Last week we had our last Zoom sessions with students. As we wrap up this time, we want to highlight some great things that happened. 

In April, we started using Zoom and Seesaw to deliver our curriculum. It was an adjustment for everyone, including our staff, but the students did a great job adjusting and staying connected. We're super proud of our students for making all of the adjustments with school and our programs!

In the first week, we reviewed and wrapped up our Respect unit, which we had started before our in-person programs shut down. Students submitted work demonstrating how they could honor people in their households and what respect means to them. 

Next we focused on Peace. What is peace? How can we have it? What does God have to do with it? Psalm 91 has been an encouragement to all of us as we've been dealing with all of the issues going on in our country. If you haven't already seen it, you can check out the video we made here. 

We were able to have some great conversations with our students about having peace in uncertain times and how Jesus is with us always and cares about all of our problems. We had lots of fun on Fridays we played games, watched movies, and even had a talent show. It was great to see all of our students each week and continue teaching them about how much God loves them.

We ended the year talking about responsibility. What does it mean to be responsible? How can we be responsible? Why should we be responsible? With all of the online learning and being at home, students have had to take on more personal responsibility. The unit was right on time to help them process how to manage all of the new things they were having to deal with.

​Throughout our time online with the students, we did skits, watched videos, had discussions and did many other activities. One really cool thing that came out of this time happened when we did a skit about responsibility. In the original skit, a boy made a really poor choice and had to deal with the consequences of his actions. When we finished the skit, some of the students asked if they could rewrite it to show the boy making the right choice. We spent time during the next several sessions rewriting the skit and discussing the consequences of doing the wrong vs. the right thing. They had ideas about how to be responsible that were creative and inspiring! (We recorded both skits and will be posting them to Facebook soon.)

Overall, while online programming isn't what we wanted to do, God used it to continue to speak to the students and several students accepted Christ as their Lord and Savior over zoom! We're excited to see what God is going to do this summer as we move out of online programming and back into our in-person Camp Noah.

​We recently wrapped up our YL weekly sessions for summer break with a great Zoom session filled with games and prizes. Many of our students finished as winners. We want to congratulate our 2 high school graduates! Continue to keep them in prayer as they move on in life and continue to keep God's Holy Word in their hearts.

Summertime normally means a break in programming for our YoungLife students due to staff being busy with Camp Noah. This summer, we're trying something different to stay connected and keep developing disciples. This summer we're excited to announce our YL Summer Mentoring program. Our YL volunteers have been paired up with one or more students. They'll be checking in with their students at least once a week and regularly discipling them throughout the summer. This new program will keep HCM connected will all of our high school students throughout the summer, not just the ones on staff at camp. Volunteers and students are excited to stay connected in this way!

We're excited to announce that this summer's theme will be: Walk in His Authority! In the uncertain times that we live in, it is important to remember that we are walking under the authority of Christ. He's the one we need to trust. Not in systems or governments or man. Throughout the summer, our main topics will be:

• You belong to God (1 John 4:4)
• Jesus walked in God's Authority (James 4:7)
• Jesus calls us to follow Him (1 Peter 2:9-10)
• Jesus has the authority to heal the sick, raise the dead, and deliver us from our sin (Romans 8:11)
• Jesus' authority is your weapon against the enemy (2 Corinthians 10:3-5)
• You have authority (Luke 10:19)

It amazes me how God always orchestrates our themes in our curriculum! Each year we pray and seek the Lord for what we should be teaching our kids, and each year, God uses the curriculum to teach us as staff. This year is no exception! We ALL need to remember we are under God's authority AND He's given us the authority to fight in the spiritual realm with His Holy Spirit. We don't have to be afraid of ANYTHING that might come against us because our God is BIGGER than EVERYTHING!

We hope that you will join us in praying for Camp Noah this summer. If you aren't sure how to pray, here are some specific things you can pray for:

• Campers come to know Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior
• Campers feel safe and comfortable to open up and have real conversations about life
• Safety and health of campers, staff and families
• Spiritual wisdom/discernment for our staff as we minister to the campers
• Opportunities to share the Gospel, not just in words, but through actions at camp
• Every camper understands what it means to walk in His authority and starts to live it

​
Camp Noah is going to be very different this summer, and we believe God is going to use it to do something very powerful in the lives of our campers!