After a quick 1-day turn-around from speaking in the Netherlands, we arrived mid-week at AOI’s Creation Family Mountain Adventure. We were blessed to find the camp going very well in the capable hands of the Stepanek family, together with volunteers, the Galbraiths and the Nances. This year marked our 24th year of Creation Family Camps at Redcloud. Not only do these camps provide a great vacation for families in a beautiful mountain setting, but they also provide a...
Read MoreNetherlands Update 4: Cross-Cultural Creation Evangelism
We’re back from The Netherlands, safe and sound! It was a packed trip, with some very LONG days, but God gave great grace and sustained us well. Now we’ve done a quick turn-around, adjusting to jetlag, and are currently at AOI’s Creation Mountain Adventure at Redcloud. Teaching in The Netherlands was an interesting cross-cultural experience! Audiences were almost entirely composed of Chinese living in The Netherlands, Belgium, France, or Spain. At the Youth Camp (ages...
Read MoreNetherlands Update 3: Babel and Revelation
The day started early Monday morning with pick up at 7:30 AM and a 1-1/2 hour drive through rainy but beautiful farm country to southern Holland. We were scheduled to teach through Friday at an evangelistic camp with over 120 Dutch young people, mostly of Chinese descent. The “camp” is actually in an old monastery in a very beautiful and peaceful country setting. It was a real treat for the young people to be there, since most of them live fast-paced city lives. Teaching...
Read MoreNetherlands Update 2: Fringe Benefits
We arrived safely in Amsterdam over 16 hours after leaving our home – a little wrinkled, but glad for the opportunity to be here to do a packed schedule of creation teaching! Our hosts met us at the airport and took us to our hotel to freshen up and get a short nap before heading to church for a time of introduction, fellowship, and a taste of Chinese hospitality. Following that, we experienced some of the “fringe benefits” of a traveling ministry. First we were treated to...
Read MoreNetherlands Update 1: A Divine Appointment
As Christians, we pray and believe that God directs our paths each day, but sometimes He gives us clear confirmation of His leading. Upon receiving the invitation to teach in the Netherlands, we were not sure it was God’s timing, as we already had a very packed schedule for the summer. However, as we prayed, we became convinced that God was indeed opening the door for us to go. Our decision was confirmed on the second leg of our flight. When I noticed one of the flight...
Read MoreTeaching in the Netherlands
Please be praying for our teaching time in the Netherlands. We are excited to have the opportunity to teach a week-long camp for 150 Dutch/English speaking young adults (ages 18-30) of Chinese heritage. We are also scheduled to speak at 2 churches during our time in the Netherlands. Please pray that God will prepare the hearts of those coming, and that He will enable good communication and comprehension. Pray for the Holy Spirit to empower us to speak the truth with grace...
Read MoreTraveling with a Geologist
Traveling with a geologist can be a real “experience!” I remember a time a few years ago when we were driving with our friend Johnathan in Minnesota. Johnathan was right in the middle of a deep spiritual discussion, when Dave suddenly flung his arm right in front of Johnathan and exclaimed, “Look at the ripple marks!” Fortunately, Johnathan had a good grip on the wheel and an ability to see through Dave’s arm to watch the road ahead! Over the years, we have traveled...
Read MoreTraining: Is It Worth It?
Is the time, energy, and money spent on training worth it? We think so! Below are excerpts from a message we received recently from a former trainee in response to a recent prayer update. She writes: Hi Dave & Mary Jo! … So glad you are on twitter now! If you post tweets, I will retweet them when I see them. July 12-16 I’m headed to Chicago to do a Creation Geology Camp for grades 6 -12. My first time for an audience of this age – and I’m...
Read MoreIt Always Amazes Me
Mary Jo & I have just recently finished our session at Summit Ministries in Manitou Springs, CO (just west of Colorado Springs). It was a full session with about 180 high school and college age students who are there for 2 weeks of worldview training. The students were quite interested in creation and had a lot of good questions. Some of the students have never heard of evidence for creation and the problems with evolution and yet they in most cases, grew up in a...
Read MoreA Student Who “Gets It”
Even though we live in times of instant communication, I still enjoy receiving a personal, handwritten letter – especially if it contains good news, a personal testimony, or words of encouragement. Well, we recently received such a letter from one of our former students. She wrote, “Your ministry has encouraged me and taught me to think critically.” She went on to tell us about a workshop on early childhood development she had attended. The speaker was a prominent Ph.D....
Read MoreMeditation in Song
Do you ever get a song stuck in your head and find yourself singing it over and over again? It can be really annoying if it’s some dumb advertising ditty, but at times, I find it is a way in which God speaks to me. I remember a time several years ago when I was standing in line in an office supply store. As usual, I was in a hurry – and the line was oh so long and the service soooooo slow and I was getting really frustrated and impatient. After awhile I noticed I had a song...
Read MoreVacation Travel Helps Kids Achieve
For years, we have called our Creation Family Mountain Adventures, “Vacations With a Purpose.” We designed them to be times of family fun and learning together in God’s great creation. Now we have further “fuel” for our thinking. “According to a press release … from VacationBetter.org, ‘Analysis of a U.S. Department of Education study found that children who travel over summer break … did better in reading, math, and general knowledge than their peers who didn’t vacation.’ ...
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Friends - Richard's Life was Changed!! - And this is why he is leading AOI's Colorado Family Camp! Join us July 30 - Aug 4 - conta.cc/3X4JroB pic.twitter.com/u8j1AP1Pmu
