its almost over!

2 weeks have truly flown by! These last 2 weeks have been filled with incredible memories, activities and many opportunities to learn about God. When you are surrounded by such beauty God becomes so real. Sweet moments of solitude are moments when you really can admire Gods creation and his mighty power. A verse I believe describes God's awesome power and glory is Psalm 97:1-6

The Lord reigns, let the earth be glad;
 let the distant shores rejoice.

Clouds and thick darkness surround him;
 righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne.

Fire goes before him
 and consumes his foes on every side.

His lightning lights up the world;
 the earth sees and trembles.

The mountains melt like wax before the Lord,
 before the Lord of all the earth.

The heavens proclaim his righteousness,
 and all peoples see his glory.

This verse shows the mighty power of God and it becomes so real in a place like Colorado but it is amazing! 

Well anywho, we have some wonderful students who are going to share about there experiences Hiking to devils thumb and extreme biking! 

Rachel Morris: Extreme Hike (Devil's Thumb)

                      The hike was probably the most physically difficult thing I have ever done! As a runner 3.5 miles didn't sound that long. But it was indeed. It was so incredible to see God's creation surrounding us! We had 5 minutes of silence and just  listening to God. God taught me so much on top of that mountain! Then we climbed up a half a mile more to at last...the top of Devil's Thumb ....WE MADE IT!!! Then we had an hour of quiet time on the top. I was so thankful to be able to get into God's word while surrounded by his phenomenal creation. God spoke through his word and the amazing people I hiked with. On the way down(so sad to leave the top). We slid down hills of snow in our rain gear. The hike down was so much easier and more enjoyable. By the time we got to the bottom I was wondering how I did it. It was only through God's strength, I was able to get to the top of the mountain with a positive attitude. It was my favorite adventure in Colorado, and I'm so thankful I got the opportunity to do it!

Josh Fronek: Extreme Bike 

          The ride was one of if not the most physically demanding things I have ever done. The first mile was pretty easy being mostly flat and I felt ready to conquer whatever hill was next. Once we finally got to some incline I was like "OK let's go". About 5 minutes later my legs were on fire and I was already out of breath. Once we got up our first hill, we took a break looking up to a second one. 2.5 miles in, we took a break, stopping to try and catch a wild Boose (A bear in the morphation stages of becoming a moose). Unfortunately it flew away and we continued our journey up. Hill after hill came and our group of about 10 guys flew up each one. After about 4 miles and 2 1/2 hours uphill later, we finally reached our summit. Over looking a giant was very humbling as we took several minutes to enjoy Gods size, power, and majesty. Our leader Avi took a bit to share his faith story and about how great our God really is. Once he was finished and our lunch was eaten, we took a quick ride down hill. It was about a mile down a ski hill and only took us a mater of minutes. We only suffered a few crashes and 2 broken bikes. After repairs, we started another uphill series to get back to the flat path we began on. The 9 miles we had just covered were brutal and everyone had little energy. That last mile back to the Rec center seemed the easiest being pretty flat and simple. Quickly everyone was drained and some of us had to walk it and we took 20 minutes to cover only a mile. Once we finally got back and on the bus we prayed, shared our crash stories, and all fell quickly asleep. Even though I was sore for the next couple of days, it was the most memorable experience of my trip and it helped me grow closer to the guys on my trip.

There have been some amazing stories of how God has shown himself through nature and it is awesome to see and experience! Thank you all for your prayer and support! 

whitewater and group hike!

Its the weekend!

Weekends on Project Colorado are a time to have fun and relax! We spent this weekend whitewater rafting on the arkansas river and taking a group hike around monarch lake. It was an action packed weekend but it was full of fun and laughter.

Saturday was a perfect day for whitewater rafting! We went on a 10 mile ride down the arkansas river. The water conditions were perfect for a fun ride that had plenty of bumps and splashes. Each boat had about 7-8 students and 1 leader and one whitewater raft guide! It was truly an awesome time of being on the river and enjoying the beauty that Colorado has to offer! The water on saturday was a grand 45 degrees! It was a little chilly to say the least but everyone had the option to rent wet suites or other items to help keep them warmer while on the rapids! The ride down the rapids took about 2 hours. The raft guides were awesome and would point out different rock formations around the river. That was pretty neat, they would also tell us stories about the land and different things that have taken place there. It was fun and informative. We were able to raft on class 3 rapids there are 5 classes. It was just in the middle and absolutely perfect.

