What Can I Do?

Often we have people who come to camp and ask, "What can I do to be involved in this ministry?". While we have numerous ways you can volunteer or support the camp financially, one of the most important ways you can support the ministry that goes on here, is to pray for our staff. We have had an amazing staff this year, from the local kids who are a part of our kitchen crew, and the staff who have committed to working here year round, to the amazing group of young men and women who came from around the state and the nation, to volunteer their time here this summer. We want you to be able to be specific in your prayers for these individuals, so we have come up with a prayer card with a picture and the names of all our staff members.

Please pray for the young people as they have returned to school, that they stay focused and continue to be a light for God where they live. Please pray for our year-round staff, that they would receive rest and refreshment from God in order to serve with excellence. Please pray for us all, that we would never stop seeing the unique work that God continually does here at Prescott Pines.

From Staff

If you would like a copy of this prayer card, you can download it from this site, or give us a call at (928)445-5225 & we would be glad to send you one (or more than one, if you want to pass them along.) Thank you for your continued support!

There's A Kind of Hush All Over the Camp

Kids are back at school, college classes are starting back up soon, and if you listen very carefully around the camp, the sound you hear is the staff taking a nap and resting up after a very busy summer.

Despite the current economic hardships, God continues to bless Prescott Pines, and we had even more kids attend our Frontier Village and Youth Camps this summer, than last year. Last year we added a second Youth Camp to our summer roster, and were amazed this year when we were only fifty kids short of both weeks being completely full. We were able to partner again this year with the Angel Tree Ministries, and had 60 kids who all have at least one parent in prison, come to camp and hear about the life changing salvation and love Christ offers. In addition, as our Heart Partners Scholarship program continues to grow, we were able to give a record 47 scholarships to other kids who would not be able to attend camp any other way.

This summer we saw 80 kids in our programmed camps receive salvation, and 108 who made recommitments in their walk with Christ. We are continually in awe of the ways God has decided to use Prescott Pines, and the lives that He changes on these grounds.

The Transformation is Complete

Over the past several years, we have been thoroughly blessed in our efforts to update the Chapel. We have been given the funds to upgrade the sound system, put on a new roof and steeple, and this past month, we spruced up the outside, for a completely fresh new look.

A few weeks ago, a couple came up for the week to volunteer and where given the task of power washing the outside of the chapel. As he was prepping, Calvin asked when we were planning to repaint it. When our maintenance director responded that we didn't have the funds, Calvin offered to donate the paint, and repaint it while he was there for the week. That same week we had a group of teenage volunteers from Riviera Baptist Church here as well, so between them and our current SOWER couple, they did a great job.

Already we are getting comments from guest who have not been here in a while, asking if it is a new building. The transformation is incredible, and we are so thankful for the ways God leads people with hearts for the camp. So many of the visible changes you see around camp are a result of similar blessings, from people who love the camp, and want to lend a hand.

It's Here!!!

Well summer is fully upon us in every way except the temperature. Our summer staff have all arrived, we have finished three fontier village camps, and have hosted numerous guest groups on our main campus. It definately feels like summer... other than the fact that the temperature has not risen above eighty for the past several weeks.

With all the craziness that goes into this time of year, the support of those who partner with us in ministry is more crucial than ever. We have already had 15 kids come to salvation at Frontier Village this year and we are blessed to once again to partner with the Word of Truth Ministries, who conduct bible study correspondence programs with all these kids to continue their discipleship and growth once they leave camp.

We recently received a letter from Kathy O'brien, the director of this ministry telling us about a camper from last year who has faithfully been doing their bible correspondence program this past year. Kathy writes:

"She had been invited to come to camp by a friend and didn't really know what to expect... Her favorite part of camp was chapel times. She wrote me, "I learned so much about God and Jesus and all that. The best thing I learned was that God loves me. Imagine God loving me when so many people in my life don't even like me. I talked with my conselor a lot about why God would love me and I cried a lot just thinking how wonderful it was that God loved me. At the end of the week I didn't want to go home. I was having too much fun and learning so much. But on Friday I asked Jesus to be my Savior... Then I was told about a way I could learn more about God after I left camp. I wrote to you and you have been kind enough to send me Bible lessons in the mail. I have learned so much about God. Now I love him back. Jesus is wonderful to know too and to know that He died for me and took the punishment for my sin. He is such a good guy. Thank you for helping me learn all these things and more"...By the way, she is saving up her babysitting money and doing little jobs around the house to earn money to be at camp this summer."

