually asked if we could pray him. He was open to trying it, and said his mom was in poor health. He was so touched by our conversation. Normally people crack the same jokes at him.
“Crappy job?”
“There is five hundred horses on the island! Of course there’s going to be manure to sweep up.”
After doing conversational evagelism, I worked at a Proxy Station. A Proxy Station is InterVarsity’s term for a display that allows you to enter into a spiritual conversation with someone. I worked on the #storyboard proxy. It is a giant mural depecting various scenes where Jesus saved people.
To summarise the day: Although I didn’t get to lead anyone to faith, the trip reduced my fear of starting a spiritual conversation with someone.
There are many activities going on today. John, my family group father, is very competitive. Our family group won the volleyball tournament, and the Nuke Em’ tournament today.
Next week, the camp will be studying Philippians at night.
The titles of the morning sessions are below.
Monday – Leading a Team
Tuesday – Multi-Ethnicity and Racial Reconciliation (all day)
Wednesday – Multi-Ethnicity and Racial Reconciliation
Thursday – Facing Failure as a Leader
Friday – Casting Vision for the Mission
Thanks for reading and praying for me.
Signing off,
Jacob
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