Sunday we started our day with a time of worship, testimonies and a sermon by heather. We sat out on a hill at timberline that faces the mountains and beautiful scenery all around. We were able to worship God in his beautiful creation, it was really amazing because a storm was coming towards in the distance which made for an amazing and beautiful backdrop to admire God and his infinite power. Hearing thunder every now and then in the distance was a beautiful reminder of God and his power. We sang then we heard two amazing testimonies of Gods love and how he has worked in the lives of these amazing students. Testimonies are also amazing reminders of how God works in everyone's lives in powerful ways! Then heather gave a great sermon on her top ten. This consisted of different things she has learned during her life that she wants each student to learn now rather than later. It was a really inspiring sermon. Right when the sermon ended and we sang and had a Q&A time the storm hit, it was pouring rain and we were headed for our group hike at monarch lake. I am sure that everyone who was looking outside and saw the storm clouds around were wondering why are we going on a hike. But as we approached the beginning of our hike the clouds began to break and the sun started to shine and it turned out to be an amazing day for a beautiful hike around a lake. The hike was a total of 4 miles around and a blast. The lake was beautiful and the terrain was great for a hike.

The weekend was full of Gods beautiful creation and glory! 

Gods glory shown through adventures and work projects

Project Colorado has been in full swing and everyone has the daily grind down! Everyone has been experiencing God in different ways whether it be by lumberjack work or hiking to the mountain tops! God has definitely showed himself in many ways and it has been awesome to hear and see. So once again we have some student testimonies and now some PICTURES (yay). We will hear from a few students who did lumberjack work, ziplinining, wood chopping and  overnight camping.

Alexa Bussmann, Annika Nelson: Lumberjack

Today we spent time in the woods moving logs and clearing brush/twigs. We started out by hauling huge, heavy logs. This really tested our strength. We will probably be sore tomorrow morning, but that’s okay. We loaded up the logs in Tarman’s truck to be moved to a pile with other logs. Next, we went into the woods with rakes and a wheelbarrow to clear loose branches and brush from the ground. Working on a steep hill was tiring, but we stayed hydrated with water. Although the work was hard and we got very dirty, we felt very accomplished in the end, and clean after our four-minute showers. Even though this doesn’t sound very fun, we all had a good time together especially during our water breaks. There were minimal injuries, the worst being when Annika’s arms were crushed by a huge log. (WARNING: injury was staged, see picture)

Annie Michaelson: Camping Trip

Today the camping group returned from our overnight camping adventure. This was such a fun experience where we saw lots of moose, elk, and deer, and hiked to see a waterfall. For most of the students on our trip, this was the first time we backpacked to a campsite and carried all the essentials. This trip was a fun start to backpacking – not too extreme, but still challenging and exciting. On the way to our campsite, we were lucky to see 3 moose grazing in a field only a few feet away from us. When we got to the site, we set up our tents, and then hiked to a waterfall. Our group was all girls, so it was really fun to hang out together when we came back.

Bennett Pope: Zip lining

Today we had a group go zip lining for the first time ever on Project Colorado.  We went through a series of five zip lines that got progressively higher, faster, and longer as we went on. The first one was fairly low, and it wasn’t very fast or long, but the last one was about 1,600 feet and we got up to forty miles per hour. We all had a blast flying through the trees again and again. Afterwards, we went to a rec center where we swam, played basketball, bouldered  (a type of rock climbing), and played ping-pong. We had a fun time racing down the body slide, which had a timing system set up. We all had a fabulous time and would all love to do it again.

Andy Opp: Wood Chopping Crew

Today, I underwent many new experiences. Ranging from using a chainsaw, to struggling under the weight of large logs, I got a lot of work done! The chainsaw was a bit heavy, but that did not stop me from using it against the logs. Most of the wood that has been chopped today may eventually end up in the fireplaces of many less fortunate people. An interesting part of my job was using the log splitter. The reason why I liked the log splitter is because of its brute strength, which made me think of how much stronger God is. For the rest of today, I have been thinking of God’s infinite power and grace. Looking at the mountains, I could only imagine how much effort would be needed to move them. In scripture, God’s power is often referred to as “the strength to move mountains”. Long story short, a log splitter put me in awe of God’s mighty power. All in all, the job of chopping firewood left me tired, sweaty, and in awe of God’s power and creation.

Saturday we are heading to Noah's Ark for our Whitewater Rafting Adventure which should be amazing and on sunday we are doing a group hike up to a river! Cant wait to see what is in store for the rest of project colorado! 

