GBB National Blog

The rest of the passage....

2011-10-23T15:31:00.002-04:00

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2 Timothy 2:1-7
1 You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. 2 And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable people who will also be qualified to teach others. 3 Join with me in suffering, like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. 4 No one serving as a soldier gets entangled in civilian affairs, but rather tries to please his commanding officer. 5 Similarly, anyone who competes as an athlete does not receive the victor’s crown except by competing according to the rules. 6 The hardworking farmer should be the first to receive a share of the crops. 7 Reflect on what I am saying, for the Lord will give you insight into all this.

The first couple of verses here are what GBB was founded on. I ask each of you to not only disciple as verses one and two instruct but also follow verse 3 as well! Don't allow yourselves to get caught up in worldly cares but rather serve our Lord as your commanding officer, deserving of the rewards He holds for us at the Bema Seat!

Leadership

2011-04-05T09:52:00.005-04:00

Through years of discipling younger men I now receive periodic tidbits back from them. Recently one of my guys sent me this quote about leadership. It's not directly theistic but as I read it I couldn't help but see the moral rightness of it. As we look toward leadership maybe we should look at it through the lense described below. As we hope to truly lead others we should pray that we could fit somewhere into this quote.

Leadership is an invisible strand as mysterious as it is powerful. It pulls and it bonds. It is a catalyst that creates unity out of disorder. Yet, it defies definition. No combination of talents can guarantee it. No process of training can create it where the spark does not exist. The qualities of leadership are universal. They are found in the poor and the rich, the humble and the proud, the common man, and the brilliant thinker; they are qualities that suggest paradox rather than pattern. But wherever they are found, leadership makes things happen. The most precious and intangible quality of leadership is trust: the confidence that the one who leads will act in the best interest of those who follow, the assurance that he will serve the group without sacrificing the rights of the individual. Leadership's imperative is a 'sense of rightness,' knowing when to advance and when to pause, when to criticize and when to praise, how to encourage others to excel. From the leader's reserves of energy and optimism, his followers draw strength. In his determination and self-confidence, they find inspiration. In the highest sense, leadership is integrity. This command by conscience asserts itself more by commitment and example than by directive. Integrity recognizes external obligation, but it heeds the quiet voice within, rather than the clamor without. -Author unknown

Ohio District Leadership Training

2010-11-08T14:38:00.002-05:00

Hey Ohio Guys!!!!!

Don't forget that we're having leadership training THIS Saturday at Millersburg GBC starting with breakfast at 8:30. I'm putting the finishing touches on my part of things including an update from GBB National, the 2011 High Adventure Announcement as well as an update on the curriculum project.

I'd like to see as many of you there as possible so if you haven't told Dan you're coming please let him know ASAP! Dan Hazlett

Piled Up Posts

2010-08-16T18:05:00.002-04:00

Wow its a busy time of year at GBB... Here's the highlights of the last month or so:

I went to Momentum Youth Conference again this year with Rittman GBC and instead of only one guy and one girl our church represented with three guys. What an awesome week full of awesome Spiritual highs, no sleep and lasting commitments!

I went from Momentum to the FGBC National Conference in Cincinnati. I met up with some great folks, had some very exciting meetings and heard some interesting speakers! Next time you see me you can ask all about that stuff but there's too much to dump about right now. I love how God is working in our Fellowship right now!

GBB weekly curriculum is just about ready to roll out - a couple finishing touches, a couple of reads & edits and everyone will have it in their hands to roll on this fall.

Rank curriculum is pushing forward and an updated leaders guide should be headed your way soon. We're working on getting the materials printed (instead of copied and assembled in my office!) so go ahead and get excited for that possibility! I know I am.

Wooster Grace will add a GBB unit this fall! Woohooo I'll add more on that soon along with contact info for their commander and leaders so you can welcome them to the ministry. Keep an eye on the Ohio District web site too!

Speaking of Ohio - the 3rd annual Ohio District GBB Family Picnic is this Saturday! At last count I heard we're expecting around 100ish for the day! What a fun time to meet the families of our GBB men and boys!

Many of you know about the Radical Difference discipleship focus day GBB and SMM sponsored in March at Wooster. Well, the FGBC churches in Alaska caught wind of that and inquired about the focus day. They've asked Viki Rife and I to come up to Alaska to talk to the churches about discipleship. What a great opportunity for God to use us to further his Kingdom through training and I'm not gonna lie - what a great opportunity for me to make a trip back to Alaska!!!

