The Love of a broken one.

To love like God loves in the midst of brokenness.. To put all you have aside and serve even when it feels all is lost. That is what I was shown last week. 

Last week was our second and final week of foster care. Foster Care camp is by far my favorite camp that we do during the summer. No longer are we just the background people running the activities, with foster care we are on the front lines. We worship with the kids, dance, do activities and just love on them. So for three days that is what we do. We show love to a lot of kids who have been told their whole life that they are not loved. Not only are we working with the kids but we work with their foster families as well. We show them how awesome they are for loving kids who have never been shown love. For enduring all that these kids bring to the house and treating them as if they are their own. Its safe to say that foster care camp is a weekend full of love and joy. 

Celest.
Vibrant, loving, young, joyful, demanding, courageous, caring, friendly, beautiful. Those are just a few words to describe young Celest. This little girl changed my life. I am not even sure how I met her, all I know is that the whole weekend she was my little sidekick. She showed me what a child like love looked like. Despite everything she had gone through in her short 6 years, despite being taken from here mom just six months ago, despite everything, she was joyful. She loved taking pictures with me and she loved to swim. All weekend I just hung out with her and got to know her. We watched movies, swam, danced, sang, and ate every meal together. Through getting to know Celest I got to know here foster family. They were an older couple who just loved children! I got to share with them my heart and they shared theirs with me. It was hard to say goodbye to Celest and her foster family. I did learn that they actually go to church right next to my college so I am hoping to see them again. 

Jasper, Tyler, and Family
Jasper came up to us one night and asked to play volleyball with the staff. He is a 14 year old who had just been placed with his foster family two months ago. Its safe to say that he was better than most of us at volleyball. While the staff played I sat in the car and got to talk to Jaspers foster mom. She loved him so much! Her heart for the lost was beautiful. All weekend long I got to hang out with her and really get to know her. At the moms breakfast I sat with her and she stared in amazement at mama brown and listing intently to her story. I got to meet her son Tyler. He was mentally handicapped but was so loving towards everyone. It was a true blessing to get to know this beautiful family. 

Those are just a few of the people that God allowed me to meet this past week. It was amazing to see the diversity between the families. I loved seeing the teenagers and how they interacted with the younger kids in the home. Everything about this week was wonderful. God tells us to love His children and this was a weekend where God was present and we were loving His children. They showed me so much love as well. Celest and her family just by being present in my life. Everyone telling us thank you for the hard work we do here. Little babies who hold your hand for 30 minutes. Every part of this weekend was love. 

God's love is unconditional and our love towards His beautiful children should be the same. 

This is my final week at Camp Buckner. Please be in prayer that God just softens my heart and opens my eyes to see His beauty in every situation. 

Also as a side note that deserves jumping up and down over! One of our summer staff members accepted Christ a few days ago!!!!! Be in Prayer for Her as she begins her walk. 

God bless <3

Heaven Slaughter 

Foster Care session 1

The beautiful smiles from Gods children, the high fives, sweet hello and hard goodbye, a simple I love you and your were awesome in the dunking booth. This past week has been a huge blessing. 

        This past week was the first session of Camp Buckner foster camp. Its a two night three day camp where foster families come to just be served and loved for a few days! It's the camp we have been waiting for all summer. I was only able to be part of the camp one of the three days, but that one day was a huge blessing. We were encouraged to really interact with the kids, eat meals with them, swim with them, play with them, dance with them and just love them. That was not a hard task to complete. After breakfast we all ventured off to play with the sweet kids outside of the dining hall. I sat with three children playing in the dirt. One little boy walked up to me and told me he was planting me multiple coconut trees. Seeing the joy these kids have from the simplest things. I gave one little girl a little seed to plant and her face lit up as I sat with her. She loved that I was taking time to get to know here by asking her name and age. I couldn't help but smile when I looked at their lit up faces. After that we all met up and had a pump it up session. We got with the kids and just danced to ridiculous fun songs! One little girl who was around two was standing by herself. She was trying to dance to the song. I go up to dance with her and she lifts her arms for me to pick her up. I pick her up and dance with her to one of the songs. When that song ends and were standing around waiting for the next song she lays her head on my shoulder and just gives me a long hug. For a moment she just stayed there then she went back to dancing with me. 

