There is born to you this day, in the City of David, a Saviour, who is Christ the Lord!   Luke 2:11

As we set aside a special day to celebrate the birth of our Lord Jesus, whom we celebrate every day of the year, our Christmas wish is for His love, peace, and salvation to flood your hearts, minds, and lives.

Coming to the end of 2009 makes us realize just how fast time is flying by.  When we were children time seemed to tick by so slowly, but in our modern age even our children wondering how time can go by so quickly.  We have had so many joys this past year, so much to give praise to the Lord for, so thankful for His watchful care, and so many blessings of family and friends.  Our sorrows have been comforted by His promises of the future.  Pamela's mom's passing has brought peace that she is now with Jesus and has been made whole again.  Children came to know Jesus as Saviour this past summer at the camp.  Folks of all ages grew closer to the Lord while serving here at the camp.  Souls were saved and lives were indeed changed (as the camp's motto says).

2010 looks scary when you view it from a political, economical, social, worldwide viewpoint.  How much more this will give us an opportunity to look to Jesus as our guide in the uncertain days that lie ahead for our country and our world.  It's so good to know that even though we don't know what the future holds, WE DO KNOW WHO HOLDS THE FUTURE!

Our family has been busy making Christmas one full of memories.  Since Pamela's mom is now gone, we made peanut butter fudge and remembered how good hers always way.  (Ours doesn't even come close)  We baked cutout sugar cookies and decorated them and thought of the yearly cookie baking times with Aunt Marie.  Our camp director's wife made coconut macaroons which reminded Pamela of her father since these were his favorite cookies.  We looked at some old pictures of George's and Pamela's childhood Christmases.  Her brother sitting on her father's lap reading the Bible and her family opening presents and sticking the bows all over Dad.  George's family was pictured enjoying antics of nephews and nieces and family members opening presents.  Now that our own children are so far away from any remaining close family members, these pictures are priceless.

As we look toward 2010, we are so full of wonder at what the Lord has in store for us, for the camp, and for our world.  We hold fast to Jeremiah 29:11 and know that He has plans for our future, plans for good and when combined with Romans 8:28 we rest in the fact that ALL things will work for good to those who love Him and are called according to His purpose.  We pray that you will be filled with this same peace in the coming year.  Please remember us in your prayers.  Please continue to keep in touch via emails, letters, and calls.  Alaska is indeed half a world away.

Hannah went to the doctor Monday morning and after a cursory check, he thought she had bronchitis.  Upon listening to her lower lungs, his expression changed to wide eyed surprise.  He announced "She has pneumonia!"  No fever, just a stuffy nose and unrelenting cough, and it's turned to pneumonia.  She's on a z-pak for this week and a cough medicine with codeine to help calm the coughing.  But she's still playing, doing schoolwork, taking care of her dogs, fighting with her brother, etc......Acting normal!  Please keep her in your prayers.  We've all been fighting this cold, now on it's second circuit through the family, except for Elizabeth.  Hope we can shake this soon.  We haven't had colds like this in YEARS!

LORENZ FAMILY MISSIONS

Serving the Lord at the LaVerne Griffin Youth Rec Camp

Wasilla, Alaska

August 2009 Newsletter

Our calling and determination:    Hebrews 10: 23 Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for He who promised is faithful. 24 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.

Summer is swifty coming to and end here in Alaska; rains have begun in preparation for the short lived fall season, watering the earth before the hard cold sets in.  If the past three autumns are any indication, we have six to eight weeks before snow arrives.  Full week camps are over for this year, weekend retreats are on the calendar, projects that cannot be done while the camp is full of people are planned, periods of rest for body and soul are a welcome change, but above all is the reflection on how great our God is!  Any and all who will deny self, seek His kingdom first, and make the Lord the desire of their heart WILL experience God is ways that defy description.

We were so blessed to watch as God harvested this summer from seeds planted and cultivated by many individuals from many places.  The angels rejoiced as 28 souls were welcomed into the Kingdom of God.  Many more made decisions to follow Christ more closely and to give Him their all.  We do not get the opportunity to be one on one with very many who come to the camp, but as we tell the summer college missionaries, that doesn't matter.  Cleaning, feeding, mowing, repairing, and maintaining a place where God's work CAN be done is part of the "fertilizing & cultivating" needed in order for a harvest to occur.  As long as God gets the glory, it doesn't matter what or where the area of service is!  A smile, an encouraging word, even dishing out a second helping of food, all count as "cold water" to those who are thirsty for a touch from the Master.  We give thanks to the Lord for allowing us to be His hands and feet here at LaVerne GriffinYouth Rec Camp.

The summer has been much warmer this year than the previous three so we are not sure of what to expect for the fall.  There was an aphid infestation of all the birch trees and lupine flowers that resulted in shortened beauty of the flowers and evidently the bugs sucked a lot of sap out of the trees.  The trees were not receiving as much rain as previous years and this infestation seemed to add to the dryness of the leaves.  We may have an early dropping of leaves before they can show their golden colors; only time will tell.  But there will be other maintenance projects that need to be done besides raking leaves - painting, repairing, and winterizing.  The calendar for 2010 is being booked; camps and retreats are filling up the 12 weeks of "camp season".  Project teams are forming to come up and help out at the camp and in the community.  It seems that one summer has just ended but the focus is already on the next!