Many of you knew about the recent passing of Harold Brandenburg, a long-time member of the GBB Board of Directors. I had the opportunity to visit with Harold's family and friends when I attended the funeral in Indiana with a bunch of other GBB guys. Harold was a great friend who I could always count on to bring me into line when I got overly excited about something... He was always the level head in our duo and I'll miss having him on the gun range at Rendezvous camps. Though Harold will be missed his passing is bittersweet to me. He's not the first GBBer I've seen pass and he won't be the last. Harold's passing was a lot like Harry Speichers in that I knew those men well enough to know I'll see them again. There were tears but there were a lot more smiles and outbursts of laughter as family and friends recalled Harold's godly life. I love the cheerful contrast there is at a Christian funeral instead of the sad affair of some of the other funerals I've attended. Many of us imagined what it would be like to see the reunion going on for Harold in Heaven!

We serve a loving God!

Rendezvous 2010

2010-07-08T09:59:00.002-04:00

Rendezvous 2010 has been filed away in the office but our prayers at GBB National is that its impact will continue on. We had 56 boys and 28 men for the week!

Units began to arrive on Saturday and camp set-up went quickly. Sunday morning we had church for the units in camp (Roger Mills spoke) and then we spent the rest of the day getting ready for the big week. The rest of the units arrived throughout the day.

Monday morning we were up early (6:30) in order to get to the flag raising ceremonies by 7:00 followed by uniform inspections. Carl Kaylor and I agreed that it was the best first day Rendezvous inspection we'd ever conducted. Everybody looked sharp and unit organization was impressive for the first day! Breakfast followed inspection and then we had morning devotions. Pastor Bob provided some great morning devotions materials and we studied "Heroes of the Faith" from Hebrews 11.

This year we tried something a little different than past years. Since the boys were divided into activity groups (each group had a different color wrist band as in the past) we decided that rather than have devotions with their own unit we'd have them break away from their own camp after breakfast and meet with their team for devotions. Each team was led by a leader and each team had Adventure Team guys (junior leaders) assigned to them. We did this to ensure a very intentional time of Bible study for the boys in the morning, rather than squeezing it in with breakfast duties. I was very pleased with how the format worked this year and I was excited to see some of the A-Team LEADING young boys in their morning devotions!!! 2 Timothy 2:2 in action!!!!

After morning devotions we met at the flag pole to send all the boys off to their respective classes for the morning. Classes for the week included; archery, backpacking/hiking, canoeing, campfire cooking, first aide, fishing, knot tying, orienteering, riflery and wood carving. The boys learned a little about each activity and during the first couple of days the A-Team guys assisted with leadership in the classes.

After lunch the boys attended another class in the afternoon followed by dinner and free time. Each night we put on our Rendezvous shirts (this year's shirt had a copy of the Rendezvous patch on the front and bear claw marks on the back - I must say we looked pretty cool!) for the flag lowering ceremony. Then we moved over to our evening council fire session.

Our evening speaker for the week was Mike Taylor from GBIM. Mike was great! He told the boys at the beginning of the week that he had three goals for the boys to accomplish. He wanted them to become followers of Jesus Christ, use their personal gifts for Christ's Kingdom and consider missions. Since Mike spent many years as a missionary in Africa each night he brought us "Heroes from Africa." He had stories of real men in Africa who made sacrifices for Jesus. He spoke about the Biblical principles that led those men to follow Christ's call for their lives and he talked about how God used those men for His glory.

Each day we followed the same schedule for the younger boys but the A-Team (older boys) were able to do some activites seperate from the younger guys. On Tuesday morning I met up with Jim from Chapman State Park. He equipped us with several types of bladed tools so we could clear trails around the park. The boys worked hard and we learned that some of God's creations are pretty pesky. Our work paid off and the trails were cleared by lunch time.

On Wednesday, after morning devotions, the A-Team was dropped off along a road in the Allegheny National Forest and we hiked south along a closed park road. The boys had topographical maps, a trail map and a compass. I was the only one with the knowledge and when we missed out turn I fought my tongue and kept quiet. About an hour's hike past our turn the guys finally agreed they'd missed something. They decided to go less than a mile cross-country to meet up with our planned trail instead of hiking an hour (about 3 miles) back up the road. Cross-country hiking, using a compass to stay on course, though not part of the original plan, taught the boys a lot about using the compass to move accross dense forest. Our God is sovereign over all things!

