Camp Little Red Blog

INCREDIBLE

Every year it seems the same.  Staff is difficult to come by.  Especially guys!  Is it the draw of money?  Is it the nervousness of paying for school?  I’m sure there are lots of good reasons and not excuses.  I love young Christian Men in the work force.  It’s like they are in a different Camp with a different cabin group.  The principles are the same….pray, be in the Word, reach out to the lost and hurting, encourage those in the faith and trust, Trust TRUST in the Lord with all your heart!  It is so good.  If you have read this than pray for staff for camp….especially for male counselors!  Gord Russell, Director

WORDS

  Words are an amazing communication tool usually taken for granted.  I know this first hand as my eldest daughter works everyday with an eleven year  old girl who is legally blind and fully deaf.  This poor girl can’t hear even one single word.  She can sense and feel things.  She can think and imagine but to hear or see is beyond her.  It is interesting to watch my daughter think of ways to communicate with her.  She wears the same bracelet every day so the girl can know it is her.  Today she is bringing different kinds of fabric for the girl to touch to stimulate her senses.  Oh how my daughter would love to be able to just talk to her but she can’t.  At the end of the day my daughter has to write out a report about how things went.  When she writes the report…it is with words.  God gave us a written word and a spoken word and a Living Word in the name of His Son Jesus.  He has been trying to get His message of love out to the deaf and blind sinners of this world and is using us as His instruments.  We wear the bracelet of Jesus Christ every day and try to stimulate the senses of the lost towards the God who loves them dearly.  Would you pray for us to be faithful as we distribute the Words of life to the lost.

  Dear Church Sponsors:

It continually amazes us, as the Board of Camp Little Red, that we and you as sponsor churches have the privilege to have missionaries and a mission field right in our own back yard.  Camp Little Red is an Alberta mission field that we can support and see daily results of the Lord’s blessing as He brings souls of campers into His Kingdom and heals troubled lives. 

We are humbled by how God has effectively filled the positions of Assistant Director and Maintenance man so appropriately in Mike Doerksen and Ken Ditchburn respectively.  The camp contributed toward some of their financial support for approximately four months while they were seeking to raise independent support.  We are pleased to report that each of them has fully raised their own support and the camp is no longer contributing to their support from the general fund.  If their support is low and the Camp General Fund has money in it then we will consider helping again.

As a result of these unbudgeted financial gifts to this venture, the camp General Fund is now at about a $12,000 deficit.  Although it is not our custom to operate at a deficit, we believed it was the right thing to assist them with some of their living expenses.  We bring this need before the church sponsors of the camp and respectfully request that you make this need known to your respective congregations and we wait for God to guide individuals in what they can give to help retire this deficit.

We especially appreciate all who continually cover the camp in prayer; it has been so evident of late with so many things coming together for the upcoming summer camping season. 

The Lord is at work at Camp Little Red.  Please join us His work at the camp with whatever God has given you to contribute.

Respectfully,

The Camp Little Red Board

  Harold from The Follow-Up guy,

It is with extreme gratefulness I get to write this insert. Many people have the opportunity to see God working first hand but none deserve it less then me. My job is really quite simple, interact with the kids after they have gone home from camp and make sure they feel loved beyond the normal camp experience. A lot of the kids we get at camp do not understand the idea of love, as Follow-up Director I get to give them a little taste of God’s love the sweetest love there is.

I really do not no where to begin with this report, I could tell you about the young man that became a Christian after 5 years of coming to camp, I could tell you how his home has fallen apart and his parents are no longer together but through it all he has a burning desire to serve the Lord and be a missionary right in his own school. Or I could tell you about the mom who was overjoyed that someone other then her and her husband were pouring into the spiritual life of her kids. I guess I could tell you about the 2 young men who have been writing me back answering all the challenges and questions I have given them and how they earned themselves a devotional booklet each, and both have recently told me they are doing their devotional regularly from the book, praise the Lord.

I am humbled everyday by the kids I am allowed to visit, praise God for his continual mercies, may he allow us to continually minister to his children and may we be faithful to his call.

