The Valley of Vision
Over the years I’ve benefited from reading some of the classic devotionals. But I discovered one a couple of years ago that’s become my favorite. It’s a compilation of Puritan writings rewritten as a book of prayers call The Valley of Vision.Each prayer is Scripture filled, poetically written and maintains a sense of transcendence of both the truth of the prayer and the God to whom the prayer’s directed to. I read one each night before going to bed. The one below is I read a couple of days ago and share it with you as an example of prayers found in The Valley of Vision. May the prayer bless you as it did me on this particular night.
A Minister’s Prayer
O My Lord,
Let not my ministry be approved only by men,
or merely win the esteem and affections
of people;
But do the work of grace in their hearts,
call in thy elect,
seal and edify the regenerate ones,
and command eternal blessings on their souls.
Save me from self-opinion and self-seeking;
Water the hearts of those who hear thy Word,
that seed sown in weakness may be raised
in power;
Cause me and those that hear me
to behold thee here in the light of special faith,
and hereafter in the blaze of endless glory;
Make my every sermon a means of grace to myself,
and help me to experience the power
of thy dying love,
for thy blood is balm,
thy presence bliss,
thy smile heaven,
thy cross the place where truth
and mercy meet.
Look upon the doubts and discouragements
of my ministry
and keep me from self – importance;
I beg pardon for my many sins, omissions,
infirmities,
as a man, as a minister;
Command thy blessing on my weak,
unworthy labours,
and on the message of salvation given;
Stay with thy people,
and may thy presence be their portion
and mine.
when I preach to others let not my words
be merely elegant and masterly,
my reasoning polished and refined,
my performance powerless and tasteless,
but may I exalt thee and humble sinners,
O Lord of power and grace,
all hearts are in thy hands,
all events at thy disposal,
Set the seal of thy almighty will
upon my ministry.
Onward – How Starbucks Fought for Its Life without Losing Its Soul
If you’re a coffee aficionado, student of leadership or intrigued by the workings of large corporations then I recommend the book Onward by Howard Schultz the Chairman, President and CEO of Starbucks.My interest falls primarily into the first two categories – coffee and leadership – though I’m not a true aficionado I do enjoy a good cup of coffee. But the second category – leadership – is what put the book on top of my summer reading list.
In particular I wanted to understand how Schultz led Starbucks through difficult economic times and organizational change while maintaining and even strengthened their values, culture and brand.
Because Schultz is an articulate and passionate leader the book turned out to be practical. It’s full of quotable statements about business, leadership and of course coffee, making it a great case study and enjoyable read.
In reality Starbucks represents a number of the qualities we envision for SpringHill including having passionate & loyal fans, strong organizational culture built on their values and industry changing innovation that makes a difference in the world.
So reading a firsthand account of Starbuck’s transformation provided some helpful lessons for both SpringHill and my leadership as we continue to reach more kids, more effectively for Christ in a changing world.
By the end of the book I filled four pages with concepts I could adapt to my leadership as well as ideas that we can possibly try at SpringHill – a number of which I’ve already applied to myself and introduced to the organization.
There’s one other change I made as a result of reading Onward – inspired I found our old French press at the back of our cupboard and now use it to brew my morning coffee.
Why it’s Always Been SpringHill “Camps”
I remember arriving at our original SpringHill property for the first time in 1982 as I visited my girlfriend (now my wife) Denise who was on summer staff. I looked at the sign that said “Spring Hill Camps” and wondered “does that mean Spring Hill has more than one camp?”After spending time with Denise catching up on the week she gave me a tour of “Spring Hill Camps.” That’s when I asked her about the “other camps.” She explained that this was the only “camp” but that a key component to SpringHill, dating back to our founding director Enoch Olson’s original vision, was that SpringHill would be small community focused, or then described as a “decentralized camp.”
Denise explained, obviously as a result of good training, that SpringHill didn’t run as one big camp but divided itself into smaller themed camps or villages spread across many acres. These unique housing areas and programs helped create these intimate “camps” where the building of strong relationships between staff and campers happen.
It’s within the context of these small, intimate “camps” and the relationships they foster that the primary spiritual direction was, and still is, provided to campers.
30 years later creating these small “camps” or communities continues to drive how we program, run activities, staff our camps and design our properties. The goal’s always to nurture our “camps within a camp”.
It’s also because of this focus that we’ve been able to reach more kids without compromising the SpringHill Experience. We just continue to divide into small “camps” where intimate relationships are central.
So as I look back to that day in 1982 I’m now convinced that the sign was more than just descriptive it was prophetic – pointing to the day when we’d have multiple camps in multiple places centered on intimate communities where Christ transforms the lives of kids.
