Today is the last day of camp. This week has been so hectic and crazy that I have not been able to sit down and write an update earlier due to time constraints and for the basic fact that it was not my priority to get an update out while at camp when I could be spending the time with students. So here I find myself still awake at 4am writing quick update of a long week.

This has been a difficult camp for reasons not typically associated with the second camp. Usually, the second camp is harder due to it being in the middle and us interns not having much motivation for it if the previous camp went extremely well (which it did). In my view, it was none of these reasons so much as the people from the states that the problems revolved around. The case presented here at this camp dealt with a few strong-willed leaders seemingly railroad the Czech team leader at different times. This created tension between the 4 different teams which could have been avoided in the first place. Also, at times I found my disagreeing with the way in which the speaker spoke. Never before have I heard a speaker be so frank in bashing the US. While yes there are things that the US has done that I don't fully agree with, to bash the US is to stereotype the people and thus cause people to have a more negative view than the one they held previously. So without dwelling on the problems faced in this camp too much, there has been a fair amount of conflict but, so far as I know, it has been dealt with accordingly.

Looking past all the difficulties experienced at this camp, I believe that God is at work in Strakonice. I think that many of the students are still wrestling with the truths that were presented here at camp and that a decision will be made in the future, but not that this current time. Who are we to decide how and when God will grow a person in understanding and fruit? We cannot and thus we have to trust in Him.

Well the next few days will be follow-up so I am hoping that a good number of students will join us in the planned activities. Follwing follow-up, we interns will be heading to Oloumoc to gain some rest before leaving for Slovakia. Continue to be praying for strength and continued unity for our small intern team.

Here we are, back in Strakonice for 2 days to relax and recoup strength before we head back to Malenovice for training with the American teams that are going to be helping out at the Strakonice English Camp. So a few things that you can be praying for is that me and the rest of the team will be fully rested before camp starts this coming Saturday. I have been told that the second camp of the summer is typically the roughest one due to being in the middle and with having another camp to compare to. Knowing that, I will be trying hard to head into this camp with the mindset of it being a blank slate that has yet to be filled out. Each camp is unique and should never be compared to another as that can cause me and the other interns to lose our focus and motivation. With all of that in mind though, I am really looking forward to being at a new camp and to meeting new people.

As much I am looking forward to the next camp, I cannot forget what I just came from. To follow up on the Ceske Budejovice camp in a few words, it was awesome. I'm so glad to have come back to the Czech Republic and meet people that I met two years ago.  It was so encouraging to see them again and see what God was doing in their lives.  I will continue to stay connected to them through the internet and hope that I may somehow continue to encourage them in all that they are doing in Ceske Budejovice and the Czech Republic.  Beyond just seeing old friends, the camp was great.

Thinking back over the past week, we did a lot in a short amount of time that seemed to have passed far too quickly.  The english lessons that the AZ team from my home church prepared were great and the students had an awesome time during class.  The daily discussion groups were also really great, they were never completely in English but they were still good and we had some interesting conversations about life, ourselves, and spiritual matters (ie: heaven and hell).  In the middle of the week, we went on a hike with the destination being a watchtower on a forested hill overlooking the surrounding area dotted with small villages.  Through all of the different events and activities, the best part of all of them was the time spent with the students.  Also, since the week was pretty crazy and I didn't get much sleep, I could see God working through all of it, giving me, my team, and the other teams energy to have fun with the students and build connections with them.  I should also mention that throughout most of the week, a lot of the leaders were sick with a cold or flu, but God was amazing and gave them the strength to carry on and not let them get depressed with themselves.