Please continue to pray for the lives that were changed this summer.  That churches will disciple these "Babes in Christ", that parents will allow children to attend churches, that families will be changed through the change that took place in the children. Pray for the camp directors as they manage all the "red tape" on the business end of the camp, along with so much else that they do in the every day operation of the camp.  Pray for their rest and renewal.  Pray for the upcoming events at the camp.  There will be a Christian women's retreat this weekend with 75 women attending, then there are weekend retreats filling a lot of the fall weekends.  Two weeks will be blocked out in late fall before the heavy freeze occurs to replace the floor in the kitchen because of major water damage.  Pray for funds to come in for much needed replacement of equipment - a plow truck, a new convection oven, grounds maintenance equipment, etc....The Lord has provided in the past and we are confident He will continue to do so.

Please continue to pray for our family also.  We know in our hearts that Alaska is where God has placed us to serve Him but we still have longings for our family and friends and our home church in Ocala, FL.  Alaska has been very good to Pamela's and James' health as they have been able to be completely off all asthma and allergy medicines -for which we are extremely thankful!  We have had the opportunity to have health insurance for the first time in our lives due to George's night time job as one of the maintenance supervisors at the local hospital. (Something we struggled with because of James' care under FL's Children's Medical Services that we'd be giving up when we left FL.)  Again, thankful that we've not had to use it!!  The desire of our heart, to be able to serve God and his people, has been granted.  So many things we are thankful for, but we still miss all of YOU!  Thank you for your encouraging emails, letters, phone calls, and extra financial support.  God is good all the time.  Just when we begin to start feeling down, He sends refreshment through you.  Thank you for listening to His leading.

Our children are growing up all too fast but we pray that living a life of serving will continue in their lives.  This summer Elizabeth had almost as many duties as the summer college missionaries.  She is truly developing into a worker that will honor the Lord.  James stepped up this summer to more dish room and cleaning work.  Next summer he gets to do a lot more in the grounds maintenance end of camp life.  Hannah was able to help some in the dish room at times, is great at helping clean cabins, and helps clean the bathrooms.  Now they and I have earned a little rest before homeschooling studies begin in earnest.  Elizabeth will be in 11th grade, turning 17 at Christmas time, and is praying hard for the Lord to show her what HIS plan is for her life so that she can tailor her studies that way.  She desires to play the piano more and more at the church we attend, so we are looking for a piano teacher.  The Lord has provided funds for the lessons!  She must also take a driver's course to get her driver's license this fall (hopefully before the snows are too heavy).  James will be starting high school level studies.  He still loves to get outside and play, ride bikes, shoot bb guns, etc....but at least he loves to read almost as much as his two older sisters.  We rewarded his work this summer with a PlayStation2, first time for our household to have such a thing, so we hope that it will be a fun distraction during the long winter evenings but not TOO much of a distraction.  He and George and Hannah are already racing monster trucks on the games.  Pamela has found Trivial Pursuit and Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader games for the Playstation that she wants the family to play together.  Hannah is beginning 5th grade but has not developed the love of reading that her siblings have.  She loves to be read to, remembers EVERYTHING, loves history and science, but most of all she loves her new puppies (now 4 months old).  It'll be a real testament of her love when she gets out in below zero mornings to bring them water and food and then play with them three times a day!  Hopefully she'll be able to "convince" her brother or daddy to help at times!

 We would love to see you whenever you are in this part of the country, and mission teams are always a welcomed sight!  Pray about joining a mission team this coming spring – who knows, the Lord might have you serve Him here with us!

It's been a very busy spring and early summer here at the LaVerne Griffin Youth Camp.  A work team from FBC Ocala FL came in mid May to help get the camp spruced up and ready for campers, five summer missionaries with NAMB (North American Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention) arrived and received orientation, weekend retreats, and church youth camps have already happened.  Now, we have just finished with Boy's and Girl's camps.  WHEW!  Some groups small and intimate, while others were nearly 100 strong.  Best of all is that the motto of the camp is "Souls saved, lives changed" and we have seen God clearly at work this summer.  Eight boys made professions of faith, one girl made a first time profession, two girls made recommittments, and one girl wants to be a missionary!  God is good, all the time; all the time, God is good!

Below are pictures from Boy's camp.  We will post the Girl's camp photos soon.

The Lorenz family is all well and praising the Lord daily for allowing us to serve Him and others at the camp.  The children have finished their schooling for this year and will begin again in September.  Elizabeth is learning to drive and hopes to resume piano lessons in the fall.  James is shooting up like a weed and will begin high school courses.  Hannah is growing up too quickly and doesn't like to be called our "baby".  She will begin 5th grade and dreams of having a puppy someday.  George is still working nights at the local hospital and serving afternoons at the camp.  Pamela is busy being mom, wife, and serving at the camp.  God has blessed us all.

