Last time I wrote about how valuable the Internet can be to a ministry as a former camper found us on the Internet and called after almost 50 years. Well, I want to introduce and publicly thank the person behind it all. He’ll not be overly happy with me but this is my blog to write what I want.

SMMM would not have a terrific presence on the Internet if it were not for Ben. Even though he is a college student with all those responsibilities, he has taken on this project, almost like a ministry, to give this mission and its outreaches attractive, effective and useful websites.  He seems to always be upgrading and updating the sites so they meet the latest requests from us and provide what our readers need. I am so thankful for his “gift” in talent and time which makes all this possible. His latest project on behalf of SMMM is to bring our radio and video capabilities into the 21st Century by transitioning us to the digital world.

Yes, Ben’s last name is Hodson and this blog is written by a proud dad and a grateful mission director.

  3 Comments

The Internet, like any piece of technology, can be used for good or evil. But yesterday I experienced how valuable it can be to a ministry.

Around noon I answered the telephone with my usual greeting, “Good morning, Camp Nathanael!” A lady’s voice on the other end asked, “Is this Camp Nathanael? (pause) the Bible camp?” When I confirmed that indeed it was she became quite excited. The longer we talked I got just as excited. She had “googled” camp’s name and location and found a telephone number. She decided to take a chance and call.

She had attended Camp Nathanael in the 1960s and loved it. Like so many, she had lost touch with us (and I have to acknowledge we haven’t done a very good job of keeping in touch either) but she never forgot her time here. After visiting the website, she sent me an email which read in part, “…Attending that camp for only one week of the year made it possible for me to make it through the rest of the year and have something to look forward to - I kid you not. …I will pray for your ministry there to grow and prosper as the Lord sees fit.”

Without the Internet this renewed relationship would not have happened yesterday. I look forward to meeting this former camper in the future and sharing with her all that God has done since her last visit almost 50 years ago. I thank the Lord that there are many other former campers scattered across America whose experience at Camp Nathanael made such a big difference in their lives. (If you’re reading this and that is your “story”, too, I’d love to hear from you.)

Soon we will have another entire summer of campers ready to be impacted by their week here. Pray with us that Christ will change many lives this summer as He has for so many summers in the past. May this year be filled with campers who will never forget their time at Camp Nathanael.

  1 Comment

We all recognize the importance of prayer in the life of a believer and in a ministry like this one. However, when we’re honest with ourselves, we find life and life’s schedule crowding out that valuable time with God. That’s what was creeping in here. Well, we decided to do something about it.

There is a group of us who have been gathering in the camp’s dining room most mornings to enjoy an extra cup of coffee and discuss “world affairs” from NASCAR to politics. There’s usually a large “dose” of camp stuff as well. This week we have reordered our focus and are now, without a lot of conversation, taking time at 8:15 each morning to come before the Lord with our prayer concerns. Having a group of 4-6 men uniting in prayer is a tremendous way to start our day. 

I’m grateful to once again learn the value of being still before God.

  Leave your comment

Most people think of Camp Nathanael as being a place where kids come to enjoy fun and learn of Christ. Well, in recent years Camp Nathanael has become a place for all generations and this week we hosted the senior generation.

Three hundred eighteen senior adults visited us this week over two days. The group is so large that we can’t gather them all in the dining hall at one time so we have two days of outreach. Some of our guests came to camp as children. One that participated this week came the very first year camp was held along the banks of Troublesome Creek. Another was back for the first time since she was an eleven year old camper who accepted Christ as her Saviour at camp in 1954. She shared that she spent her entire adult life serving the Lord in her local church in northern Ohio and was now back in the mountains in retirement. What a special treat to see these folks and hear their stories. At the same time we had visitors who had lived their entire lives in the area and were just now coming to Camp Nathanael for the first time. Some of our special guests were the men and ladies who attended from the East Kentucky Veterans Center in Hazard. It was our privilege to have these folks who served America in past times of conflict to be with us.

This is an outreach SMMM couldn’t do alone. The Lord raised up a partnership six years ago with a group of senior adults from New Castle Bible Church (IL) under the leadership of Ralph and Lila Bauer, who served with SMMM before serving in Trinidad for many years as missionaries. This multi-generational group shared a tremendous program of music, skits and spiritual challenge. We look forward to the team’s visit each spring. What a blessing!

  1 Comment

This has been a very busy week at camp. We have been benefiting from the joyful labor of thirty volunteers from Ohio and Michigan. I’d earlier mentioned the group from Akron, Ohio’s First Presbyterian Church but they’ve been joined by a multi-generational group from Georgetown Bible Church in Michigan. 

Do you remember the postal service’s motto about “neither rain nor snow will keep us from our appointed rounds”? Well, that’s what these teams did yesterday. It snowed all day (with little accumulation) and it was cold. Some of the teams worked outside, in the snow, dismantling the old Barn, which has been, over the years, a barn, a boys’ craft building, a nature center and, most recently, a storage building. It’s weathered boards will become interior “paneling” for the mountain cabin. Other teams set up chairs and the platform in the Gym for next week’s Senior Citizens Days while yet another team repaired and painted a bedroom in the Homestead.

Today the weather was improved so it was back outside.

   The metal roof went on the cabin…

                                        … while the old Barn is down to its “bones”.

