August Family Camp 2012

Attendance during this week of Family Camp grew as the week went on. It was exciting to see the Lord work and hear testimonies during the Friday night campfire of the spiritual blessings of the week, including one profession of salvation.
 

View more pictures from this week of family camp on our Facebook Page.

Teen 2 Camp 2012

A great week ministering to 85 teens. Praising the Lord that many spiritual decisions were made during this week of camp.

View more pictures from this week of teen camp on our Facebook Page.

Teen 1 Camp 2012

View more pictures from this week of teen camp on our Facebook Page.

Junior 2 Camp 2012

View more pictures from this week of youth camp on our Facebook Page.

Junior 1 Camp 2012

View more pictures from this week of youth camp on our Facebook Page.

July Family Camp 2012

To view more pictures from this week of Family Camp, go to our Facebook Page.

Mother/Daughter Retreat 2012

To view more pictures of the retreat, go to our Facebook page.

Pastors' Conference 2012

Pastors' Conference 2012

Twenty-nine pastors enjoyed a few days away from the world at Peniel's Annual Pastors' Conference June 25-27th. Many commented on what a blessing this conference was for them. 

"I had a wonderful time at the Pastors' Conference which was very edifying. The sessions and discussions, the meals, and fellowship were all wonderful. Thank you so much to all the staff at Peniel. We pray the Lord will meet the needs at Peniel Bible Camp and continue to richly bless your ministry." 

Time for study

Time for discussion

 

Time for recreation

Preparing the Beach for the Campers

Mr. Nathan is reworking the sand on the beach in preparation for the young campers who like to play in the sand.

 

 

Preparing for our summer camps...

Today our first food order arrived - in two semi-trucks!

Well, actually the food was on one truck and the other truck driver was in training so he came along on this delivery as well. But it was funny to see two semi-trucks drive in with two guys unloading food from the truck and into the camp kitchen.

Tomorrow we will be getting the kitchen ready to prepare that first meal on Monday. That means organizing the pantry, cooler, and freezer - unpacking boxes and getting everything on the shelves, etc.

Pray for Melody Peeler and her kitchen staff as they prepare and serve hundreds of meals each week this summer.

Time to Put the Aqua Jump Back in the Lake

It's June 7th and time to get the Aqua Jump back out in the lake. Each fall the Aqua Jump is brought in, deflated, cleaned, and stored indoors over the winter. Warm weather has arrived with no more chance of frost so it's time to put the Aqua Jump back in the water for this season's campers to enjoy. Not an easy project... but fun to watch.

First, they pushed the inflated Aqua Jump out in the water and then quickly got into the boat to go after it.

It was then pushed out into the swimming area.

When they got out there, they got the the weights ready...

...but while doing that the Aqua Jump floated away. (It was a breezy day.) So Aaron went to get it and brought it back.

Now the guys have to go below to hook the anchors to the hooks on the Aqua Jump.

Reinforcements coming. Izaac swims out to help.

Working below to anchor the Aqua Jump.

Putting the Blob into place

Keeping in contact with those below...

Needed more tools so Dan rowed back and got the tools, and

...they were handed down to Izaac below.

All hooked up. Now it's time to straighten it and anchor the Blob.

Moving it clockwise...

...a little too far. So...

...let's move it counter-clockwise.

Anchoring the Blob

...and it's all set for campers swim time!

Memorial Day Celebration 2012

What a wonderful day it was! The day began with a service in the chapel with patriotic music, honoring our servicemen, and a message by Pastor Stephen Howard. The offering received was over $3800 with the promise of additional gifts to come.

Following the service everyone was treated to a delicious picnic lunch with hamburgers, hotdogs, french fries, and lemonade provided by the camp. With each family bringing a dish to share, there was plenty of food to fill the plates of the 300+ people!

Then there were games for the children with ice cream cones as prizes.The adults enjoyed watching from the shade on the hill as the children ran off energy.

The first annual 5K Fun Run/Hike started at 1:30 with 31 runners/walkers participating. Each one finished the race to the cheers of those gathered at the finish line. For many this was their first 5K; for most it was the hottest one they ever participated in!

Pastor Donald Gallion shot off several rockets and the children ran through the fields to retrieve them. A "rocket show" followed, viewing footage from the rockets' cameras.

The last thing on the schedule was the Chicago-style 16" softball game for teens and adults.

