Campsite Improvements------ Jay Abraham

In 1973 I had the privilege to come to Beyond and climb Mt. Frankenstein with my campaigner group. I was 16. It was a life-changing experience that I will never forget. Thirty-three years later I was blessed to come back with my 16 year old son and his campaigner group to climb Mt. Albert. It was equally amazing. As Jim Caldwell, our guide back in 1973, refers to Beyond “it is a thin place in the world to hear and see God”.

The Lord placed on my heart that this is a place that needs to be around for a long time to come so that it may touch many more lives. After coming down off of Mt. Albert and listening to Rob Duyker’s heart and vision for how to make that happen, we began to mobilize a team of folks to help move forward on the implementation of a master plan for base camp. (To see the Master Plan click here.)

Last summer a team came to base camp with plans to rebuild one of the campsite structures. After a rewarding week of hard work, seeing the finished structure was only a glimpse of the blessings we each left with. Sitting around the campfire each night and sharing our lives was amazing. It was healing, encouraging, tender, blessed, bonding, and holy. I don’t think any one of us could explain what happened; not only within the group, but also as individuals. It is what happens when God intervenes. We came to build a structure and God meant it to build us up in Him.

Out of that group there are already 3-4 follow-on groups that hope to come up next summer -- bringing expectations to not only help transform a camp but have the Lord meet them and help transform them along the way. If you would like to be a part of this journey, please consider joining us. There are a limited number of base camp building projects that we hope to complete over the next few summers.

If you are interested in helping with any of these click here to contact us.

My name is Ella. And I am on my way home from an amazing trip with Young Life. I got to spend six days in the mountains of Canada through Beyond Malibu. Our guides Aly, Steve, and Sarah brought me closer to God, physically and spiritually, than I ever have been before. There is no better place to experience the incredible beauty of the world God created than by standing on a mountain peak. It took my breath away. This trip pushed me to turn to Jesus for help. During my two hour solo I prayed that I would better be able to let Jesus lead my life. So many times I find myself trying to conquer the world on my own but climbing up that 6,200 feet made me realized that was not what Jesus wanted for me. I need him to be there with me the whole way and there was proof that He was with us on the trip. Every bump and fall ended in only minor bruises and scratches. Clearly a blessing and answer to prayer. This trip all together was an answer to prayer and I just want to thank you, our YL supporter, for making life changing experiences like this possible.

Ella (Mt.Pearkes conqueror)

Reflections from an overnight solo.

From one of our participants. He wrote a couple poems while we did an overnight solo.

"Eternity"
Time stands still in this place
I feel like I could live an Eternity in this moment I try to comprehend the love of a God who created this wonderland My soul whispers words of gratitude for a chance to be set free in this wilderness For I am a man who came up here to find himself amongst the giants and the stars Instead, God found me, perched high upon this cliff

"Beauty"
I can't believe I am here
Is this a dream?
The sky is painted with unimaginable beauty My eyes scan, skipping from place to place attempting to absorb this creation In my mind I seek the captivating mystery of this place Everywhere I look I see the perfect glory of God I am privileged to be a part of this living masterpiece For this is a wild and unforgiving land, yet more beautiful than anything I have ever seen.

Anonymous

Read the reflections of Ben Creelman a Beyond guide in 2006 and 2007 at his Blog.

http://benpcreelman.blogspot.com

Combination Sea Kayaking and Hiking trip

This spring rumors started flying around the Beyond community about the possibility of a combo trip: to paddle from Egmont to Basecamp, and then do a mountain route. Everyone had different chunks of info regarding the trip: who would guide it, how long it would take, what route would be done, where the trip was from. As it turned out, two sea kayakers, Andrew Akridge and Mike Cobb, and two mountain guides, Matty Azar and myself, had the joy of guiding 18 studly high school grads from Georgia up the Jervis Inlet to the summit of Sun Peak (actually JJ the peak directly behind Sun Peak).

