Rugged Spirituality...Rugged Awesome

The first Rugged Spirituality wilderness weekend was an incredible success. After all, firecraft, tent camping, paracords, cooking over an open fire, long hikes....it's pretty much every component of awesome. But don't just take our word for it! Here's some feedback from Jared, a super cool youth worker: "Thanks for the Rugged Spirituality weekend and the effort put into investing in the lives of youth.  Christ was clearly the focus of the weekend, and the survival techniques we learned from you and Ken from Survival Tek were great.  How wonderful to use the illustration of how to survive if lost in the woods and relating it to how we need to realize where we stand before God.  I've had some great conversations with my students since the weekend.  Thanks again!”

Check out this short video, and be watching for 2012 dates coming soon!

Make a video of your own at Animoto.

Daughters of the King...Sweet Reminder!

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Represent Jesus - by Joy Workman

I was looking at an article online of a lioness whose cub had slid off an embankment and was in danger. The lioness gathered other lions to try and get her baby, they were all looking over the bank and could see the little cub flailing and trying to get back to its mommy. It was hopeless for the little thing, but a mother took on danger and braved the descent to rescue her little one. She carried it back to safety in her jaws.

What a touching story....the character of motherhood, a mother's love, a mother's protection, a mother's sacrifice.

We, who are mothers would do the same thing. We would put ourselves in harm's way to defend and protect our little blessings...or would we?

I recently read of a baby with it's umbilical cord still attached, left at a dump site, being bitten and eaten by ants. I read the article about the newly named infant, Caleb Hope, who was found by workers, who is recovering and will, hopefully, be placed in a loving home.

How did we get to this place? How did we become less human than even the wild animals? How do we kill and throw away our children like yesterday's garbage?

My heart is overcome with grief for baby Caleb, for unwanted little babies, for humanity.

Our consciences have been seared by political rhetoric of what is right and what is wrong. Politicians have decided that the tiny, helpless life snuggled safe within it's mother's womb, that's moving and has a heartbeat, isn't really a person. It's a thing, a fetus.

What have we become? We are a people that have lost our humanity. We are a society of self. When we stop caring for the helpless, we cease to be human. It's very evident in today's headlines of what we have become.

The only hope our world has is what we represent...Jesus. We must represent Jesus at work by being trustworthy, by being honest and by working our hardest.

We must represent Jesus on our daily errands by being pleasant, by being thoughtful.

We must represent Jesus at home by being the first to say, "I'm sorry", by showing our children out of God's word how to behave, and by being courteous even to our spouses.

We have to be more Christlike. Sinners don't come to church as they used to, they don't hear about Jesus. They only see Jesus through us. Humanity depends on us. Our neighbors depend on us. Our family depends on us. We must show light to a darkened world. We must show Jesus.

Phillippians 2: 15,16 That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world; Holding forth the word of life; that I may rejoice in the day of Christ, that I have not run in vain, neither laboured in vain.
20,21 For I have no man likeminded, who will naturally care for your state. For all seek their own, not the thing which are Jesus Christ's.

For more from Joy, check out her blog, The Meaning of Joy, at www.themeaningofjoy.blogspot.com.

Boot Camp 2012

Boot Camp will blow your mind. It's that awesome.

Our summer interns, aka Boot Campers, spend the summer on the campus of Uplands Reach and have the privilege of learning from great instructors, serving in the summer camps and events, participating in music and drama, and traveling with the Summer Team to various churches and rallys. And in between those things, we manage to squeeze in manifold adventures such as camping, biking, horseback riding, and much, much more.

I said all that to say this: Don't. Miss. Out. For more info, call our office (336.667.7177), go to our website (www.uplandsreach.org), or request membership in the Boot Camp 2012 group on facebook (http://www.facebook.com/groups/155604377847000/). Even if you're kinda interested but have questions or concerns, feel free to contact us to talk it out. Who knows...this just might be God's incredible plan for YOUR summer.

Fire Piston...Finally! by Matthew McNeil

It works!