       That night we had a Buckner state fair for the kids. All of us paired up and came up with one game to do for the kids. For most of them they had never experienced something like this. It was an honor to put the fair on for them. My booth was the dunking booth. I was freezing and wet but seeing how much joy the kids got out of dunking me made it all worth it. They just laughed and their faces lit up every time the water fell on me. I couldn't help but laugh and enjoy it! We also had little prizes or them. Seeing how excited they got for the little toy in a bag was great! Child like joy! One kid told one of our staff members that he had never gotten a prize in his life and that night he got six! How awesome is it that we got to be part of that kids first prize. They were all so joyful and lovable! They wanted nothing more than to hang out with us, and we wanted nothing more than to love on them for a weekend! At the end of the fair we had another dance party. I saw kids who were afraid to dance break out of that shell and just dance in joy. I got to dance with so many beautiful kids who were way better than me! 

In one day God showed me more of His loving character than ever before. 

       The next day we were all sitting at a table eating about to get started on turnover. Most of the families had already left but there were still quite a few left on campus. One family with about five kids came up and said by to all of us. They proceeded to just love on us. They came up and gave us high fives, continually told us hank you and told us they loved us and will miss us. Honestly I could not tell you any of their names, but their words are forever on my heart. One of the girls in the family gave me multiple hugs and told me thank you. All I could say back was "no, thank you" These kids have been through way more than I have in there few short years. They have endured pain that I could not even imagine. Their beauty and their joy is inspiring. They were always smiling and laughing and loving us. 

        I was here to serve these kids. I was here to love on them with a Christ like love. They helped me more than I helped them. I really felt Gods love in their sweet hugs. I saw His light shining through their beautiful smiles and laughs. Its crazy how we go out onto the mission field to serve others, but those we are serving end up stealing our hearts and serving us without even knowing it. These kids draw me closer to God and strive to have a love and heart like they do. 

This week God taught me to love others with the love of a child. They have a genuine love, just like Gods love for us even when we are the least deserving of it. 

God bless <3 

Heaven Slaughter 

Listen my child

The voice of God and the certainty of His calling. In it way it scares me how clearly I heard God speaking to me this past week.

I will not lie and say that this past week has been easy. I have struggled alot. This blog post is not going to be about the camp that was here this past week its going to be more about how God has been speaking this week.

I have struggled. 

Its as simple as that. I have had a hard week and have fallen into things that not of God. One major problem I have had this week is anger and hurt. I have found myself more angry than I have ever been. I have been on edge all week and that has show in my encounters with people. The main reason I have been so angry is that I have began to realize what God's calling on my life is and I have not been seeking after that calling. I have a direction and a drive to follow but I have been letting worldly things get in my way. Through all of that God has really done some work on my heart.

For months now I have felt a calling to home. That is a hard calling for me. I spent 18 years running away from home and from the atmosphere I was in. So for God to tell me to go home, that was hard for me to handle. It took me months to realize that it was Him speaking. This past week I have never heard God speak with such a clear voice to me. Here is what I heard.

Go home my child, and I will provide. 

I feel a calling to go home and work with the youth in my church. After the week we experienced at Seek Week, I really feel called to follow through with them and to just do life with them for a bit. For years I have tired to get away from my house and the abusive atmosphere that surrounded it. When I graduated I got as far away as I could and I spent a year avoiding holidays so I wouldn't have to go home. Now I feel that God has grown me so much and taken away so much fear and hatred to home that its my time to listen to Him and go do ministry within my own family. All of this terrified me. It still does. After my boss told us something in a meeting I knew what I needed to do. Here is what he said. 

"Your dream job will never satisfy you like your calling." 

How true is that? Working here this summer is a dream job of mine. I love working here and getting to do ropes and zipline. I love watching week after week as kids come through and have an unforgettable week. I love being a part of that. I love the beautiful scenery and the never ending Gatorade. I love the friendships I have made. Working here is my dream job. My calling is home. 

I made a commitment. Knowing that I was being called home and staying here made me feel like I was disobeying God. That is what made me most angry. That started showing in how I was treating others. Then I prayed. Why I didn't pray to begin with. I'm not sure, maybe because I am human! I prayed God will show me that He would still be pleased with me even if I stayed here instead of going home. Here is what happened. 

