The Story of the Three Goats

Maybe it’s our sign at the entrance that makes people feel like we are a good place to offload their unwanted animals, but since our first summer sixteen years ago, we’ve had people drop baby kittens, dogs, and more on our bridge to wander on up our road looking for food, care and comfort. Though their conscience has been cleared, our time and energy to handle their situation becomes our burden.

Mostly, this is on Marty, but last month, we all got the experience we weren’t hoping for when a trio of goats showed up on the camp property! Whether they were dropped to us or wandered their way over the mountain on their own is unknown, but there they were.

Apparently goats aren’t a fan of rain so they found shelter underneath our hub porch. In the winter, we store our utility carts under there, and we also happened to have massive bags of (expensive) Bentonite Clay stored there too. Those goats…they had torn open the fine powdery clay and mixed together their own concoction with their excrements and muddy hooves. The hub smelled like a barnyard. To really make this exciting, we had an interested youth pastor coming to tour the camp for their group to possibly come to camp this summer!

We’ll spare the details, but after a long and dramatic experience, we captured and lost, and finally (a couple weeks later) re-captured all three of the goats. Maple became an amazing goat herder and Marty was quick to make use of whatever cables, racket straps or ropes he could find in a split second. The entire full time staff pulled together to get this area of camp clean, aka muck the stall. We scooped sludge, pressure-washed, scrubbed tables, swings, the grill, rugs and so much more. Some things just got tossed out because…ewwww. We got it all fresh and new in time for the tour for the visiting youth pastor (who loved it and is coming, btw!)!

There’s never a dull moment around these parts. Sometimes it’s funny. Sometimes it’s hard. Sometimes it’s both! We had put this saga on our instagram stories while it was happening and many thought it a fine idea to turn them into goat burgers, which Marty was very close to doing! But you’ll be happy to know, all three goats are happily living their best lives on a goat farm of some local friends of ours!

Moral of the story: Never slip knot a rope around a goat’s neck (even if that’s all you can manage in the moment) or it will try to hang itself.

The End.

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Author | Cassi
iPhone Images | Marty & Cassi

Using What We Have

Have you ever had a dream or vision for something that you later discovered was blinding you from seeing what you already had right in front of you? Case in point: we are at the place in our ministry where new buildings feel like a pretty big need. One building is the lodge: this will double the amount of teens we can gather for teaching and worship times, will bring the full time staff offices and the camp store up to the center of camp activity, will open up another space for small group meetings, and will allow for a higher quality experience in every way. Building such a place requires dollars which requires fundraising which requires time. This is all still very much on our horizon, but is there a quicker fix utilizing what we currently have?

The Pack Shack is our answer! Formerly used to store equipment and be a quick shelter from rain, we are now working toward enclosing this space to become our interim gathering space with teens! By next summer, Lord willing!

Yesterday the concrete floor was poured! Did you see the process in our Instagram stories? If not, here are a few pictures to catch you up!

We have been asking for people to give to our concrete yard sale. This project required 25 yards of concrete and each yard costs $135. Thank you to each of you who have contributed to the pouring of this floor! [We are still short and will have more walkway space to pour when the building is done. If you feel like you want to be a part of helping us make the most of what we already have you can Give Now!]

Shaun had a good time recording some of the process yesterday during the work! We posted them on Instagram — if you want to go see them, head to our feed!

We are super excited to share the process of this build with you! Maybe you can learn from our experience in this too. Whatever you might be envisioning or feeling too far away from, make the absolute most of what you have now because it will serve as the stepping stone to the bigger picture later on! Keep going. Every step counts.

[Author: Cassi | Photo Creds: Marty and Shaun |

Burning the Barn

In December, I took a few pictures of our old Tobacco Barn, knowing she was on her last leg! It wasn’t quite 2 weeks later when she finally gave up and crumbled! We weren’t there when it happened, so there’s no documentation of that,but we were there to witness the sad heap of history of this Whisper Mountain property!

shaun’s iphone pic

The guys have been working hard to get things cleaned up. There are lots of piles: the burn pile for all the rotten wood, the keep pile for the siding that will go in our new building someday, the get rid of pile for the odds and ends of the few things that were still left inside, the sell pile for those tires that finally found a loving home!

While it feels sorta hard to say goodbye to something that’s always been there, it’s also pretty exciting to see the space clear up so we can keep moving forward within the vision of WM! Change is like that, you know? Sad and exciting!

For those of you who’ll be coming this summer, things will be looking a little different on your drive to the top!

And while we are talking burn pile, here’s a reminder from Shaun:

If you don’t know what that means, ask him!

