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Freedom

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Freedom, we all love freedom but what does that actually mean? What does that actually look like? How do we define freedom? This is something the Lord has been showing me lately, what it actually means to be free.

So, first off, let me ask you a question. How do you define freedom? Or how would most people in the world define freedom? Being able to do WHATEVER you want, WHENEVER you want to. Not limitations, no laws, nobody telling me what I can or cannot do. Drink as much as I want, marry who I want, do what drugs I want, sleep with whoever I want, watch what I want. That is how I think most people would define freedom. BUT, lets take a look at Scripture and see what it says.

Galatians 5:1 “For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.” So, according to Galatians, what does freedom look like, and what does slavery look like? Christ has set us freedom. So, true freedom is found in Christ and slavery. Now, in the context of Galatians slavery would probably have to do with the Law, going back to the law as a means of being justified. See in Galatians 1:6-9 that there are those who are preaching a different gospel than Paul presented to the Galatians.

Now, we have a problem. The world defines freedom one way, and the Bible another way. What do we believe? (right answer, the Bible!) We need to understand that Jesus has set us free. That in Christ, through Christ we GET TO walk in freedom, NOT have to. Do you get that? Because this was big for me to learn. I GET TO walk in freedom in Christ, not have to. I GET TO follow Christ, and allow him to be my Lord, NOT have to. True freedom is when CHRIST is lord of your life, when you have been crucified to him (Gal. 2:20), and now you allow Christ to live through you. THAT is true freedom.

Paul talks about this in a way of “who are you a slave to” in Romans 6:15-23. You are a slave to that which you obey, either to sin, or to righteousness. So, all these people who are running around saying that they are free, and Christians are in bondage because we HAVE to do what God tells us to do, this is NOT true, Biblically. Actually, the Bible flips that around and says the complete opposite. When Christ is Lord of your life, you are free. And when sin runs rampant in your life, you are a SLAVE to sin. You are not free, are a slave to your sinful desires.

What the Lord really showed me through all this is 2 things:

First, freedom is IN CHRIST. Christ has set me free. And when I die to Christ, THAT is true freedom. When Christ is Lord, THAT is true freedom.

Second, I GET to walk in that freedom, NOT have to. I should be SO excited to have the fruits of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22-24), to be patient, self-controlled. I should have an attitude that I GET to follow Christ, and I GET to die to my sinful desires everyday, NOT have to. Because for a while I lived with the mentality that everyone else was having all the fun, drinking, having sex, doing whatever they wanted to do. And I HAD TO follow Christ, it was like a chore. This should NEVER be the case. I GET to follow Christ, and allow him to live through me and allow him to be my Lord.

So remember, for freedom Christ has set us free. Christ has set us free.

Living for others, not ourselves

Posted on by JT Pharr

I had a thought today as I was having a quiet time with the Lord. I will give you the reference of what I was studying, explain to you what I was thinking of this text and lead you to what I think is a revelation I got. I was reading Romans 15:1-7 and the reason I was reading this was because I was feeling weak and I felt like I needed the strong to lift me up. Which is what Paul is talking about here, in Romans 14 he is talking about the weak and some problems they may have (with food, special days etc). Then in chapter 15 he is talking about the strong bearing with the weak, this is totally contrasted/connected to chapter 14.  There are the weak in chapter 14, and Paul says in 15:1 “We who are strong have an obligation to bear with the failings of the weak, and not to please ourselves.” We have an OBLIGATION – wow.  Not a question. If you feel you are strong, it is not about you, you are to “bear with the failings of the weak”. That is the amazing thing about Christianity, it is NOT about us. Probably the only religion in the world that things that way. So sorry, if you are a christian and think it is about you I would have to disagree with you, that is not what the Bible teaches.  It is NOT about us, it is about others. Christianity is a live-out religion, for others, not for ourselves. Sorry, a little sidetracked there. So I kept reading and was struck by this idea of living in harmony in v5, and how the “God of endurance and encouragement” is going to grant that to us.  But wait, even with this, it is not about ourselves. Lets read on. v6 “THAT together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” So WHY do we live in harmony? Paul connects this with glorifying God and Jesus with ONE voice. Again, not about us. Now, HOW can we do all this? HOW can we live in harmony and bear with the failings of the weak? Let me tell you. It is because God has done all this that we can. God first loved us, that is why we can love. Let me show you in the text here. v2-3 – We are to please our neighbor, build him up FOR Christ did not please himself. v4 – The Scriptures are giving us hope through “endurance and encouragement” v5 – God is described as the God of “endurance and encouragement” v7 – “Therefore, welcome one another AS Christ has welcomed you, FOR the glory of God” So, we can bear with the failings of the weak, please our neighbor, live in harmony, all these things BECAUSE GOD first did this. God showed us how. We can love because God first loved us. And it is all for HIS GLORY as well. Side note, John is saying the same thing as well.   John 4:19 “We love because he first loved us.” So, as I was studying this, this is what I thought to myself. You will act like that of which you worship. 

