CAMPFIRE NEWS Featured Story:

“Our marriage is more than

just a contract”

Bryan & Breana, Students in

Wheeler Mission’s Servant

Leadership Training Program

In This Issue

The Realities of Ministry

Director’s Corner:

Dwayne Shares His

Training Center

Updates!

God Changes Lives

Bryan & Breana’s Story

How Can I Help?

Groundbreaking!

Thanks to the generous support of many people, we have finally broken

ground for our new multi-purpose building at Camp Hunt! This building

will house our new kitchen and dining facilities, recreation area, and

counseling offices. This was much needed space! We are still in the pro-

cess of raising funds for this building, but trusting that God will provide!

We are thankful to everyone who has given to this cause and excited to

see how God will be glorified in the use of this new building.

A Newsletter from the Wheeler Mission Training Center at Camp Hunt—Bloomington, Indiana January/February 2016 Edition #5

A picture of students and staff in front of the new construction for our multipurpose building!

Director’s Corner: By: Dwayne Gordon, Wheeler Mission

Bloomington Area Director

It’s been a busy couple of months in

Bloomington! We continue to focus on

our Orientation Program at Wheeler’s

new Center for Men in downtown

Bloomington. This program is de-

signed to prepare men to enter our

Addiction Recovery Program at the

Training Center. With both Indianapo-

lis and Bloomington locations sending

men to the Training Center, we stay

full. The Program Staff has always

had their hands full, but now more

than ever, I think about the dedication

that they have in serving the men and

families here at Camp Hunt.

“Let the elders who rule well be con-

sidered worthy of double honor, es-

pecially those who labor in preaching

and teaching.” - 1 Tim 5:17

It’s easy to take one another for grant-

ed. This is especially true for our

teachers, who try not to receive any

honor while consistently pointing to

God as the One doing the work. While

they are correct in pointing toward

God, they should know how much we

appreciate them and their service!

Graduates from our January Commencement Ceremony!

The Realities of Ministry By: Brandon Syrek, Servant Leadership Training Student

With all of the great things happening at the Training Center, there are also times when it is easy to be discouraged. The past month has brought some difficult times. We had one student decide to leave our program and go back to his addiction. Unfortunately, he overdosed and passed away the next day. This was a major wake-up call to all of us who are learning a new way of life by following Christ. We were shaken to realize just how se-rious this ministry is and how our decisions do mean life or death.

One of the redeeming values of our friend’s death was that is drew all of us closer together here at the Training Center. We mourned together, we at-tended his funeral together, and we learned together that we need one an-other as brothers in Christ. One of our students, Elijah, shares, “Every time in my life that I had to deal with loss and death, I would run away and run to drugs, numbing myself so I did not have to face reality.” Many of our stu-dents used to feel the same way Elijah did, but Elijah and everyone else here were learning something different, to come together like family .

“For just as the body is one and has many members, and all are members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ” (I Cor. 12:12). Saul, a student at the Training Center, said, “No matter what happens, we come together like a family!” Instead of an attitude of defeat around our campus after the death of our friend, there was an attitude of zeal and per-severance to follow Christ all the more. Students supported and encour-aged each other, spurring one another on. God says that we should “Consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglect-ing to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near” (Heb. 10:24-25).

John, another student at the Training Center says, “You hear that being in the body of Christ is being in a family, but when something so tragic like this happens, you really see it. I saw people comforting one another, pray-ing with each other, and sharing the Word with one another.” . Please con-tinue to keep our students lifted up in prayer as we learn how to live follow-ing Christ through the realities of life and this ministry.

God Changes

Lives!

Our Servant Leadership

Training (SLT) program is

available to graduates of our

Addiction Recovery program.

The SLT program goes be-

yond basic biblical principles

and counseling concepts

taught in the Basic Theology

and Biblical Counseling cours-

es and moves students to-

ward maturity in Christ. SLT

students are biblically encour-

aged to grow in the powers of

discernment, trained by a con-

stant practice to distinguish

good from evil. SLT students

are also encouraged to dis-

cover their spiritual gifts and

contribute them here at the

Training Center! This pro-

gram’s purpose is to present

advanced Bible Doctrine and

Biblical Counseling training for

those who desire to be active

within the ministry of Jesus

Christ and the church.

Over the past two months,

nine students have complete

our Addiction Recovery Pro-

gram, with two of them enter-

ing our SLT program. We also

had two students complete

their Servant Leadership

Training programs. We are

excited for what God has in

store for these men! The total

number of people who have

now completed our programs

at the Training Center is 299!

Thank you for being a part of

the work that God is doing

here through your prayers

and financial support!

Bryan & Breana’s Story By: Scott Livengood, Student in the Servant Leadership Training Program

Bryan and Breana admit that their lives and their marriage was a mess be-

fore coming to Wheeler Mission. Both admitted that they needed help. Bry-

an entered our addiction recovery program for men, and Breana entered our

addiction recovery program for women. During the programs, both faced the

reality of the decisions they made and learned about the love of Christ and

the need for Him to lead their lives. Both completed the addiction recovery

program and made the choice to continue to grow in Christ and with one

another while serving in Servant Leadership Training programs.

As Bryan and Breana serve the Lord and grow close to Him, they

acknowledge that they are growing closer to one another. They say, “Our

marriage is more than just a contract, it is a mirror of the relationship be-

tween Christ and the church. We now have a open relationship with God,

with one another, and others in the body of Christ. This gives us the support

and accountability we need to face the challenges that are ahead of us and

to stick to our beliefs that have changed since Christ entered our hearts.”

Bryan and Breana also share that “we have learned that in a marriage that

seeks to honor Jesus, we are to never give up on one another, never give

up on our relationships, and must never tire of forgiving and repenting as we

walk in relationship with God and with one another.”

We are excited for Bryan and Breana as they both continue their ministry

training in our Servant Leadership Training programs. Both also attend mar-

riage counseling with our Family Counseling and Advocacy Services while

they serve at Wheeler Mission. We look forward to them joining a local

church and being an active part of helping others within the Church know

the love of Christ. Please continue to pray for Bryan and Breana!

“Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do

righteousness and wickedness have in common?“- II Cor. 6:14

Meet Bryan and Breana, students in Servant Leadership Training!

Contact Us

We would love to hear from you!

If you or someone you know is in

need of help with addictions or

other life-dominating issues, or if

you would like to partner with us

financially, please contact us!

Wheeler Mission

Training Center at Camp Hunt

7790 N. Fish Rd.

Bloomington, IN 47408

(812) 332-2452

(Training Center Office)

General Information:

DwayneGordon@wmm.org

Visit us on the web at:

WheelerMission.org

How Can I Help?

With our new Center for Men in Bloomington up and running, our

Training Center will be filling up quicker than ever! We still need to

raise $225,000 before we are fully funded for our new multi-purpose

building.

We are also preparing to make plans for a new dormitory, but we

need your help to raise $175,000. We currently average 30 students

in our Addiction Recovery program, and we can only house 31. If

God puts it on your heart, would you consider helping us by donating

to and praying for this cause? Please mark your donations by writing

“Training Center Building Fund” in the memo line of your check. We

would also welcome any help with finding potential donors, develop-

ing fundraising ideas, and expanding our network. Thank you for your

help!

Wheeler Mission Training Center at Camp Hunt

7790 N. Fish Rd.

Bloomington, IN 47408

PLACE STAMP HERE