Have a great day!
Cassi

 

 

Reflections from the Pond

When we aren’t planning for summer, seeing to the endless details of a non-profit, hosting retreats or carrying out the plans of summer then there are projects going on around the property! Some of you were at camp this summer when this was going on:

Remember when the tractor got stuck and then rescued?! Yeah, if you were a camper that week you got a front row seat to a great show!  Since there was already a mess, it felt timely to allow a service group to reno the fire pit area as well!

Now nobody will fall back into the pond while eating s’mores! All in all a good thing! The cluster of people from Gateway Grace‘s service team did an amazing job (read worked their tails off ) on the retaining wall! What made the job sweeter was all their work was done with smiles on! I mean, pretty stellar, right?

The guys worked out the piping this fall and the pond has now  filled up to full now! Isn’t it beautiful? Great plans for solo time benches and quiet spots all along the (two) ponds (one not pictured here!) and creek are in the works! There’s nothing quite like resting in the glory of Creator God and hearing His whisper!

We hope you’ll get the pleasure of such an experience at Whisper Mountain in 2016, but make time to sit with Him today, wherever you are!

Adopt a Staff

Whisper Mountain’s Summer Staff Team spends the long days of summer pouring out and pouring in. They pour out all their time, energy and heart so they can pour into the teens that come to camp all summer long. The work of our summer staff is completely depleting and exhausting but totally worth it. There’s nothing more exhilarating than seeing teens (or anyone for that matter) come to Jesus!

To help fight off any discouragement from weariness, etc. we are looking for people who would like to “adopt” our staff for the summer months. People who would commit (from June-August) to regularly pray for a single staff member, send notes/texts/emails of encouragement and maybe even brighten a week with a random care package.

Gather your small group, a few friends or families to make a real difference in those who are “missionaries” at camp this summer. What do you say? Would you like to adopt?

Email Cassi(at)WhisperMountain(dot)org to get the adoption process started (super simple stuff)!

We thank you for considering being a part! Oh, also: adoptions need to take place by May 25! Can you help spread the word?!

when the pressure is too big

We are just a month away from welcoming our summer staff in for training and then all the campers in the weeks to follow! Woot-Woot! We have kicked things in high gear around here both in the office and outside. With a To-Do List longer than Santa’s list we are reminded of how important it is to just take one thing at a time and not get overwhelmed by the heavy mound of everything! (gasping.for.breath. the.pressure.is.too.much. — know what we mean?!)

If you feel like you just can’t get on top of things or you’re sinking under a huge mound of end of school year pressure, work pressures, family struggles, life in general let us be a voice of encouragement to you today! You aren’t as alone as you feel. Take one thing at a time, one baby step at a time. Slow and steady. You’ve got this!  More importantly, Jesus has you!

Deep Breath. Go get ’em!

week’s end

Whew. What a week! Many unexpected things confronted us this week — some good, some not so good. But here we are at week's end, still breathing and finding reason to praise our God!

Our campers have experienced purposeful adventure in the great outdoors, times of deep encouragement from their peers, our guides, and God's Word, and through learning how to hear God through solo times and worship sessions.

Our staff learned a little more about themselves through serving and improvising this week. Their bodies ache for sleep and down time, but their hearts are full from the experience of seeing God work in teens lives! We are thankful for the way they have poured themselves out and were open to being stretched further than was comfortable at times!

Even in the midst of life struggle, challenging circumstances, and being emptied beyond what we think we can bear, God is personal and good and restoring. May you find His presence to be a reality today!

Happy Weekending, friends!

day one begins now!

The dust is still settling on the camp roads. Eager teens, unsure of what to expect, fill the vans. Passionate, on mission, fun-loving young adults jump excitedly, arms waving, voices raising — campers are here!

Today is the first day of camp for summer 2014. The excitement of all electrifies the air. We couldn't be more ready to see what God plans to personally accomplish in teens beginning right now! 

We are thrilled to have the opportunity to proclaim Him!

Captured Moment // Get in the Boat

Our staff training week has been full of training, filming, photographing, skit planning, worship practicing, program strategizing — always something going on! Next week, I'm introducing you to a couple people I am the absolute most excited about it! They will kick off our 2014 Awesomeness Takes the Stage series! Are you excited?! (you should be!)

The above picture was from a photo shoot we did featuring some of the new products that will be in our online store! More will be seen next week, but this picture reminded me how we really are better when we are together. Going life alone never makes us stronger! May we both make room for a little togetherness this weekend!

 

Monday Hellos

Whatever you are aiming for this week, may you find yourself surrounded by people who care, your sites clear, and a little fun along the way!

Happy Monday, friends!