There’s Just No Solo Climbing in This Life
This summer one of our Day Camp teams faced the challenge of assuring a young camper with Cerebral Palsy could participate in all the activities (a goal we have for all our campers).The biggest of these activity challenges turned out to be our climbing wall.
You see because of this camper’s condition he had no use of his legs and little strength in his arms, both of which are essential to successfully scaling a wall.
Our staff knew the situation demanded a creative solution if this camper would have the thrill of climbing the wall and ringing the bell at the top.
The team didn’t dismiss the problem with an “it just can’t be done” or “we guess God didn’t intend this camper to have this experience” kind of response. No, our team stayed with it until they found a way – a way which turns out, in hindsight, to being an obvious solution to the problem.
So they put harnesses on the camper and two of our staff, one staff member on the left side of the camper and one on his right. Then as the camper placed his hands on the rock holds our staff carried him up to the top.
When the bell rang out for everyone to hear our team knew a couple of special things just happened. First this camper experienced the thrill and satisfaction of reaching the top of the wall and ringing the bell. Second, everyone learned an important lesson – that we all need help from God and others if we’re to succeed in the life God’s given us.
The truth is there’s just no solo climbing in this life if we’re to reach the place God’s created for us and become the people He’s created us to be.
Reflection and Never Running with Scissors
As a child my mom would tell us kids not to run with scissors because it’s risky running around with something that sharp in your hands. You might fall and land on those scissors and hurt yourself.That’s how I feel when I’ve left no time in my life for reflection. It’s as though I’m running through life with scissors.
You see reflection’s the ability to think, review, pray and process specific situations and events occurring in our lives and in the world. Because of the way God’s create me, I need reflective time to respond appropriately, that is to be able to say right words and take the necessary action, in any given situation.
Reflection requires time, even if it’s just a few minutes a day, to create the space needed to reflect. We create space though solitude, mental and if possible physical solitude. Solitude then allows for a break from external distractions and encourages us to focus on Christ as we reflect on our life.
Finally, after creating the right space, reflection requires an understanding of ourselves, the world we live in, the people we relate to and the God who’s created it all. This understanding’s the context in which reflection does its work.
But when it’s busy, as it has been for me over the past three months, I find it extremely challenging to create the quality space needed for reflection. So here’s what I do when life’s causing me to run with scissors.
I pray for God’s protection so I won’t fall and land on those scissors and then, at almost any cost, I stop running. I remind myself that reflection’s as essential to my life as eating and breathing. Then I make the time and create the space so I can reflect on my life running with scissors and how not to let it happen again.
Summer Staff – Giving on Top of Giving
Can you imagine a person who’s willing to work almost all their waking hours 6 out of every 7 days for less than a couple hundred dollars a week plus room and board? Now take it another step and picture 700 people making this kind of commitment.Go one final step and imagine that these 700 individuals believe so much in their work that they’ll give some of their pay back so that others can benefit from the jobs they do.
If you’ve created this mental picture then what you’re looking at is the SpringHill summer staff team.
Our summer staff, like camp staff all over the world, work incredibly hard for very little money. But what makes our team unique is this – they’ve also given over $14,000 out of their paychecks so that kids from economically challenged situations can attend SpringHill.
Think about it, people who are going to college, starting careers and working for very little keep giving on top of giving by contributing over $14,000 to further help those they’ve already committed to serving.
So what’s the secret to having a team that’ll keep giving on top of giving? It’s a simple combination.
First it starts with great people (and our summer staff are great people).
Second it requires an organization that’s mission and values aligns with and inspires its staff.
Finally leadership’s needed that creates a vision of the impact giving can make in the life of another person.
Combine these three factors and you have a team, like our summer staff team, who’ll keep giving on top of giving resulting in transformed lives – both the campers and their own.
By the way if you’d like to join our staff in helping kids attend SpringHill click here. Thanks!
Ga-ga Ball and There’s Nothing New Under the Sun
Not Lady Gaga but Ga-ga Ball. It’s actually a dodge ball type game that’s caught fire at every SpringHill location this summer rivaling our traditional six square games for popularity among our campers and staff.Now as with many of the things we do at SpringHill we can’t take credit for inventing Ga-ga Ball. It’s actually been popular in many places in the world for a number of decades (it’s believed to started in the Australian Jewish community in the 1960’s). But as we do with any good idea we stumble upon we’ll copy it and if necessary adapted it so it fits the SpringHill Experience.
So the question’s what did we see in Ga-ga Ball that indicated it would fit well into a SpringHill Experience?
First, it allows a large number of people to participate at one time creating shared experiences among our small/cabin groups.