What is this? I'm glad you asked. This is the wonderful, glowing fruit of an arduous trial and error process that resulted in a piece of wilderness equipment that I’ve sought after for a couple of years now—a fire piston! It’s a little tool made up of a piston and a cylinder that fit together to form an air tight seal, and as the name implies, it’s used for fire-starting. On the low end, they cost no less than $40 and can sometimes exceed $200 on the high end. What makes this one so great is the fact that, after watching a video online (and tweaking the design a bit), I made it! It works by compressing a quantity of air into a space too small to contain it when you hammer the piston down into the cylinder. When you do this, the air inside it rapidly heats up. Add a tiny piece of tinder to the mix—a piece of charred cotton fabric, or wood punk (you know, that dry, decayed wood you’ve seen in the woods that almost resembles a sponge)—and voila! You now have a glowing ember that can be deposited into a tinder bundle and blown into flame. You just need to try one out sometime! As a matter of fact, plan on being at the Rugged Spirituality event November 4-5! Then you could give it a try!

For more info, call our office at 336.667.7177 or check out our website (www.uplandsreach.org).

You can also like the official Uplands facebook page (www.facebook.com/UplandsReachConferenceCenter).

These Boots Weren't Made For Walking (Ouch)

I can't help it...I'm a boot fanatic. I love 'em. Always have, always will.

And today is no exception. My sweet husband took me to Watsonnatta in Boone to pick out a new pair for my birthday.

And what a blissful pair I found. Knee high, distressed leather, just the right amount of slouch. Just the right blend of country and chic. At the risk of looking like a pirate, you can even fold the tops down for added oomph. Anyway, they were the boots of my dreams, and I was delighted to wear them out of the store.

So, with my fabulous husband by my side, I walked those boots out the door, down the sidewalk, and into the local sandwich joint. I was feeling super cool.

In fact, I was feeling so cool that I wasn't watching my step. Instead, I was watching my reflection in the glass, making note of how fab those boots looked with my skinny jeans and long sweater.

And that's when those boots took on a mind of their own. They walked right out from underneath me, leaving me sitting on my rear end with several boothloads of people staring. And pointing. And laughing. And blowing soda out their noses.

You'd think I'd be mortified. I wasn't. Sadly, I've done far more humiliating things than that. But I sure was humbled. The first thing that came to mind was Proverbs 16:18: “Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.” Don't tell me the Bible isn't relevant! I experienced this passage first hand. Consider this lesson learned. (Ouch.)

DOK 2012, where have you been all my life? - Maryanne Tuck Grimmett

No, seriously.  It's been forever.  Or maybe just a year.  Anyway....

I have the privilege of being on full-time Staff at Uplands Reach.  This means I get to work with a ton of amazing campers at a ton of amazing camps.  But there is one event, I must admit, this is my secret favorite.  Okay, now that I just blogged it, I guess it's a secret no longer.  But, I don't care.  I'm gonna let the world know.  In fact, I am currently screaming this from the rooftops.  Or maybe just typing really, really, really emphatically.  At any rate, I'm seriously pounding these keys.  And the message:

I LOVE DAUGHTERS OF THE KING.

And once you know what it is, you'll love it, too.  In fact, you'll be racing to the Uplands Reach website (www.uplandsreach.org) to download your registration form today.  So, here's the skinny...

Daughters of the King is a sleepover for girls in the seventh grade through college.  It's NO BOYS ALLOWED.  Why?  Because we've got too many cool things to do...like manicures, pedicures, makeovers, suh-weet jewelry making, midnight movies and munchies, and (the grand finale) a chocolate fountain that will send you into sugar shock upon mere glance.  For realz.

So, take my word for it when it comes to the fabulousness of DOK.  And hurry up and register so we can count you in on the fun.  FYI, if you register by September 24, you'll save $25, which makes the cost per person $75 instead of $100.  If you have any questions, call our office at 336.667.7177 or go to the Daughters of the King event on the Uplands Reach facebook page.  Be there, friend of mine!!

How do You Know That Summer has Begun?

82 degrees.  Paper cutters slicing.  Weed-eaters whirring.  Phones ringing.  Crew members laughing.  What does this all signify?

Summer has officially begun at Uplands Reach.

This place is a beehive of activity as we actively prepare our campus for the Boot Campers that arrive this Sunday and for Teen Camp which begins on June 20^th!

Here are some pictures of some the recent happenings here at URCC:

An awesome row of dedicated crew members and volunteers

Volunteer Training - we love our Vols!!

Here at Uplands, we'll do anything to stay cool during the summer months.
Even if it means pouring a cup of ice water on our head.  

Some crew members in the van on an outing

The beginnings of an amazing worship team

A Shout-Out to Our Donors - by Sue Hatfield

       

We are gearing up for the summer camp season. It is just around the corner!  We are so excited to see what the Lord will do. 

