NN Aug 2023

By Brandon Westgate

The Lord truly answered our prayers as our youth department team and 55 summer camp staff members engaged with the nearly 400 campers at Glacier View Ranch in Ward, Colorado, and Mills Spring Ranch in Casper, Wyoming, this summer.

Many staff members and campers alike recommitted their lives to Jesus as we praised the Lord for His great love for us. Over 40 were baptized while at camp, while dozens of others desired to be baptized at their home churches. But the numbers do not really tell the whole story.

As I reflect on the incredible things the Lord did this summer, I begin to ask myself, “What is the takeaway from all of this? What did I learn this summer?” I thought I would take a moment and unpack what I learned.

I am reminded of the gospel of John. The very first words of Jesus in John’s gospel have Jesus asking a question: Then Jesus turned, and seeing them following, said to them, “What do you seek?” (John 1:38). (underlined for added emphasis)

• I learned that many of our young people are hoping to find a safe place to be themselves. They are seeking community.
• I learned that many of them do not feel safe expressing doubt about their faith within their faith community. They are seeking to be heard and not judged.
• I learned that many are simply trying to figure out who they are right now. They are seeking identity.
• Many are simply trying to discover how Jesus fits into their lives on a daily basis. They are seeking spiritual clarity.
• Some are trying to discover if having a relationship with Jesus actually makes a difference. They are seeking assurance and evidence.
• Some who appear as though they have it all together are struggling with secret addictions. They are seeking recovery.
• Some struggle with statements they have heard their spiritual leaders make that are contradictory with each other and in some cases, with the teachings of Jesus. They are seeking consistency.

In short, I learned that the young people I encountered at camp are seeking. They are seeking honesty from their religious leaders and their peers. They are seeking to have conversations where questions are encouraged, and answers do not feel pre-meditated. They are seeking support and counsel to help guide their thinking. They are seeking consistency in what the “church” teaches, because they hear conflicting information and see the infighting within the fellowship of believers. Primarily though, they are seeking acceptance, grace, and yes, love. The sort of love that you find in Jesus. The type of love that Jesus desires us to have towards one another which is unselfish and not prideful.

Some may wonder why summer camp is so impactful for our young people. I believe that summer camp is impactful because we strive every day to create an atmosphere where love is not just something we talk about, rather it’s something we are about. God is love. So, when we are intentional about loving one another, the Spirit of God is free to move in and through us in a way that the Spirit cannot move when we choose not to love.

When the love of God moves in your midst, barriers collapse, hearts are softened, real questions get asked and loving responses are given, and true worship results.

And, when God is truly worshipped by people seeking His love and wisdom, He pours out grace and mercy in a way that removes differences of opinion and causes those who experience it to overflow love to the people around them. It’s not due to dogma or doctrine that lives are changed. Lives are changed when a seeker finally discovers the God they have been searching for, and they experience the pure unfiltered love that God has been trying to show them their entire life.

This is what makes summer camp, summer camp. My hope and prayer is that we can encourage one another to develop worshipful communities in every church where seekers find a safe place to seek and ultimately find the God they are seeking.

—Brandon Westgate is the RMC youth department director. Photo supplied.

Dena King with Dani Stafford – Estes Park, Colorado … Earlier this year, The Grey House, a clothing and gift boutique in Estes Park, Colorado, celebrated ten years in business. This is significant for many businesses because, in the past decade, the town has seen severe flooding, a global pandemic, and wildfire evacuations. But for sisters Dena King and Dani Stafford, who own the shop together, it feels especially so because of the uniqueness of their shop.

“We made the decision at the beginning that we would be closed on Sabbath,” says Dani. “A lot of people thought we were crazy. Especially those who know how busy Estes Park is on the weekends.”

Although, no doubt, every business that survived the past ten years is happy to still be in business, Dena says they feel an extra measure of gratitude because they have seen God provide in times when failure seemed inevitable. “We were grateful to survive the first year of business, which everyone says is the hardest. But now that we’ve made it to ten years, and through some really difficult times, we feel an extra sense of appreciation.”

“The miraculous thing is,” Dani says, “that when shoppers see we are closed on Saturday they make a point to come back the next day. I’ve lost track of the number of people who have told me this as they are shopping on Sunday. I just never expected that!”

When The Grey House began, it was tucked away in a small second story location. Three years ago, Dena and Dani acquired the space beneath the original space and have added a staircase to connect the two so that they were able to more than double their square footage. “We were a ‘hidden gem’ for the first seven years, but we realized that’s a terrible business model,” Dena says with a laugh. “We are now much more visible. Our customers love the expansion and have been so supportive of our growth!”

