Dan Schmoyer’s Blog

Last weekend was the TreeHouse Winter Blast 2008 retreat and it went very well. I’m going to give you a sample of a letter I received today about the retreat so you can get a taste of what God was doing there. The letter was written by Becky Walker (she is the executive director of TreeHouse).

Here are also highlights from WinterBlast!

 124 Teens went on WinterBlast this past weekend! It was the first time that we had teens from our Plymouth TreeHouse. Minnetonka TreeHouse even had a waiting list!  Brian (program director) reported that 15 of these Teens made their first commitment to Christ and 30 renewed their commitment!  These are amazing numbers.

This year we had the largest group of kids at Winter Blast EVER! Chaska TreeHouse has 19 teens and 5 staff go and out of those 19 teens 2 accepted Christ for the first time and 4 recommitted their lives to Christ. It has been awesome seeing the hunger and thirst the kids have for God and His Word after a retreat like the one we just had. We are now in a place where we are building upon their desire to know more by starting up a few Bible studies during the week. Yesterday was our first Bible study and we had 11 show up which is very encouraging. Pray that we will be able to communicate the truth of God’s Word accurately and relevantly. They have so many misconceptions about who God is, what His Word says, and how it applies to their lives, so hopefully the Holy Spirit will be able to work on their hearts and minds over the next few weeks. Pray that their hearts and minds would receive the truth and it would change them.

On a more somber note I wanted to ask you all to pray for a family that is involved with TreeHouse. Two of the teens in the family attend TreeHouse and were at Winter Blast with us last week. When they got home their mom told them that their dad had died on Saturday. Their dad is in an out of state prison and suffered a deadly heart attack. Over the past few days we’ve been trying to help the family figure out a way to get to the funeral because they can not afford plane tickets for all 5 family members. Several of the tickets have been purchased by individuals who know the family but there are still a few tickets left to be paid for. They left today for the funeral so please pray that they would experience closure and be able to grieve their lose in a positive way. If any of you know anyone who would be willing to donate money toward a ticket for the family please let me know and I’ll pass the information on to the right person. This family really has no money. Both kids come on Winter Blast and did not have any money to put toward the trip ($110 per kid was the cost) so I gave them both a scholarship. If anyone would like to send money to my scholarship fund to help cover their costs I would appreciate it very much. Thanks!

To end on a more positive thought I want to reiterate how awesome it is that we had 15 kids come to know Christ as their personal Savior for the first time! There is a serious party going on in heaven now! The work has only begun though because now the seeds need to be watered, pruned, and cared for as they grow. Please pray that we will be able to help them in that journey and they will be able to sustain their desire and yearning instead of it being a once-a-year feeling they get at a retreat.

Thanks for all your prayers and thoughts. Please remember Maggie and I in your prayer as we are thinking through some tough decisions for our family that may be coming up in the near future. Thanks in advance. Prayer really works! :)  I’ll update you soon!

Wow, I just looked at the last time I updated you all on what’s going on at TH and I am embarrassed at how long it has been! Sorry about that. I’ll try and keep you all informed and updated more frequently.

So, in the last month a lot has happened. I won’t bore you all with the details and such but I will give you a general idea as to what has gone on.

Thanksgiving was great with my whole family around. We had fun spending time catching up and letting the grandparents bond with the grandkids. I was especially happy that Pop Pop (my grandpa on my Dad’s side) got to see all 3 grandkids because I don’t know when our next trip to PA will take place. When they all left our house it was really quite and empty. It was good though because it gave Ruby and Titus a chance to get back into their sleeping/napping/eating routines. All in all it was a great week with everyone around.

Things at TreeHouse have been really busy this month. Typically we have program nights on Tuesday and Thursday nights with another event every two weeks or so. So far in December we’ve had the regular programs but we have also had an event each week. It’s fun to give the kids an opportunity to get out the house and experience community but it is also hard on my family because I am gone more than usual. Last week the earliest I was home was 9:30pm (except for Monday, that was a “normal” workday). Weeks like that can get kinda stressful at home. Pray that Maggie and I are able to learn how to balance work, family, personal time, and time together so each need is met. Thanks!