We joined up with the our planned trail and before long we ran into the Minister Creek Trail. It was reported to me to be one of the best trails in Western PA and after hiking the trail I'd have to agree with that analysis. We encountered wide, fast flowing creeks with lots of beautiful vegitation, steep hills with an awesome view of the valley and creek, huge outcroppings of rocks including huge tunnels an sheer cliff faces, and an amazing overlook that gave us a great view of the Minister Valley. It was a long day and we all needed showers by the end but it was a very rewarding day to spend with the older guys.

Wednesday night, just as it began to get dark, it rained, HARD. It rained off and on through the night but despite the wind blowing above, the heavy rain and the light/boom show there seemed to be very little rain. Though some guys got wet because of leaky tents many more stayed dry since their tent wasn't blown flat by the wind. God was so good!

Through the rain on Thursday morning the A-Team packed up and headed for the Allegheny River for an overnight canoe trip. Since we would miss the evening council fire we met up with Mike Taylor before we got on the river. Mike encouraged the older boys again to follow God's call in their lives and use what God gives them for His glory.

We hit the water at about 10:30 that morning and it wasn't long before we were caught in a downpour. We'd already determined we'd be able to canoe through rain as long as it wasn't accompanied by lightning. We never had lightning that morning - again, God took care of us on the water. We stopped for lunch along the river (the rain stopped before then) and during lunch we located and captured a crawfish. Since the boys are A (stands for Adventure)-Team they decided one of the guys should eat it. Before long the water was boiling and the crawfish was cooked. It reportedly tasted like lobster.

We found our island for the night and set up camp. We played in the river, caught more crawfish and had a late dinner around the campfire. The guys had fun cheesing for the camera with crawfish hanging out of their mouths but the fun erupted when two of the guys attempted to eat a muscle they found in the river. They boiled it and tried to eat it - I can safely say they'll never try that again!

That night, as things began to wind down, we were all around the fire and I planned to talk to the boys about some stuff in Ephesians. I opened my Bible to 2 Timothy and I spoke instead about the importance of discipleship. Some of the guys opened up and shared their experiences with direct accountability. It was a really great time to share with that special group of God's adventurers.

Friday morning we stayed pretty relaxed. As the younger boys were headed to their morning devotions back at camp we were getting out of bed and getting breakfast started. We were on the water around 9 than morning and we did the morning devotions while we sat in our canoes near our island. As we canoed south we realized that "our" island wasn't the island we thought it was. the island we were supposed to stay on was actually further down river and as we passed it I noticed how rough it was. I didn't notice even one area on the island that looked like a nice camping spot. Again, God's sovereinty was realized. No matter how much we plan He puts us in the right spot for His glory. We finished the trip pretty much as expected, minus the bunch of fish we wanted to catch...

Camp was wrapped up Friday night with our closing council fire. Mike brought us the final message and reminded the boys of the goals for the week. There were several first time decisions for Christ and a bunch of recommitments.
I was presented the prestigious leadership neckerchief. Leaders should beware that I have it back in my possession now and they're all subject to the award! Each class leader had an opportunity to share what happened during the week and eventually the Honor Unit was announced. In dramatic fashion as usual, Eastside, Unit 4 was awarded the Honor Unit for Rendezvous 2010!

What a busy but rewarding week!

Ohio Outpost

2010-05-03T15:34:00.002-04:00

I had a great time this past weekend as I attended the Ohio District Outpost Camp at Findley State Park near Wellington, Ohio. There were 76 boys and 50 men in attendance and though the weather forecast was full of rain and thunderstorms God parted the bad weather once again. North and south of us the rains came down but we only had rain a couple of times and it never interfered with anything other than Sunday morning colors.

The boys enjoyed a rope-making class (where they actually made a length of rope to take home), canoeing, hiking, fishing, verses and the nature center on Saturday. The camping area was long and narrow which made for a long walk from one end to the other. The boys really loved being able to run - having the room to get away from the tents a bit and have fun on their own. We loved watching them interact as they spread their wings beyond their own unit's familiarity.