Please continue to pray for the camp.  Associational Youth camp, JAM camp (Jesus, Arts, Music), two church camps and two more youth camps will compete the summer schedule.  Then it's weekend retreats throughout the fall.  Fall clean up team is a prayer request.  Leaves need to be raked and removed before the snows come and dead trees need to be felled and cut for firewood.  We are still praying for funds for upgrades in the electricity.  Plus the kitchen floor has received water damage and will need to be replaced.  New paddle boats are needed. A greenhouse and other projects are on the wish list.  Also, please keep the director's family in your prayers.

Hope to keep you updated more frequently in the coming months.  May God bless you.

Four years ago we sold our family business of 20 years and heeded the Lord’s call to leave our comfort zone and follow Him wherever He led.  Our vision was to go  on short term mission trips of up to six months, return home to work for a while, then go on another short term mission trip.  Our first trip was five months long and after returning home, within a few weeks, we knew that this was NOT the Lord’s vision.  His vision was for HOWEVER long, not just “wherever”!  Three years ago in early April, our family left home to be on mission with the Lord at the Canadian Southern Baptist Seminary near Calgary, Canada and at the LaVerne Griffin Youth Camp in Wasilla, Alaska.  Again, “our plans” were to be gone for 18 months.  We have learned that a lot of time “our plans” and the Lord’s plans are NOT the same.  We have been on the mission field for over three years now and have stopped asking the Lord, “How long?” for we know that being on mission with God is for life!  No matter where we are or what we are doing, we will be serving the Lord.

We have now left the ranks of “chechako” (tenderfoot or greenhorn) as we weathered our first Alaskan winter and enjoyed almost every single minute.  (The previous two winters had been spent serving at the seminary.)  It is a much slower season for the camp than summer but there were retreats and mini-camps that allowed us to continue serving.  Our children were busy with homeschooling (which meant that Pamela was busy too) and George was busy working at the local hospital. 

Spring has now arrived, swift and warm.  Break up and thawing is occurring faster than our previous two Alaskan springs.  Geese, trumpeter swans, sandhill cranes, and robins are ushering in the changing season as they search for open water.  The lakes are thawing and are unsafe.  The kids love to put on their rubber boots and jump from iceberg to iceberg near the beach area at the camp.  Falling into the freezing  knee deep water (with parental supervison!) brings out such laughter that they can be heard across the lake.  Moose are getting ready for their new calves and the yearlings are foraging on their own now.   People have to really be on guard now for a cow will charge at this time of year.  We rarely see a bull moose.  As nature shifts it’s focus so to our focus will be shifting gears as we approach the busiest time of the year for us. 

Twelve weeks of back to back camps and retreats are on the calendar  for 2009 with nearly every weekend in the fall booked for three day retreats.  The Lord is putting together teams from all across the country who will come to lead children and youth in week long camps; who will model servanthood; who will share Jesus with these same young people; who will be channels of the Lord’s blessing.  Other teams are being formed that will serve along side area ministries doing various projects, being His hands and feet, supporting those who preach the Gospel.  At this moment, the Lord is laying the foundation for those who will hear His call to salvation this summer at the LaVerne Griffin Youth camp.  Please join us in praying for those individuals; children, youth, and adults who will discover for the first time who Jesus is and what He did for them on the cross.  Please pray for those who will make decisions to return to walking with the Lord, that their commitment will be strong.   Pray for the volunteer staff that will be serving at the camp:  our family, the director’s family, college students affiliated with NAMB (North American Mission Board) and other volunteers that the Lord will send our way.  We anticipate a joyful and glorious summer as the Lord Jesus is uplifted and magnified.   Pray for Boy’s Camp, Girl’s Camp, Youth Camp, JAM Camp (Jesus, Arts, & Music), Russian Children’s camp, Russian Youth Camp, church family camps, The Slavic Youth retreat, the Filipino retreat, the Korean retreat and Camp Hope (the camp for children who have experienced abusive situations.  We also ask that you remember our oldest daughter who is busy managing our personal affairs in Ocala while working and attending college.

We have found that the best part of serving the Lord at a camp is seeing folks having “FUN” in Jesus.  Some have said that being a Christian turns people into sourpusses but our Lord wasn’t that way at all and we shouldn’t be either!  He attended weddings, ate at banquets, was a “babe magnet” (meaning He naturally attracted little children – hahaha), could hold conversations one on one or in a crowd,  had beach parties (remember cooking fish on the beach?)…. Camp is just another way to get excited and share Jesus.  Sometimes we feel guilty that the Lord has allowed us the pleasure of serving Him here at the LaVerne Griffin Youth Camp.  When that happens, we just turn off the guilt faucet and turn on the praise and thanks faucet.   We have to do that when the days get long and tiring, too.  We also think of fellow servants who are serving in the small villages in some of the harshest climates in Alaska and how their joy is overflowing.  Serving Jesus just naturally produces a river of joy, no matter where you are when you are serving Him!  We have served Him in soup kitchens of the homeless, prisons, disaster areas, small churches, large churches, the seminary, in foreign countries, and now at the camp.  Come to think of it, serving is not something you “do”, it’s a way of life!  May you find the joy that comes from serving the Lord Jesus wherever He has placed you.