     Summer at URCC is so intense.  It is basically a nonstop 3 month stint.  Besides the camp weeks that we offer for teens, juniors, and tweens, we will travel to a different church each Sunday with our college-age, summer team of champions to present the Gospel through music, drama, testimonies, and the preached Word of God.  There are several youth rallies planned and also a one-day Hispanic Camp that we will host on the camp property.  In between all of that we, as the Staff, will pour into these summer interns through many different classes and activities.  The interns leave with 80 hours of Bible and Christian living classes so they can return to their many different college campuses equipped and ready to give an answer to any man that asks them of the hope that is in them. (I Peter 3:15)

     This is such an intense time of ministry!  But it is so exciting to see these young champions get on fire for our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  That’s why Neal and I love it so much.  That’s why we do what we do! And we couldn't do it without our donors! So, to all of you who give to URCC, THANK YOU for your faithful support to Uplands Reach whether it is through the general fund, by supporting the partnerships, or sending campers to camp!  Thank you for helping us reach this generation for Christ!

A Life Well Lived - by Neal Hatfield

Remember GOD has a plan for your life. 

The question is have you deeply sought HIM for HIS plan for you.

Remember you can’t have a GODLY life with a closed Bible.

Obey GOD and leave all the consequences to HIM.

When you have a question, ask the LORD about it and do what HE says.

Live by I Corinthians 10:31 and enjoy watching then LORD direct your steps.

When this life is over you will hear your precious SAVIOR say,  “WELL DONE”.

I can promise you it will be worth it all when we see JESUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!      

You Haven't Missed the Boat!!!

Don't worry...you haven't missed the boat!  You can still register for Peace Week Teen Camp 2011!  And it's a good thing, too, because we want YOU there.  Do yourself (and your parents) a favor by getting your registration in by June 6 to save $25.  Do yourself an even huger favor by registering as soon as possible so that you have a better chance of getting into the MOD of your choice.  What's a MOD?  I'm glad you asked.  At Uplands Reach, you customize your camp experience by choosing an intense, week-long activity focus that matches your interests.  This year's MODs are super groovy: Rugged Spirituality (camping), Epic Worship (music), MudSlingers (pottery), Ultimate Goal (athletics), and His Reins (horsemanship).  It's gonna be sweet, we guarantee.  So be there!

 

For more info, check out our website (www.uplandsreach.org), call our office (336.667.7177), or go to the Uplands Reach Conference Center page on facebook.

 

Operation Mustard Seed: A God-Sized Dream

Out of control.

Does this ever describe your circumstances? Sometimes it does mine. 

Maybe it’s family troubles, bills, relationships, work, or something as simple as a messy house. These circumstances make us feel like we’re playing catch-up and always trying to hold everything together. We feel like if we let go for a second, everything will spin out of control.

There is a neat story tucked away in the Old Testament. God commands the prophet Jeremiah to go down to the potter’s house and simply observe. What Jeremiah sees isn’t exactly perfect. The potter is working a piece of clay that simply isn’t right. The Bible says, “The pot he was making was marred in his hands.” 

So, the master potter simply reworks the marred clay into another form. God asks Jeremiah, “Can I not do with you, Israel, as the potter does?” 

The same goes for our own lives. We are clay in the Master’s hands. Sometimes we look at the “clay” of our life, and it sure looks marred. But who are we to say that God can’t take that marred clay, redeem it, and make it into a beautiful piece of art?

This is Maryanne:

She is a potter and staff member at Uplands Reach. She has a passion in her heart to share the good news of the Gospel through pottery. This spring, she has started working on a new ministry though Uplands Reach called Operation Mustard Seed.

Her goal is to have a fully functional pottery studio at Uplands Reach to reach individuals who need hope and healing, and people who just love to create! And what a better way than through the art of pottery?

I recently showed Maryanne my favorite mug. It is the most unusual mug I’ve ever seen; I bought it a little art shop in Tennessee. I’ve always treasured this quirky piece. 

When Maryanne saw it, she had to giggle. Having a trained eye, she showed me that my favorite mug was a piece of clay that had been spinning out of control. It is too thin in some places, and has lines that show where the potter had to firmly grab it before it became a blob of clay all over again. But the artist apparently hadn’t given up. They saw a unique and beautiful piece that someone (ME!) would just love. So they glazed it, fired it, and sold it. And am I ever glad! Despite the fact that I know that it’s not a “perfect” mug, I love it all the more because it’s unique.

Isn’t it the same with us?  God knows we’re not perfect, but he loves us exactly the way we are.  So much so, that he made the ultimate price for us: his life.