Mike Doerksen,

Follow-up Director,  Camp Little Red

WORDS FROM KEN DITCHBURN

  “It’s just me and the horses…all alone, but, summers-a-coming.  I got me frozen fingers and toes, but summers-a-coming.  Regularly lightin the cabins, and haulin water, but, summers-a-coming.  Lots of sweepin and moppin, but, summers-a-coming.  Lots of shovellin snow and saltin the steps, but, summers-a-coming.  I’m visitin the churches and movin the brochures, but, summers-a-coming.  Paintin and cleanin, but, summers-a-coming.  Ya! It’s just me and the horses, and I’m all alone… but… summers-a-coming.  Pray for us…summers-a-coming.

WORDS FROM GORD RUSSELL

  Isn’t our God so forgiving and merciful and good!  There are so many things to say but can’t ‘cause their ain’t no room on this paper.  Kids are committing themselves to Jesus Christ.  At the few winter camps we had more than twenty stood up for special prayer on an ALL OUT COMMITMENT TO THE LORD JESUS that they made.  If even half of them carried this out what an impact they would have.  I’ve heard from campers that were here years ago and their prayer requests vary from a safe delivery of a baby to a deeper walk with the Lord.  Still….after years of not being their they are asking us to pray for them and one of their requests is to know the Lord deeper.  This is incredible.  I hardly hear that request given in church!  The camp looks really good with all the snow.  We have been doing a few rentals that may prove fruitful for getting some staff for the upcoming season.  We have a pile of camps and rentals coming up soon and then of course the summer!  Pray for us.  Here are a couple more tidbits, dreams and desires for you to chew on….you know words to chew on kind of thing.

Ö My wife Val will be the cook this summer….any one wanting to help? Let us know.

Ö God keeps us trusting with a low General Fund

Ö Horses are looking good.  Need a couple more good ones.

Ö The New Building plans are nearing the final stage.  The upcoming Annual Meeting will give a time frame of when to begin.

Ö The tractor at camp does well for what it does but it may be time for an upgrade.  A Skid Steer or Bob Cat with a few of the fixing’s like buckets, drills and blade would be very helpful.  Any one out their got any ideas?

Ö A couple of the propane stoves are giving us fits…any experts out there that can help?

Ö We need to buy two new tents as some of the ones we have are in need of a change.  Could you buy a tent for the camp….about $1,300 each.

Ö Want to work at the camp for a day or two with our maintenance guy?  Just give us a call.

Ö Looking for six girl counselors and six guy counselors….should be 18 or over and have a decent walk with the Lord….can you send them our way?

Ö We need to upgrade the treasurers laptop for finances….any big hearted people want to do that?  About $600.

Ö The Bursary Fund is at $500 and needs to climb to $12,000…is it possible for a third year in a row for this to happen?

Ö A new fund called the Counselor Work Fund is in place to help counselors get a few more dollars for the great work that they do.  We only give $10 a day to staff that work out at the camp so an extra shot would be really nice for them after a summer of service.  Last year there was $10,000 given for them.  Can it happen again?

  Thanks for letting me be candid with these words.  You are a little in on my thinkings and methinks that you praying for us and these things would be A-O-K with me.  May God do His work for His Own Name’s Sake! 

Gord Russell, Director

WORDS FROM YOU

  You can speak in many ways.  Perhaps one of them is in the upcoming banquet project!

FUNDRAISING BANQUET

Where?  Leslieville Hall

When?   April 4

Time?     6 PM

Project?  New Camp Stove  

  Don’t miss out on the banquet.  It is a great way for the camp to raise funds for needed items.  The old camp stove has been breaking down.  Springs popping, it burnt one of the cooks faces when lighting the grill and has been through three floods.  It is time to replace it. The cost of the project will be about $10,000.  Anything extra will be put in the General Fund to help it out.  We shall see you there!  If you can not make it you may still send a gift to the camp designated Banquet Project.

