Xtreme Winter Conference GATLINBURG

We just got back last night from the winter conference with the youth group. We took about seventy high school kids and there were about fifty junior high students that went. We loaded up three huge buses and went up to the Smokey Mountains for three days.
It was AWESOME!!! The conference is held every winter in Gatlinburg and several other locations. The speakers were Josh McDowell, Tony Nolan, Ergun Caner, and Johnny Hunt. The bands included Third Day, Newsong, Relient K, Barlow Girl and the worship band Unhindered. It was an amazing conference.
I was a little hesitant about going on this trip as I have not been feeling the greatest. I knew there would be a lot of walking and standing (and knowing that the majority of the students were girls - I knew there would be some "drama" on the trip as well! :-) But through different circumstances God made it clear that I was supposed to go. Thankfully, my nausea was kept at bay for the most part...and only crept up several times on the trip.
It was such a blessing to spend so much time with so many of our students. And it is always very interesting when you take them out of the "church" environment to watch how they interact, worship, grow, etc. It was a very fruitful trip and I am so very very blessed to have been a part of it!There were about five thousand students from surrounding states that attended the conference...so, needless to say it was a little crazy in Gatlinburg. But we only had one hospital run, one student loose her money, several pranks on Jason and even some on me, and zero students lost!!! That is a huge praise!
God definitely kept His hand on our youth group. I am praying for all of our students as they return to school this coming week and back to reality that the seeds planted and the decisions made these last few days will take root and grow. Its easy to get caught up in the emotion of the moment and stand boldly for the Lord...in front of thousands of other believers. But now is where the true test begins...the fiery furnace of our ungodly world and its influence!