As students prepare for the last week of classes and then finals, we at Challenge interview as many as we are able to meet with, set our plans for next year, and have a week of banquets and picnics.  Above are the freshmen who were able to attend our Spring Banquet.  This is an annual event that has grown in its tradition.  This year we had 89 students, parents, and alum present.  We use this event as a time to celebrate what God has done over the year and is doing as we send students out for the summer.  The Red Lion Restaurant always treats us very well also.

This year one of the freshmen shared how God had used Challenge to greatly impact his life.  He entered CU looking for a Christian group to be involved with, but really was looking forward to the college life - fun, drinking, etc.  One of our freshmen leaders met this guy and his roommate the first day and he plugged into Challenge while pursuing his more important pursuits.  Little did he know (I really like that phrase) that God was going to start working on his heart.  Before the fall semester was finished, he was on a different course and our winter conference stabilized that path.  He began having consistent quiet times, memorizing verses, and will be attending Project Impact this summer.

We also commissioned our Southeast Asia team.  For the 5th consecutive year we are sending a team for the summer to work with and support our former staff who lives with his family in SE Asia.  Our son Caleb will be on the team this year and we are thrilled with his direction.

So this wasn’t taking place at one of the more well known regional venues.  More like a backyard!  But a fun back yard.  March Madness for us meant a men’s weekend. However, hoops had to play a part, so this was how the time began.  It came to a crashing halt though when the rim wanted to come down and join the party.

Our men’s weekends are when we have an extra focus on being a godly man.  This particular time one of the coaches from the CU football team took the guys into the inner sanctum and then spoke about godliness and manhood.  It was pretty sweet.

Then the breaking of things continued.  The guys thought some football might be fun and so they played.  Well, it will be a good memory, but we are feeling the consequences.  Our worship leader/guitar player had surgery for a broken finger.  Josh, our son, is nursing a very tender (probably a minor fracture) back and has been out of commission for a while.

But the redemptive madness goes on…CU made the tournament!  So on the first night last week we were looking forward to a quiet night as a fam, students came over to watch the game - late.  Then Saturday night the same.  We are blessed to be a blessing and so these occassions are a chance to bless students - and we are glad to do so.  Changing the world through God-honoring relationships happens and progresses through just such times as this!

So we keep doing what we do and then…sickness invades the family.  All of a sudden its a week later than when you were last coherent.  Wow! Where did that week go?

The Colorado Crud that has been coursing through companions finally conquered our comfort.  When one is sick it is not so bad.  When 5 or 6 out of 8 are in various stages of Crud, its bad.

But the sun does rise again and spring follows winter.  Life slowly returns and mourning turns into dancing.  A shout of joy comes.

And so does catching up on a week’s worth of work left waiting!

(no one was injured in the taking of this photograph)                                                                                                   ((click on for complete picture))

Friday night we held our annual Valentine’s banquet.  For Challenge men, this is an opportunity to honor the ladies by paying for, preparing, and serving a meal to them.  Its a chance for all to dress up a little more formally than normal.  Its an event to which we can invite new people and friends.  And its an occasion to promote and celebrate genuine love within a community.

³⁴ So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. ³⁵ Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.”  John 13:34-35

And its a lot of fun.  This year included a mario kart love song, a skit by our freshmen (the best ever), a skit by the staff men that will remain a secret (unless dancing to Justin Bieber is ok for old men), and a presentation of wooden swords to the men by the women.

It is a little part of changing the world through God-honoring relationships (and we did have students from Japan and China there as well) and one of the ways to live out John 13.

When you are in the middle of a quiet time, does scripture ever bring songs to your mind?  This happens to me all the time.  While reading in Zechariah, I came across this:

Zech. 14:⁹ The LORD will be king over the whole earth. On that day there will be one LORD, and his name the only name.

Now this is a statement of fact that everyone will acknowledge, now or later.  As I was thinking on this a song came to mind.  I have put it below, not so much for the video as for the music.  Isn’t this good?  and Aren’t you Glad!!  Enjoy

Here are the lyrics

In the first light of a new day
No one knew He had arrived
Things continued as they had been
While a newborn softly cried

But the heavens rapt’ in wonder
Knew the meaning of His birth
In the weakness of a baby
They knew God had come to earth

As His mother held Him closely
It was hard to understand
That her baby not yet speaking
Was the Word of God to man

He would tell them of His Kingdom
But their hearts would not believe
They would hate Him and in anger
They would nail Him to a Tree

But the sadness would be broken
As the Song of Life arose
And the Firstborn of Creation
Would ascend and take His Throne

He had left it to redeem us
But before His life began
He knew He’d come back
Not as a baby but as The Lord of every man

Hear the Angels as they’re singing
On the morning of His birth
But how much greater will their song be
When He comes again, when He comes again

Hear the Angels as they’re singing
On the morning of His birth
But how much greater will their song be
When He comes again to Earth

When He comes, When He comes
When He comes to rule the earth

When He comes back
When He comes back
To Rule the earth

Here is something that may be helpful for you from Justin Taylor.  We could probably all use a reminder and a refresher on how to listen to sermons and why.