It has been great seeing the progress some of the kids here are making. Sometimes its hard to see because we’re in the midsts of it but when I think back and look at where a few kids were and where they are now I am encouraged and grateful to have been a part of that transformation. I don’t feel like I do a lot for some of the boys I meet with but thankfully God works in ways I have no idea about! It is good to know He is faithful despite what I may say or do in these kids lives.

I am in charge of our Winter Blast event which is a huge event for TreeHouse and the kids. We are going to Camp Forest Springs in Wisconsin for a weekend retreat. All the TreeHouse locations will be attending so it’s gonna be a huge event! Thankfully I’m not in charge of all the TH locations, only Chaska, but it’s still a big responsibility. The trip costs $110 per kid so it is hard selling a trip of that cost to kids who struggle with the $5-$20 trips and activities we do throughout the year. So far though it has gone well but I am still trying to figure out how many kids are going to need scholarships and how much they’ll need to pay. I think I’ve got it all figured out for now but please pray that I’m able to be financially responsible with what has been given to Chaska and what each one of you have given me.

Lately I have been challenged with a quote I read in a devotional booklet I read online. The quote was this. ” No day is complete without worship.” It was in reference to the word “Selah”, seen mostly in the book of Psalms. (What Does Selah Mean?) The author was talking about the meaning of the word and how we need to have a “Selah” moment each day. A time where we are quite, reflective, and meditating on God’s Word. Our lives get so busy and crazy that we often skip the opportunities for “Selah” in order to get more work done, to catch up, or busy ourselves with more work. I have been challenged because that’s what I a lot. I don’t know if anyone can relate to this, but I have a problem with always coming up with something else to do when I arrive at the time of the day where I want to spend time with God in His Word and in prayer. I always seem to find something that I need to quickly do before I start. Normally that “quick” little project becomes a huge project and before long I have wasted my time on other things. Again, I don’t know if any of you can relate to that or have experienced something similar before but that is usually the reason I miss my “Selah” moments during the day.

My challenge for you this Christmas season is to remember that “No day is complete without worship.” Whatever it takes for that to be accomplished needs to be done. Ignore those ‘quick” little tasks that seem to come up when it is time to enter our prayer closet or kneel before Him in the Holy of Holies. This is something I am working on and I know it is something others struggle with so please continue to pray for me and each other in this. We are a community, a body, not a lot of different random parts trying to figure it out on our own. Supporting and lifting each other up is very important and impactful.

Well, I have to go pick a kid up to hang out but I’ll keep you all updated more frequently! Promise! Thanks for all your prayers, support, and encouragement. They keep me going each day.  Have a great Christmas (yes, I said Christmas, not Holiday because it’s about Christ) and I’ll talk with you all soon!

Dan

“No Day Is Complete Without Worship” 

It’s been a while since I updated you all on whats going on. Things have been really crazy at work and at home so I haven’t had time to sit down and write to you all. Here is a short update.
HOME: Things are going good at home. It is SUPER busy with two kids in the house. The regular breaks we used to get are no longer available so once they both go down for the night we can finally relax…. OK, so we don’t relax we clean up and eat something. Typically its 11PM before get to bed. Oh well, we love our kids and are enjoying watching them grow up. Ruby is SOOO big and is a great big sister. Titus is a very happy baby and loves to smile a lot. He has started to laugh/giggle lately so when I hear that it usually makes my day. We are looking forward to all the Schmoyer’s being around for Thanksgiving. It’ll be crazy and fun all at the same time! I’ll let you know how it all goes when it is over.

WORK: I created a simple and quick website for Chaska TreeHouse (www.chaskatreehouse.wordpress.com) so the kids can keep up to date on whats going on, when events are scheduled to start and end, and what is coming up. Tim (my brother) has been helping me look at some other options for a more user friendly and interactive website for the youth here. It should be pretty sweet when it’s all done.

Over the past few days I’ve been asking kids what they are doing for Thanksgiving. The responses have varied. Some have talked about going to relatives houses, others have mentioned their house as the “host” house, and a good number of kids have said they are not doing anything at all. No special dinner, no relatives, no change from the ordinary. Each time I’ve heard that I’ve felt so sad inside because the family get-together holidays are always a lot of fun. For me, it has been the only times I get to see my cousins. It has also been a time to just relax and talk with family. For so many of the kids here “family” isn’t anything important of special to them. They’d rather be with their friends or alone than with their family. I would be so mad and full of bitterness if our Thanksgiving dinner was sitting at KFC. I know that sounds like a joke but I know it will happen this year for a few of the kids here. It’s just another day. Nothing special. No family to enjoy and laugh with.