The trip was as huge success. We experienced a five hour night paddle (or death paddle, it depends on who you ask…) under the starlit sky with the bioluminescence lighting up every fish darting below us, turning every paddle stroke into an explosion of green light. We summited JJ in a white out and as we crossed the glacier the clouds broke before us, revealing the grandeur of those mountains. We shared our life stories and asked each other the hard questions that often go unsaid. We talked about how we are going to live for Christ in the newness of the upcoming year. It was an impacting week for everyone involved…campers, leaders, and the four of us guides alike. It’s hard to explain how sweet that trip was in just a few paragraphs, and maybe that’s for the better…our experiences will only be fully known by those we shared them with. We can say that there are 18 guys fired up to live a life glorifying to God in their post high school adventures.

Beyond Reason

............... is a interactive sculpture that was completed and dedicated this summer.

Roger Feldman, Department Chair of Art / Professor of Art at Seattle Pacific University, designed and created this sulpture.








Roger Feldman received his BA from the University of Washington and his MFA from Claremont Graduate University. In 1986 he received an Individual Artist Grant from the National Endowment for the Arts in Sculpture. His interactive site-specific installations have been exhibited nationally and internationally. Recent exhibits have included work shown at the Tacoma Art Museum, Suyama Space in Seattle, and Schloss Mittersill in Austria. His work in Graphic Design has included clients such as Microsoft, Boeing, Northwest Hospital, The American Cancer Society, and Harborview Medical Center. Feldman received the Prescott Award for Sculpture from CIVA (2005), and his large drawing, “Current” was included in “The Next Generation,” exhibition at MOBIA, in New York City. He has been teaching at Seattle Pacific University since 2000.

On August 20th 2007 Roger, Astrid (Roger's wife) and the Beyond Malibu 2007 Staff had an opportunity to dedicate this sculpture at the site in Princess Louisa. This allowed Roger to begin the oral tradition at Beyond of sharing the metaphors experienced in the sculpture to guests, staff and trip participants.









Here is the written description---


"Beyond Reason is a multi-faceted experiential reference to the reasons for Beyond’s existence. The five components in their particular arrangement allude to such themes as repentance, humility, spiritual focus, sacrifice and, ultimately, the intersection between humanity and divinity.

The interactive nature of the sculpture allows individuals to experience it from multiple directions. The semi-circular wall functions as a sound collector focusing the sound of a large creek feeding into the inlet, bringing to mind scriptural images of water. It also invites individuals to experience repentance by walking from one corner around the 180 degree curve to the other corner thereby changing their direction to head the other way.

The passage way behind the semi-circle leads from a darkened space to light. With a diagonal log leaning in the passage, one must stoop down and humble themselves to continue.

The rectangle leaning on an angle is a Golden Mean rectangle, which was developed by the Ancient Greeks as their ideal proportion that carried into architecture and mathematics and symbolizes man’s ideals.

The diagonal log, representing the “tree of life” breaks through the rectangle and leans on the semicircular wall. The log is the apex of the piece as it supports the chain which drops down to support one of the two identical triangles. The chain, often associated with bondage becomes a reference to sacrifice and support. Because of this element, humanity is set free to see beyond the immediate.

The other triangle representing half of the golden mean rectangle stands vertically lending support to the rectangle and referencing the surrounding mountains.

Even the materials used in the installation of the sculpture have significance. The 4 x 12 beams, recycled from Malibu’s old dock are the dominant material of the sculpture. The recycled wood used now for another purpose symbolizes what happens when the Creator intersects with our lives.

The combination of these components speak to the reasons behind Beyond Malibu’s existence, and invites further exploration into that reality." Roger Feldman Summer of 2007

To the 3 greatest guides

Seriously I can't Thank you enough! You had to tolerate a lot with the combination of us and the conditions and circumstances that Albert brought during our week. Thanks for doing so much more than tolerating.

The Lord has and will continue to use this week in my life and the lives of these precious 8 girls for a very long time. It was an absolute blessing to have your leadership during our week. Thanks for being so authentic and for investing so fully.

The Lord worked through you in incredible ways as He shone His love through your lives. I'm extremely grateful for the 3 of you and promise I'll treasure this week for a lifetime. We never choose challenge-- but, oh how it blesses us.

Trip Leader 2007