Camp Crew Update on... HEAPS!

Today we continue our Camp Crew Updates series, and we get to check in on Emily (Heaps) Shields to find out what she’s been up to recently. Enjoy this sneak peek into her life!

Emily, what are you doing these days?
I'm a small business owner!! I design fashion--altering cringe-y vintage pieces into something people actually want to wear nowadays! I discovered the concept of 'upcycling' when I was studying in Australia a good decade ago. Besides the fact I thought it was environmentally genius, it was a way I could creatively express my love for the country and its impeccable fashion! Now I also do it to provide alternative clothing options for folks wanting to boycott sweatshop-produced fashion. My store exists online so you can check it out for yourself (umyep.etsy.com). I'm biased, but I think you'll at least get a good chuckle out of my 'before' photos!

What’s the best thing about your job right now?
Being self-employed allows me to be flexible with my schedule. I particularly appreciate being able to give myself quality time with God before I start my workday! I found with previous jobs that when I dawdled at any point during my morning routine, it cut into my already short time with God before having to leave for work. Now I can stay working later, or take a shorter lunch to make up the time if needed!
I actually also have a part-time job at a vintage clothing store in downtown Kitchener to help me make ends meet right now. Besides being surrounded by decades of top notch clothing, I love interacting with cool, quirky locals, and am excited to be a light amongst them!

What is the last great book you've read and why?
'The Best Christmas Pageant Ever' by Barbara Robinson. When I was a youngster, my Mom would read it to us at Christmas time (it's a short, children's chapter book). She loved it so much that she bought my sisters and I our own copies. I hadn't read it in a number of years, so this past Christmas I cracked it open. It's about a "heathen" family who bully their way into participating in a church's Christmas play--just for the snacks! They've never heard the story of Jesus' birth before, and wind up helping the congregation connect with it in a fresh, real way as they discover the beautiful truth behind the season for themselves! It's funny, and really gets you thinking!

What is your favorite meal these days?
Anything that goes with green beans haha! (Specifically green beans sautéed with butter, salt and a heap of garlic.) I just can't get enough of them!! My mouth salivated while I typed that descriptive sentence haha!!

What is a good piece of advice you've received lately, and from whom?
”God doesn't need our good works, our neighbour does.”
It was on a social media post/story from Sydney Missionary and Bible College (that's where I studied in Australia). They were quoting someone reputable from history. I can't quite recollect who, and I can't find it anymore...

What is your favourite memory from Summer 2021 at Beacon last year?
One glorious, warm, sunny day off, a whole bunch of us [Camp Crew] took the stand-up paddle boards out on the lake. We ended up linking together--each of us holding the board beside ours with a foot, leg or hand. As the wind and current floated us along, we played one of my all-time favourite games (eeek--the name escapes me)! Basically, Person A comes up with a sentence and whispers it to Person B, who makes up their own sentence based on what they just heard and whispers it to Person C, etcetera! After everyone has had a chance to make up their own sentence, each person shares what their sentence was, and the revealed story is HILARIOUS!!! Lots of laughter :)

Dia Duiti!

In today’s blog post, we enjoy a guest entry by Patrick Garret, who was the teacher at Rolling Thunder Family Camp last summer. Enjoy!

“Dia duit!”

Or should I say 'hello'? The former is a typical Irish greeting which literally means “May God be with you”, and is a much better and more ancient greeting than the English “hello” — which according to Oxford may have come from an Old German word for hailing a ferryboat! (And I have it on good authority no true Irishmen anywhere at any time has actually said "top o' the moring ta ye!" or has requested a kiss simply because of their ethnicity despite what the shirt your dad wears may tell you.)

In writing this entry, I do not presume upon any truly Irish amongst the readership, but as you will soon realise, as it is written for March, this entry will nod to the patron saint of the Emerald Isle.

Before I continue, do let me introduce myself: As one partial to Northern Ireland particularly, I am a pastor to a Baptist congregation in Northern Ontario these past three years. I am a father of five, the husband of one, and have served congregations previously in Barrie, Oakville and Centre Wellington all in part-time to full -time ministry to youth and families.

I was asked to write an entry for the blog a few months back, and was given free reign as to what I would write. My history with Beacon is a relatively short but enriching experience: beginning with the first ever Family day event I was introduced to wonderful camp and its leadership. From there, my wife and eldest daughter attended a Mother/Daughter weekend, and my eldest son a boy's camp. I have been a leader at senior boys camp, attend a father/son weekend and as a family most recently we attended "Rolling Thunder" family camp in 2021 where I had opportunity to teach the adult chapel.

For the last several months since family camp, like everyone else, I've been growing through adjustments to life post-covid both in my community, congregation and family.

When I was asked to write this entry, and knew when it would come, I jumped at the chance to write about my namesake: St Patrick. From a young age, simply because of the name my parent's gave me, and being raised for a time in a tradition that honored saints, I have had personal enjoyment of growing to understand the saint. He has been the subject of a paper I wrote in seminary, a banner day to celebrate every year with family, and an excuse to listen to the Getty's just because! I have eaten more than my share of Lucky Charms, usually smell like Irish Spring, support both Hibernian & Celtic FC of the SPFL, and enjoy wearing green all year around. To boot, I was installed at my current congregation on St Patrick's Day in 2019! Yes, there were many allusions to this providence, closed the gathering with The Lorica, and shared a green cake to follow.