To make the dream that God put in Maryanne's heart a reality, Operation Mustard Seed needs $5,000.  That's 100 people giving $50 dollars each.  This  goal is so attainable, but we need your help.

If you would like to help spread this message of hope and healing through the art of pottery, send your tax-deductible donations to:

Uplands Reach Conference Center

P.O. Box 830

Millers Creek, NC 28651

Make sure you put “Operation Mustard Seed” in the memo line.  Thanks!

A New Ministry at Uplands Reach

It's a warm spring day - the sun is shining, the air is fragrant, and a gentle breeze is blowing.

As I work at my desk at Uplands, I all of a sudden hear the clop of hooves nearby.  Before I know it, a group of about ten college students comes around the bend, all on horseback, and pass by the window.  You can tell they are having the time of their lives - laughing, smiling, and joking with each other as they ride on by.

This scenario happens every Wednesday and Friday. A group of college students gather at the campus of Uplands Reach for a two-hour trail-ride on our gorgeous property led by our equestrian program’s leader, Justin Hatfield. 

With newly cleared trails, excellently trained horses, and enthusiastic leadership, Uplands Reach's newest ministry branch, His Reins, has been growing in its popularity with local college students.  With its debut at camps this summer, His Reins is hoping to be an effective outreach to the broader horse community of the surrounding areas.

Please take time to pray for this new equine ministry.  Lives are already being touched – and it’s not even our busy camp season yet! Please pray for Justin as he pioneers this new ministry.

Take a moment to enjoy some of the following pics!

If you are interested in giving to His Reins write your tax-deductible donation to Uplands Reach Conference Center and put "His Reins" in the memo line.  Mail your gifts to:

Uplands Reach Conference Center

P.O. Box 830

Millers Creek, NC 28651

Your financial gifts insure that Justin and his volunteers can continue to keep our horses in top shape and also provide more programs so they can minister to more kids and college students throughout the year. 

Potterize - by Maryanne Grimmett

Before 

After

If you want to see my happy face, plunk me down behind a pottery wheel and shove fifty pounds of fresh clay in my direction. Man, oh man, I just love playing in the mud. I call it potterizing--the adventure of transforming a blob of seeming nothinglesss into something with form, function, and (sometimes!) beauty. 

On a day like today, when I am fighting to keep a good attitude while rushing to complete a million tasks within a single calendar square, I am reminded of that Sunday School chorus "He's still working on me...to make me what I ought to be..." I am so, so, so grateful that, as a child of the risen King, my Jesus is not content to let me stay as I am. He potterizes like no one else can. Despite my follies and failures, He's still molding and making...and He won't clock out in the middle of the job. I sure don't deserve His mercy, but I'll take it anyway! 

My prayer for today: "Jesus, thank you for loving me eternally, irrevocably, and unconditionally. Make me like You, even when its so much easier to be like me. I love You."

Scolded by a Baby

We want YOU at camp this summer!  Spots are filling up fast though.  Get your registrations and forms in so we can count you in for the summer of your life...and also so you won't get a talkin'-to by baby Kate :)

Have Faith, Have a Plan - by Chuck Swindoll

Read Exodus 2:1–10

Jochebed had faith. She also thought through a very creative plan. I'd like to pause to reflect on this tension between careful planning and full-hearted faith. Are they mutually exclusive? Not on your life! Yet to talk to some believers, you might be led to think otherwise.

I've counseled with unemployed men and women who tell me, "I'm just waiting on the Lord to provide a job."

"Fine," I reply. "And where have you placed your resumé?"

"Well, I'm not going that route. I'm just waiting on God."

"Oh really?" I say. "Then I hope you don't mind remaining jobless for awhile."

The old motto of soldiers during the Revolutionary War applies to many areas of life: "Trust in God, but keep your powder dry!" In other words, place your life in the Savior's hands, but stay at the ready. Do all that you can to prepare yourself for battle, understanding that the ultimate outcome rests with the Lord God.

To walk by faith does not mean you stop thinking. To trust God does not imply becoming slovenly or lazy or apathetic. What a distortion of biblical faith! You and I need to trust God for our finances, but that is no license to spend foolishly. You and I ought to trust God for safety in the car, but we're not wise to pass on a blind curve. We trust God for our health, but that doesn't mean we can chain smoke, stay up half the night, and subsist on potato chips and Twinkies without consequences.

