Welcome to Camp

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WELCOME TO FOUNTAIN OF LIFE DIGITAL CAMP

You are receiving this email because you registered for this weekend’s FOL Digital camp. Please read the information below to ensure you get connected with all the resources you’ll need to conference well.

We are excited that you will be joining us this weekend as we seek God to be refreshed. We have a lot of wonderful things in store for us. We believe God wants to meet each of you individually and us collectively as His people. 

We will be having 3 plenaries together during the weekend. It will be a time of worship, hearing the word, building community and small group sharing. We are excited to have you be a part of it. Please checkout the schedule here Schedule.

Connecting 

There will be different ways of connecting throughout the weekend outside of the plenary sessions. Please consider participating in these. 

Small group 

During our plenary sessions we will have the opportunity to respond to the word through small groups. If you are able please consider joining on multiple devices so that we can have you in different small groups from your partner/families. Thank you! 

Fun Team 

Come and join us Friday evening (9:15 pm) and Saturday afternoon (5:15 pm)  for games, chit chat and hanging out. We will be meeting on Zoom Meeting ID 908 109 0018 (bit.ly/FOLFunTeam)

Optional Social Distance Park hangout 

If you are healthy and would like to join other FOL friends for a safe, social distance meet up here are the four parks we will be having social distance gatherings. 

  • East: Whaley
  • North: Heartwell
  • West: Silverado
  • Central: Los Cerritos next to Los Cerritos school
  • Online: Zoom ID: 908 109 0018 bit.ly/FOLHangout

PLEASE follow these rules:

  • Please eat BEFORE you arrive to socially hangout. Please only bring drinks for yourself to stay hydrated. It will be a HOT day. 
  • Please wear a mask
  • Please only come if you are feeling healthy and haven’t been in contact with any Covid-19 patients otherwise please join us on zoom! 
  • Please feel free to bring your children. They must wear a mask as well. Wewill have social distance appropriate activities for the kids. 
  • Please bring your own chairs and mats
  • Please know you might be instructed to break up into smaller groups of 5-7 people depending on attendance.
  • Please come and have a good time.

Workshops 3:30-5:00 pm

Individual Prayer Appointments: If you signed up during registration you will receive an email from Nayelli Casarrubias to set up your time. 

Prayer and Families:  Come and join us as we discuss how to pray for our kids, how to create a spiritual atmosphere and protection in our homes, and how to help our kids cultivate a prayer life of their own. Zoom: meeting ID 989 284 5052  Passcode: pray2020 (Click here to download the resource.)

Spiritual Resilience : We are all under a lot of stress. There is a world pandemic, election, kids at home and systemic oppression in our country. How do we build resilience in this time? Come and join us as we learn about stress and how to build resilience.  Zoom: Meeting ID: 849 6517 0648   Passcode: familycamp

Lament and Art 
There has been a lot to lament in this past year. Artistic expression is a gift God has given us to engage Him, especially in our pain. We want to invite you to join us as we lament, paint and worship together. No experience is needed but please have something to paint/color with. zoom: Meeting ID: 883 6338 2064  Passcode: FOLart

Personal Space for God: Take some time to unplug. Find a quiet space to be with Jesus. There is a handout in your box that you can use to guide your time. 

Families

FOL Kids (Toddler & Elementary) 

Each child will receive a box full of goodies and crafts. Please pick up your box at the Family Center.

Alan and team have created 3 lessons on prayer for the kids. You are welcome to have your child watch it during your convenience. Read the welcome from Alan Gan. View the three lessons. 

FOL Youth (Jr High, High School) 

We want to invite your junior high and high schoolers to join the plenary sessions and engage with the word that will be given. They will also receive their own conference box as well. 

Small groups: 

High schoolers will join the adults. 

Junior High will meet all together.

Conference Box Pick-Up @ Family Center  

Please come and pick-up your conference box on one of these days and times. If you are not able to come please feel free to ask a friend to pick it up for you. 

  • Thursday (10/15) 10 am – 12:00 pm @ Family Center 
  • Thursday (10/15) 5:00 – 8:00 pm @ Family Center 
  • Friday (10/16) 9:00 am – 12:00 pm @ Family Center 

5000 Pies Pre-Ordered Lunch 

If you pre-ordered a lunch box from 5000 Pies, please arrive between 11:15 am -12:30 pm on Saturday to pick it up. If you have not paid already, please pay online (www.folcov.org/giving and put “Family Camp Lunch” in the other category) or send a check.