One team heads home tomorrow. The second team leaves on Friday. Once again SMMM has greatly benefited from adults and teens who gave of themselves that this ministry might be advanced. Who knows, some of them might even return one day and serve alongside us. The Lord is able to make that happen!

  Leave your comment

The Lord has blessed SMMM with another good team to move progress ahead on the Mt. Cabin. Seven folks arrived last night from First Presbyterian Church in Akron, OH. The leader of the team is Dick Franklin, whose dad, Garland Franklin, was the founding director of SMMM. They, along with Jim, Jonathan and Jeff, are putting in a Saturday taking advantage of the sunny day.  Pray with us as the weather for next week looks awful (snow in April in Kentucky - ugh!). God’s in control!

Pictures always speak clearer than my words, anyway. So here’s some views of what happened recently.

  Leave your comment

I was at the horse barn this morning with the student team from Calvary Memorial Church as they were giving the barn it’s “spring cleaning” when a state vehicle drove past. We make every effort to work with any state agency that we’re responsible to but when a state vehicle drives into camp, especially unexpectedly, I wonder what’s up. I quickly went back to the office and found three folks, one of whom works for the Kentucky Heritage Council.

They had been traveling KY 550 as part of their survey for Kentucky Scenic Byways and Bill remembered hearing from someone recently at Camp Nathanael. They decided to stop in. Yes, Bill had heard from Debbie a few weeks ago as we’ve been researching the application process to add the camp’s Chapel to the National Registry of Historic Buildings. 

This very unique structure has a tremendous heritage and we think others should have the opportunity to learn of it. Built in the 1940s, the stone for its walls was quarried right on the camp’s property then cut and laid by Italian stone masons. It’s stained glass windows were possibly created by a family that, we’ve been told, also created windows for the National Cathedral in Washington, DC. (If anyone reading this has any knowledge on the history of the windows we’d be very really happy to hear from you.) Over the years it’s lower level has been a grade school, the camp’s dining hall and now the offices of SMMM.

Well, I was glad to give our visitors a full tour of the building, even the attic to see the huge beams that support the steep pitched roof. At the close of our conversation it seems likely the Chapel can achieve this special designation as the process moves forward. But even more so than that, it was great to introduce these folks, each a higher level state employee,  to the ministry. Who knows how God will use this new contact for His glory in the years to come.

  1 Comment

Today I observed something you don’t see very often, especially in rural missions. I saw what I’d call a “full circle” moment.

It begins in 1945 when Miss Eva Lodgaard left a comfortable life in Chicago and came to Knott County, Kentucky to minister with SMMM because she believed this was the place God had for her to serve Him. Backed by a relatively small congregation in Oak Park, IL, the Madison Street Bible Church which pledged $20.00/month in financial support, Miss Eva traveled the hills and hollows as the church’s third missionary teaching God’s Word to children. Over the years she impacted multiple generations of students through Bible classes, vacation Bible schools, Sunday Schools and at Camp Nathanael. At 92 years old, Miss Eva is now a resident in the Knott County Nursing Home near camp.

After giving her life to minister to children, this afternoon ”children” ministered to her. A team from her Illinois home church, now called the Calvary Memorial Church and today supports thirty seven missionaries in twenty one countries, came to see her. Under the guidance of Junior High Pastor, Darin Weil, twenty three teens presented a ministry of music and testimony for Miss Eva and her fellow residents at the nursing home. The students did a great job of sharing and the residents really enjoyed it. But none more so than Miss Eva.

As I observed this experience I thought to myself. Miss Eva’s ministry has come full circle. What she came to do on behalf of Christ and her Illinois church has now come back around to her as the “children” of her church came to minister to her. It’s one of the special blessings God gives us along the way. By the way, the team also worked very hard this week giving a good boost to us at Camp Nathanael in the spring clean up as we look toward summer.

  2 Comments

We’ve had good progress on the mountain cabin this week. After two great days of work we had rain today which has slowed things down. The team continued to “nibble” at it today between the showers.

They say a picture speaks a thousand words. Well, here are about 6,000 “words”.

Enjoy!

  Leave your comment

Today we began the construction of the Mountain Cabin Nature Center (formerly known as the Log House Project). As I’d mentioned earlier the restoration costs got too large for the log house so we altered our plans to build an old style mountain cabin instead. I’m grateful for the several gifts which have recently arrived to help cover the costs of this project.

The Lord gave us a gorgeous day to get things moving again. The team of five men from Lancaster County PA (Calvary Church) arrived last night and hit the ground running this morning. While some of us moved materials to the site (I’ll be sore in the morning), others laid out the walls. Just after lunch, using good Lancaster Amish-style building practices the first wall was “raised”.  By the close of the day all four walls were up, even though it took an “extra” shift after supper tonight.

Tomorrow, Lord willing, the trusses go on and perhaps some of the roofing. The forecast is for rain on Wednesday but God is in control. So pray with us that, whatever weather comes, the team will be able to continue to make progress. The goal is to have it under roof by the week’s end. That would be tremendous! Pray also for stamina, safety and sound decisions as the construction progresses.

Once again SMMM is being blessed by many friends who are giving, praying and coming to enhance the ministry in Kentucky.

  Leave your comment