Acting foolishly or thoughtlessly, expecting God to bail you out if things go amiss, isn't faith at all. It ispresumption. Wisdom says to do all you can within your strength, then trust Him to do what you cannot do, to accomplish what you cannot accomplish. Faith and careful planning go hand-in-hand. They always have.

Where Would We Be Without "The Office"?

Okay...we're not talking about the tv show...but something very near and dear to all our hearts - the Uplands Reach office and the great people who work there.  All year 'round, faithful people are working behind the scenes to make sure that the awesome camps, retreats, and conference that you enjoy can happen!  Although the job isn't always glamorous, the job is always joyful because we know that what we do will have an eternal impact.  Here's a look at a few of the champions that help make Uplands what it is!

Some of our awesome helpers busting out a mailing!

You can thank Maryanne for our awesome website, and all the great
brochures and materials that come from Uplands in the mail (among about a million
other things that she spins her magic on!) 

Matthew is the friendly voice you'll here on the phone when you call Uplands.
He handles registrations, paper-work, correspondence, and our database, just to name a few.

Life on the Upland's Farm - by Becky Hatfield

Ahhh...the smell of fresh tilled soil (with a little manure mixed in there), the feel of the warm spring sun on your shoulders, and the joy of watching things grow.  Gardening.  There's nothing like it.  

Or so I'm told.

You see...I am a city-girl, born and raised in Southern California - where one is proud if they can call a postage stamp of land their own.  Granted, my health-conscience parents make use of every inch of their postage stamp with an "urban garden."  But it was always kind of their thing - until now.

This city-turned-country girl is trying her hand at the art of gardening - but not alone, mind you!  I have three trusty pals at my side: my wonderful husband, and Matthew and Rachael McNeil, fellow staff members at Uplands Reach.  Truthfully, none of us really know what we're doing.  But that's okay!

We are learning as we go, and having a blast doing it.  

Hopefully, when you arrive at camp this summer, you will see many a vine-ripened tomato sitting plump on the vine (along with many other garden delicious-ness!). 

Here's a little photo-log of our "tilling up" day last Saturday.  We've made progress since then - and will actually be planting soon!  We are so thankful for this opportunity to spend time in God's creation, fellowship with one another as we work, and hopefully enjoy the literal fruits of our labor when summer gets here!  

Matthew and our helper, Kelsey, proudly present our soon-to-be garden patch

For some reason, I find it very cool that there is a stream right next to our garden.  Maybe because I come from a desert??

The horses don't know what they think about all the commotion on a Saturday morning.

Duke brought his A-game to our tilling-up day.    Look at that alertness.

There goes the pretty patch of grass - oh well.  Yummy veggies to follow.

I think snuggling with Duke was one of my fave parts of the day.

Rachael presents our patch...of dirt.

We promise it looks more garden-ish now!

More "Uplands Farm" updates to follow!

A Butterfly's Lesson

The following analogy was emailed to all of us staff members here at Uplands by Brother Neal.  It is so encouraging:

The Butterfly's Lesson

author unknown

One day, a small opening appeared in a cocoon; a man sat and watched for the butterfly for several hours  as it struggled to force its body through that little hole.   


It appeared as if it had gotten as far as it could and  it could not go any further. Then, it seems to stop making any  progress.


So the man decided to help the butterfly: he took a pair of scissors and opened the cocoon. The butterfly then emerged easily.  


But it had a withered body,  it was tiny and shriveled wings.


The man continued to watch because he expected that, at any moment, the wings would open, enlarge and expand, to be able to support the butterfly’s body, and become firm.


Neither happened! In fact, the butterfly spent the rest of its life crawling around with a withered body and  shriveled wings. It never was able to fly.    


What the man, in his kindness and his goodwill did not understand was that the restricting cocoon and the struggle required for the butterfly to get  through the tiny opening, were God’s way of forcing  fluid from the body of the butterfly into its wings, so that it would be ready for flight once it achieved its freedom from the cocoon.


Sometimes, struggles are exactly what we need in our life.  If God allowed us to go through our life without any obstacles, it would  cripple us. We would not be as strong as we could have been. Never been able to fly.

I asked for Strength... and God gave me  difficulties to make me strong.

I asked for Wisdom... and God gave me problems to solve.

I asked for prosperity...and God gave me a brain and brawn to work.

I asked for Courage…and God gave me obstacles to overcome.

I asked for Love...and God gave me troubled  people to help.  

I asked for Favors...and God gave me  Opportunities.  

"I received nothing I wanted...but I received everything I needed."

"Live life without fear, confront all obstacles and know that you can overcome them."