Here a Cabin, there a Cabin, Everywhere a Cabin

I know that I’ve said this before, but I can’t believe how fast the cabins are being built.  The last few posts about the cabins showed pictures of floors and walls, but now they look like the real deal!  Ron, Phil, Sharon and myself trekked over to Crestridge again this afternoon and were amazed by the progress of a few short days.  Not only are there floors and walls, but now there are roofs, covered porches and even showers in one of the choctaw cabins!  Below are some shots of the progress on the new Chickasaw camper cabin. 

Now here are some pictures on the construction over on Choctaw hill.  Take particular notice of the dual shower stalls…warm water for everyone…get excited

The Cherokee cabin only has the footers and floor finished right now.  But it shouldn’t be long before the framing, walls and roof is added to it also.  If you’re ever in the area, stop on by so we can show you in person.  Otherwise, keep enjoying the updates here online.

Posted in News | Tagged Camp Crestirdge, Crestridge construction, Crestridge new cabins, Ridgecrest Summer Camps, snow | Leave a reply

Demolition of Bear Trap

It’s time to step away from the cabin construction and inform you of more “groundbreaking news”.  This may be sad news to some of you, but it’s all going to look great in the end!  Around 10AM Thursday morning, a crew of workers started clearing land for the new Bear Trap.  We took several pictures and video footage to let you see what we experienced that morning.

There are 7 short video clips you can watch.  We suggest watching all starting at #1 because it is a progression.  Demolition #1 Demolition #2 Demolition #3 Demolition #4 Demolition #5 Demolition #6 Demolition #7

They almost have all of the dirt taken away so they can mark where the footers will be.  The construction crew is not wasting any time with this project either.  They are working hard in this cold weather!

Check back soon because we’re hoping to have another blog posted before Thanksgiving.  If not, have a happy Thanksgiving!

Posted in News | Tagged Camp Crestridge, Crestridge bear trap, Crestridge construction, Ridgecrest Summer Camps | Leave a reply

All-Encompassing

Read This Passage: Colossians 3:12-17
And whatever you do, in word or in deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him. —Colossians 3:17

As Christians, we should be the most thankful people in the world. After all, we personally know the Creator of the universe and have received all of the benefits that come with knowing Christ. We have received forgiveness. Every sin that we have ever committed has been entirely forgiven. We should have an attitude of gratitude considering all God has done for us.

Unfortunately, most of us do not. I must confess that, far too often, I find myself complaining rather than expressing thanksgiving. Even when I’m here at camp, I find myself looking at the problems to fix, rather than the incredible life Jesus has given me… I mean after all, I basically live at camp!

Today’s Scripture passage shows three elements of our Christian walk: the peace of Christ, the words of Christ, and the name of Christ. Applying the truth about these three will result in a thankful heart.
First, the Lord’s peace guides us. The presence of His peace indicates that we are moving in the right direction. When we want to know His will, we wait for His peace.

Second, the Word of God must transform the way we act and think. Having a Bible beside your bed does not mean that you have any of it in your heart or mind. God’s Word should dwell in us and saturate every part of our lives. It becomes a part of who you are!

Third, the way we live our lives—what we “do, in word or in deed”—should point others to God. God’s call on our lives as Christians is all-encompassing. It isn’t just going to church or being active in a youth group, or coming to camp in the summer. It’s living out our faith every day, when it’s easy and when it’s not. We are called to do all things in the “name of the Lord,” even in the very grit of life. You belong to God. Live like it!

Real Choices
How has today’s devotion challenged your ideas about what it means to be a person of faith? Does your faith make any difference in your daily life? Why or why not?

Digging Deeper
Read Colossians 3:1-11, the prelude to the passage you just studied. Carefully observe the differences between living to please yourself versus living to please the Spirit.

Pray
Ask the Lord to help you avoid living a mediocre life. Pray that in everything you do and say, in every part of your life, you might honor His name.

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Winter Wonderland

It’s definitely winter here in the mountains.  Most days this past week have been cold, cold, cold.  A mountain winter is going take some time for this North Texas girl to get used to.  One thing I love though is waking up to it snowing, and that didn’t happen too often back home!  So, I drove around camp today and took pictures of various places.  It was only a dusting, but even so, camp still looks pretty in white.  Hope y’all enjoy seeing these!

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Up go the walls

A lot has happened here at camp since the last post…which was less than a week ago!  The floors are finished, with the exception of one Choctaw cabin, and now the framing has started.  Right now, only two cabins have the walls up, but it seems that every time we blink something else gets completed.  Below you can see the progress of the new staff cabin on Chipp/Chick hill.  Even Oj is interested in the construction process.

Keep looking staff and you’ll get an inside view of what the new cabin looks like…literally.  You can see the spaces on either side of the cabin where the showers and toliets will be placed.  That’s right, plural.  There will be two showers and two toliets, with a nice vanity mirror in the middle.  We’re living the high life now!  You can also see the porch, which will be covered when all is said and done.

Here’s some pics of the framing going up on one of the new Choctaw cabins.

Before any of us know it, it’ll be summer and all you campers and staff will be here experiencing the cabins for yourselves.  But until then, keep checking back for new pictures.

Posted in Girls, News | Tagged construction, framing, New Cabins, walls | Leave a reply

Reconciliation

Read This Passage: Colossians 1:15-20
For God was pleased to have all His fullness dwell in Him, and through Him to reconcile everything to Himself by making peace through the blood of His cross—whether things on earth or things in heaven.
—Colossians 1:19-20

From Genesis 3 onward, sin stands as a barrier between us and God. Sin enslaves us and devastates our relationship with God. Sin is deadly. It is the power of sin that we must grasp in order to fully value what Christ has done for us.