On Saturday evening Perry Mullen was awarded the 2010 Outpost Patch Design Award. Perry received the first patch along with a few items he'll be able to use as he continues his activities with GBB. We also had the opportunity to hear from each of the class leaders. They shared the wonderful experiences and observations they'd had that day. We wrapped up our Saturday evening Council Fire time with Pastor Rob Barlow from the Ashland West Main GBC. He challenged the boys to be Men of God in a world that lacks such an animal.

On Sunday morning we woke up to rain but nothing we couldn't handle (we're GBB right?). At Sunday morning Council Fire Rittman, Unit 65 was awarded the Honor Unit. They were the unit that had the least number of deductions for camp / uniform inspections as well as knot and verse competitions. We wrapped up our weekend with Joel Penton, former Ohio State University Football player turned ministry leader. He brought another challenge to the men and boys to be different than the world and stand out as Men of God.

What a great weekend and what a great opportunity for the men and boys of the Ohio District! Man I'm pumped for Rendezvous!!!!!!!

Every Young Man's Battle

2010-02-21T20:15:00.003-05:00

I wanted to let all you guys know about a book I'm using when discipling young men. If you're a young man you need to read this book! If you're discipling young men right now you need to take a look at this book! There's a workbook to follow the book and a study available with the web site. There's plenty to follow and the guys I've used this with said it's the most direct use of scripture to attack the issues of sexual temptation and lust in their lives.

This is not a watered down, Sunday morning service type of study. This is a small group-type study that covers some pretty tough to share about issues. I urge you guys all to check it out. Like I said up top, there's tons of good stuff to go along with the book to ensure our young men have all the information they need to know God's true plan for their bodies and their minds when it comes to sex.

Check it out!!!

Rendezvous Announcement!!!!

2010-02-08T17:55:00.002-05:00

The 2010 GBB National Rendezvous will be a week-long base camp event at Chapman State Park located near Buchers Mills, Pennsylvania! Chapman State Park is located about eight miles southwest of Clarendon, PA and about 90 miles northeast of Pittsburg. Here are some need-to-know items for the event:

When:
June 19th - 26th, 2010
Units may arrive any time on Saturday the 19th or Sunday the 20th.
The first scheduled event will be the leader's huddle on Sunday evening.
A group church service is planned for units that are in camp Sunday morning.
Camp will close Friday evening with Council Fire. Unit may break camp Friday night or Saturday morning.

Cost:
$50 registration fee (covers camping and camp activities for the week)

Food:
Each unit is responsible for their own food. As usual, there will likely be a daily store runner for perishable and last-minute items.

Equipment:
There should be plenty of room for tents and kitchens. More information will follow regarding the needs for specialized equipment for classes.

Activities:
For those that are not familiar with the GBB National Rendezvous, we tent camp for a week and have various training classes and fun events that will inform and challenge each of you. Each day will include a unit team devotional in the morning and a large camp devotional (Council Fire) in the evening. The other activities include swimming, canoeing, craft projects, gun safety, hiking, campfire cooking, fishing and several other activites taht are in teh planning stages.

Deadline!!!!!!
In order to accurately plan for Rendezvous activites we need to have all paperwork and registration fees received in teh GBB National Office by April 30, 2010. Each participant will need to complete teh following GBB National Forms that can be found on our web site, http://www.gbbnational.com/gbb_forms.htm
- National Event Registration Form
- Medical Permission Form
- Event Permission Slip

As a reminder, Rendezvous Events are for GBB National REGISTERED men and boys, age eight and older. This means that all men and boys who plan to attend Rendezvous must be included on the unit's annual registration forms. Boys younger than eight may attend Rendezvous but they must have a male legal guardian attend Rendezvous with them. Any requests for exceptions to those requirements must be communicated to GBB National for approval. Please keep current with the GBB web site and your e-mail for updates!

We hope every unit is making plans to attend this great discipleship event!

Thanks!
GBB National Rendezvous Committee

What a month!

2010-02-04T18:33:00.002-05:00

So in my previous post I let everyone know we'd be in the hospital for a couple weeks. One week quickly turned into two. Two weeks quickly turned into three. Three weeks almost turned into four but a couple days shy of four weeks we finally made it home!
Madyson is doing great and she's adjusting nicely to her new environment. Her sisters aren't nearly as loud and busy as the NICU and we're very blessed to be well adjusted to the hospital's feeding schedule. Madyson eats every three hours (wish I could afford to eat every three hours!) and she seems to enjoy sleep between feedings, especially at night! Praise the Lord!

