Monday, August 30, 2010

Letter from Sky Ranch's CEO and President...Linda Paulk


Hi Moms! I pray your school year kicked off with great anticipation for what God has planned for you and your children this year!   It has been such a blessing to see how God has utilized SkyMom’s to minister to so many women.  I wanted to take a moment and tell you how grateful I am to serve each one of you and all of the families of Sky Ranch. 

Wrapping up summer camp 2010 and kicking off recruiting last weekend…yes, already, to ensure that we once again have amazing Godly character role models to love on your children summer 2011.  The results of summer 2010 are phenomenal…the evidence of God’s work was clear in our conversations with families and the surveys.  Well over 400 young people made decisions to trust Christ as their Lord and savior for the first time.  Over 2,000 other kids made a decision during their week of camp, to follow Christ.  Praise God!

Many ask what we do the rest of the year at Sky Ranch.  Well, when we closed the last session of camp 2010, within an hour we had 700 people show up to utilize our facilities for retreats.  Each year about 57,000 people, mostly youth pass through our gates.  We hold retreats, deliver school programs, host rodeo camps, and minister to families through out parent child retreats.  Hope you are all planning to visit Sky Ranch before summer 2011.  Visit skyranch.org for more information.

Moms…with the rising statistics of the devastating results of the intense pressures our kids face today, we cannot do enough to pour into our kids, partner with organizations like Sky Ranch and other youth ministries that reinforce the hope and love we have in Christ and positively impact the results of these pressures. Eating disorders, substance addictions, sexual activity, teen pregnancies, cutting, and so many other manifestations of depression…Let me just encourage you Moms…Don’t give up…you can and will make a difference.  We serve a God that answers all prayers, we serve a God that brings possible to the word impossible, and we can do ALL things through Christ who provides us with our strength!

I want to share just one of the hundreds of stories from summer – Her name was Holly.  Holly came to Sky Ranch for the first time and was very apprehensive about coming.  Her parents had just gotten a divorce, she was at a point where she was questioning whether there was even a God that exists, she was drinking and even started to experiment with drugs.  Holly was even wondering whether she wanted to continue existing in this world herself.  The first couple of days she was quiet and almost despondent, but through prayer and pursuit of her counselors in the cabin, she opened up and shared what was going on in her life.  As she opened up and shared, one of her counselors was able to share the love of Christ, give her hope through God’s promises and evidence in God’s word, the truth.  During this time God worked in Holly’s heart, she had an intense desire to know more about how much God loved her and what He did for her.  Holly shares that, "When I came to Sky Ranch I was sad, broken, and depressed.  I had no one to talk to about what I was going on in my life.  At Sky Ranch, I found a God who loves me no matter what…that I can trust no matter what…and that created me with purpose".  "For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future".  Jeremiah 29:11

Until next time…let us know if there is anything at all we can do for you here at Sky Ranch.  We are here to serve you and your family! 

Linda Paulk

Thursday, August 26, 2010

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

Family Camp Poppy Seed Chicken

Here is another Family Camp favorite!  All the families cleaned their plates with this yummy dish!


3lbs- 6-8  chicken breast-cooked and diced
8ozs sour cream
2 cans cream of mushroom soup
2 teaspoons poppy seeds
1 sleeve of Ritz crackers-crushed
1/2 cup butter, melted


Directions

  1. Preheat to 350 degrees F 
  2. Place the diced chicken breasts on the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish sprayed with a nonstick cooking spray. In a bowl combine the sour cream and soup. Pour or spoon mixture over the chicken. 
  3. Mix the poppy seeds and crushed crackers and sprinkle mixture over the chicken, salt and pepper. Drizzle the melted butter or margarine over the cracker/poppyseed layer and bake covered in the preheated oven for 30 to 45 minutes. Let stand a few minutes before servings.

I like to serve over cooked white rice.  Enjoy!

Proverbs 22:6

Monday, August 23, 2010

First Day Back to School



Dear SkyMoms,

I just wanted to drop by and let you know that you and your children were prayed for today.  I have prayed that your kiddos had a fantastic day and all the things that they learned this Summer at Sky Ranch gave them the boldness to be a friend to the friendless, or courage to stand up for what is right.  Possibly they showed selflessness when picking a seat at the lunch table, or generosity to the child who forgot to pack a lunch.  No matter the character trait, we pray that they showed what it is like to "BE" a follower of Christ in all situations.

Hope you all had a fantastic first day back to school!

Blessings,
Tori




Monday, August 16, 2010

Return to Sender



In light of the month of August which requires many moms and dads to do the dreaded “drop off at college” rite of passage, I decided to bring back the blog I wrote in August 2007.  It is a gentle reminder of our goal in parenting – to work ourselves out of a job. 


Return to Sender (by Lisa Clark)


I remember being in my preteens and doing chores in our home.  I liked to vacuum so I usually got to pick that as my chore du jour (oldest child privilege).  With the smell of Lemon Pledge in the air, I would vacuum away to my mom’s 8 track tape of Elvis’ Greatest Hits.  One of my favorites was “Return to Sender.”  I would sing along and vacuum my heart out.  Elvis had a way of making vacuuming seem kind of cool.

