Soccer Camp 2023 Friday Recap

The final full day of Soccer Camp is now behind us and we praise the Lord for an excellent week filled with many opportunities to minister to the campers!

The last full day began with a breakfast of bacon and eggs, quiet time, and the morning chapel service.

The worship music sung during the service was Prince of Peace, Here I Am to Worship, No Longer Slaves, How Deep the Father's Love, You Are So Good to Me, and Awesome God.

Our speaker Joe Wilbur used his time in the morning to focus on the Lord Jesus' work of salvation at the cross.

After chapel, the campers went to Echo Hall for the third annual Pinewood Derby.

The campers worked on their cars during the week and enjoyed seeing them compete against their fellow campers' cars.

Following lunch and free time, focus was shifted to the international match championships. The two remaining teams were Argentina and Germany.

Multiple matches were played between the two teams within the three divisions. A cookout was also provided on the fields for dinner in between matches.

Toward the end of the cookout, a cake was presented to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Camp Iroquoina, the 45th anniversary of Soccer Camp, and director Harry Neil's involvement with both since the beginning.

Once the matches ended, everyone made their way up to the chapel for an award ceremony, followed by an evening chapel service. At the ceremony, a plaque and a soccer ball with written messages from staff was presented to Harry to continue the anniversary celebration.

Awards were also presented to the Dutch Futbol winners and the winner of the international match championships, which was Argentina.

The award ceremony was followed by some singing and one final message from Joe Wilbur. Joe focused on the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. Our entire faith relies upon Jesus' resurrection, and we have been left with ample evidence of its accuracy.

The night ended with a campfire under the stars.

Reflecting on the 45th year of Soccer Camp, we are so thankful for all the kids and staff who attended. We are especially thankful for the Lord's help and guidance throughout the week. 

Camp work is not easy. There are many challenges that arise each year.  However, the opportunity to preach the Gospel and teach Scripture to over 100 kids for a week far outweighs all the challenges. 

May the Lord work in the heart of each camper who spent part of their summer with us this year!

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Soccer Camp 2023 Thursday Recap

You'd think that by Thursday at a week-long camp, there would be a slowdown in the activities and energy, but that is not the case at Soccer Camp!

Thursday marked the beginning of the international matches and our annual singalong.

But before the big events, the campers started their day off like always with a prayer, pledge of allegiance, and breakfast. The menu for Thursday morning was sausage, egg, and cheese on English muffins.

Following breakfast and their quiet time, the campers made their way over to the chapel around 9:15am for the Thursday morning chapel service. The worship consisted of My Lighthouse, Blessed Be Your Name, Amazing Grace and Open the Eyes of My Heart.

Our speaker Joe Wilbur started off his message by noting that he had never heard My Lighthouse before coming to Camp Iroquoina this week. He explained the purpose of a lighthouse and how it emits light to guide sailors safely to shore.

Joe then tied it in with his morning message on the blind man from birth who received sight from the Lord Jesus as we read about in John 9. In John 9:5 we read, "As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” The Lord Jesus is the light, and all must realize their need for Him and seek Him like a sailor seeks the light from a lighthouse.

 The campers continued on with their day as usual with skill training to finish the morning, and rest time, lunch, and Dutch Futbol in the afternoon. The one twist within this lineup was rest time. Campers were given a choice to rest or to come to the chapel and watch GENESIS: Paradise Lost, which a group did.

Free time was another hour-and-a-half of fun activities. 

During the last two days of free time, both pickleball and volleyball have been a popular go-to activity.

Free time also served as an opportunity for cabins to put some finishing touches on their cars for the third annual Pinewood Derby.

With a large number of Egyptian campers at Soccer Camp over the recent years, dinner was a well-received tribute to their culture as the campers were served an Egyptian dish with Egyptian music playing in the background.

The international matches began after dinner. The campers were divided into four teams: Argentina, Italy, Germany, and Egypt.

In the evening, the annual singalong kicked off. Joe Wilbur began our time with a very moving personal message that provided a God-honoring tone for the evening.

The music team of Seth Fluder, his daughter Anna, John Jones, and a few other campers, combined to use their musical talents in leading the campers with about 10 songs.

In between some of the songs were a few pauses to hear some testimonies and messages.

The campers had a late night worshiping the Lord in song, but what a wonderful time it was to give praise to our great God Almighty!

STAY CONNECTED WITH US!

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Soccer Camp 2023 Wednesday Recap

   Wednesday has come and gone at Soccer Camp, and we are now more than halfway through our week! Wednesday's schedule was similar to the last couple of days, but with a few twists.

All cabins reported to the flagpole for the daily flag raising, pledge of allegiance, and morning prayer before a breakfast of sausage and pancakes.

After breakfast and some quiet time, the campers gathered in the chapel for the morning service. The worship portion was livestreamed on our Facebook and Instagram accounts again. The songs which the campers sung were: Blessed Be Your Name, Our God, Goodness of God, Open the Eyes of My Heart, and How Great Thou Art.