So Beverly and I had a lot of time together, sitting by Madyson's bedside, sitting together in the family lounge, sitting together in the cafeteria. I have to say that God certainly blessed me with a wonderfully strong and courageous wife! I don't mean to make you other men envious but the younger guys should certainly prayerfully seek a woman like my beloved.

During some of our conversations we recounted some of the blessings we'd experienced that we'd have missed had we not been sent to the NICU at Akron Children's Hospital. 1. We met a great couple who also had a daughter in the NICU. They first approached us after they noticed Beverly and I at breakfast. They told us how encouraged they were by having another Christian married couple in there with them. (being married and committed Christians wasn't really the norm) 2. When asked by a newlywed guy about our marriage (he said he'd noticed we were really close and wondered how long we'd been married, how long it took to get as close as we are, etc.) we had the opportunity to share how having a God-centered marriage has been the key to our happiness together. 3. I had the unique experience of helping a homeless man reach his destination at Haven of Rest Ministries in Akron. Had I not been headed to the hospital that day I doubt I'd have volunteered for the task. 4. We had the opportunity to witness with our lives, sharing our faith by just being polite and respectful to all.

I had the opportunity to share all of this with our youth group on Wednesday night. As our 4:12 Students worked through Exodus we came the part where the Israelites are constantly grumbling to Moses and Aaron about their conditions (see Chapters 15, 16). I paralleled that by explaining how easily Beverly and I could have shook our fists at God - many people do. Instead we took the Job route and praised Him all the way!

Though I don't recommend having a near month-long stay in a NICU I can't say for even a moment that it wasn't a rewarding experience! Whatever God's purpose we took peace in knowing He had one - even if it wasn't the most comfortable ride for our family.

Now that we're back home I plan to get kickin' on some GBB stuff. There's lots to do and not enough time in each day, days in each week, weeks in each month...

I can do everything through HIM who gives me strength.
Philippians 4:13

WOW!

2010-01-08T13:46:00.002-05:00

What a crazy week it's been around here! So our third girl (that's right a GBB guy with three girls is crazy right?) was due on February 11th. Apparently she couldn't wait another second because during the very early morning hours of January 6th (5 weeks early for those that don't like calendar math) she decided she'd had enough time in mama's dutch oven - she was ready to meet the world! She was born at 6:14 AM and was 4 lbs. 13 oz. and 17" long. The last couple of days have been busy but we're praising God that the only problems Madyson (oh yeah, we named her Madyson Grace) has is the desire to occasionally stop breathing. Everything else is wonderfully made and the breathing thing is just a short phase she'll grow out of - like pegged pants and video games.
We're at Akron Children's Hospital and the doctor said this morning that he thinks we'll be here for 1-2 weeks.
All of that to say, please pray for Madyson. Please pray that she'll continue to grow stronger and that she'll continue to develop quickly. Also, please keep Beverly (mama) in your prayers as well.

Thanks guys!
-Rob

Woodville's Fall Outpost 2009 video

2009-12-07T21:45:00.001-05:00

Please click on the link or copy and paste to check out the video that the Woodville guys put together for the Ohio District GBB Fall Outpost Camp. Jim and the gang did a great job and I want everyone to see this video!

http://www.gbbnational.com/Woodville%20Videos/GBB%20FALL%2009.wmv

As the seasons change

2009-10-31T10:20:00.004-04:00

So yesterday in Northeastern Ohio it was about 70 degrees and sunny with a light breeze. If you closed your eyes it felt almost Spring-like. Then you opened your eyes to see the amazing display of colors. More than half the leaves have fallen but the ones that are left still grace the trees with all kinds of fall colors. The ground in the park outside the GBB office was completely covered with leaves - there was no grass showing anywhere. There's something about walking through piles upon piles of leaves, kicking them up as you shuffle your feet a bit, that just makes you feel good about the season.

As I met with a young man yesterday morning I was thinking back to our first meeting last year. He was so child-like in his faith and thoughts. In just one year's time he's grown so much! As I worked through some good stuff with him I couldn't help feeling good about this new season in his life. He's transformed so much over the past year and everyone can see the changes.

And I've grown so much through the process as well! Being a discipler over the last year has taught me so much about the guys I'm with but I think I've learned the most about myself. My faith has been strengthened and I'm constantly challenged to live up to the same expectations I have for the students I've discipled. My prayer life is better, my Bible study time is AMAZING, and I feel HIS peace in my life.