I prayed right before I went to work. I'm not sure what day it was, but I remember I was heading out to the ropes course to do the leap of faith. One of the first groups that came to the ropes course had been at the zip line with me earlier that morning. It was nice to see some familiar faces. That is when God answered my prayers. One of the girls in the group was not feeling well so she was laying down on the bench. When I was done working my element I went and sat next to her just to check on her. She told me she had already been to the nurse and her stomach was hurting to the point she was in tears. To get her mind off the pain I just starting talking to her.  I asked her how she liked camp and what she was learning. I asked if she had learned about Jesus and what He did for us. When she said yes, I asked her to tell me. She did. Then I asked her her favorite verse. She said John 3:16, but she couldn't remember it fully. I knew the verse but instead of just telling her I asked her if she would like for me to read it to her. When she answered yes I grabbed my bible and looked it up. That seemed to calm her down a little. I then asked her if I could pray for her. She said yes. I placed my hand on her stomach and prayed for healing. When I got done she said she began to feel a little better. The pain was bearable now. Shortly after her group got up to leave. I could tell she didn't want to. Honestly I didn't want her to, I could have talked to this sweet girl all day long. She finally stood up and prepared to leave with the group. I said goodbye and turned to get ready for the next group. She then comes up to me and gives me a hug and said "thank you". 

Right then God answered my prayer through this sweet girl. I was at ease. I felt that God would be pleased with me and that He would use me even if I didn't follow His calling home. That one moment made everything worth it. Today as I sat out by the water I was reminded of that moment. Once again Satan was attacking and telling me I was useless. That I didn't belong here and I would never do anything. Than that one encounter with that beautiful child came to mind. The amazing thing is that is just one of the many encounters I have had this summer with children. I know that God has so many more of those encounters in store for me. Especially as we start preparing for the foster kids next week. 

God speaks in the most beautiful ways. This is my dream job. This is my summer mission trip. This is where I belong for this season of my life. God can use me. God will use me. I am on the mission field and I am on the front lines ready to fight for Him and His beautiful children. 

This week God taught me how to listen, but He also taught me how to see every opportunity as a mission.  He taught me to just shut up and not let my emotions get the best of me. He showed me how to love those who hurt me and how to do all I do for Him not for myself. He told me 

Listen my Child. 

Follow God. Lean on Him. Let Him be your strength. Do all work for His glory. 

God bless,

Heaven Slaughter

In the beginning. God......

I can not quite put into words this past week. In fact it has taken me a few days to gather my thoughts in order to even begin writing this blog. Seek week 2014 left me speechless and more in love with my father than ever before.

I will start out by just celebrating and rejoicing in the Lord. We had two beautiful girls come to know the Lord this week. I could not be more happy to have Reagan and Jazmine as my new sisters in Christ. Every single kid that my home church brought to seek week made a commitment to the Lord. I know for the girls we had Marie re identify with God. For the guys we had a few re identify with God and we had a few who felt a call into ministry. My heart is singing and dancing with all the commitments! Over all the camp had over 40 salvation's, over 100 re identifications and about 30 call to ministry. How amazing is that!?!??! When God enters a room no one leaves untouched. I just could no longer hold back how excited I was to gain so many new brothers and sisters in Christ! Now on to talking about the whole week!

 We arrived at camp around 5. We took a few hours to settle in and fill out all the paper work. At 7 seek week officially began. The moment we walked into the worship center I knew that the Holy Spirit was present and that this was going to be one spirit filled week! We started the week of with a powerful message. Kyle Byrd spoke about how we were created in the image of God. I often forget this and this past week I saw that my girls had forgotten this to. We are perfectly handcrafted. Made in the image of a beautiful father who loves and cares for us. This intensity of praise to the Lord just continued to grow throughout the days! It has been a while since I have been in a room full of people just worshiping the Lord freely. There was one night where the music stopped and 300+ voices just continued to sing and dance for about and hour. It reminded me of the beauty of God and His children. We didn't need instruments to worship Him. Our voices are instruments that bring Him the highest praise. I saw as each night walls were broken and kids began to worship God without fear of what others thought. One of the girls in my group all week struggled with the desire to lift her hands in praise and the fear of that not being what she grew up doing. She was afraid of what others would think. By the end of the week she was lifting her hands up and dancing like no one was watching. It was Beautiful. One night I looked up during worship and in the row in front of me I saw the guys from my church with their arms around one another and heads bowed worshiping together. This brought tears to me and I just stared in amazement. About three days into camp one of my friends got hurt during the crazy and fun dances. She dislocated a knee and sprained her ankle. When she fell and I realized she was hurt I immediately shut down and went into instant prayer mode. I felt a gentle tap on my shoulder and when I looked up it was Hannah, one of my girls. She and the other girls gathered around and said they wanted to pray for Madlynn. Instantly all the guys joined in and we got in a circle and all began to pray out loud at once for her. Theses kids who barley knew this  girls felt like God was calling them to lift up a prayer for her. They followed the call and reacted. I just stood in tears once again at the beauty of 13 of Gods children praying for one of His hurt children.