It is such a blessing for us to partner with this ministry to provide continued teaching for our campers once they return home. Please pray for this ministry and for the campers who will come to know Christ this summer.

The Next Billy Graham?

You never know who you might meet at Prescott Pines Camp. The rumpled kid with shoelaces untied and missing a sock (where do all those socks lost at camp go?), galloping past you to be the first in line at the dining hall, might just be the next Billy Graham.

We love to hear stories about camp, and today we heard a fantastic one. This week a group of volunteers from Trinity Baptist in Mesa came up to camp to help us out with some landscaping work. Pastor Vince was working outside the chapel, when he started talking to a 11-year old boy named Jay who was up at camp with Faith Community Church. After asking the normal questions about fun activities at camp and school, Pastor Vince asked Jay if he had made anything at camp, and what had he learned.

Not realizing that Vince was a pastor, Jay proceeded to witness to him. During the week, the campers had learned about witnessing, and were given the million-dollar bill tract to help them remember. Jay went over the ten commandments with Vince, establishing that he was indeed a sinner, and told him Jesus was the only way to get to heaven. Wanting to see how much Jay had learned, Pastor Vince asked him if he could be good and make a large donation to a church instead. Jay honestly replied that money really didn't mean much, and the only way is Jesus. They ended the conversation with Jay telling Vince that he should go home and read his bible.

These kids coming up to camp each week, will be the leaders of the Church... ten... twenty... thirty years from now. It's amazing to be a part of God's work here on earth.

Laura

Blessings from God

For those of you who don't know, we have a fake mine here at camp for kids to learn about gold panning, but somehow we've stumbled onto a real gold mine with SOWERS "Servants On Wheels Ever Ready". This organization has numerous members who travel the country in RVs helping out at Christian camps, schools, churches and other ministries. They are all retired and pay their own way to get from project to project. They bring to us the expertise and skills that they have acquired throughout their lives such as carpentry, plumbing, sewing, electrical and office work, and the best part is... it's free!

So far this year we've had SOWERS every month and they have been such a blessing to us at camp. They pick up the slack when our maintenance department needs help, doing anything and everything that is asked of them. In January they completely remodeled our kitchen office and did a fantastic job. February's crews was small, only one couple, but that didn't slow them down one bit. There were so many little things that "we just couldn't get to" that Bob (the sower) accomplished for us. He built cabinet doors, touched up paint in every cabin, replaced electrical outlets, and the list goes on and on. Then in March we had four couples and they literally tore the place up... in a good way! There were two heavy equipment operators and we put them to work on our new backhoe. They fixed the drainage on our ball field, added parking up at the Hilltop cabins, enlarged the area around the sand volleyball court, and a lot more. Also, while the men were busy tearing up the camp grounds, their wives were hard at work sprucing up the cabins. They painted and sewed new valences for Acorn meeting room, and sewed new curtains for the Hilltop cabins.

Last month in April, we had four new couples come and serve here with us, and just so you know, that's exactly how we look at it. These men and women are coming along side of us to serve as part of our team. Even though they are only here for a short time, their work and impact will last a great deal longer. This past month they finished up the new Hogan that was built in Frontier Village in March, re-roofed the Hungry Bear Cafe, continued sewing and hanging the new curtains for the Hilltop cabins, made new parking spaces for spruce cabin, repaired chairs for the Chapel and widened the road behind the Hungry Bear Cafe. Next time you are up at camp, be sure to check out the new landscaping and flowers around the grounds that this group worked on.

I suppose our only real challenge this year regarding the SOWERS is going to be..."How do we keep them busy?" We all know that the economy is hard right now, and trust me, it's no different at camp...money's tight! But so far God has given us the right people for the job at hand. We've been able to keep them busy doing things that cost little to nothing, but make a big difference. Working at camp is sometimes like floating down an unfamiliar river. You're not sure where you're going all the time, but you're still moving ahead. As long as God continues to send us SOWERS we're going to assume that He has a plan for them here. It's kind of exciting knowing that God has a plan... it makes out life a lot easier, and we can just enjoy the ride.

Paul

Gladiator Games

Our struggle is not against flesh and blood. That's the focus of this year's youth camp - Gladiator. A common practice for ancient cultures was to have a champion from each county fight to decide who was the victor. We are locked into a battle against the forces of darkness with no hope of succeeding on our own. But God has provided us with our own champion - a gladiator who cannot be defeated. Jesus Christ is the only way to achieve our victory over evil. All we have to do is let him fight for us. Join us this summer at youth camp to see this epic battle played out.

Ryan