If you haven't discipled a young man (more than just meeting during GBB time) I encourage all of you to invest part of your lives in younger men (either in age or in faith or both). God will bless you for it!

GBB National Board Meetings

2009-10-20T20:32:00.002-04:00

The GBB National Board Meetings are October 23rd and 24th. I'm looking forward to an encouraging time with the GBB Men as we work through the business side of GBB this weekend. Please pray for the board as they travel to the meeting and pray that God would give us wisdom in our decisions.

Save the date: November 14th is the Ohio District Leadership Conference at Millersburg GBC. Check the Ohio page or contact Jeff or Dan for more info.

Prayer needed!!!!

2009-09-08T20:31:00.002-04:00

Dick has faithfully served GBB for many years. He is on our GBB National board. The following is a copied e-mail regarding his accident on Saturday and associated prayer needs.

Dick's accident was on Saturday. Dick was cutting a branch out of a tree and fell. He has a broken wrist. He will have surgery for the wrist, putting in a plate and a couple of screws TOMORROW (Wed 9/9/09)....During checks at the hospital, they were looking for internal bleeding. These checks revealed a mass on Dick's kidney. He will be having surgery to remove the kidney after his arm is stable. It will take some more tests, and scheduling the operation....probably sometime in October. Please pray for Dick. Thanks.

Weekly Curriculum on THE way!

2009-08-24T11:16:00.003-04:00

The GBB National weekly curriculum for 2009-2010 will be mailed out on Wednesday. The CDs will be mailed to the contact address listed at GBB National Headquarters and the package will be mailed to the attention of the unit commander. If you want the CD mailed to a certain address that may be different than the one you submitted with last year's registration, please contact me before Wednesday.

A lot of time, study and research went into this year's weekly curriculum but please remember that the group of men who wrote it did so on a volunteer basis. None of us are paid writers and though the information has been checked and double-checked there is still a potential for misprints or confusing language. Please, if you find something that could have been different, please contact me so I can bring your observations to the curriculum review committee. We want you all to be good Bereans with this curriculum - check it out and if something's missing, LET US KNOW.

I pray that each of the units receive the curriculum well and that your units will be blessed by this year's lesson plan.

A big "THANK YOU" also goes to the curriculum committee for all of their hard work over this past year!

Why discipleship?

2009-08-03T14:32:00.005-04:00

So I'm reading through Judges as part of my Momentum '09 daily devotions follow-up. Today's devotion was from Judges 2 and in the text it talks about how, when Joshua and his generation of spiritual leadership died, the nation turned away from God and gradually became more pagan.

God brought judges in to teach the nation and correct their behavior but when those men died everything not only went back toward evil but it got worse with each cycle of new judges.
How do we combat this in our families, our GBB units, our youth groups, our churches, our communities, our nation? Discipleship.

If godly men invest wholly in the lives of younger men and ensure that during that process those younger men invest in even younger men, through our obedience to God's commands we will continue the cycle of godly knowledge and wisdom.

If we just live good lives and aren't convicted with passing on our knowledge and wisdom then the young men around us will surely have the world to influence them. We can easily see the values of the world in stark contrast to the values of our Holy Lord.

If you're not doing it now; get discipled, be one who disciples or both!

The History of GBB

2009-07-29T10:47:00.002-04:00

Here's a portion of an e-mail I received from a dear man regarding his history with one of the founders of Grace Brethren Boys, Pastor Ed Jackson. He returned one of the gold belt buckles that was given him many years ago as a token of appreciation. He felt GBB would appreciate having it back as it has a lot of meaning for him and for GBB.

"As a young boy I accepted the Lord as my personal Saviour in 1944 at the Brethren Church in Long Beach, Californina. Many years later the Lord brought together an L.A. Fire Dept. Captain and a Ohio State Highway Patrol Lieutenant (Ed Jackson) to travel across the U.S. encouraging men in the Grace Brethren Church to be involved for the Lord. The Boys ministry was a natural for men so we encouraged others to be involved. Somewhere along the line this buckle was presented to me."

I'm so thankful for the history of GBB: men, strong in their faith, molding younger men into strong believers and trusted leaders, then passing the torch so those young men can continue the cycle of discipleship. God has placed each of the men involved with GBB over the years in a position to fulfill his commands to disciple younger men.