I have so much to be thankful for and yet I take it all for granted. I don’t know if any of you relate to what I am saying or have noticed that despite all we have and all we can do (physically, financially, and many other ways) we don’t take time to give thanks. I think about the nation of Israel in the book of Judges. They would experience awesome blessing and grace from God and would begin to trust themselves and wouldn’t recognize Him as their Jehovah Jira. As a result they would fall into deeper sin and suffer the consequences of their actions. Only when they hit rock bottom would they return to their first love and repent.

This is a cycle I do not want to fall into. I want to be thankful always. It is super hard because I get so distracted with my own thinking and selfishness. I think I had something to do with the amount of money we made during the month or the way we were able to put money into our savings account. But when I look back over the past year I can see that God has TOTALLY blessed us in huge ways and I have yet to fall on my knees to praise and thank Him for being my Jehovah Jira.

We have so much to be thankful for this year. I want to challenge and encourage you to take some time today to think about how God has been your Jehovah Jira. Have you properly thanked Him for His awesome blessings? Don’t let another day pass without doing it!

Psalm 95:1-6(KJV)

“O come, let us sing unto the LORD: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation.
Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms.
For the LORD is a great God, and a great King above all gods.
In his hand are the deep places of the earth: the strength of the hills is his also.
The sea is his, and he made it: and his hands formed the dry land.
O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the LORD our maker.”

Psalm 107:1(NIV)

“Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever.”

Yesterday Titus and Noah were dedicated at church. We decided to have both boys dedicated on the same Sunday while wearing the same outfits! I’ll post some pictures as soon as I get them from David. I also have a video of the dedication so when I format it I will post it here so you can watch it (if you think it’s that exciting).

We were sad that our parents weren’t able to be at the dedication (Adrienne’s parents were able to fly in for the week so they took pictures and did the grandparents thing for us all while we held the kids). I hope the movie is good so you can get a good glimpse of what went on.

Keep your eyes open for the the movie and pictures!

Dan, Maggie, Ruby, and Titus

This past weekend 4 TreeHouse’s gathered together at Camp JIM (Jesus Is Mine) in northern Minnesota. It was an awesome time of fun, spiritual renewal, and bonding. The kids were able to boat, play games, sit and talk, relax, hang out, jump in the lake (yea it was pretty cold!), play volleyball, basketball, football, and spend time thinking about the pain, hurt, and suffering we all experience. They were challenged not avoid the hurt by stuffing it and trying to move on without taking it to God. It is only when we give our pain and hurt to God that we are able to truly forgive, move on, and experience healing from the wounds we receive on a daily basis. A lot of tears were shed as kids began to step into the pain and hurt they carry around each day. God worked in awesome ways this weekend and I pray that it does not stop but that it continues to be something they take to Him each day.

I was able to have several awesome conversations with a few of the Chaska guys who came on the trip. One in particular has been on my heart the last few days. Please pray for me as I continue to share the truth of the character of God is and how He is not some universal “god” that all religions believe in. This youth said he is having trouble trusting God (”god”) because if he does and is let down than it would have been a waste of time and it would just add to the hurt. Pray that I am able to accurately communicate to him who God is and how He will never let us down. This kid is amazingly smart and intellectual so he tends to rely on logic and brains a lot. At some point the facts, proof, and logic have to step aside so his heart can be reached. Pray that he is able to get to that place quickly. He has so much potential for spiritual growth, knowledge, and peer influence that it would be awesome to see him begin to impact his friends for Christ while still in high school.

I took a bunch of video of the trip but I didn’t get any pictures! Sorry! I might be able to get some from other kids and staff so you can see what the retreat was like.

Thanks in advance for all your prayers and thoughts. If anyone has any questions about the United Way info in the newsletter please let me know. Thanks!

Dan

PS…. I have been having trouble with my website so if you leave a comment and you don’t see it or it has an error message don’t worry. I am trying my best to fix it. So far I haven’t figured it out but don’t let that keep you from commenting on postings or other things. Thanks!