The day after Christmas marked a beautiful milestone at Camas Meadows Bible Camp.

The first winter camp since March of 2019.

Campers hiked up to Inspiration Point to see the sunrise (only arriving slightly late, ha!) and trekked up the tube hill to zoom down the mountain in a splash of powder. Clearly Scruffy enjoyed his tube run with Boo Boo!

To warm up, we gathered in the camp lodge for board games, time to chat with friends, snuggle the camp dog, and enjoy an epic game of King Elephant.

Princess Leia Freyja was sure that the campers had arrived just to give her pats and treats.

In her defense, there was enough dog snuggling, petting, and treat giving to confuse any canine about the purpose of the camp.

Summer Staff Winter Retreat is unique. It is a chance for counsel staff, support staff, and anyone considering training to be staff next summer to enjoy being campers together.

Exploring God’s beautiful creation is an important part of this four-day camp.

Since the temperatures reached a low of -3 and a high of -1 on the first day and hovered around that zone much of the time, those moments of nature appreciation were spent in quick sprints rather than meandering strolls.

After our mad dashes out of doors, there were plenty of games to play in the lodge near the crackling fire.

Snow angels and a chilly zip down the tube hill.

Then a game of couch …

… and constructing gingerbread houses!

Some gingerbread houses were more detailed … and terrifying than others.

Below, the classic and creepy story of Hansel and Gretel meets both Shrek and the French revolution!

And once our toes thawed … it was back outside again!

But this retreat is also a chance to come together as followers of Jesus and reflect on and talk about His call and what He asks of us in His word.

This year, we focused on the gospels. Watching episodes of The Chosen together, reading scripture, and discussing what it means to follow where Jesus asks us to go.

Like our dawn hike to Inspiration Point, following our Lord is often both harder than expected and even more beautiful. In what ways have you found God’s call more than you expected?

Isaiah 43:1–But now, this is what the LORD says– he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine.”