Families enjoyed boating, swimming, fishing, playing games in and around the Rec Hall, shooting at the rifle range, and eating French vanilla and/or strawberry shortcake ice cream cones from the Snack Shop.

Many memories were made on Memorial Day 2012 at Peniel Bible Camp. While it was a very warm day in central Ohio, the breezes coming across the lake were refreshing. The fellowship with others from around the state and beyond was priceless. Many expressed their appreciation for a fun-filled day.

Memorial Day Conference Offering Project Announcement

Link to letter from the Ohio Bible Mission regarding the 2012 Memorial Day Offering here. Text below.
-----------------------

Dear Members and Friends of the Ohio Bible Fellowship,

Thank you for your past service and support of Peniel Bible Camp. Many of you have served as camp counselors, cooks, maintenance help, and other support staff. However, serving as staff is not the only way of service. Another way of serving the Lord is through our gifts. One reason that we have an offering at the camp Memorial Day service is to provide another avenue so that God’s people can serve in the ministry
of Peniel Bible Camp.

A quality camp facility requires constant maintenance and upgrades of existing resources, but also new projects. Major upgrades to the Bookstore and Snack shop are mostly completed. Upgrades of the youth cabins have been made. The driveways and certain pathways around the camp have been graveled. We plan to reroof the bath house, and we have many more projects that we would like to get started. We
believe that the bath house and road graveling should be the emphasis and have set a Memorial Day Conference offering goal of $6,000. We ask you and your people to prayerfully consider how you might help toward these improvements to our facility at camp.

We encourage your participation in the Memorial Day Celebration and look forward to some extra-special events this year. There will be free food, games for the kids, a 5K walk/run, launching of model rockets, a
softball game, along with opportunities to enjoy all the special facilities at camp. This is one event you’ll not want your people to miss. More information is located here.

Again, we are thankful for your support for the ministry at Peniel and look forward to how the Lord will bless in the future as we faithfully follow Him. I will be glad to answer any questions you may have.

For the Lord’s Glory,
Donald L. Gallion
President, Ohio Bible Mission

Your Invitation to the 2012 Memorial Day Celebration at Peniel Bible Camp

Link to printable copy here

Fathers and Sons Together at Peniel

 

The 21st Annual OBF Father/Son Retreat was held at Peniel May 4th and 5th, 2012. One hundred forty-one fathers and sons of all ages enjoyed spending time together away from the world. Many memories were made fishing, canoeing, singing, sharing, doing a "man craft" together, learning new skills, and growing in Godly wisdom.

One father said that although it wasn't easy for a dad to care for his 3 young boys away from home, he knew the time spent with them was worth it in the long run! Another father said that he had such a good time last year that he decided not to miss it this year even if no one else from his church was able to attend. Spending time with his son at Peniel's Father/Son Retreat was one of the best investments he could make in his son's life.

Additional pictures may be viewed on our Facebook page. (If you are not a Facebook user and cannot view these pictures using this link, please let us know. This is the first time we have tried to link a Facebook album to our blog.)

Reopening of the Peniel Bookstore

The Women's Retreat 2011 offering was designated for renovation of the Peniel Bookstore. Over the past 6 months much work has been accomplished by our camp staff and numerous volunteers who gave of their time to the work at Peniel. Many thanks go to all who helped with this project. 

The Peniel Bookstore reopened for business during the first weekend retreat of the 2012 camping season.

Stop in the next time you're at Peniel Bible Camp and see what has been done here at Peniel Bible Camp!

The view as you enter the bookstore

New camp clothing for 2012

Custom made walnut bookshelves on the back wall

Music area

All Cleaned Up

Thanks to all who worked at Peniel Bible Camp in April to ready the camp for the 2012 camping season.

Camp Clean Up: One Down, One To Go!

The first Clean-up Day for 2012 is now history. We are thankful for the folks that came out on a blustery Saturday to help clean the camp. Several buildings are now clean and ready for the start of camp next week. However, there is much more to be done. We would invite you to be part of the group planning to come this Saturday to finish the job. Working together makes the job more enjoyable!

Bring your cleaning supplies: shop vac, paper towels, cleaners, etc. Also bring your lunch and plan to enjoy some fellowship while we eat. 

Contact Izaac (pdirector@obf.net) for more information. 

See you Saturday, April 28th!