By Bill Morgan, Staff Writer
A group of 10 teenagers from a Becker small group recently returned to their homes after experiencing a week-long Adventure Camp at the Be There Ranch in Wyoming. The camp was sponsored by the Becker Evangelical Church and included middle school boys from a St. Cloud school.
The students all profited from the experience and returned feeling rejuvenated, alive and encouraged.
Maddie Janssen, 17, of Becker was one such student and she could hardly contain her enthusiasm as she reflected on her spiritual journey in the mountains and fields of the union’s 44th state.
“I loved it. We lived it. And each and every day was time spent relishing God’s creation,” she said.
The group decided their camp passage from the Bible was going to be Psalm 23 — A Psalm by David. It is a well known passage from the Bible that speaks of God being a protector, a leader, a comforter and an anointer. It speaks of guidance, goodness and having no fear.
The boy and girl campers took this message to heart as they set out to experience nature, the fresh air and solitude.
The kids took no electronics on the trip. That meant no phones, no tablets, no laptops and no watches. The idea was to disconnect from the modern world and establish social interaction within themselves and get in touch with God.
Each day of the week, Janssen and her fellow campers met to tell each other life stories and share testimonies. Some of the days they went whitewater rafting. Other days they went horseback riding and others they hiked and climbed cliffs and rock formations.
“We went mountain hiking one day and it took three hours to hike all the way up a place called Beartooth Pass,” said Janssen. “We stopped to look at wildflowers, streams and even experienced some snow on the way.”
Janssen said she absolutely fell in love with rock climbing. She chose to do the hardest course up the cliff and was the only one in the group to make it all the way to the top.
“It took about a half-an-hour to climb,” she said. “But it was my favorite thing to do.”
The teens saw Glacier Lake at the top of the climb where they stopped and had lunch. When they returned to camp later that day, the group gathered at nightfall to worship around a campfire.
Jill Cook and Pastor Chris Salvevold of Becker EV were the chaperones and guides for the week-long trip. They helped organize the daily events, make daily lunches and provided safety and protection for the youngsters.
The Be There Ranch is owned by the Hebert’s family, who have two younger girls and one younger son. They established the ranch in 2004 and Maddie and Sophie Hebert became quick friends.
“The Heberts are the sweetest people I ever met,” Maddie said.
On one of the days on the trip, the teens were given the opportunity to separate from others — go and find a secluded spot — and get in touch with nature, oneself and with God.
“It was much-needed solitude from a busy, busy week and it got us to calm ourselves and relax our minds and bodies,” Maddie said. “We took our Bibles and devotionals and just connected with Jesus.”
Though the youngsters were in solitude for more than three hours, Maddie thought it was not long enough.
“It felt more like an hour out there,” she said.
Another day the kids mountain biked and in the evening they stretched out some hammocks and laid between trees in the dark, dark skies of the mountains.
“We got to sleep in those hammocks and I was so tired but I couldn’t sleep because the skies were so beautiful I didn’t want to shut my eyes.”
The other nights, the groups slept in tents that had bunk beds.
Another girl Maddie bonded with was Joey Rothstein of Clear Lake.
“Joey doesn’t like mountain biking either,” said Janssen. “Sure enough, we almost flew off our bikes! But after that experience, I can honestly say I like it now.”
Maddie says she grew so much — not only for herself but also in the relationships she captured on the trip.
“I grew so much,” she said. My relationships with friends and my relationship with Christ is bigger and better.”
Maddie’s dream is to someday find a job where she could travel the world, experience God’s good earth and tell others all about it.
“I just love the outdoors and I have a passion for Jesus and capturing joy,” she said.
Psalm 23 talks of the opening of ones soul, emitting truths of peace and consolation that will never be absent from the world. In the matter of venturing out and being in nature — Maddie and her group just may have experienced a little bit of heaven.