Second, it’s fun, high energy and exciting either playing or watching.
Third, just about anyone can play with no requirements for needing super athlete skills.
Finally it’s a safe and controlled game where injury is unlikely.
All of which add up to the kind of activity we love to include in a SpringHill Experience.
So as you can see we take seriously the words of Ecclesiastes that “there’s nothing new under the sun” knowing that there’s no new ideas just great copies and improvements of old ones such as Ga-ga Ball.
What’s Required to Live a Life that Matters?
Over the course of my life the one fear I’ve consistently carried has been that somehow, at the end of it all, I’ll have lived a life that didn’t matter, that didn’t make a difference in others and in our world. So I’ve continually ask myself “what must I do to live such a life?”Now I’ll admit there’s no single answer or silver bullet, but instead many factors working in concert with that allows one’s life to matter.
Yet I’ve become convinced that there are two inseparable qualities, a glue that holds all other factors together, that we must possess if we’re to live such a life.
The first’s a singular focus on purpose, a vision of what difference we can make. Singular focus combines our giftedness with opportunity bringing them into laser focus in a way that matters. This singular focus is on others, on a cause, on something bigger than our selves. The apostle Paul says in Acts 20:24 “However, I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me…” That’s singular focus.
The second quality’s a lot less appealing than singular focus but without it our focus blurs. It’s simple tenacity. It’s the ability to commit to a destination then set a course towards it and doggedly follow that course, making corrections as necessary, but to follow it to the very end.
My dad always told me anything worthwhile (singular focus) comes at a price and the price I’ve learned is tenacity, the dogged pursuit of a singular focus no matter the cost.
Any life that matters, that makes a difference, has these two inseparable qualities – the glue that binds everything else together – singular focus and tenacity both of which I pray are in abundance in my life.
“Mom, Four More Sleeps?”
“Mom, four more sleeps?” asked a Storybrook camper when being picked up by his mom after completing our Junior Explorer program. (Storybrook’s our early elementary overnight camp in Michigan)His mom answered “no, not four more sleeps.”
“Three more sleeps?” he asked.
“No, not three more sleeps” mom answered once again.
“Two more sleeps?” this persistent camper asked.
“No, not two more sleeps.”
“Mom, one more sleep?” he asked seeing hope slip away that he could extend his stay at SpringHill one more sleep (night).
“No, your stay at camp is over and it’s time to come home” was all the mom could say.
In one final plea this young camper said “but I want to stay, can’t I stay?”
And to that mom answered “I know you want to stay but I want and need you at home with me.”
Sometimes going away to camp’s harder for mom and dad than it’s for the camper. Why? Because we love our kids and so it’s hard to let them go, even for just a few nights. But in truth our kids grow (and we as parents sometimes grow) when we allow them the opportunity to experience new places, do new things and meet new people in a positive, encouraging environment such as camp. So occasionally love compels us to send our kids off even if it’s just for a few nights.
Now in this camper’s case I have a good sense that he’ll be back at SpringHill next summer and it’ll be for a few more “sleeps” than this year.
Thanks to Amanda Thompson and her Storybrook staff for creating such an outstanding experience for all these young campers and for blessing us with this story.
“This Week was Different…”
I love SpringHill closing days and in particular our “closing rally”. It’s fun, inspirational and downright moving to hear the testimonies of campers who share their SpringHill Experience with the other campers, staff and camper families attending the rally.It takes courage to share your story in front of 100’s and sometime’s 1000’s of people. But when campers do everyone’s blessed.
This past Friday was closing day week 1 of our Indiana overnight camp. It was a perfect day with incredible weather to celebrate what God’s done in the lives of campers.
I stood at the back of our amphitheater taking in all the sights and sounds of the rally as the InPursuit campers (our Indiana middle school camp) came on stage. One of our InPursuit Area Directors stepped forward with a female camper and asked her…
“Can you tell us about your week at SpringHill?”
The camper replied “I love SpringHill so much I’ve been here 14 times. But this week was different, I sensed God’s presence in a way I never have before. As a result I’ve made a decision to really focus on my relationship with Christ like I’ve never done before.”
Wow! After 9 months of hard work preparing SpringHill for the arrival of campers, hearing these words was a gift greater than any paycheck, perk or benefit our staff could ever desire or receive.
But more importantly I just happen to be standing by this camper’s mom and, as you might expect, it was obvious that this camper’s words blessed her mom more deeply and more profoundly than she’ll ever know.
Watching this mom listen to her daughter was a gift I graciously accepted and it left me more thankful than ever for the privilege we have to do what we do on behalf of kids, families and Christ.