That song came to mind last month as my husband Brad and I left our oldest daughter in Nashville, Tennessee to start her freshman year of college.  It came way too fast.   I guess it always does.  I think I cried through most of her senior year.  Every “last” this or “last” that.  “Last” first-day-of-school picture, “Last” pep rally, “Last” Christmas school concert, “Last” Sadie Hawkins dance, etc. etc. etc….cry…cry…cry…

Brad never quite got it.  Never shed a tear the whole year…but then the day came to leave her in Nashville and come back to reality…I mean Plano, Texas.  He got it.  And got it the whole flight home.

As hard as it was to leave her there, we knew God was there with her.  Who better to walk her through this new chapter of life than The King of Kings and Lord of Lords?  I mean, come on!  You step out in faith when you begin your family.  What great woman among us knows if she is going to be a good mom or not?  I didn’t feel like a great mom those first few months after bringing her home from the hospital.  She cried all the time.  I was tired, hormonal, fat…you get the picture.  But I was doing my job.  I fed her, changed her, bathed her, loved her and she began to grow.

And now, I see the fruits of my labors…

We pray for our children as they grow that they will love the Lord with all their hearts, souls and minds.  That they will accept Him as Savior at a young age.  That they will live lives that are pure and holy before Him.  And yet we hold on to them sometimes as if they were really ours.  God has reminded me over and over again that the children He has blessed me with are His.  His creation created for His pleasure.  He has gifted me with them as a blessing TO ME.  I can be part of the molding and shaping process that must take place for them to grow up, but I can’t claim them as my own.  I must return them to their Sender. 

Moms, we should not wait until our children go off to college to return them to Jesus.  We must be doing that on a daily basis.  In doing so, we are reminded that He loves them more than we do, has a plan for their lives and, in turn, we become free to love them just for who they are…Children of the King.  

Friday, August 13, 2010

SPA DAY LUNCHEON!! Make your FREE reservation today!




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SPA DAY LUNCHEON...
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Sky Ranch | 24657 CR 448 | Van | TX | 75790

Sunday, August 8, 2010

LAURA FRAWLEY ~ AUGUST SKYMOM of the Month

Four kids. Three Sky Ranch sessions. David and I often laugh at how hard we tried to get all four kids to go the same week.  We REALLY tried! Maybe we could have gone to Jamaica or Mexico or just had a week of peace and quiet in our Plano house? It was just too hard to coordinate with busy kids and sports and friends.  We decided to embrace the different weeks.  God certainly knew what He was doing! We had campers in Sky 1, Sky 2, Morph and Quest.  We made 6 total trips to Van Texas with 6 stops at Dairy Palace along the way.  There has been at least one trunk with partial contents of camp "stuff" on the kitchen floor since mid-June.  Bibles are open and marked with lessons and life verses in each kid's room and the talk of Sky Ranch counselors, cabin raids and Skywaii has been a regular part of our meal conversation for weeks!  Collectively our Frawley campers experienced Sigma coming into camp and the emotion surrounding their commitment and experience, Sigma reading bible verses by flashlight along the road to Friday night campfire, Morph and the re-naming of Landry Hall to "Waffle House" for only one week, Inductive Bible study exploration, Life verses including Proverbs 27:17 from our Sky 1 camper and finally bonding with the Tru-Campers in session 10 and making a friend in a girl named Jamie that would otherwise not have had the opportunity to experience the greatness of Sky Ranch if not for the generosity of others and Tru-Camp.  God found a way to literally bring Sky Ranch into our home for more than just one week.  Each member of our family shared in the other's experiences and gained what was special for each particular session.  We are in awe of how this worked out and are ever thankful for Sky Ranch summer camp and to God for His plan to bless our summer in this way.



Katharine, Ellen, Scotty and Mark Frawley

Tuesday, August 3, 2010

Save the Date...SPA Day Luncheon!!

Mark your calendars now for our well known
SPA Day Luncheon...Sept 23, 2010, 11:00 am at the 
Hotel InterContinental - Addison, Tx ! 
 Registration will be coming out soon so be sure to register online this year...we will send out an email and I will post registration directions on here too!!

Monday, August 2, 2010

Sky Ranch Family Camp Mint Chocolate Chip Pie

With the weather being in the 100+ degrees here in Texas, I quickly remembered this pie that was served at Family Camp this summer.  It is delicious and it would be a nice "cool down" easy dessert  to make and serve in these dog days of Summer! 

Sky Ranch Family Camp Mint Chocolate Chip Pie

1/2 gallon mint Chocolate Chip ice cream
1 jar fudge sauce
1 9 inch chocolate crust
12 oreo cookies
2 tablespoons melted butter

Crush oreo cookies, mix with the melted butter and press into pie plate, Put ice cream into crust and drizzle fudge sauce over ice cream and sprinkle with nuts (optional).
Freeze 1/2 hour before serving.
Remove from freezer and let soften a bit before serving.

Enjoy :)!


Joshua 24:15


I love this verse...I have it on my wall in my entry way as a reminder to me and all that enter...that in our home...We WILL SERVE the LORD!