Merry Christmas!

To our friends and family.

Some things never change.

As the Christmas season approaches, we are delighted to be reminded of the things that haven’t changed.  God’s provision for us in Christ is a finished work, and our mission remains to understand the implications of this more and more, while helping others see this glorious truth in greater detail as well.

Everything else… does. 

Here are the two biggest changes from the last few months!:

Charles Schaeffer Jacobson

Charlie was born on October 10^th and his presence has changed almost everything about our day-to-day lives. What an amazing thing it is to watch a new life created before your eyes! Every day we discover new blessings as we get to know the little man God has entrusted to us. Of course Laura has experienced the most change as a result of Charlie’s birth, and learning to balance motherhood and her other roles will be the next challenge for her. It does change my mindset also, as I feel the draw to be home more often. I will never avoid the 14 hour days completely, but they can’t ALL be like that anymore!  Please keep us in your prayers. Charlie is doing great— and yes, that middle name is in honor of Francis Schaeffer, whose writings have been very influential to me over the years. Our lives will never be the same, and we love it!

Trailhead is underway!

For years, we have dreamed of this gap-year (post high school) program at CFS, and in September we watched it become reality. Nine students arrived on September 2nd from across the country (and outside of it) ready to learn, and experience camp’s unique community. Our goals for them are:

•Better understanding of the gospel through Biblical training and mentorship

•Better understanding of their own strengths and how they may lead to a career

•Better preparedness for adult life (finances, home/auto repair, work ethic etc.)

The road has been bumpy at times, but we are excited when we see growth and learning.  We pray that each of these students will be better prepared for their next step in life when we cut them loose in May. To learn more about the program and to see pictures, check out our weekly updates at

http://jacobsonupdate.blogspot.com  !

Much love to you,

Dan, Laura & Charlie

As always, the Dinner Theatre at Camp Forest Springs has represented a fun change of pace. This event is one of our more popular offerings to the public, and is just totally unique compared with everything else we do. The students have been involved in stage crew, serving, dishes, etc. and have been a big help.

We finished up our Dave Ramsey financial course last week, and will spend a few days this week talking about Biblical financial perspectives and stewardship. The week will taper off a bit, as several students leave early for Christmas plans. We will spend the better part of our final day in Cross-Country skiing class! Unlike many of you, we have PLENTY of snow already.

The canoe is almost at the halfway point. This half has been fiberglassed and will soon be removed from the strongback. Can they get it finished by May? Hmm....

Have a Merry Christmas!

half a canoe!

Here are some pictures from chainsaw class!

 Preliminary instruction

Wood splitting class was thrown in for free.

Tyler trying his hand

The ladies were impressive (according to David)

The week has been full, with financial training daily. Tomorrow will be the "Strong's Interest Inventory" results session. The students will learn about their test results, and what their interests mean in regard to future career choices. We are all looking forward to hearing what the tests show for each of our diverse students.

Look for the canoe to take some MAJOR leaps forward in the near future. I will be excited to post new pictures shortly after the students return from break! Have a great Thanksgiving!

Is failure at trailhead.... failure?

To rephrase the question: when I walked into the trailhead kitchen this evening to find three young men huddled around a pot of half-crunchy, half-burnt rice, trying to figure out what went wrong... Was it a bad thing?

Failure is what Trailhead is all about... sort of. The lessons that come from trying and failing are lessons that really get learned. Trying new things takes courage. It's easy to never attempt anything you aren't comfortable with. For some, its performing an oil change, and for others its hiking for two days in the snow. For three guys, its rice.

Each of these experiences represents a practical skill of course, but beyond that, the courage to learn from failure is a lifelong skill. I suppose we can say that failure at trailhead isn't failure unless we don't learn from it. Which means we still need to figure out what happened with that rice... 

Last week we hit the road for a quick snow hike. We entered the Porcupine Mountains Wilderness on Thursday about lunch time and returned to the van about the same time the next day. Two back-country log cabins provided housing and a place to have time with "just the guys." I had been meaning to chat about "man stuff" for awhile, and what better place than a wilderness log cabin with a roaring wood stove and everyone's wet socks hanging around? We're still not sure what the girls did.

 A couple pictures:

So now its back to business. We began Dave Ramsey's "Financial Peace for College Students" today.  Should be fun!

The students have been in class solid for almost a month. Most of them are doing great and actually like the class load. I think all of them are okay with a break, however. So Friday we had our first "Basic Practical Skills" class. We grabbed a couple of vehicles and taught (or reminded) the students how to perform a basic oil change, tire change, and brake pad installation.

 

Jalene and Ashley changing oil!

I think everyone had a good time, and this will begin to be a normal Friday AM thing. Whats next?   

Chainsaws anyone?

The canoe has slowly crept forward. The men are getting distracted I'm afraid and I need to figure out how I can motivate them to keep at it. This is such a special project and the reward in the Spring will be so great if we can get it done!

As part of "Taking a break from class" week, We decided to go backpacking! So we plan to leave in the morning for a short, two-day camp-out in the Porcupine Mountains Wilderness in Michigan, you know... before it gets too cold out to do this kind of thing :)

Should be fun. Pictures will be posted I'm sure.

Whats next?

Sunday through Tuesday is our annual pastors' retreat and the speaker is JOE STOWELL! The students will help out with keeping the place operating, but should have opportunity to sit in on some great teaching as well. 

Joseph Stowell is the President of Cornerstone University and author of over 20 books

Wednesday we begin "Financial Peace University for College Students." This course by Dave Ramsey will be a good overview of financial planning, saving, budgets, debt, mortgages etc. I am excited to watch the students tackle the material. Dave is an exceptional teacher, and this is VERY important stuff.

Keep praying for improved unity in the group and wisdom on my part as I begin to provide more encouragement and exhortation regarding challenges and opportunities for growth for in the students' lives.

Not every Trailhead student is the same. In fact, to say that there is diversity in this group is a major understatement. The needs of the students are drastically different, as are their preferences. This means that the program will always be stretching someone, even when others are right in their comfort zone.

For the first month, Trailhead was a hodgepodge of random events and experiences. The schedule was different every week and there were cries for "structure!" from the ranks. October has been the opposite. We have been in class daily, and the routine has been so... "structured" that some are finding it monotonous. I suppose if we keep changing the pace now and then, we will keep everybody guessing. What I do know is that Dr. Hayden has been a blessing, and the students seem to appreciate his unique ability to bring huge amounts of information and knowledge down to a level that is attainable for them.

One more week with Dr. Hayden.  No canoe pics this time so a baby pic will have to do.

   
Charlie is gearing up for the big packer game. He has never seen them lose. Hopefully he never will.