WORDS FROM YOU TO GOD

1. God gets the glory

2. Staff for the summer

3. Provision of financial needs

4. Kids to be saved and growing.

HELP

  “God is our refuge and strength, an ever present help in trouble.”  Who is a great helper to our lives like our God?  There is none.  God helps in times of trouble and turmoil like we saw in the flood of a couple years ago.  God helps in provisions when funds are low and staff don’t sign up to help like He has the last number of years.  God helps the lost soul to find Him like He has the past 26 years of camping ministry.  We say boldly with the writer of Hebrews “The Lord is our Helper, what can man do to me.”  What a blessing to have One we can call out to for help at any time.  Our God has the skill, resources, timing and compassion more than sufficient for any need in our personal lives and for our churches and even enough for Camp Little Red.  Let us cry out to Him together for His help in our times of need!

  The summer is quickly approaching and that means a lot of work to get the camp ready for the ministry that will be happening if the Lord tarries.  We had a couple work days that saw about 28 people come and help out.  There was much work done on the corral area for the horses.  A new corral is being put up.  Fence posts were punched in the ground and fences were rewired and fixed up.  The horses are starting to show up at the camp again.  Two new outhouses were built.  They are still in process and we hope will be finished by the summer.  Road work was done, the old cabin porch was stained, broken down things were fixed, a tent structure that had fallen over was repaired and hours of cleaning.  The pasture was disked and harrowed as well as corral area rotor-tilled.  The emergency water barrels were filled with water.  Indeed let the Lord be glorified through the kind hands of his workers.

HELPING HEARTS

  We had a winter camp that saw 35 kids attend.  It was an amazing time of outreach.  Many needy kids from foster homes came making it a real challenge but God helped us through.  It was difficult to find staff for the camp as there was a major wedding and graduation that took most of the staff we use at such camps.  Our God provided a team for Friday night from PRBI.  They sang and gave testimonies and shared with the kids in the cabins.  The Lord raised up some other staff to help us out.  One girl came up from Lethbridge.  The team left on Saturday after a couple more testimonies were given.  By the time Sunday morning came their were four girls that prayed to receive Christ as their Lord.  Somehow the Lord touched their lives and we give many thanks to the God of heaven for His help.

HELPING HANDOUTS

  In our last supplement letter that we sent out we have seen some answers to your prayers.  Some notable ones are the horses.  It seems that we will come under budget and have enough horses for this summer.  Pray for the prep. Work that needs to be done with them and for the three homeschoolers horse camps that are coming up.  We have sixty kids signed up.  Twenty kids a day will take part.  A few great things have happened staff wise as well.  We have one guy for the summer and a few filler guys.  We still need four for the summer for sure.  Five more per camp would be better.  Some girls have signed up too.  We can still use a couple for the summer.  Kitchen and maintenance should be OK.  The work days went very well.  Lots of work was accomplished.  The general fund is still in need but in better shape and the bursary fund has seen remarkable improvement.  It went from a couple hundred dollars to about eight thousand dollars.  Four more to go to reach our goal.  Thanks to those who are helping young people go back to school.  The campership fund has improved to over a thousand dollars and we are grateful to the Lord for the givers.  Without supporters we can’t do it and God raises up the helpers to do their bit….their bit of praying, giving, sacrificing, helping, cooking, encouraging and…..we are thankful to the God of heaven for your love for Him.

HELPING AGAIN

  So, what are the needs now.  Here they are and please do pray about these things. 

Ö A couple more good horses.

Ö Another shot of dollars for the General Fund.

Ö Four more thousand for the Bursary Fund.

Ö Three to four thousand for the campership fund. 

Ö Five male counselors and two girl Counselors.

Ö Prayer for the director and family to be encouraged.

Ö Kids that are signed up for the summer

HELPED BY THE LORD

  “Growing up in a Christian home I accepted Christ at the young age of 3.  The next ten years were a hurtful, painful blur….she wanted a divorce.  Things got worse. I spent nights laying in bed crying whole nights while my parents fought in the next room….The las time I saw her I was 9.  After that I got 2 letters from her and that was it.  But through all this I never once blamed God for my troubles….I feel God is calling me to become a youth pastor. I pray that I will be able to lean on God whatever I go through.”