PREPARING YOUR HEART 

  • Create a space in your home or where you’ll be logging in from that will be conducive to engaging with minimal distractions. 
  • Stock up on your favorite snacks and beverages.
  • Come ready to connect to Jesus, His Spirit and to each other. 

ZOOM ETIQUETTE 

Some tips and expectations to help the tech run as smoothly as possible for using Zoom.

DODON’T
AttentionBe as focused as you canIntentionally multi-task
DressBe comfortable. Leave yourself vulnerable to a zoom wardrobe malfunction
Zoom ChatAffirm, react, and repeat highlights   Fully participate with speaker’s active engagement activities (polls, asks to share, chat box)Start larger conversations- that’s what the small groups and other times will be for.    Have private chats- one wrong click and it goes to the whole group! Again, use a different platform for private and small group conversations.
FoodFeel free to eat and snackSpill on your computer

ZOOM LINKS

Plenary Sessions: Zoom Meeting ID: 999 3095 8155 (link: bit.ly/FOLPlenary)

Fun Team: Zoom Meeting ID: 908 109 0018  (link: bit.ly/FOLFunTeam)

Saturday Zoom Lunch/Hangout: Zoom Meeting ID 908 109 0018 (bit.ly/FOLHangout)

Prayer and Families: Zoom Meeting ID: 989 284 5052  Passcode: pray2020 

Spiritual Resilience: Zoom Meeting ID: 849 6517 0648 Passcode: familycamp

Art and Lament: Zoom Meeting ID: 883 6338 2064  Passcode: FOLart

RESPONSE

There will be multiple opportunities for response in different ways throughout the weekend. We want to hear it all! How is God moving? What are you hearing, feeling, experiencing? Do you have a word to share with the group? Share with your group! 

Blessing to you! See you very soon. 

If you have any questions or concerns feel free to email Sarah Groot at sarahphuang@gmail.com or tim@folcov.org.

Blessings,

Sarah Groot and the FOL Digital Camp Team 

FOL Family Camp Kids

2020 Fountain of Life Family Camp
Children’s Sessions

We are excited to be able to provide sessions for our FOL children during Family Camp. In conjunction with the main sessions, the children will be learning about prayer during their sessions. We pray that the children will be blessed by their time and will experience God in a new and fresh way.

Here’s some information regarding the children’s sessions.

  • There are three pre-recorded sessions available (10-20 minutes in length). There is no set time for the children to watch; the lessons and activities can be accessed at your convenience.
  • Each session consists of a welcome, a worship song, a main lesson, and a craft activity.
  • The main supplies for each craft are provided; your child/children may need additional supplies, such as crayons, scissors, and glue. Parental supervision is highly suggested.

The link for the sessions is bit.ly/FamilyCampKids. Links to individual sessions:

FOL Digital Family Camp

The theme for this year’s Family Camp was “Refresh.” Please scroll down to view videos of the plenary sessions and access camp materials.


Speaker: Pastor Rici Skei

Our speaker is Pastor Rici Skei of On Ramps Covenant Church in Fresno, California.

Pastor Rici is co-pastor of On Ramps Covenant Church in Fresno, California. A Fresno native, she and her family planted a church in a neighborhood, Lowell, which was once known as “The Devil’s Triangle” because of its violence and poverty. She is a dynamic speaker and worship leader. (Read more about their church planting and about her ministry.)

Resources for Camp

Click below to access resources.

Resources for Kids

Plenary 1: Friday, October 16

Watch the first Plenary Session.

Plenary 2: Saturday, October 17

Plenary 3: Saturday, October 17

Workshop: Prayer and Families 
Please click here to download the workshop materials.

Workshop: Spiritual Resilience
We are all under a lot of stress. There is a world pandemic, election, kids at home and systemic oppression in our country. How do we build resilience in this time?

Watch an intro to this year’s Family Camp by Sarah Groot, camp director.

Experiencing the Kingdom of God at Springdale

Experiencing the Kingdom of God at Springdale
by Samantha Carroll

And calling a child, he put him in the midst of them and said, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 18:2-3

I have to apologize to Bubba. This inconvenient truth rattles around my head as I try to ignore it, focusing instead on driving down the street, avoiding potholes, and finding parking. “Why, God? Wasn’t he in the wrong?”