Shoppers regularly comment on how The Grey House is different from many neighboring stores. Most of the time, they are talking simply of product offerings because Dena and Dani have curated a unique selection and tried to avoid duplication of brands among other shops in town. “What we really hope for is that people feel different in our store,” Dani says. “It is our goal to treat each customer with love and kindness. We certainly don’t do this perfectly, but we are trying to live out our faith through our business.”

A couple who owns a store across from The Grey House gave the women a “shop warming” gift when they expanded. It is a small sign, hand painted appropriately in the color grey with part of the verse from Joshua 24:15: But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord. Dena and Dani liked the gift so much they put it behind the downstairs register where it has sparked more than a few conversations. “I think one of the best parts of being in business for us is that we are free to openly talk about our faith. It allows us to connect with people on a deeper level,” Dani said.

Most of the talk with customers is surface level and simply aimed at making the customers feel seen. This has paid off in ways that Dena didn’t expect. “Just a couple days ago a woman approached me at the counter and said that I might think it was strange, but she had bought her son’s first outfit from us when she was taking maternity photos in the park six years ago. She remembered talking with me and wanted to stop in to say hi. I told her that I didn’t think that was strange at al—I absolutely loved meeting her six-year-old son and being a part of their family’s story!”

Dena and Dani both say they feel blessed to be able to do something they love so much. Owning the shop together has allowed them to set their own schedules, homeschool their children, spend time with their families, and build friendships within the community. Dani says, “Now we are looking forward to the next ten years!”

—Dena King with Dani Stafford. Photo by Rajmund Dabrowski.

RMCNews – Denver, Colorado … With the youth camp season being over, Brandon Westgate, RMC youth director, reported to the August 22 Rocky Mountain Conference (RMC) Executive Committee on the camp program, which saw 362 campers at GVR and at MSR. “It was an impactful summer,” said Brandon.

Campers were looked after by 55 staff members, out of whom six requested baptism or re-baptism. Brandon also shared providing some redemptive discipline that was needed among the staff and how it can ultimately be a positive experience both for the program and for the affected staff.

“All research from summer camp data collected nationally indicated that 90+% of the campers who attend camp list one of their top reasons for attending summer camp is to deepen their walk with God. About half of our campers are not Seventh-day Adventist. Among the baptized 41 campers this year, several of them were not Adventist, and more than 100 campers requested baptism.”

“Our goal is not to convert them to Adventism, but to connect them with their Creator in a way that is meaningful to them. Our mission is ‘Making it easy for kids to know God,’ which dovetails nicely into the RMC idea of ‘Knowing Christ and making Him fully known’,” Brandon said.

Diane Harris, RMC director of education, reported on the new school year, with the personnel changes and the strong enrollment of 778 students for preschool through twelfth grade schools in RMC.

The current RMC financial situation was reviewed by Darin Gottfried, RMC vice president for finance.

Darin reported that RMC finances showed a decrease in gross tithe given through June of 2023 of -2.78% or -$255,698. When windfall tithe is removed from the equation, base tithe would be up by 4.34% or $371,297. With six months left for reporting, we are praying that the finances will end the year strong as the next year’s budget is built and inflation continues to increase expenses.

Rocky Mountain Advance showed a 5.73% increase over last year. “We are very blessed by this increased giving, and plans are being made to help our small schools with technology from the newly created Education Technology Assistance Fund that is made up of 5% of this offering,” said Darin.

The Conference showed a slight 0.65% gain through the first six months. The gain is mostly because of expenses being under budget by a significant amount.

Darin closed his presentation by expressing, “our gratitude for your continued support of your local church and the Rocky Mountain Conference.”

Doug Inglish, RMC vice president for administration, reported on pastoral openings filled in Hispanic Southwest district (Santos Valdez), Canon City (Joshua Sholock), Ft. Collings (Daniel Escalante), Campion Senior Pastor (Rodlie Ortiz), Boulder Associate Pastor (Mollie Duper), Littleton Associate Pastor (Logan Earles), and Grand Junction Senior Pastor (Steve Hamilton). Also, Eric Bahnmiller will be hired as a Bible Worker in the Carbon Valley/Ft. Lupton area.

Current church ministerial openings are in Colorado Springs (senior and associate), Campion Church (associate), Franktown (senior), and Ft. Morgan. He also informed that upcoming church openings will be in Gillette, Pueblo, and The Adventure in Greeley.

Due to ambiguity in Colorado law, which states that “church leadership” are mandatory reporters for sexual abuse, our attorney has advised that RMC set up a policy that defines the term “Church Leadership.” An advisory group will propose a policy to the Executive Committee at the next regularly scheduled meeting.

Alan Brass, who accepted an invitation from the Executive Committee to serve in a vacant position for a lay person from southeast Colorado, joined us for his first meeting.

