CRISTA Camps’ Miracle Ranch started the Summer of 2022 with a full week of camp in which we served more than 428 campers.
Camps during the week of June 19-25 included a full horse camp, day camp, middle school camp, and groups from Cross Sound Church, Peninsula Bible Fellowship, New Life Church, and Bethany Presbyterian. Twenty-five summer staff and 10 high school students served this week, along with six core full-time staff, two nurses, and 10 on the cooking team.
Highlights of the week included 226 campers making decisions to follow Jesus for the first time or rededicating their lives to the Lord!
A pastor from Cross Sound Church shared, “Our kids had such a great time; highs were paintball, high ropes, horseback riding. Your staff was so friendly and worked so hard to serve, which was such a gift. We are grateful that the gospel was presented clearly, and our kids responded.”
Two Stories of Transformation
As always, there were miracles during this week at Miracle Ranch. One of these was in the life of a day camper who became very upset at the beginning of the week over wearing a life jacket. His anger and other behaviors were surface evidence of underlying beliefs in his life that God didn’t care about him or listen to him. He was from a non-Christian home and was afraid to take home a Bible, certain his mom would throw it away.
Every day, Miracle Ranch staff encouraged this young man to believe in God and showed him love and kindness. And by the end of the week, he made two new choices: First, he said, “I believe God cares about me” and he began to pray to God. Then he said, “You know what, I will put on a life jacket now. I’ll be safe.”
The second story of transformation was in the life of a mom of four kids who were at Miracle Ranch for the week. She has lived with trauma since the age of seven when her own mother left her with an abuser who inflicted terrible harm.
During the week at camp, this mom shared her testimony. She spoke about the reality that in Christ your past, your abuse, your sin does not define your identity. She urged kids to stop living in the past, start living in their new identity in Christ, walk in step with the Holy Spirit, and follow Jesus.