Trip to Dallas

Hello all,

Kelsey here I wanted to take a minute to share with our amazing trip to Dallas Texas with all twelve interns, Jeff, Sara West, and Matt Hoskins. It was a trip that was filled with healing and reconnecting as a group, as well as, meeting with different ministries and doing some recruiting at two schools. While staying in Dallas the director of Horn Creek Doug Jones opened up his beautiful home for us to stay. The trip lasted 6 days from the 1^st of December to the 6^th.

Throughout the week out mornings consisted of devotions studying First John. I really like this book and loved to be able to participate in daily devotions reading this book and discussing with a group.

Every day throughout the week was slightly different. We were given the opportunity to meet with Doug Jones youth pastor, Justin, our first day in Dallas. Justin shared with our group about his desire to help parents rise up Christian youth. He intentionally plans his events during the week so that the family is able to bond on the weekends. He also is very good about studying directly from the word of the Lord. They take chapters to study instead of doing topical studies. He also gives many opportunities for his youth group to minister in different capacities in the church. That evening after a delicious meal cooked by Kathy Jones all the interns were able to attend his youth group and participate in his small groups. This was fun because they asked us to share our testimony and answer questions about our internship.

The second church that we met with was really neat as well. It was huge and had just begun a movement to expand its building. It was a church rooted in a no debt philosophy and stopped their project of a new auditorium when they realized that building cost had gone up and there was not enough money in the budget. I loved hearing this from the church because it was so encouraging that they truly placed everything in the Lord’s hands. We then met with their youth pastor, Braun, who shared with us his philosophy on ministry. He intentionally placed kids in small groups that met in homes with the same leaders for seven years.

The last day we had a dinner with family campers and past summer staffers. It was really fun for me to be able to see the summer staffers that I worked with that summer. The night also concluded with a heated game of werewolf shared by both the interns and summer staffers.

Probably my favorite part of the whole week was Sunday morning. We went back to Braun’s church and the service consisted of a powerful message from Nick Vujicic, a man that was born without arms and legs. His testimony was very powerful. It was hard for me to sit there and not to think that why did God allow this man to be born this way. He answered this answer by saying he had a purpose and that was to be the arms and feet in a way that no one else could be. I was very moved with hearing this and with him sharing the verse Jeremiah 29:11-12 “For I know the plans I have for you declares the Lord, plans for wholeness and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. ” At the end of his talk he had an alter call which was so powerful and moved me to tears. Although this was just only a couple hours of the trip it was my favorite part.

The whole week was full of blessings and allowed me to once again just be thankful for being able to be an intern at Horn Creek.

Odds and Ends

Hey all, it is Jeff, just wanted to include some pictures from our first recruiting trip with Alex, Kelsey, Justin and Sara and myself. In October we went to Missouri, Indiana and Michigan and recruited at Hope College, Cornerstone University, Calvin College, and Taylor University. When I say recruiting, it means that we are looking for summer staff and interns for next year. It was an awesome trip. Here are a few pics above!

Things I've learned

Last Monday marked our third month of being at Horn Creek and I thought you all deserved an update on what's been happening.

Here's a couple things I've learned in those three months:

This year needs to be about serving and community. The first part of October was hard for me (Amy) and I think it was because I was so focused on wanting to do program and on proving that I would be good at it that I made myself miserable and I'd get frustrated with the jobs I was given if they weren't what I wanted. Jeff, who happens to be very good at reading most of us, and I had a talk about it and I worked to change my perspective and on changing my attitude to being a servant leader. It's freed me up and I've enjoyed my time here so much more now that I focus on serving and not on getting my way.

Urban youth are different than suburban youth but they both need love and attention. The last three weeks four interns at a time have gone up to Denver to help at Open Door Ministries and Sun Valley Youth Center. Both run after school programs for kids from underprivileged families. We all had different experiences but it was good for all of us and eye opening in many ways. I was heartbroken over some of these kids you could see that there had been abuse or neglect and it came out in the way they acted. The work the staff are doing with these kids is awesome and it was so great to be a part of that.

Justin is faster on a board then I am on skis, we've managed to get in some skiing the past few weeks and Justin and I raced. Towards the end of the day I got to where I could still see him as I went down the mountain, which was a huge accomplishment compared to the first race.

When killing a chicken it's easier to pull their head off then to cut it off. James, Justin, Christian, Lauren and I are helping Jeff lead a bible study at high school, several of the kids have experience killing turkeys and chickens and they told us all about it.