I could go on and on with stores of amazement, but there are not enough words to sum up how the week went. I watched as kids ripped up their cool cards and really exploded for the Lord. I struggled with the words to say to a girl who felt the pain of loosing her mom a year ago. I listened as girls told me that they were not certain that they had a relationship with Christ. I rejoiced and cried when seeing the smiling faces and tears of girls who just accepted Christ. I prayed and held close a girl who finally felt God tugging on her heart to lay down here idols and her burdens and accept Him. I laughed to the point of tears at the ridiculous conversations in the cabins. I watched as a poem spoke to so many kids and as lyrics filled their lives. I danced like I never have before and I sang like the Lord was right in front of me. I stood in awe as 14 rec members led kids in outrageous games but shared God with these kids and related the games to spiritual matters. I saw the beauty of children and the joy in their eyes as they felt love for the first time, and I watched the sweet hugs and smiles of sisters rejoicing with new adopted sister. My heart if overjoyed and filled with so much amazement!

If I had to sum up this past week in one sentence here is how it would read.

God came, He spoke, lives changed.

I asked some of the  kids to sum up the week in one sentence Here is their responses.

Marie- I am not worthless!!!

Ty- This week is the week I wait for all year long and I really didn't want to leave. I love the rec team and had alot of fun learning about God in their games. I love worship and had a lot of fun dancing and singing with the Lord and listing to Jake's poems. This is honestly the best week of the year for me!!

Tristan- I realized my true purpose in being called to go to camp at last minute.

Jasmine- Camp was the best thing that could have happened to me.

Those are just a few of the amazing things said about this week! This week God showed me His true calling on my life. His calling is for me to work with teens. Work with girls who feel worthless and helpless in this world. Never have I had a more clear picture of what I was made to do. When God has a plan He sees it through every time! Its time for all of us to dance in His glory! I can not be more blessed to have had the opportunity to go as a leader. I only hope that God blesses me with that same opportunity next summer.God has such amazing things in store for the Paint Rock youth! They all have willing hearts and are ready to follow His call. James has been equipped as an amazing youth pastor and is ready to lead these kids wherever God calls him to. Being part of FBC Paint Rock youth for the past three years has been a life changing experience. Getting to be the girls leader this summer is something I will never forget!


Here are a few photos I took while at seek week this past week.

Sweet hugs from Jasmine and Reagan
after they accepted Christ into their lives! 

I love the smiles on their faces as
they celebrate their new sisters in Christ

Trace and hannah after the mud fight

         
 

Here is a group photo of me with the girls! I am so blessed by them.

We love skyler! 

                                    

Pyramid time

   
                           

I love these kids.

Seek Week 2014 is a week that will forever be part of my heart. God changed lives and the kingdom was furthered. I wish that I could relive those moments forever. I am blessed to have had the opportunity to be part of this spirit filled week. I am beyond joyful at the community between the youth group. I love that God can move in mighty ways. 

You are made in the image of the beautiful, majestic, mighty, loving God. Live in that image! <3

God bless <3 

Heaven Slaugther 

WyldLife session 1

Whoa.... What a  crazy week It has been! There has been tears, laughs, arguments, joy, smiles, and craziness! There is no better way to describe WyldLife! 

WyldLife is part of young life, what WyldLife is, they are junior high kids. Junior High kids terrify me. The camp was over run by them and we were hiding in a corner. In all honesty it was not that bad. Junior High kids make me laugh. Their hormones are raging and they want everyone to think they are cool! It is a joy to work with them. This week God really taught me patience. Never have I been called to junior high ministry really. God has always called me  to work with older youth. This week I talked to some really awesome kids! Not only did God teach me patience with the kids, He taught me patience with the leaders as well. I had some interesting encounters with a few of the leaders. At first I was very angry and down by the way they were treating me. God opened my eyes to show me that the way I was acting was not in a Christ like manner. I learned that not only are we here to serve the kids and show them love and acceptance, but I am here to serve everyone. I have been called to become more like Christ daily. To accept oppression and learn from criticism. That wall of anger was broken and I was able to treat the leaders with more respect, even when they didn't treat me with respect back. 

As I was leaving Friday for another camp that I will be at tomorrow, I realized how much everyone in the house meant to me. When saying a quick goodbye, that goodbye turned into 20 minutes. Everyone gave me a hug and told me how much they would miss me. The girls told me how much I meant to them, and the boys gave me a hug letting me know how much they do care. It was comforting. On the drive home I could not stop telling stormi about the impact that they all have had on my life. In this short month or so we have become family. We have laughed, argued, cried, and just walked through difficult time in life together. I am blessed by them. 