 

work projects and adventures

Hi all,

Today was our second day of full on adventures and work projects! It was a perfect day to enjoy beautiful Colorado in many different ways. We have chosen 3 students who did 3 different projects and adventures to share about there experiences of the day! It has been absolutely wonderful here and students are loving there time here in colorado.

We will be hearing from...

Gaysawn Syhavong: Hike to Adams falls!
Hiking along the trail to the Adams falls proved to be a challenging, but promising trip. Students and staff got to experience the beauty of the wildlife and stride along the rocky road that curved trough hills and valleys. Whether it was trekking through the rapid water falls, taking a glimpse of the tall and grand moose, or seeing the vast mountains in the background, everyone got to witness God's glory in the nature surrounding them. After a long three-mile hike, the crew had lunch at the summit of the trail, getting a bird's-eye view of the rushing water that is the Adam's falls. We felt the cool, crisp air breezing through the trees, and had some devotion time on how God's wildlife creation is praising God for his glory. The group shared many one-in-a-lifetime moments together, created new bonds with each other, and were rewarded with a cool and sweet dessert of ice cream.

Logan Lasley: Mt. Ida hike!
as we got up ate 5:00 a.m. i could tell it was going to be long day. we first took an hour drive to the rocky mountain national park. Then we began to climb the massive mountain. starting out the hike was very snowy, and if we fell through the snow we were stuck in about four feet of snow! Everybody's socks and shoes were filled with dirt, snow, and water. as we got further up onto the mountain, it became progressively steeper and more snowy. we took little breaks along the way and made sure to have plenty of water. once we got to the tree line of the mountain we unfortunately had to turn back because some of the students' feet were going numb. although we had to turn back, we got to slide down pretty much the whole mountain because it was covered in snow, and that was very exciting. Needless to say there were no injuries thankfully and we took a lot of great pictures and all got to bond more together. all around awesome hike!

Jake Bosshardt: Lumberjack work
For the lumberjack work we stayed onsite and moved logs and lumber onto trucks. We also cleared away slash (small sticks) from the hill so that they didn't cause a fire. We worked our butts off. Unfortunately we didn't get to use the chainsaws but we got to see Tarman use it. It was a lot of work; there were all different sizes of logs and just loading a truck with one load took about ten minutes. Everybody was shielding their eyes from the flying dust. We got some scratches and took a ton of water breaks. Heather was smiling almost the entire time. Rob, a worker from the Timberline camp also came and used the chainsaw to cut up huge trees into smaller parts. At the end everyone was tired but
they were happy to help out. It was a great experience getting to work with different leaders from Wooddale and Timberline and well as other students.

So there you go! A glimpse into the hikes and work that your child has been doing! It has been a rewarding experience thus far and there are only more stories to come!

mail and phone

Hi parents and loved ones,

Thank you so much for respecting the guidelines of 5 pieces of communication sent to you child during there time here in Colorado. Tomorrow we will be starting our 5 minute phone calls. We will be allowing each student to make a 5 minute phone call home every other day just to communicate home. The phone calls will not be until the evening so keep your phones near in case your child decides to call home!
We thank you so much for letting your student spend these 2 amazing weeks with us and we will have testimonies and pictures soon. We just finished our first day of work projects and adventures and they went great! Stay tuned for updates on work projects and adventures and all the excitement of Project Colorado 2013! 

Minnesota--->Nebraska--->Colorado

Hi all,

I want to thank you all for your support as you sent us out in prayer saturday morning.

We are off to a great start! We set out saturday morning for Nebraska and our first stop at Third City Christian Church. This church in Nebraska has graciously opened there doors for us to stay the night. The bus ride went great there was a ton of rain along the ay but it was still a great ride and our night at the church was great as well. We had a small session with some music testimonies and a time to get to know our cabin mates and leader. It was a great way to bond with them before we make it to Timberline in Colorado. We started our sunday morning bright and early to start our final leg to Colorado. We are currently almost to our first destination of Fort Morgan, Colorado. We will be having lunch there and then head on to Denver to attend the Rockies Baseball game. Our goal is to roll into timberline by 8p.m.

Tomorrow we will begin our first day of adventures and work projects. Work projects can include working around the camp or going off site to work at various organizations around the area. Adventures can be anything from hiking, fishing and shopping. All in all it should be a great day of fellowship and community building and I am excited to see what is in store for tomorrow as well as the rest of the trip.

The blog will be updated fairly often with pictures and student testimonies from adventures and work projects so keep an eye out for that.

Project Colorado 2013

Welcome to the Wooddale Church Project Colorado 2013 blog!

Check this blog regularly to see all of the exciting happenings of Project Colorado 2013!!