Thank you God for the men who pour their lives into young men so they may see the contrast between a worldly man and a godly man. Thank you God for the opportunities you've given us in GBB! Thank you Lord for the boys who are so teachable and desire to have a relationship with you. Thank you Lord for the hearts you've broken and thank you God for the boys you bring us that still have a long way to go. Amen.

What a trip!

2009-07-06T11:45:00.002-04:00

If you haven't already checked it out - go to www.gbbnational.com and check out some of the High Adventure Pics! We had a great week, full of unexpected twists and turns. If you were there, and took pictures, please make sure you send them to Jeff on the website so he can get them uploaded to share. All of my pics are also on my facebook if you're interested in seeing more from the week.

Jeff did a great job, as did Pastor Bob, in writing up what we did. Check out the web site for the details of the week! My favorite part was the morning and evening discussion times. It was cool to see how the 10 minute discussion on Monday morning transformed into 30 minutes on Friday morning. The boys and men really stepped outside themselves for the week and I pray that each of us can carry that over into our own units, churches and communities.

And amazingly enough - there were no unexpected baptisms by canoe.

Are you ready?

2009-06-17T10:41:00.002-04:00

So, T minus 3 days and counting for High Adventure '09 on the Rideau Canal in CANADA! Are you ready? Neither am I...

Good news - the canoe trailer is done. The canoes arrived and are put together. They look great and I can't wait to get them on the Canadian water.

As we prepare for another challenging High Adventure I'm most excited for what God has planned for us through our daily conversations. I can't wait to talk with the guys about the contrasts between the world's lies and the Biblical absolutes provided for us in the Bible.

Please pray for the men and boys headed to Canada with GBB this weekend. Please pray for open hearts and souls. Please pray for safety and good weather as well as easy travels.

See ya up there, eh.

The trailer is here!

2009-05-21T14:05:00.002-04:00

GBB National's brand new trailer arrived on Monday and I put most of it together on Tuesday! It was kinda tough to assemble and I'm glad that Beverly stopped by a couple of times because I needed an extra set of hands. It is a sturdy trailer and I'm glad we went with the 12" wheels! To finish the trailer we'll have to wait until our canoes arrive so we can custom-fit the racks to our 8 brand new canoes!!!!

While we're on the subject... Nick said he has information for the week of High Adventure 2009. Pastor Bob also sent me information about our topics for the week. As soon as I have Nick's stuff I'll put out a mass-mailing to everyone who's registrered (19 boys and 17 men) to help you get ready for H.A. '09.

Please give me a call or shoot me an e-mail if you run into questions or have any thoughts on High Adventure!

CANOES on the way!

2009-05-09T22:26:00.003-04:00

I received a call this week from Directboats.com to let me know that our check was received and our canoes, trailer and paddles are on the way! A BIG THANK YOU to all of you who contributed to the canoe fund already. You guys made it possible for GBB National to update our canoe stock which, as I was recently reminded, needed gum a couple summers ago to complete a canoe trip in Pennsylvania.
For those of you who weren't there on High Adventure '07, we had an overnight canoe trip planned. Unfortunately for us, the water level was down...considerably. We ended up hitting bottom or walking the canoes for a large portion of the trip and one of the fiberglass canoes took one too many direct hits. When we realized the canoe wasn't going to make it we resorted to pressed chewing gum in the hole. Believe it or not it wasn't much of a problem for the rest of the trip. It made for some pretty great memories, especially for our waterlogged guest speaker!
Even though the canoes have been shipped the canoe fund has not been closed out. We still need money to close out the fund and the canoes were bought with the prayer that money would continue to come in.
If you are holding onto money that your unit has collected or designated for the canoe fund, please put it in the mail or at least let me know you plan to send money to the canoe fund.
Thanks guys!

