And it begins...

Max and the Base Camp crew.  Photo Credit: Stacie Murray

Greetings from the beautiful Beyond base camp. We are just finishing up our 10-day training period, and things have been chugging along smoothly. We are in the process of building a large extension to our barn that will provide us much more shelter when it rains. We have also constructed a new campsite, built desks for the red house, organized the equipment storage, and done the typical all-camp cleanup tasks to have Beyond looking picture-perfect for campers who come in on Saturday. We have been incredibly blessed with a hardworking team that fits together to form a loving, Christ-centered family. Each staff person and guide brings a joyful uniqueness to the table, expressing characteristics of different walks of life and quite different hometowns. We have our native Canadians, like John—who wears suspenders and a belt over his red flannel shirt (seriously); our southeasterner—including Blythe, Meredith, and myself who are extraordinarily out of our warm element; and we even have our own penguin—Stacie, our phenomenally talented cook who usually spends her summers in Antarctica. But no matter where we come from or what we’re accustomed to, we are all in absolute awe of the beauty of God’s creation in this place. The Spirit is thriving in every nook of the forest and inlet, and is being even more cultivated in the relationships that are already in full bloom here at base camp. We have all been sharing our life stories one by one after meals and doing group devotions every morning; the Lord is preparing each of us for a fruitful, fun, and fantastic summer.

The barn extension. Photo Credit: Stacie Murray

Meanwhile, the guides have been up in the mountains climbing Sun Peak. They spent solid team time getting to know each other, having fellowship, and growing in community just as we did here at base camp. Each of the three teams had great success in the mountains practicing their skills and getting a feel for the trails this year. Please keep all the guides in your prayers this summer- for safety, strength, endurance, energy, and guidance on trips, and that the Lord would be present in content and speak to the heart of every camper during their Beyond experience.

Our beloved sea kayakers are doing wonderfully as well! During their 10-day training they paddled all over the Jervis and Princess Louisa Inlets, stopping at and checking up on campsites along the way. We even had the delight of having them here at base camp one night for dinner and worship. They camped at the Point campsite for the evening and paddled out early the next morning, so we didn’t get to spend a whole lot of time together. Nonetheless, we were ecstatic to see them and to be able to have fellowship and pray over them. They are already out on their first trip, so please keep them in your hearts this week and pray for a very successful journey.

We are all so very excited for campers to begin piling in today (!) and for them to experience the incredible adventure of coming face to face with the Lord. Please keep the hearts of campers in your prayers- that the Lord would do big things during each of the sea kayaking and mountaineering trips. Here at base camp, we would love prayers for energy, provision, health, and a servant’s heart throughout the summer. Also, a few prayers for nice weather would be greatly appreciated by both the base camp staff and all of the guides. 

Beyond- over and out.

Heading out for Ten Day. Photo Credit: Stacie Murray