Last week at Girls Club at Springdale, things got a little out of hand. During our meeting, Jazir appeared and started distracting the girls. (I know teachers aren’t supposed to have favorites, but Jazir is one of mine. He has always been a quiet, watchful, and intense boy. Now he’s growing up into a quiet, watchful, and intense teenager. He’s getting taller and filling out; he loves football and is on a team every year. Jazir almost always has his much younger brother with him, and Jazir accepts this without question, as if his brother is part of his own body.

I worked to create a Boys Club specifically for Jazir, so I have to wonder why he’s not at Boys Club tonight. (Boys Club runs concurrently with Girls Club in different rooms.) My girls seem hyper, so I kick Jazir out without much thought. The thing is, he won’t leave. He stands outside the glass doors making faces and laughing. He brings Bubba and other kids over to join in. I have to leave my girls several times to try to get them to leave, but they won’t. Things slowly degrade from there with me asking, then imploring, then ordering the kids away from the door. Bubba loses it, and starts screaming at me to go home. In some mockery of a battle, I raise my voice and tell Bubba he’s out of line. It’s the worst night I have ever had at Girls and Boys Club, and I leave feeling sad and defeated. Later, I found out Jazir had made some poor choices earlier in the day, was mocked by his friends, then was kicked out of Boys Club for threatening another kid. I’m reminded that in the absence of parental care and love, some kids are getting their own education, but it’s a distorted one.

Looking back, I am embarrassed by how I played into Jazir’s perfect storm of humiliation. I should have known something was up and I could have tried to deal with it instead of dismissing him. I never discipline kids outside of my programs, so why was I yelling at them? I realize I should apologize to both Bubba and Jazir, but this is the last thing I want to do.

I return to Springdale the next week with dread. Parking my car, I say a quick prayer to God to give me a little time with the girls before I have to apologize. God has other plans.

As I walk into the gate, Bubba is the first person I see. Really, God?

Bubba sees me, pockets his candy from the vending machine, and affably says, “Miss, Sam? I’m sorry about yesterday. I was WAY out of line.”

“What, Bubba?” I ask.

“Yesterday. Or maybe last week…I should never talk to an adult like that. I was wrong.”

With these words, everything breaks inside of me. All my worry, all my hurt leaves. I bend down to talk to him. “Bubba, that’s crazy! I was coming to apologize to YOU. I am sorry for the things I said. I have no right to come to your house and tell you how to act. I was wrong.”

Bubba looks at me, and we spend the next couple minutes going back and forth apologizing, but we part as friends.

This is what is special about Springdale. I feel like it’s a heightened experience of the Kingdom of God. I can see such dark forces at work, but also experience incredible moments of grace. Buoyed by Bubba’s easy forgiveness, I meet with my girls for Girls’ Club. When Jazir warily walks thru to go to Boys’ Club, I approach him and apologize for the previous week. I say I am sorry I told him to leave. I tell him I care about him, so I wish I had taken some time to check in with him. He just nods and walks on, and then I join my girls.

And then later, in Boys Club, something crazy happens. The boys were playing a game (as usual), when Jazir suddenly interrupted. “Can I ask a question?” Bryan, Jason, and Arnold (the adult mentors) said yes. “I’m sorry for last week. I acted wrong because I was mad.” The other boy, the one Jazir had threatened nods, and everyone goes back to their game.

Do you see the importance of the moment? All of the volunteers were so upset the previous week at the kids’ bad behavior, but we were also pleased that there was never a physical fight. For a lot of kids, violence is so easy. They record fights on phones and endlessly gossip about it. We encourage the kids to walk away from charged situations, so when Jazir walked out of Boys’ Club, we considered this a success. But then, the next week, he came back and apologized for his actions! Forgiveness is something that we struggle with as adults, yet here are these children doing it perfectly. FOL volunteers have created a safe place for these children to be, and God’s Kingdom is starting to take root. This was such a beautiful moment. Even though I wasn’t in the room that day, I like to think I had a part in Jazir’s apology. However, all this really started with the easy, sweet sincerity of a kid named Bubba.

Jars and Jug: God’s Promise to Provide

Jars and Jug: God’s Promise to Provide

by Wilson Hutchinson

On Fridays, I’ve been teaching Bible for the Family Center kids, via Zoom. Each week I teach them one of God’s names, and share stories that illustrate His Name.