Pray for Pastor Bob

2009-04-29T17:30:00.003-04:00

Pastor Bob is GBB National's Chaplain. Please keep him and his family in your prayers during this very difficult time. This is a copied posting from the BMH Editor's Blog:

Smokers' Daughter-in-Law Dies in Motorcycle Accident
Pastor Galen Wiley from Lancaster, PA, has forwarded this information and prayer request from the family of Bob and Jeanne Smoker of Wrightsville, PA. Bob is the pastor of Susquehanna Grace Brethren Church, and his son and daughter-in-law were in the motorcycle accident on Saturday.
Bob Smoker just called me with the information on the memorial service for his daughter-in-law Michelle Smoker, who was killed in a tragic motorcycle accident on Saturday evening. Her husband Dan was able to come home from the hospital on Saturday evening, but he is obviously devastated because he was driving the motorcycle. Michelle and her family are believers, so there is a peace that she is home with the Lord. But the emotions are still very painful at this time of loss and separation.
The memorial service will be this Friday at 2:00, following a time to visitation with the family from 12-2. The location is at the:Olewiler & Heffner Funeral Home35 Gotham DriveRed Lion, PA 17356 Phone Number: (717) 244-6991
Bob and Jean Smoker’s address is 8 Christine DrWrightsville, PA 17368
Their email is smok1@verizon.net.
I know the entire family would appreciate our prayers so much at this time.

Passports

2009-04-14T12:50:00.002-04:00

Hopefully all of you planning to attend H.A. '09 have received your passports / passcards by now. I got mine a couple of weeks ago and realized they missprinted my date of birth. Please double-check your info and if there's a problem fill out the forms and get it back to them for correction. As long as you're less than 45 days from the date of issue you don't have to send new pictures. You just have to mail everything back to them, including their correction form and your proof of citizenship. The lady on their help line (1-877-487-2778) told me to write "Urgent Attention: Rewrites" on the envelope so it gets fixed ASAP.
Call me or shoot me an e-mail if anyone else is running into trouble with their passports / passcards.
I'm glad we insisted on the March 1st deadline to get the cards ordered or I'd have put it off!!! hahaha

My latest trip to Urban Hope

2009-04-11T15:30:00.002-04:00

I'm still recovering from my latest trip to the Urban Hope Training Center in Philadelphia. Our group returned Wednesday night from our four-day trip but I'm still wiped out! I don't know if it was the 5-6 hours of sleep per night for so many nights in a row, the cold, wet weather we had while cleaning up the streets and watching the Phillies game Tuesday night or maybe one of those sweet students passed some of their yucky germs around... Anyway, I've been down and out since I got back!

Anyway, the trip was great! There were two other groups there for the week; a youth group from Indiana and a school group from Maryland. As you can see from the pic there were plenty of people to hang with for a few days and the students seemed to mesh really well. The bummer of the whole thing was that our group (Rittman) headed back on Wednesday instead of staying through the end of the week. Based on how I felt the last couple of days I'd say that really was kind of a blessing though...

As far as the trip went I know some of our students stepped way outside their comfort zones during many aspects of our visit. Knocking on doors in their hometown would be outside their comfort zone - knocking on row-house doors in the inner-city was WAY outside their comfort zone. Walking up and talking to a complete stranger would have been outside their comfort zone - walking up to and talking to homeless people in a subway was WAY outside their comfort zone.

The coolest part of the whole experience was that our students were able to gel with other students and they were all in the same boat. Everybody was out of their norm but they were in it together. They all did great and the Lord was definately at work this week!

Canoes!

2009-03-17T15:08:00.002-04:00

With the approach of an "on the water" High Adventure GBB National took a look at our canoes and related equipment. We didn't like what we saw... Many of our canoes were purchased a long time ago and some were used when we bought them. They've seen some rough years. Many of them are aluminum and have broken or bent thwarts and seats. There are places where rivets have broken and become jagged. Some of the fiberglass canoes have hit far too many rocks. Some of you probably remember the gum-patching incident at our last High Adventure.
At Rendezvous last year some of our wood canoe paddles broke. They've suffered some dry rot and need replaced. Our canoe trailer, built many years ago, was a boat trailer that was modified to haul canoes. It's very tongue heavy when loaded and is made of heavy steel. (The weight does mean that its a smooth pull though...)
With all the problems GBB National started looking into purchasing some new equipment rather than trying to fix everything before this summer. We've found a great deal but there is definately a cost involved. We've asked that all of our GBB units send money to GBB Headquarters to help offset the cost. Because of other money that has been promised for the equipment, if each registered unit can contribute $100 each we'll be able to afford to replace the canoes, paddles and trailer without taking too much of a hit in the GBB National funds.
Please prayerfully consider a contribution to GBB National and please mark your contributions with a note to let us know the money is for the canoes. (IF you don't earmark your money then it goes into the general opperating funds.)
Thanks men!