Following the worship was another message by our speaker Joe Wilbur. Joe read John 5:1-14 and spoke about the man which the Lord Jesus healed at the pool of Bethesda.

Joe emphasized how love is not merely a feeling, but a choice. The Lord chose to love us. His love for us was so strong that the Lord Jesus died for us. Christ died for the Church and gave Himself up for it.

Once the morning chapel service concluded, the campers got their soccer cleats and pads and made their way down to the soccer fields for the skill of the day: shooting.

The skill training ended a little earlier for camp-wide gaga ball and 9-square tournaments.

The campers then spent the next two hours eating lunch and getting some rest.

After some nourishment and rest, it was back to the soccer fields for Dutch Futbol.

Once Dutch Futbol wrapped up, the campers enjoyed their two-and-a-half hours of free time.

For dinner, the campers had a hearty meal of pulled pork, rice and beans, and plantains.

Following dinner, the campers participated in the first-ever Soccer Camp kickball tournament. All cabins and staff were split into 10 teams, two of which played each other for a couple of games.

Following the kickball tournament, the campers brought their energy from down at the soccer fields to up at the chapel and showed that in their singing of My Lighthouse, Good God Almighty, This is Amazing Grace, Promises, and I Give You My Heart.

Joe Wilbur closed out tonight with a message on the feeding of the 5,000 from John 6.

God chose to love us and send us His Son. The Lord Jesus loved us so much that He gave Himself up for us on the cross. The Lord Jesus will never fail us. If we put our trust in Jesus, we will never be lost. We continue to pray that each camper understands this and makes that personal decision for themselves.

STAY CONNECTED WITH US!

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Soccer Camp 2023 Tuesday Recap

The campers woke up on Tuesday to a day filled with exciting activities and a lot of soccer!

Tuesday was favorite local team day. Everyone was encouraged to wear shirts or jerseys of a local team they play on or enjoy watching.

Following Monday's schedule with a few twists, the campers started their morning with a delicious breakfast of bacon, eggs, and hash browns, followed by some peaceful moments during quiet time.

At 9:15am, they filed into the chapel for the morning service. The morning worship was an uplifting time. We once again live-streamed it on our Facebook and Instagram accounts, allowing everyone to join in and experience the campers' heartfelt praises. Songs like House of the Lord, My Lighthouse, Amazing Grace (My Chains Are Gone), and Lord I Need You filled the air with joy and devotion.

My Lighthouse and Soccer Camp go hand-in-hand. While it seemed like the campers would be too tired to do the song justice after a long day yesterday, program director Harry Neil nevertheless requested that it be sung. He knew the campers would sing it energetically regardless of how tired they may seem, and they did indeed! You can continue to watch us live over the next few days at our Facebook and Instagram accounts around 9:15am. Both accounts can be found at the bottom of this page.

Our speaker, Joe Wilbur, picked up where he left off the evening prior with the Lord Jesus' first miracle. Joe then shifted his focus this morning on the campers' personal relationship with the Lord or lack thereof. We are all sinners who have fallen short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). That means we are guilty. However, God provided salvation to all through His only begotten Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. Each camper must make the individual decision to trust in Christ. They will not experience God's forgiveness through the faith of their parents or grandparents. They themselves need to make that personal decision.

After chapel, the campers began their first of what would be much soccer played on the soccer field throughout the day. They had their skill training at 10:30am for about an hour and a half, had their Dutch Futbol matches at 2:15pm for about an hour, and had extended soccer in the evening starting at 6:30pm for about two and a half hours.

In between all the soccer, campers enjoyed burritos for lunch, a time of rest, opportunities to go to the trading post, free time activities, and a cookout for dinner!

The free time activities ranged from swimming, to fishing, to canoeing, to volleyball, to gaga ball, and more!

For the first time at soccer camp, pickleball, America's fastest growing sport in 2023, became available as a free time activity. As a way of introduction to Soccer Camp, Harry Neil and John Jones played a few games and came out victorious!

The cookout was organized by the Soccer Camp kitchen staff who have worked hard this week to prepare three meals a day for nearly 200 campers, counselors, and staff.

Extended soccer concluded with a campers versus counselors match.

Once the sun set, both the soccer matches and the day came to a close. The campers returned to their cabins where their counselors took the opportunity to have devotionals and meaningful discussions with them. Keep the campers in prayer that they would be open to asking questions on Scriptural topics they are unsure about. Pray also for the counselors that they may be led by the Spirit to deliver Biblically-accurate responses to the campers' questions.

STAY CONNECTED WITH US!

Subscribe to Camp Iroquoina's YouTube channel

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Check out Camp Iroquoina's website

Use these hashtags on social media:

#campiroquoina #iroqsoccercamp2023 #summercamp2023