Road Trip Beauty

18 or 19 hrs. and 1200 miles after leaving Idaho we made it to Omaha! The roads were clear and God's beautiful country was stunning. Even though driving that distance can feel LONG, exhausting, and not worth the time, I would encourage all of you to plan just one cross-country road trip in your lifetime. You will see such beautiful country, learn so much about your 'road trip buddy' and meet some incredible people along the way!

Our little Scouty girl on her first trip. She did better than expected...being that she is our wild child!

And she is daddy's little girl plus, an extra navigator.

(We do have our other dog, Bear, on the trip...but his photo shots didn't quite turn out!)

Thanks for all your prayers! It has been so good to see so many of you! We will keep you posted.

Omaha & Chicago bound

6 am on March 3rd is almost here and the excitement is consuming the Sharpmack home! As I type, laundry is in it's 3rd cycle (yep, I procrastinate!), the dogs have been to the groomers and look like beautiful dogs again (they were looking more like rats for a while), and I am making my chores and odds & ends list, to be done after blogging, of course.


Tomorrow we will hit the road; 17.5 hrs. of driving to be exact...and yes, we are bringing the puppies, so I guess we could round it up to 20 hr. of driving. Crazy! As we drive, we are optimistic and looking to arrive in Cheyenne, WY tomorrow night and arrive in Omaha Friday afternoon. We will be in Omaha from Friday- next Tue. and we will be in Chicago from Wed. the 9th-Sunday the 13th. We already have appointments and coffee dates scheduled with many of you, but if we haven't connected up with you....of course we would love to! Give us an email at ssharpmack@hotmail.com and we will make a date! Who knows how long it will be before our next trip east.


For those in the Omaha area, we will be showing a documentary this Sunday, 6:00pm, at Westside Church. This film captures the incredible journey of a group of cancer survivors that take a Youth Dynamics Adventures trip down the Owyhee river. This film is a professional, moving and inspiring film that everyone should see! Come join us...and we may have some food!
Here is a clip:
http://vimeo.com/7400308


With that said, we will see you all very soon!

The New Look

Thank you to Mandy Brush for helping to recreate this blog! We are so fortunate to have a "blog guru" to help us get a fresh new look! We look forward to keeping you up to date with what's going on with YD Adventure and the Sharpmacks.


Let us know what you think of the new look!

Fashion Guide for the Raft Guide

Dear Future Raft Guides,
If you follow these simple fashion rules, you will be the biggest stud to raft the waters of Idaho (and perhaps the world!).


Rule #1: Make sure to wear a sexy tight black wetsuit. Purpose: to protect your skin from unwanted freezing cold water from turning unsaid body parts blue.

Rule #2: Make sure to add layers as to be 'fashion forward' in this post-modern world. This over layer is called a splash jacket. Purpose: Similar to the wetsuit, this final layer will guarantee that you look like a professional stud (and not a crazy, adventure addicted maniac) as you raft the snow melted, freezing, yes, freezing cold water in early May.

Rule #3: Always wearing this studly NRS navy blue hat and accessorizing with the "know it all, Yeah, I'm that good at rafting" smile will be sure to guarantee you the title as the biggest stud to raft the waters of Idaho. Purpose: To Love Life!

As you train for your first rafting expedition, be sure to keep us posted and let us know how our fashion tips worked out for you!

Sincerely,

Raft Guide Experts

Do Something

I read the "old fashion" newspaper yesterday for the first time in a very long time... depression set in very quickly. Don't get me wrong, I am a news junky. In fact, the second thing I do in the morning (after making coffee) is turn on the Today show; something my husband has just had to get used to. All that to say, I am very aware of current events, but there was something quite melancholy about sitting in an empty room, holding open that enormous gray paper and reading reports on government issues, economic crisis, and education reform. Honestly, it made me want to run- run far far away with my hands covering my ears so as not to hear any more of the world's problems. I hear Ireland and New Zealand are quite beautiful!


As I was planning my dream escape from reality, I was reminded of a man. This man walked the earth thousands of years ago and he could have easily run. He could have made his dream escape a reality, and I am sure his dream escape would have been to a place more beautiful than Ireland or New Zealand. He could have ignored all the problems in the world. He could have refused to save the world; to let us be taken over by our lust and sinful desires... yet he didn't. He took action. He believed there was a better plan; a plan full of love and sacrifice. This man, beaten, hungry, bloody, and broken hung on a cross and said, "Forgive them for they know not what they do." He believed that to run away or ignore the world was not the way to change things.