This week not much really happened. It was more of me preparing for this next week, where I will be a youth leader for my home church. God has shown me patience, and comfort during the hard time. He showed me how to allow the boys become my brothers and how to talk to them and allow them to care for me and pray over me. He has showed me how to rely on the girls when my world is falling apart and how much power a simple hug has. Even when emotions flared, even when tempers became outrage, even when laughs turned into tears, this week God continued to bless me. He blessed me with sweet junior high kids, funny youth leaders, amazing friends, and a great camp family!

God bless <3

Heaven Slaughter 

Life at Buckner

Yesterday was the final day of the two week young lives camps! What a crazy week it was! As I sit here writing this I am laying in a hammock in the back yard of our house over looking the pond with the giant slide. It is safe to say that I am very peaceful and content right now. This is probably the most peaceful and down time I have had all week. 

This week God revealed so much of His character to me. He taught me how to stay calm even in frustration, how to love even in hurt, and how to laugh even in tiredness. I am almost positive that there was never a dull moment this week. I know God changed lives, I know this because He sure did change mine. 

I wont go through everything that happened this week. I will, however, hit on a few of the highlights.

1. Unity within the two groups- There is young life work crew here along with our summer staff. This week I got to know so many of the other young life staff members so well. Its a true blessing to do ministry along side them. One of the best moments was getting to hammock with one of the girl workers named Stacy. I was able to hang out with here for a few hours. We just shared testimonies and stories of our childhood together. I was able to encourage her, and she was defiantly able to encourage me. I love seeing how God can really work in the lives of those seeking him. 

2. Power of prayer- I worked the zip line once again this week. It is becoming my favorite activity that I work at. Many people are scared and have trust issues with the zip line. We are human. Things frighten us. Wednesday I got the privilege of meeting some awesome girls on top of the zip line tower! Time after time girls went up there terrified and allowed me to hold their hands and pray over them. Many times they asked me to pray. I was so touched that day. These girls were looking to God in their fear and God gave me the privilege of being the one who prayed over them .That day I saw fear become joy as girls zipped down and realized how peaceful it was. I saw tears turn into smile at the name of the Lord. I was able to speak truth to girls who felt Satan had a hold on their life. Not only did I see fear of the zip line disappear but I saw fear of the hold on their life disappear as well. The power of prayer is unbelievable. 


3. Kayla and Ava- While helping move all the girls in I was able to spend some time with a young mom named Kayla and her sweet baby girl Ava. These two were the picture of Joy. Throughout the whole week I was able to get to know Kayla a little more and see Ava's sweet smile. Those two really showed me what the love of Christ looks like. They were always so joyful. I got to see them while they were leaving this morning. Kayla pulled me aside and said thank you for everything. Little did she know she helped me this week! Through her and Ava God showed me a little of Himself. 

4. Unity within our staff- Its no surprise that our staff tends to fight. When living so close to one another for so long, we start to break. This week I saw God break down walls and lift our pride of ourselves. There were so many times when I saw fighting going on and someone would become the bigger person and apologise for the way they were acting. That really encouraged me. I sometimes let my pride get the best of me and feel like I need to be right. I was shown that we are a team. We work together to accomplish the goal. We can admit when we are wrong and move forward.  

There is so much more that I could write about. God reveled to me so many things. This week I saw Him break down so many walls. Not only in myself but also in so many people around me. I am blessed, even in my weakness. Press on and never give up. God can use you no matter where you are in life. He meets us where we are at and picks up the broken pieces.

Please be in prayer for the girls that encountered God these last two weeks. Also be in prayer for the middle school kids that will be coming to camp tomorrow. Also be in prayer for us, that we can show them the love of Christ no matter what. 

God bless <3

Heaven Slaughter 

Young Lives- Week 1

I'm going to do things a little different for the blog post for this week. Instead of just writing a blog about how the week went, I am going to write about each day one day at a time. That way the day is still fresh in my mind when I sit down to write about it that night. I will also write about what God showed/taught/spoke to me that day.  So for those of you reading, I hope you enjoy. (:

6/8/14

Sunday- Day 1 of young lives week 1

Today was the first official day of camp. For the next six weeks we will be working with young life. For the next two weeks we have young lives which is teen moms and their babies. (: The past week has been chaos trying to get everything prepared, but its been so rewarding. Today was stressful, joyful, insane all at once. The morning was very busy just trying to get the final touches in place for young life. I was able to attend an all camp worship with the young life staff this morning. I love that we can all come together as one. There is no separation in God's children. We are all after one goal and we should be able to unite to conquer that goal. Around 2p.m the buses started arriving with the girls! We had all activities open, I was on zip line. I think the only activity that actually had anyone at was the pool. So for three hours I sat at the zip line throwing rocks and getting into the Word. I got to zip line so that was a plus. Earlier tonight I was scheduled to help at the black light dance. I am so happy that I got to attend and help. I got to see all the girls in one place, and even got to meet a few. These girls are all between the ages of 14 and 18 so to see their smiles and hear their laughter was so rewarding. I know that most of these young moms are struggling but I couldn't help but smile when I saw how happy they were. Today God really revealed to me just how faithful He really is. He showed me how much He truly loves His children and how He loves to bring joy to their eyes. He taught me that even when the quiet moments come He is still speaking and calling after us. 

We have successfully survived day one of camp. Let the summer begin!! 

 6/9/14
Monday- Day 2 of young lives week 1
Today was... Exhausting. There is so much anger among our summer staff and it breaks my heart. I feel that we are in this for all the wrong reasons. We are doing this job for our own selfish gain instead of for the Lord and that is making us bitter. Today I worked ropes course. We got to a hectic start and it took a while for us to get going. Once we did, God showed me and reminded me why I was here. I was able to help the girls and encourage them. I used the power pole as a way to shed a little truth into them while explaining it. I was able to talk to scared girls and encourage them to let go of that fear. God reminded me that He sent me here this summer to further His kingdom and bring Him glory, not for the money or the worldly things. I am here for my Father. I found myself very frustrated today. We ended up missing dinner because the time was changed without us knowing and the kitchen forgot to put food aside for us. All of us were angry myself included. That anger seemed to lift when I saw the smiling babies and teenagers come together to enjoy the carnival we had this evening. Its amazing how God knows what it takes to bring us joy. Seeing others happy is what does it for me. Living in the house, I don't see that happiness often so lately I haven't been that light that God has called me to be. I am blessed to be here and today God reminded me that it is for His glory and not for my own. I am a Child of His and I am called to shine His light, no matter what the circumstances.

6/10/11
Tuesday- Day 3 or young lives week 1
Today was the longest day we will have, so I have herd. For weeks now we have been told that today would be the hardest most exhausting day. As I sit here at 11 p.m writing this I feel nothing but pure joy. That is how amazing the Lord is. He brings joy in our tiredness. This morning I was on TCB crew 1 (Take care of buckner) so we had to be up at 7a.m ready to clean the pool, fill water jugs, pick up trash and various other little things around the camp. I was tired this morning but my team made it so much easier to work. The guys on my team got up at 6 a.m to begin the work and let Alexys and I sleep until 7. That was so amazing of them! Once again today I was on zip line. I love it up there its so beautiful! We didnt have many people actually participating in the zip line today. Only 8 girls, but I took the down time on top the zip line platform to get into the word. After zip line we did a still frame skit for the girls, and a state fair type deal. I loved coming together with young lives summer staff and running all the events for the girls! Getting to know the other staff members has been so great! The best part of the day was the ending. Young Life threw a dance of the ages. All the campers and staff members got together and just enjoyed the dancing! Today God reminded me how blessed I am. He reminded me that even in my weakness I a strong, and even when the work is hard, He pushes me through. He taught me how to love those who are lost and how to work together with others for His glory. I am thankful for what I have and the opportunity God has given me this summer.

6/11/14
Wednesday- Day 4 of young lives week 1
Today left me speechless in so many ways. The day started off by us helping lead rec for the group that is here. That brought me so much joy! This past year God has really given me a heart and passion for rec and field events so getting to incorporate that into my work here at Buckner was amazing! Once again I was on the zip line and once again i turned into a lobster. I love running the zip line, though. I got to talk with alot of the girls today. There is one that broke my heart. To hear a young teen mom say shes getting an abortion nearly brought me to tears. I am constantly praying that God just speaks to her during the rest of this week. I was able to once again attend church this evening. God knew that I needed that and He really broke down some walls tonight. The worship was so raw and beautiful and the Lord was so present. After that I came back to the ranch house and worshiped some more with Grace and Brandon. Its such a beautiful thing  that we can openly and wonderfully praise the Lord. God is so big and so beautiful and it brings so much joy to me that I get to love Him for ever and that He allows me to be in His presence. Today God really showed me just how great He truly is. Even in my weakness, He gives me strength. Even when I'm broken He heals my wounds and shows me that all work is for His glory!