For our class on May 22nd, I decided to teach them Jehovah Jireh: The Lord who Provides. As I was praying and thinking about which stories to tell them, the story of Elijah and the Widow of Zarephath came to mind. Earlier that day, Becky had texted Chef Mike, Sara, and me with some disappointing news. “Please pray for God to provide in his feeding of the 5000 way,” she concluded.

Usually I teach the Bible class from my room, but I needed to shop for 5000 Pies before teaching. I was running out of time, so I quickly gathered up my teaching materials, thinking that I might have to teach from the Training Center.

On my way to Restaurant Depot, I pulled up 1 Kings 17 on an audio Bible to re-familiarize myself with the story. As I listened, I thought, I should send this story to Becky to encourage her. I realized suddenly that I would be teaching on God’s provision from the place where our church has been providing food for families who’ve been struggling financially because of the COVID crisis. “Wow, this is totally God,” I thought. By the time I started loading my car with food, I realized I wouldn’t even have another option. I said out loud, “Thank You God! You’re speaking.”

Our Family Center Bible Class starts at 3:00 pm and I was a few minutes late. We played a game and then I taught about God’s provision. As I finished the story of the Widow of Zarephath, Emily Kazim raised her hand. She explained to the kids that our church has a restaurant called 5000 Pies, and she knew it’s been tough for us financially. “Wilson, I had no idea that you would be teaching this story today, and you didn’t know this, but last week, as I was praying for 5000 Pies, God gave me this same story.”

So immediately I said, “God is speaking to us right now! I’m the manager at 5000 Pies. It’s been a tough season for us. We’re okay, but we barely have enough. Usually I teach you guys from my room, but today I ran out of time, and so I had to teach you guys from here at the Training Center. This is really significant, because 5000 Pies is right next door. When I’m finished, I’ll walk two doors down, right into 5000 Pies. God is telling us that He’s going to provide for us. We just have to give our first to Him, and trust and obey. And He’ll do the rest! He’s going to take care of us!”

Two days pass. It’s Sunday morning. I decide to pull up the COVID Intercession Team spreadsheet to see what I’m supposed to be praying for. (We have a prayer cycle with two people praying for FOL every day of the week.) A comment from Daniel Groot catches my eye. Amazed by what I’m seeing, I realize that he had typed the comment on Friday, May 22nd, at 3:40 pm, just minutes before I started to teach the kids. Daniel wrote: “I see this image of the Widow at Zarapheth’s jars, continuing to overflow as she provides for herself, her household, and Elijah. I pray that our neighbors, as they receive provision from the Lord, understand it is from Him and learn that he is their provider as well.”

So, I call Daniel, and he tells me that he usually prays with Alice Becerra, but they couldn’t coordinate their schedules on Friday, so he had to pray alone. He was really tired and didn’t feel like praying, but he decided to pray anyway. He told me, “This is such a good reminder for me. Prayer really is partnership with God!”

At the end of my time with the kids on Friday, I had asked them to close their eyes and pray: “God, how do you want to provide for me and my family?” I said, “The biggest, most important way God speaks to us is through His Bible, but just like God popped this exact same story into Ms. Emily’s mind as she was praying, sometimes God speaks to us in our thoughts, or with pictures that we see in our mind. Most of the thoughts up here are just my own thoughts. And bad thoughts don’t come from God. But some thoughts are from God.”

Once they had opened their eyes, I asked if God had shared anything with them. A 4th grade boy raised his hand. “I saw this. It was Jesus, but he was standing in front of our front door so that no robbers could get in.”

Three days pass. I share this story with Nayelli, and she says, “That’s interesting, because I had the same vision. I shared it with Caroline [who leads the COVID intercession team].” Three weeks earlier, Nayelli wrote that during her morning time with God she heard the first half of John 10:10, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy,” but then she got an image of God standing at each of our doors, protecting us by not allowing the thief to come in. She saw the thief go from house to house, but at each one, the Lord was standing. She knew that His protection was not only for FOL core families, but also for a wider circle of West Long Beach families, whom we serve and love evangelistically.

Shocked by the miracle story of the jar and jug, this same 4th grade boy had asked, “How full were they? Were they, like, full?”

“The Bible doesn’t actually tell us how full they were,” I answered, “but it does say that until it rained, they always had enough.”