We live in a beautiful place. I think I learned that on our first day here but I am continually reminded of that. Today Mel and I walked by three deer on our way to the office. One night we saw a herd of antelope (do they travel in herds?). And another day on the way to church we saw around 30 elk, it was awesome.

Don't be afraid to speak up when you have an idea. The staff at Horn Creek have been awesome about listening to our ideas and letting us run with them. Back in August I approached Doug (our executive director) with an idea about a camp for women coming out of the sex for sale trade and last week Doug, his wife Kathy, Jeff, and I met with the program director at a ministry that works with those women about what we can do to make that happen.

I've learned more but I think your eyes are probably tired, or you're bored so I'll stop. But one final note the most important thing that I've been reminded of is God's unfailing faithfulness, He does not forsake His children!

One Year

What an incrediable opportunity we have been given this year! God has literally placed a ministry opportuinty in our laps and has allowed us all to be greatly involved. One Year is similiar to Awanas. It is a ministry for children in the community from K-6. Our purpose is to love on these kids in the community and to point them to Jesus in all that we do. The ministry is called One Year because we are doing a study on one year in the Life of Christ. Our heart's desire for these kids is that they will truly feel the love of Chirst. He is so madly in love with every one of them! We want them to walk away feeling loved, vauled, encouraged, and desiring to know God more.

This year we are being poured and poured into. Every staff member and our mentors in the community want us to walk away from this year as better lovers of Jesus. It is very humbling to be so poured into. To feel so loved and vauled. It is amazing that we get the opportunity to pour into others. We get to take time to love on these kids and to be Jesus to them. I feel so blessed and honored to be apart of OneYear.

A night at One Year looks like this: Worship, skits, games, lesson and small groups. Each week we give out a memory verse that is straight from the lesson given. We try do fun things to help motivate the kids to memorize their verse. Some of these have included a leader drinking a mystry drink and shaving heads and beards. This makes for lots of laughs and really gets the kids working on memorizing scripture. Our purpose in doing this is not that they will memorize the verse for one night but that they are planting the Word of God into their hearts.

The title of one year is ironic to me since we will only be involved for one year. I think that is the hard part for me. We have only been doing this ministry for 4 weeks and I have started to really fall in love with these kids. To know that this is just a season and that God is going to move me in a year is tough. To know I will have to walk away from this kids and from the relationships I have made. I can not dwell on that though. If I do I will miss what an incrediable opportunity this is. If I dont pour my entire heart into these kids then I am going to be the one that missed out.

Please pray that we will be able to honor God with this ministry that He has allowed us tobe apart of. Much Love, Katie





Melody with our small groups


Worship



Christian being Grandma Morgan



Alex about to drink the mystry drink



Jeff after getting half of his beard shaved off

Thoughts

So this post might be a little different. Well, false. Will be. When we started this blog, Jeff mentioned that it was a place for a lot of things; a place for pictures and stories, a place for revelations and updates. And a place to share our hearts.

These few verses have been on my heart a lot lately:

How long will you love delusions and seek false gods? Know that the Lord has set apart the godly for himself; the Lord will hear when I call to him. -Psalm 4: 2b-3

It's funny, all through the psalms David talks about his enemies, asking God to protect him, to come to his aid. I've often found myself wishing that my own enemies were as concrete as his. Mostly, my enemies are within myself. My enemies, and my false gods, are not armies or warriors, and they're not items made of wood or stone. My enemy is my pride, my false gods are my selfishness and need for control. (Really, the list could go on.) And it's funny how easy they are to dismiss, right? To rationalize. I'm not bowing down to anything; I'm not going to any temples. But my time, my thoughts, my life say something different. I'm chasing the counterfeit; loving delusions and seeking false gods.

This year, for me, is slowly becoming less and less about finding direction. (My original reason for taking a year of service.) More and more, it's becoming about finding the legitimate...about meeting God on this mountain and chasing Him alone. And I'm in luck! (Though luck has nothing to do with it.) Because amid all the distractions, and all my failings, the Lord is waiting.

The Lord will hear when I call to him.

-Melody

Confessions of Two Horn Creek Interns

Hey All!
Amy and Lauren here. We thought we would update you on our wonderful life at Horn Creek.
We are currently hosting the Focus on the Family Institute, it's a program for college students in Colorado Springs. They are all super exited to be in Colorado and we are excited to have them here, we can empathize with them since we all only recently adjusted to the altitude of the Colorado mountains.