6/12/14
Thursday- Day 4 of young lives week 1 
I am writing this a day late. Yesterday was the last full day we had with young life. Not much happened yesterday. We did the normal activities with the kids and that is about all. There was a huge storm that hit the camp. Some of our staff got stuck at walmart while the rest of us were stuck in the house. Two amazing things happened yesterday! I got to skype with one of my closest friends and talk to her about her trip to Honduras. She leaves Saturday. I am so proud of Hope and Alyssa! They are following the Lord. I was able to talk with both of them and just send prayer their way and encouragement! I also got the opportunity to speak with my friend April. God really uses here to speak truth into me. She was able to just encourage me and help me through some things I have been dealing with lately. Yesterday God showed me through others a little more of Himself. I was so encouraged by friends who lavish His love upon me. 

6/13/12
Friday- Breakdown and turn over day. 
Today was a calm day. It involved alot of work but alot of fun also. Today was turnover, which meant cleaning and doing laundry! Today I completely got over my fear of vacuums cleaners because I had to vacuum so many floors. We worked from 10a.m until about 5p.m. I noticed today that when our attitudes become positive our work becomes fun. Today I had fun cleaning. Sometimes I was angry or aggravated, but there were more times when I was joyful and having a good time. After work we all got dressed up (I even wore a dress) and we went out to eat at chili's and went to a movie as a birthday/survived one week celebration! I love coming together with everyone and just having a good time. It is not often that I see all the staff in a good mood and smiling all at once. Today God showed me how to live out Colossians 3:23. How to truly do all work as doing it for the Lord. He showed me how smiles can light up a room and how celebrations  bring people closer to one another. Today God showed me love. 

There you go! There is a break down on the first week of camp! It's a long summer ahead of us, but I can already tell that its going to be a great one! God is already moving in so many ways and I am so excited to where He takes us as the summer continues! Thank you for all the prayers and sweet letters! 

God Bless <3

Heaven Slaughter 

Hope Shines Here

Wow. What a week it has been!

Wednesday night last week we got a little of a scare. One of our summer staff member's was in a car wreck. That was the first real challenge that we faced as a group. We all came together and prayed over the situation. She is alright and back at camp, but we were all startled when it happened. It really showed how in a few short weeks we have all come to care for one another. 

God has really opened my eyes this week. I have seen how much of a ministry opportunity He has given me in the house. Everyone is so broken, like me. We are all searching for something and trying to find fulfillment in things of this world. It breaks my heart, but God is really moving in me and showing me what His will is and His plan for me this summer. Friday morning CJ brought us together as a group and did a mini bible study with us. I feel like that is what we need most now. We need Christ. I had my expectations for this camp to high. That was the problem, though, they were MY expectations and God had different plans. I expected this to be a "Jesus" camp like the ones I have been experiencing at seek week the past two years. Working as a staff member is a way different experience. Its hard but God is defiantly giving me strength. I now understand that every oppertunity is an oppertunity to point others to Christ. I am always going to be on a mission trip. At first I was surprised. I did not expect to be doing ministry within the other staff members, but now I know that Gods plan all along was different then my expectations. 

In the beginning I was very skeptical wondering how God could use me to witness and minister to others this summer. I have been doing alot of making beds and cleaning toilets. When I fell apart and called upon the Lord, He provided. Last week God really showed me how He could use me no matter what I am doing. Everything is for His glory. I got to hang out with Sale Street Baptist and sit in on their worship sessions. I formed relationships with the kids and got to witness to a few of them. That week really helped prepare me for the summer. It really opened my eyes to seeing that God can use us no matter what as long as we let all we do be for His glory. 

This week we have been working with young life and getting ready for the next six weeks when we will be running camps for them. It has been great working alongside the young life workers. The next six weeks are going to be intense and busy but I know the Lord has some amazing things in store. Please be in prayer for the young life groups that will be coming. I know the first two weeks are teen moms and their babies, so this camp is about to get crazy! 

Please pray for me and that I can do the Lords work. I have been getting very discouraged and frustrated lately. I know that is not of the Lord. I have been selfish and instead of chasing after God's heart I have been going my own way. Pray for the other staff members that thy just seek after God in all that they do. Pray that we can work together as a team even when we get angry with one another. Pray for the camps and their workers as they make it a week the kids wont forget. Also pray for the campers that they encounter God in a new way. 

God bless

Heaven Slaughter 

Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters. 

