why more christian youth should go to church camps that challenge them

Howdy y'all! As most of you know, I returned from my church camp this week. Last year I wrote a post about what all happened at camp, but this year I thought I would do something a little different.

For a little background, my church camp is located in the mountains of New Mexico. We don't have any access to technology and we go on two half day hikes during the week. We go to bible class and chapel every day and do a whole lot of chores. It is a challenging, but rewarding camp. In contrast, the camp that I went to before I was Church of Christ did not challenge me at all. We never did chores, I had access to my phone all week, and the thing I remember most from those camps was how much recreational time we had. I remember very little about the worship or classes we attended because we simply didn't do much of that.

The reason I'm telling y'all all of this is because I want to bring more attention to the fact that I don't think a lot of church camps are really benefiting their attendees spiritually as much as they're a social event. I've noticed that I lot of camps focus more on how much fun you're having with regards to recreation as opposed to spiritual health. I've noticed that it isn't about Jesus anymore.

A lot of the people in charge of youth today think that they'll lose our attention if they actually teach us and give us lessons, but that absolutely isn't true! I am not 4, I have the attention span and brain capacity to hear challenging questions about Christ! I want to learn about Jesus!

Going to a camp that challenges me mentally, spiritually, and physically has been one of the biggest blessings in my life. My ideas about Christ have matured so much in the 3 years I've attended Blue Haven. I've learned that my body can handle crazy hikes (even if I don't love it). I've actually enjoyed doing chores and serving those around me. And even with all the hard parts, I've had an insane amount of FUN at camp.

Long story short, Christian youth need to go to camps that challenge them so that they can actually grow. Absolutely you should have fun while doing it, but believe it or not, kids can do challenging things and have fun all at the same time! Playing in a bouncy house for half the day and then singing Lean on Me isn't going to bring anyone closer to Christ. Working hard every day to learn about Jesus will.

Have a great day!

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5 of my favorite bible verses

Howdy y'all! I'm writing this the day before it's supposed to go up (classic), and for most of the day I was stressing about what I was going to write. I sent out a tweet asking what y'all thought and my friend and snail mail buddy Faith suggested posting about my favorite Bible verses. So here we are - I've got my "Jesus" playlist on shuffle and my Bible sitting next to me. Here are a few of my favorite verses.

Just for reference, I'm using the ESV translation for this post and that is what I pretty much always use, so if you ever see me reference a verse somewhere else, it's most likely ESV as well.

one // "The Lord is my strength and my shield; in him my heart trusts, and I am helped; my heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to him." Psalm 28:7 - This is one of my all time favorites. It's just a very comforting and encouraging verse to me and I love the image of God literally being my shield. Also, singing is one of my favorite ways to praise so the second part of the verse is super special as well.

two // "Not one word of all the good promises that the Lord had made to the house of Israel had failed; all came to pass." Joshua 21:45 - I did a study over Joshua last spring and fell in love with this verse. I find it so encouraging to read that every. single. one. of God's promises came to pass - He will never abandon us.

three // "Jesus answered, 'Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.'" John 3:5 - Last summer at my church camp we studied John and this verse was a huge factor in my decision to be baptized that week.

four // "The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever." Isiah 40:8 - I love this verse because it was written so long ago and the word is still here!! It literally will stand forever.

five // "Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity." 1 Timothy 4:12 - I love this one because so many people believe that young kids or teens are not able to have their own faith because they're too immature, but it simply isn't true! I separated from my parents in my faith when I was 13 and now go to a completely different church from them at 16! Your faith is always your own no matter what your age - never let someone tell you you can't have beliefs because you're too young.

That's just a few of my favorites - I have a bunch more, but I'll save those for another post ;) What are some of your favorite verses?

Have a great day!

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how i keep up with my prayer list

Howdy y'all! I'm a little late on this week's post, but I have been super busy getting back into school and all of my other activities. Today I wanted to talk to y'all a little bit about prayer, and how I keep up with all the things I need to be praying for.

I've always struggled a lot with prayer. I'll sometimes forget that I said I would pray for someone, or just say it to say it. I've recently been trying to pray more often and kind of set up a "schedule" for myself. I don't really want to call it that because the times I've set aside shouldn't be the only times I'm praying, but I wanted to have specific times that I pray and make a point of doing it.

When I'm praying, sometimes I have so many things that I can't remember them all and I definitely don't want to leave anyone out! So, one day when I was sitting in church, I grabbed a note card to write down all the people that were being read off from the bulletin. I didn't have my purse with me that day, so I just stuck it in my phone case to look at later. Well, the next day I had forgotten to take it out, and someone was telling me that they needed prayers for something. I remembered I had it, and pulled it out to write that down.

I realized this was a super easy was to keep up with my prayers and add to it, as well as be able to pull it out at any time and have my prayer list right there. I've decided to make a new one every week and just keep it with me at all times in my phone case and add to it as needed. This has been very effective and helpful for me and is a great because whenever I see it, I remember that I need to say my prayers.

This post felt really repetitive, but it's a pretty simple idea, and I really want to reiterate how much it's helping me. Hopefully if you're struggling with prayer, this will be a helpful resource to you, and as always I would love to help you out if you need it! (you can email me at beautyandblazers@gmail.com or just send me a DM on Twitter)

The bottom line is, we have an open line of communication with our Lord 24/7 and not utilizing that is just plain silly. Whether it be that you need help, that someone else needs help, or you just want to say thanks, He will ALWAYS be there.

Do you keep a prayer list? Let me know in the comments below!

Have a great day!

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camp memories

Howdy y'all! A few weeks ago I attended a church camp up in the mountains of New Mexico and I wanted to share a few memories from my time there.

(This is a stock photo - I didn't have any scenery pictures of the camp I attend.)

This year, we studied the beginning of the book of John. The only gospel I've studied deeply is Luke, so I was excited to learn a little more about John. We spent a lot of time looking at how without God, we are sick, and that by being baptized, we can become well. I highly encourage y'all to study John if you are struggling with your decision to become baptized. I hadn't been baptized and was having a really hard time with that, but after looking closely at John and studying with those of like minds, I decided to get baptized at the end of the week.

I was in a cabin with a very sweet group of girls and an amazing counselor. My camp experience was losing a volleyball game {I didn't actually participate, but it's the principle of the thing ya' know?} and having to eat without our hands. It was listening to a song about tortilla chips {this is actually a real thing. you can find it here}. It was inhaling my food after literally crawling up the hill to the dining hall {I'm not so athletically inclined}. It was having deep conversations and/or talking about Hannah Montana with the girls in my cabin, and trying an eno for the first time {I'll definitely be buying one}. It was hiking in God's gorgeous creation, and sitting in a freezing bus all the way from Texas to New Mexico.

As a child, my family was never very involved in the church - I had gone to a Methodist church camp two times before last year. This was my second year at a Church of Christ camp, and I loved every second of it. All of the memories we make, the things I learn, and the absolutely amazing worship at camp are experiences I will never forget. I am so thankful that God placed my camp and church family in my life because without them I wouldn't have the relationship I do with Him.

If any of y'all go to an awesome church camp, tell me about it! And as always, if you have any questions or want to talk about God with me, I would love to!