We were both servers this past weekend as well as this weekend. Serving is an adventure, we can now successfully carry three plates at a time without spilling all over a guest. It's been neat for both us, and I'm sure for the rest of the interns, to see the gratitude in those we're serving, they truly appreciate what we are doing and that makes our work worth it. Last week in the family camp you could tell the moms loved being able to sit down to a meal and not have to prepare it and serve it to their kids. We were hesitant about the plated meals but it really does bless these moms and we love that!

We had our first 1 year this week. It's the bible club we're running in Westcliffe for the kids. We had 38 kids there on Tuesday and if 60 kids show up Christian's going to shave his right eyebrow (thanks for suggesting that Jeff) You will definitely see a picture of that if it happens. It was fun to play with the kids and get to share the love of Christ with them.

It hasn't been all work though, some of the previous posts show that. A group kayaked down the Arkansas river on Wednesday. We hiked four fourteeners in one day, it was so cold but fun and worth it when we got to the bottom. We went to the rockies game, you saw that picture. We've done trips to Pueblo, Salida, Colorado Springs, and Denver. We also have time for some fun around camp including going down the waterslides, rock climbing, volleyball, basketball, and bowling.

Part of the goal for this year is for us to grow as a community. These first few weeks have had us working on listening to everyone's input. We've learned that community can be really great but it can also be really hard. God has been gracious in allowing us to be a positive and safe community.

Picture time:
Melody and Amy on top of Mount Democrat (the first fourteener), told you it was cold.


The view from Cameron (the 2nd one) looking towards Lincoln (the 3rd fourteener)
Karen, James, Alex, and Lauren ontop of Lincoln

Most of the group at the top of Bross, the fourth fourteener of the day.

Alex turned 21 in Breck we celebrated with a delicious cake and army men.

Pueblo, James will resort to any means to get a good picture. He liked the flowers.

Karen and Melody at the riverwalk in Pueblo.

Kayaking down the Arkansas river.

Jeff, our fearless leader!

Off they go, Jeff said it would take 2 hours, Lauren said 3, it took over 4.

Fun pics, and crazy happenings

Hey all, it has been an exciting week! Can't believe it is already September 7th. Well, last week was eventful. Monday we worked on a Westcliffe Ranch all day, where the boys got to drive tractors all day. We helped out a wonderful lady in the community who needed help on her ranch. We worked from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m., but she fed us well, and we got to get a taste (literally) of ranching life in the valley. We also hit up a Rockies game which was a blast, and celebrated Lauren Parliaments birthday right there in the stands! It was awesome. We also hosted a retreat of families this past weekend at Horn Creek from Colorado Springs as well. It is always a blessing to see families being renewed in God's creation. Here are a few picture highlights!

Happy Birthday to Lauren!

Summiting the 4th 14er of the day, with a few root beers!

The boys having fun on the tractor!

At the Ranch, with Elin the owner on the left, and JT in the cowboy hat!

The intern crew in Breckenridge

Grillin at a Horn Creek grill out to say goodbye to summer staff, and welcome the interns!

Intern Faces Finally Revealed!

James and Christian at Western Night

We had a good time singing at Western Night

Christian and Katie got to paint faces at Western Night

Beautiful Horn Lakes

On our hike to Horn Lakes

The internship has begun!!!!

Hello friends and family! My name is Karen Johnson and I am one of twelve interns that Horn Creek hired for the year. I wanted to write you all to update you on our first three weeks together. Our first week consisted of being introduced to all aspects of Horn Creek life. The first night was great for all of us to hear Jeff and his heart/vision for the year. This night for me as well as other interns was a time of confirmation that this was where we were supposed to be. The second night we sat around a campfire as we looked out onto the valley and shared with one another why and how we ended up at the internship. It was awesome to see the Lord’s hand in bringing each one of us here for this season of our lives. During this first week we learned about Horn Creeks mission, how to clean after a group leaves, what needs to happen in the kitchen, and about the recreation center. We also got to go on a hike to horn lakes. Jeff took us on a tour of Westcliffe and we spent a day in a little town called Salida. On a Wednesday night we went to Western night. This is where the family camps get together and sing fun songs as well as square dance. We had a lot of laughs this night as James and Christian showed off their dance moves with the children.