After 36 hours the fire is zero contained, over 7100 acres are burned, and more than 3000 people have been evacuated from the mountain communities and foothills just west of Boulder.  Slurry planes have been constantly flying over since noon to drop retardant around the fire.

The shelter on campus has closed and the Red Cross has opened others in North Boulder.  More facts are still hard to come by, but it appears to be a nasty fire that is not wanting to behave very well.

All of Boulder is still okay except for the air quality.

On Saturday we took on Longs Peak, which is the tallest mountain north of I-70, with a group of 18.  It is not called Longs Peak for nothing.  The day started when we left the house at 2am for the one hour drive to the trail head.  Spirits were high.

Then we started climbing.

The first two hours were in the dark which was sort of fun and adventurous.  The sunrise was spectacular and sparked a need to worship God.  Even after a few hours, the climbing was still enjoyable and we were having a great time.

Then came the keyhole!  Duh, duh, duh!! (hear that sinister three note jingle)

It was so bad that I am only showing just this one edge.  The whole thing would be asking too much for you to take in at once.  And just think, we were there and couldn’t get away.  And, to make matters worse, to continue to the summit we had to enter the keyhole (duh, duh, duh).  That’s right, the trail goes right through the keyhole.

Upon crossing through the keyhole, we entered an alternate mountain universe.  No longer was there a nice path to walk on.  No longer were there grasses or trees or color.  Only rock.   Cold, hard, steep, and in some places, sheer rocks with only air below us if we took a wrong step.

After a harrowing trek across the side of a cliff we came to the Trough.

Notice how the color has left the world.  After dodging falling rocks, kicked inadvertently by other climbers or sent by the Keyhole (we’ll never know), several stops for rest and making it to the top of the Trough, we were greeted with, not the summit or anything close to the summit, but a length of narrow ledges.  I’ve omitted these pictures as well for the faint of heart ( and myself so I don’t have to relive that part).

After that nasty little part we made it to the Homestretch, which is a nice sounding name for a long climb up a steep, flat rock face which keeps your insides twisted with the possibility of a long slide down.

After many stops for rest and prayer, we finally made the top.

15 out of the 18 who started made it.  Oh, the other three weren’t taken by the Keyhole, they smartly turned back before entering.  Mark it up to prophetic wisdom or a word from God.

At this point, all I wanted to do was just go home, except I was 8 miles from the trail head and feeling bad with altitude sickness ( or Keyhole disease).  So we started the trek down.  It had taken us just over 6 and a half hours to reach the top and, when all was said and done, it took 8 and a half hours to get down.  Now I know what your thinking.  Doesn’t it take a shorter time to go down?  On most mountains, yes. But this is Longs Peak (its not named that for nothing).

So 15 hours after starting our jolly little jaunt up the mountain, we were back to the beginning.  It was a slow and arduous descent compounded by shortness of breath and weakness and a stop for sickness. Oh yeah. There was also rain and hail that pounded us before and after, you know what I’m going to say, (duh, duh, duh) - the Keyhole!  Slick rocks with a sheer drop off is just not my idea of a great time.

Everyone was grateful to be back down and all mentioned how they had prayed the entire time.  Most made it down quickly (11 and a half hours), a few in 14, and me, one other student and our good friend and the one who helped us down, Menkes (15 hours).

So the adventure came to an end.  I will do more hikes in the future, but not that one.  And praise God that all made it back.

I saw this post by Joshua Harris about Jason Powell’s pictures.  These are cool pictures.

These remind me of something I read in a leadership book several years ago.  In a study mentioned in the book, it was found that those people who look back farthest into their lives, i.e. reflect on their past, see how God has worked, remember what they have learned, etc., have the longest forward vision for their lives.

What does God want us to accomplish with the lives and time He has given to us?  We should set aside some time to look back as far as we can and ponder deeply the path we have walked.  Taking this into consideration and laying it open before God, we should then ’see’ where we can be going.

It is time for an update on things in this wacky world we’re in.

-  We are grateful that Josh had his shoulder operated on last week.  His labrum was torn and so his shoulder was not working like it should and the bone at the top of his arm seemed to prefer not staying in the right place.  The surgeon is a great guy and we praise God for procedures that can be done these days.

-   We are 30% of the way towards what we need for our SEA trip! Yipeee!!

-  Spring break is coming soon.  We will be taking students to New Castle, CO to serve RiverChurches there and pray.

That’s the quick word from Boulder.