God took a look at this hopeless situation and created a plan through Jesus Christ. In Colossians 1, Paul said that God “was pleased” to reconcile all things to Himself with the work of the cross. That extraordinary act of God at Calvary was His deliberate choice because of His great love for us. It was His decision to start a process of reconciliation that would remove that barrier of sin and restore our relationships with Him.
In other words, because of Christ’s death and resurrection, sin can no longer stand as a fence between us and God. He’s taken care of our sin, once and for all.

But that’s not all. God has not only pardoned our sins; He wants us to live in relationship with Him. In our sin, we were helpless to restore our relationship with the Creator. God chose to reconcile that relationship through Christ’s blood. Jesus took on our sin and died so that we might live each day in relationship with His Father.

We don’t often like to recognize that we had any role in Christ’s death, but we did because of sin. God deliberately set up a plan to bring us back into full relationship with Him through Christ. Don’t miss that!

Real Choices
If God is convicting you of areas of sin in your life, find a quiet place to get alone with Him. Search the Scriptures for relevant verses and spend uninterrupted time in prayer. Humbly admit your sin to the Lord and watch as He once again reconciles you to Himself.

Digging Deeper
The English word reconciliation is from the Latin reconciliare: re means “again” and conciliare means “to bring together, to unite.” For further study on reconciliation, check out Ephesians 1:7-8.

Pray
Thank God for His deep love for us. Thank Jesus for His willingness to give His life for yours. Ask the Lord to reveal your sin. Confess it as He reveals it.

Posted in Devotions | Tagged Colossians, Weekly Devotions | Leave a reply

Construction Update #5: More Floors!

The cabin floors are almost finished!  As of yesterday, they were half way done on the last Choctaw and new Cherokee cabin.  Due to the rain today, I’m sure they will finish tomorrow.  Abby and I took quite a few pictures, so bear with us!  If you would like to see the pictures full size, simply click on the picture!

You can see in the last picture what the hill looks like in the fall and that without the leaves you can see much farther.

The first picture of the new Cherokee cabin was taken from outside the old Cheyenne bath house which will be turned into a staff cabin.  The next picture was taken coming down the road to Cherokee hill.

Abby and I decided to take a nap in the new Chickasaw cabin to show all you Chickasaws where you may be sleeping this summer!  We also wanted to show you what the lake looks like in the fall.  As you can see, there is no water, but look how much you can see behind the trees.

We were finally able to upload a video!  Click HERE to check out Cheyenne and Choctaw hill and be sure to listen for the beautiful sound of hammering in the background!

We are hoping to have pictures posted next week as they start on the new Bear Trap.  Thanks for joining with us on this endeavor, please continue to pray for us as we continue to move forward!

Posted in News | Tagged Camp Crestidge, Crestridge construction, floors, New Cabins, Ridgecrest Summer Camps | Leave a reply

Construction Update #4: Floors

As you can see above, the crew is moving fast with the construction.  As of this afternoon, one cabin (the Chipp/Chick staff cabin) had the floor completely done and another (the Chick cabin) was well under way.  If it doesn’t rain the next few days (as is forcasted) then all the new cabins should have finished floors by the end of the week!

Posted in News | Tagged Camp Crestridge, Crestridge construction, floors, New Cabins, Ridgecrest Summer Camps | Leave a reply

Redeemer

Read This Passage: Revelation 5:8-10
“And they sang a new song: ‘You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals; because You were slaughtered, and You redeemed people for God by Your blood from every tribe and language and people and nation.’” —Revelation 5:9

Can you imagine being a fly on the wall in this worship service? John takes us into the throne room of heaven. Christ, through His humiliating death and victorious resurrection, has gone into heaven after redeeming His people from the bondage of sin. He is welcomed by a new song because of His worthiness to be our king, because of what He did on the cross. What words can more fully declare the greatness of Christ than the lyrics of this song? He literally purchased people from every people group in the world, a price tag that cost Him His own life.

It is Christ’s work on the cross that gives us victory. It is the work of the cross that gives life. He has fixed our sin problem, taking what was destroyed by sin and restoring us through His sacrifice.
Picture yourself attending this worship service. (If you are a follower of Christ, you will be there.) Christ is your Redeemer. He gives you freedom to live life to its fullest.

Pray
Be excited that Christ loved you all the way to the cross. Praise Him for the freedom His sacrifice brings to you.

Posted in Devotions | Tagged Revelation, Weekly Devotions | Leave a reply

Concrete, Concrete and more Concrete!

The cabins are definitely coming along fast.  This morning the concrete truck arrived once again.  The columns have been finished on all the cabins and now it’s time to have more concrete poured into them.  We’re adding as much stability as possible because we know all the crazy antics that go on inside the cabins!  Here you can see the concete being poured into the Chipp/Chick cabin:

And here’s what it looks like on the other two hills:

Next week, the framing of the cabins should begin.  I wish everyone could be here to see it happening in person.  Since that isn’t the case though, keep checking back for updates.  We’re doing our best here at camp to document as much as possible!

Posted in News | Tagged Camp Crestridge, Columns, Crestridge construction, Footers, New Cabins, Ridgecrest Summer Camps | Leave a reply