The partnership between Western Adventist Foundation (WAF) and the Trust Department was enhanced by granting, to certain of their officers, the ability to sign transfer documents for matured trust assets. This will streamline operations and move RMC into line with other conferences who have a relationship with WAF.

The 2023 Town Hall schedule was announced to the committee.

• Northeast Colorado: September 21 at Campion Seventh-day Adventist Church
• Southeast Colorado: September 24 at Pueblo Seventh-day Adventist Church
• Denver Metro: September 24 at Aurora First Seventh-day Adventist Church
• Wyoming: October 8 at Casper Seventh-day Adventist Church
• Southwest Colorado and New Mexico: October 14 at Pinon Hills Seventh-day Adventist Church
• Northwest Colorado: October 15 at Grand Junction Seventh-day Adventist Church

The committee discussed the presentation of the goals and aspirations of the Conference as a follow-up to what the Executive Committee approved the last meeting. Mic Thurber, RMC president, informed they will be shared with a wider constituency at the upcoming Town Halls in September and October.

The next Executive Committee meeting is planned for October 17.

—RMCNews

By Rick Mautz

I find talking about the nutrients that we should add to our diet is much more palatable than talking about the foods that we should stop eating. Who likes to hear that the steak that you love may increase the risk of a heart attack. Wouldn’t you rather just add some more blueberries and flax seeds, or antioxidants, to your morning cereal and know that you are on the path towards a healthier and happier life?

So, let’s talk about the power of adding antioxidants to your diet and how they protect us from oxidative stress. Before you begin thinking, “this is just a little too scientific for me,” let me make it a little simpler. When a car burns fuel it produces exhaust, the byproduct of that combustion process. When the body burns food (fuel), its exhaust is something we call free radicals, the byproducts of metabolism.

The name itself almost gives a picture of dangerous criminals running free and causing all kinds of damage. That’s not too far off. These free radicals are missing an electron, and cells don’t like that. They like their electrons in pairs, so cells will go in search of another electron to make them happy again.

They will steal an electron from any cell they run into causing that cell to become damaged. They will even damage your DNA while trying to steal an electron. And DNA damage is what can lead to cancer. I am guessing that you didn’t know that something so dangerous was going on in your body. And you may ask, “why did God design an energy system that would result in so much damage?”

As in other aspects of life, there are those who take and there are those who give. The takers are the free radicals, and the givers are the antioxidants. Antioxidants have extra electrons, so when they see a greedy free radical trying to steal an electron from a cell, protein, or DNA, they rush in.

I don’t know if God designed it that way as an illustration of how we should live as givers rather than takers, but it certainly is a great analogy on how to live to help and not to harm.

Many aspects of modern life—our diet, lifestyle, environmental factors like pollution, etc.—can cause oxidative stress, or an imbalance between antioxidants and free radicals. Over time, oxidative stress weakens cells and tissues and can leave you more vulnerable to certain health issues, including Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, cancer, diabetes, and more. And, as beauty marketers are keenly aware, oxidative stress can also speed up the aging process.

Let me tie this into something that we all have seen. Rust is oxidation. When an apple turns brown when exposed to the air, that is oxidation. That happens in our body as well. God’s goal is to have no oxidation or oxidative stress in our body, so He gave us instructions to eat foods that are high in antioxidants, and to avoid foods that lack antioxidants.

As you can see, God’s plan involves us making a choice. Maybe you did not know that your choices would play a part in God’s plan to protect us. So, where do these antioxidants come from and how can I make sure I have lots of them to prevent the damage from the free radicals? Let’s discover how to cooperate with Him in this marvelous plan.

A diet comprised mainly of animal-based foods are low in antioxidant content while diets based mainly on a variety of plant-based foods are antioxidant rich. That is why God’s original diet of plants, high in antioxidants, reduces damage to the body’s natural “exhaust” created by the food we eat being converted into energy.

One easy way to find the best food for antioxidants is to find the brightest color foods, like purple cabbage is better than green cabbage, red onions versus yellow, and so on. So let your eyes do your shopping: find the darkest greens, the reddest apples, the brightest peppers. Also, berries have the most antioxidants, and the darker, the better. Spices are very high as well, so spice up your life and enjoy the protection from oxidative stress and great flavor.

For a list of foods that are high in antioxidants, do a Google search for antioxidant orac scale. Just don’t get too excited when you see dark chocolate high on the list, unless you plan to eat the unsweetened variety.

This topic is a great reminder for me that all God’s instructions are for our good. He designed our body and knows how to protect us as we follow His instructions. This should bring us joy and confidence that we don’t have to guess the best way to live!

—Rick Mautz, PT MS, is RMC director of the Rocky Mountain Lifestyle Center. Photo by Unsplash.