Today I sit with the newspaper in front of me and instead of wanting to run away to Ireland, I choose to be an active Christ follower. I choose to be well informed, to fight for justice, and to help the helpless. Running away or ignoring the issues isn't what Jesus did and it isn't what Christians should do. We need to stand together and be active in this life. Imagine what changes we could see happen in this world if every Christian were to follow Jesus's lead and do something to change the world! What will you do?


"For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him." John 3:17

Prayer

Prayer. It has been on my mind a lot lately. Mostly, I have been challenged. To be honest, I am quite bad at it; praying that is. More specifically, I am bad at believing in the power of prayer. I pray often and about so many things, yet if I am honest with myself, I must admit that there is a small speck of me that doubts...so the question is, do I believe that prayer makes a difference? Do I truly believe in the words from Ephesians 3:20, "Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think according to the power that works in us..." If I did claim that truth then I know my prayer life would look much different.

I am reminded of other major religions that are faithful to the act of praying. They pray for extended periods of time, often stopping their daily routine to pray before their Gods. -They must believe or they wouldn't devote so much time to the action. They are fully devoted. It is with this thought that makes me wonder how devoted am I? How devoted are western, American Christians, who have direct access to the one and only God? Do we truly believe in the power of prayer in our lives?

Perhaps this is just an internal struggle that I am having, but it makes me wonder how many Christians are out there that are faithful believers and yet, are dry and full of doubt when it comes to their prayer life and they are too scared to fully admit it to themselves or others.

Prayer. Another challenge from God. "Sheila, do you truly believe, as you speak to me, that I am listening and I am doing (and will do) much more than you could ever imagine or request?"

Refocus: Part II

As our family and friends in the Midwest just got dumped on by 22 inches of beautiful fluffy snow, we have been enjoying sunny spring like weather (with a hint of crisp winter still in the air). I am not sharing this to rub it in your face if you are fighting through the waist high snow and pleading for spring. Instead, I tell you this with excitement in my soul! With the onset of spring comes an anxious Sharpmack household; wilderness trips are right around the corner!

YD Adventures is currently booking up all rafting, kayaking, and climbing trips for this summer and fall. Currently we have more trips booked then last year at this time; real students are coming and will soon experience God in a new way! We are also excited because there will be more full time staff this summer then in recent years- with that, we hope that we will be able to lead even more trips.

In order to get ready for those trips, a lot of preparation must be done. Mike is already working to be in top physical shape in order to lead wilderness trips effectively (he has lost almost 20lbs!). He begins swift water rescue training, raft guide, kayak, and climbing training later this spring. Mike is excited and anxious about this as the rivers out here are a lot more powerful than what we are used to in Wisconsin. Also, all raft gear, kayaks, and climbing gear are starting to get pulled out of storage so that they can be assessed, repaired and prepared for the spring.

In addition to preparations for spring, YD staff still have the opportunity to work with students in the public schools as they lead rock climbing classes and challenge course activities. This has been an awesome opportunity to build intentional relationships with students.

As we get ready for this spring, Mike and I will head out on one last "support trip" until next fall. Our goal in this trip is to share and spend time with our current supporters- as you are the ones that have blessed us with this opportunity in ministry! We will also be looking for opportunities to share with small groups, Bible studies, student classrooms, churches, chapels, and anyone who would be willing to hear about our mission. We have currently raised 65% of the finances needed to be considered 'full time' with YD Adventures. We are anxious to be at 100% by early this summer!

We humbly ask that if you would like to hear more details about why we have to raise financial support or if you have a small group of some sort that you would like for us to speak to, please email ssharpmack@hotmail.com (we might find you and ask you anyways, so be thinking :-). We will be in the Midwest this March! Also if you would like to make a donation, you can do so at the link below. All donations are tax deductable and greatly appreciated! No matter the amount, it is appreciated and so very helpful!

http://www.yd.org/adventure/idaho/staff/mike_sharpmack/368/

"Now to Him who is able to do immeasurabely more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen." ~Eph. 3:20-21