In all of this patrician devotion, however, one item in my study is of perennial value for me and others I will share. There is a sign in my study which came from a conference years ago, considering the life of the saint, and is titled "St Patrick: A Rule of Life". It encourages all of us believers to take a page from a life of one who pointed to Jesus as we seek to be ...

sacred instead of sensational

timeless instead of trendy

prophetic instead of popular

generous instead of entitled

meek instead of aggressive

quiet instead of attention-seeking

humbly prayerful instead of demanding

patient instead of prideful

inviting instead of isolating

understanding instead of judgmental

I close with a synopsis of Patrick's life taken from the short but excellent biography by Michael Haykin. “Patrick was a Trinitarian man, he had a zeal for mission, he was extremely biblical and had a great dependence on the Spirit. once we separate the man from the myth; the leprechaun and snake driving veneer, the drink-stained and nationalistic assumptions, the shamrocks and jigs, we are left with much for which we can thank God. This March 17th we can celebrate the life of a man who was taken from his home by kidnappers, made a slave but was called by the Lord while there, and later took the gospel to the very people who had kidnapped him. He planted churches, preached and wrote. His is a life of service to His God which should encourage us.”

Before I go, if you haven't already I recommend you try to learn a little more about the man and missionary by watching the short film the folks at Big Idea made a decade ago, or read the child-friendly biography by the Voice of the Martyrs -- and for theology geeks, you might enjoy the short video "St Patrick's Bad Analogy" at Lutheran Satire.

I pray you are blessed and thanking you for the opportunity,

(St) Patrick Garrett.

Here is Patrick with his lovely family (except for their oldest son, who was away at the time this photo was taken).

Into the Woods with Curio: Spies at Camp!

Have you ever had the feeling that you are being watched when you are at camp? Do you feel that someone might be spying on you as you go about your day there? God is, thankfully, aware of everything that is going on at camp and knows everyone there. And the staff and fellow campers are watching out for each other, of course.

I’m referring to others that are watching, (and it isn’t with CCTV either).

The wildlife at camp – the birds and mammals and even some frogs and snakes – spy on people more than we know. Why? One reason is that they want to stay out of harm’s way, so they notice where we are in relation to where they are at any given time. Making use of all their senses they watch where we go, hear us as we move about the camp, smell us and our machines and our food, and even sense our movements through the ground when we walk by.

They also notice where we leave things, whether accidentally or on purpose, that might be food. The jay that lands on the deck railing of the tuck shop isn’t dropping in for a social call. It is checking in to see if any food has been dropped on the deck, or left unattended. It looks around thoroughly, tilting its head this way and that, all the while monitoring the whereabouts of any people nearby. If it sees something that may be edible it quickly judges the distance between the desired item and safety, and either launches itself to make the grab and get away, or leaves, all the while planning to return sooner than later, in case another animal, such as a squirrel or a mouse, has also seen it and grabs it.

The lunch or snack stored in an unguarded backpack, the garbage container with the loose lid, or any food left out in any of the buildings are all noticed by camp’s other residents, especially those with sharp eyes and a super sense of smell. But it’s not just food that some of these animals are after. Mice ‘borrow’ tissues and other soft material to make their nests, as do some birds. I once found a bird’s nest at camp with a plastic candy wrapper woven into it.

All of these animals are superbly capable of watching us while remaining unseen themselves. The camp property is their space, and has been for countless generations, and they know the area intimately. And they are always aware of our presence.

As Christians we ARE being watched, though we may not be aware of it. Unbelievers and believers alike notice what we say and do, measuring our actions to see if we are as authentic as we say we are.

“Be careful to live properly among your unbelieving neighbors. Then even if they accuse you of doing wrong, they will see your honorable behavior, and they will give honor to God when he judges the world.” I Peter 2:12

Monk's Musings: Enlarging our Tent

“Enlarge the place of your tent, stretch your tent curtains wide, do not hold back; lengthen your cords, strengthen your stakes. For you will spread out to the right and to the left… Do not be afraid.” ISAIAH 54:2-4

Many centuries ago, God used his prophet to encourage his people, about 2 centuries beforehand, for when they were to emerge from 70 years of captivity, suffering and exile. We too are emerging from 2 difficult years of restrictions, fears, hardship and sorrow. I believe this same word from God applies to each of us, as we face the changing months in which we live. It is a time, not for shallow optimism, but yes to seize opportunities and step out in faith, to remember He is with us, therefore we shall “not be afraid”, but we shall “trust and obey” Him.

This also applies to Beacon Bible Camp, as we open registrations for our summer camps once again. We encourage you to make plans to come and enjoy the woods and lake, to be stretched spiritually, to make deep connections, and to serve God and fellow human beings in the context of the beautiful Muskoka lakes. Invite a friend along. Encourage a family you know to come with you. Challenge boys and girls and teens to live life to the full, including the great outdoors, the way God intends them to live. Maybe God is calling you to volunteer at Beacon as a Cabin Leader, or as a Volunteer Cook. In any case, as we live out the remainder of this year, may we seek to “enlarge our tent” and “strengthen the stakes”, trusting God to help us as we march out in faith, day by day.

With all our best wishes for this upcoming camping season,

Andrew “Monk” & Marianne “Tia” Nunn