Our second week here was like a normal week. Our schedule is going to be similar throughout the year which will be good to give us consistency. Wednesday and Thursday are our days off, Friday/Saturday/Sunday are our days where we host groups. Sunday night we will have an internship meeting to debrief the week as well as address any conflict in our community. Monday is a work day where we do various jobs around the camp. This could include chain sawing, finishing cleaning up the lodge after a group leaves, or really anything. Tuesday is our class day. We are taking two classes, one is called Spiritual Formation where we are going to learn about spiritual disciplines that put us in a place where the Lord can do His work in our lives. The other class is going to be on camping philosophies and the reason behind all that Horn Creek does. Tuesday afternoon we will meet with mentors that are from the nearby town, Westcliffe, and Tuesday night we will lead a program called One Year (it is like Awanas). This will be a time for us to pour into the children of Westcliffe from first to sixth grade.

Right now we are on a retreat together in Breckenridge at Jeff’s cabin. This place is absolutely beautiful. Yesterday we hiked 4 mountains over 14,000 feet tall. The display of God’s creation was a true joy to all of us as we spent the day on top of Colorado. During this retreat we also had the chance to share parts of our lives with one other. We answered the questions: When did you first start following Jesus, what is your greatest wound, what is your greatest time of joy, and where are you at now with God. Truly this time has been a blessing to all of us as we have seen the provision and faithfulness of God in each one of our lives through hard and good times. As we leave this retreat I already feel a lot closer to each of the interns.

Already the Lord is at work in amazing ways. We have seen this in one another as well as in learning about the way the Lord has provided for Horn Creek to stay open through hard financial times. I have already seen too how the Lord has placed each one of us here on purpose. As I just graduated college I have had a lot of questions about what is next. And I praise the Lord that this is what was next for me. A year set aside to be with God and each other serving in a place that has and will impact so many lives. Just in this time at the retreat I have seen how God’s call on our lives is to love Him, be loved by Him, and to love others. Life is less about what exactly we do or where exactly we go. I know all of us are excited for what the Lord has in store for the year. We appreciate any prayers for the ministry here at Horn Creek and the ministry God wants to do in each of our lives. Keep checking for updates, we should be writing something once a week.

Here We Go: Firehose!

Hello, my name is Jeff Fox. I direct the internship here at Horn Creek. My wife Leslie and I, along with Sara West have been praying and planning for this week for a long time now. We, along with the whole Horn Creek Staff Team are so excited to have the interns here.

Indeed, our internship at Horn Creek is a key component of our ministry here. We can't wait to pour into the lives of these young adults. We are also excited to watch them engage in ministry themselves and grow in their relationship with Christ. A key verse that truly captures our heart for the internship is 1 Thessalonians 2:8, where Paul says, "We loved you so much that we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God, but our lives as well, because you had become so dear to us." We will be living, working, playing and serving right along with these kids this year, and we could not be more excited.

Our interns have come from all over, including Texas, South Carolina, Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, Kansas, Nevada, Michigan, South Dakota, and Colorado. Some of the colleges represented are Biola University, Gordon College, Taylor University, Kansas University and more. We are so excited about how God has put together this team!

So, what is happening this week with the Interns?

This week we are frantically trying to get all the interns up to speed, as well as say goodbye to all of our wonderful summer staff that have led our ministry this summer. The first night the interns arrived, we took them to our end of the summer celebration for our summer staff. Though half of them could barely keep their eyes open, we thought this would be a great way for them to get a picture of some of the amazing things that Christ did in the lives of the summer staff. It was an awesome night of sharing, laughter, and tears.

The interns are also getting trained in many areas of camp this week, including cooking, maintenance, recreation activities, programming, ministry opportunities in town, as well as getting an over all picture of our ministries here at Horn Creek. Horn Creek has several key ministries including Family Camp, Youth Camp, Campus Crusade partnerships, Volunteer Ministries, and of course our ministry to summer staff and interns. Indeed this is a firehose week for them, but they have responded very well.

We had an opportunity to hike up to a mountain lake this week with the interns. They all did incredible. It was a perfect day, the flowers were amazing, and there is noting like a mountain lake in the summer time! We also got to experience Westcliffe's culture and went to the local Pizza place and ice cream shop. Driving across town in Westcliffe is a bit of an ordeal....Just kidding.... It takes about 2 minutes actually! Friday we will take a trip to Salida for a bit of Colorado culture, then the interns will participate in our closing night for our family camps this week and then have a barbeque with all the full time staff on Saturday after helping turn the camps with our summer staff crew.

In the next week, we will start our classes, take a retreat, start a kids club in town, begin hosting and leading retreats at camp, and connect our interns with mentors.

We will do our best to keep you all updated this year as to the happenings with our intern team. The interns themselves will be updating this blog from time to time, sharing their own thoughts and experiences as the year goes along. Thanks for tuning in!

-Jeff Fox
Internship Director