  This teen was at a recent camp and wrote her testimony.  She also spoke it in front of the twenty people that were at the same camp.  Our hearts break for her and cry out to God to make her into the servant of Christ He wants her to be.  Brethren, Pray for us.

CAMP LITTLE RED      Gord Russell, Director   Box 334                                  Camp Phone 224-3700

Bowden,  AB  T0M 0K0      office@camplittlered.com

    www.camplittlered.com       Fax. 403-224-2859

Hey, check out some pictures from the recent

Floor Hockey & Board Games Camp!

  Just a few days ago we had our yearly Camp Little Red Annual Banquet.  Every year we come up with a project for the money to be given to and God supplies for our needs.  One year there was raised over thirty thousand dollars but there was the need for a bundle of money at the time.  This year we had a not so glorious project of replacing a couple outhouses.  We set a goal of $7,500 to cover the costs.  So, the banquet was held, beef on a bun with beef dip, salad and veggies.  A wonderful meal with Angel Food dessert.  The fellowship was sweet and the songs were worshipful and the speaker was a former camper who is going into the ministry.  The offering was taken up and people worked together to clean up the place.  After the count of the dollars there was amazement and rejoicing as $7,533.15 came in.  Praise the Lord for another amazing show of his watchful eye over the work of the camp.  There was another $20 that came in towards the project last night.  God is good. 

  The banquet is such a fickle things sometimes.  There used to be 130-150 people come.  Excitement, enthusiasm and zeal for God’s work.  This banquet did not lack in excitement or enthusiasm or zeal but it did lack in people.  Only seventy-seven people.  You wonder if you should rejoice or cry.  You feel bad for the church that prepared for 120.  The Lord knows though.  There was extra food that was given to a couple families for encouragement.  Some of the extra desserts were gobbled up the next day at a coffee time.  But seventy-seven.  The scripture says “Who has despised the day of small things?”  The scripture says “Not by power nor by might but by my spirit says the Lord of Hosts.”  Did not Gideon fight with just three hundred?  Did not four lepers feed a starving city?  Did not a little kid wipe out a giant?  Did not Jesus defeat the whole demonic hosts and their leader?  God is God and let every man be silent before Him.  We thank you oh God for your provision.

Fingerprints

At a recent gathering of Camp leaders we had a devotional given on the topic of fingerprints. The man shared how we leave fingerprints wherever we are. On cutlery, windows, tables and such. Then he talked about how Jesus left his fingerprints on different lives. He told how he left more than fingerprints….he left heartprints! Eternal heartprints! The kind of prints that change lives forever. It was a huge challenge to all of us in the room to leave heartprints of Jesus on the campers that will be coming to camp. To leave heartprints on the staff and their families. Heartprints of Jesus smattered on people we meet everyday. This is a wonderful encouragement. Let us be the fingerprints of Jesus on the world we live in. This is what we will focus in on today. Fingerprints of Jesus in the life of the camp and some campers! Read the rest of this entry »

Here are a few aerial photos of the camp that were taken this fall.

On the left of the above picture is the horse barn and the three corrals. The shower house and fridge shed are near the right.

You can see the well fertilized playing field. The old log cabin is near center. The kitchen is the obvious green tin, and the new chapel is the less obvious green tin in the shadow of the trees to the left of the kitchen.

This is the zoomed out shot of the whole camp property. The main road is just out of sight on the left. For a point of reference, find the bright green lawn which is the playing field.

VICTORY

There is a great Proverbs that wise old Solomon left us that says that “The horse is prepared for battle but victory comes from the Lord.” Indeed we must give the God of heaven the praise for His many victories this summer. First off, let’s update you on some of the prayer concerns in our last update. The battles against the wicked one continues to the bitter end of camp and beyond. Is it any wonder that Satan hates the Gospel being shared and kids (more than twenty) giving their hearts to Jesus. He is still at work in may ways to discourage, sidetrack and beat down anything good so pray for us regularly as we seek to reach kids for Christ. Read the rest of this entry »