(Photo courtesy of Avant Ministries)
USA (MNN) ― In 45 seasons of summer camps, Avant Ministries Echo Ranch Bible Camp has impacted thousands of children with the Gospel. It serves approximately 1,000 children in summer programs every year, and about 3,000 people during the retreat season the rest of the year.
The only full-service Christian camp and the only camp to offer a horse program in southeast Alaska, Echo Ranch attracts a lot of unchurched children who want to be with the horses. Through the ministry of counselors and chapel services, many of them accept the Gospel.
"I never knew how to have a relationship with God, or how to have a relationship with other people, and going to Echo Ranch Bible Camp changed that for me," one girl explained after this summer's camping season. She especially enjoyed the chapel services. "I just couldn't wait to hear the next message. Every chapel I learned something new, and I could feel God working in me.
Now that camp is over, her life is different than it was before. "After camp, everything changed for me. Everything got harder before it got better," she said. "I realized it was a test of faith. I kept my faith and held my ground, and everything pulled through. God pushed me through everything that was happening and just turned it around into something good. The friends that I surround myself with now are all God-loving people, and I am very glad to have them in my life. God changed my life completely."
Echo Ranch is growing. Cabin sizes are growing, its herd of horses has grown to the size of 22, and additional weeks have been added to the camping schedule. For the 2011 camping season, Echo Ranch is trusting the Lord for provision for over $30,000 in financial needs. The money is needed to cover costs for RTV, corral fencing, horse saddles, and chainsaws. Consider how you can help use horses to reach children with the Gospel.