Colossians 3:23 

Camp Buckner

Hey guys, I know it has been a really long time since I have updated anything. For that I am sorry. I have many people wanting me to keep them updated on what is going on this summer, and I figure this is a good way to do that.

This summer I have the opportunity to work at camp Buckner in Burnet Texas. I have been going to summer camp for a few years with many of the people that work here or live in Burnet, and last summer i felt the Lord really pulling on my heart to work with this group of people. At that time I didn't know what that would look like. Maybe rec team for front line ministries or just living in Burnet for a summer. Last semester I discovered what God was calling me to. I started to look at camp jobs for the summer and I got in touch with CJ who was the leader of the summer staff for Buckner in Burnet. During that time there was no doubt in my mind that Camp Buckner was where God was leading me for the summer. As I started to look more into what Camp Buckner really was I started to fall more in love with the ministry. Buckner International is a orphanage ministry. They have in Texas camps and out of country mission trips. I am so blessed to be part of this wonderful ministry.

I arrived on the 18th. I had only been out of school two days before having to drive up to camp, so I was a little wore out, but God defiantly got me pumped up! The first day was about getting acquainted with the other staff members that we would be living with for the next three months. There were ten of us total but by the end of the two training weeks we will have a total of 12 staff members. So far there is:

Alexys and Alex- The twins. I go to school with Alexys and through that have gotten to know her sister. They are great to do ministry alongside
Victoria- She is from Irving and her heart for the Lord is inspiring.
Reed- Hes the outdoorsy guy who is quiet and has random moments
Canon- He is the one who reminds me of my brother. He is kind and funny but has some funny violent verbal moments.
Jon Jon- He is Napoleon Dynamite. That is the only way to describe him.
Thomas- I have known Thomas for nearly a year now. He is the funny guy. I have seen so much growth in him this past year and I can not wait to see how God grows him this summer. 
Seth- Seth is seth. He is the baby of the group and I feel God is going to really change him this summer. 
Jose- He is the oldest guy of the group. He is funny and caring and takes care of us girls.
Ben- He is one of the ones who just got here a few days ago. He is on retreat staff here at Buckner.

On our staff field trip we got the opportunity to visit Buckner headquarters in Dallas. We also got to visit one of the warehouses and see part of the Go Now missions training. It was a true blessing to be there.






One staff member that we can never forget is CJ, our boss. He is goofy and crazy but is one of the best guys I know!





It is crazy how close we have all became in the less than two weeks that we have been here. We are a family. That closeness comes from living in a four bedroom house with one another and going through intense training together. We basically do everything together from ropes course, to eating, to cleaning and even living. 

Last week we really focused on team building as well as getting certified for ropes trainings. It was a blast and a challenge. In a few short days we all learned who the leaders of the group were, and we learned how to be patient with one another. God challenged us in so many ways this past week. Some of us broke down and fell apart and others carried those who were weak. 

I have been struggling for a while now and this weak I learned how to let others help me. Even though they did not know the situation, they were able to speak kind words to me and make me laugh and realize that God's love shines through all. By the end of the week we were all roped certified. I did things I never imagined that I could do in a few short days. I learned to not say 'I can't' ever and to not tear one another down but lift each other up. 

This is a picture of me setting up the rope wall. This is one of the things I am now certified to do. 




Sunday morning we got the opportunity to attend church at the epicenter. For three years I have heard about this church and it was such a blessing to be able to attend. The service made me feel like I was sitting in on a night at seek week and I really felt God moving through that church. It was great to get to see some of my friends that I had met through the years. Its still unbelievable to me that I am now working for the people who ran the church that changed my life. That night I got to attend a bible study led by my boss CJ at the epicenter. It was exciting. 

If you are ever in the burnet area stop by this church you wont regret it! 





This past week I have been working with the cleaning crew. I was unable to pass the pre rec for lifeguard certification, so a few of us are now working with cleaning staff while the others go through training. At first I was hesitant and a little down on myself. I felt like God couldn't use me if I was cleaning all day long. Boy was I wrong! God can use us no matter what the job. Everyday is a mission trip and God can use us no matter what! 

Today we got the opportunity to run ropes for the first group of the summer. We did it for a ladies nurse retreat. It was a blessing to serve them! They were crazy and funny and spoke so much life into me. 

God has big things in store for this summer. I can already feel Him working on my heart and breaking down my walls. I pray constantly that He will use me no matter what the situation. Please pray for me as I walk down this journey. 

If anyone has prayer request for the summer feel free to facebook message me or email me at 
Heaven_California14@yahoo.com 

God bless <3

Heaven Slaughter