We love, serve one another, live in unity/harmony, bear with the failings of the weak, etc. BECAUSE God first did all this. He is whom we worship, and we act like that. Well, not all the time because we do have the sin nature. But this is WHY we can love, why we can serve, etc. It is not because we are so great and amazing, but it is because GOD is so great and amazing and HE FIRST LOVED US! When we did NOT deserve it (still don’t deserve it), when we beat him and nailed him to a tree, he loved us. He gave his life for us because he loved us. And now we can love, because he first loved us.
So, tell me if I am wrong, but I think this is true. You will act like that of which you worship. If you worship sex, you will act in that belief. If you worship money, you will act on that. I think whatever you worship, that is how you are going to live your life.
So, then the question is, what do you worship? Or who do you worship?

A Person of Peace

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God can and does use whoever He needs to expand His Kingdom for His glory.  Back in 2006, I was part of a community development outreach team that went to northern India to teach in schools and work with the local community.  During our time in northern India we stayed in the home of a Muslim family. They knew who we were and why we were in India, and were okay with the fact that we were Christians.  The people we stayed with were very influential in the local area, and our relationship with this family allowed us the opportunity to go and teach in places that would not have been possible had we been working on our own.  The family we stayed with was open to what we shared with them and with the community. The wife in the family is a very influential person in the area of education. Her influence and reputation allowed us the opportunity to go into a few schools and incorporate Biblical principles in our teaching.

We also had the opportunity to teach English to two of the girls who were living in the home where we were staying. Their parents were supportive of the idea, but they did not want us teaching their daughters from the Bible. Instead we taught them some of our favorite songs about God and the Bible.  While we weren’t able to teach them directly from the Bible, the songs we sang conveyed the Bible’s message, and the girl’s parents were okay with that. As time went on we would occasionally hear them singing the songs to themselves throughout the day. Our team was always encouraged when we would hear them singing because not only were they practicing English, but they were also proclaiming the truth of God’s Word.

Over the next 8 weeks many doors were opened for us and we had many opportunities to to teach the Bible to the members of the community.  Throughout our entire time in India trust was built and God’s Kingdom grew in a dark place.

God puts different people in our lives all the time. We don’t always know if someone we meet will become that “person of peace” for us sometime down the road. A person of peace (in my definition) is a person, or even a family, who have influence in a particular area. Trust is built up over time, and opportunities arise that wouldn’t have been possible without that person’s status or influence.  An example of a person of peace could be a school principal, a mayor, a tribal leader, or even a doctor.  Basically, it’s just any person who has enough influence or respect in an area that they can provide opportunities. People are our greatest resources.

 

Matthew 10: 11  Whatever town or village you enter, search there for some worthy person and stay at their house until you leave. 12  As you enter the home, give it your greeting. 13  If the home is deserving, let your peace rest on it; if it is not, let your peace return to you. 14  If anyone will not welcome you or listen to your words, leave that home or town and shake the dust off your feet. 

 

Divine Appointment

Posted on by JT Pharr
We were serving in Chiang Rai living in a coffee shop called Homemade Cafe, which is run by Bobby Bo & Boo Ya. Each Saturday, Walking Street, (a local night market) opens up right next to the cafe, and our team would evangelize and meet people.  One day my co-leader, Steve Hazeltine, went walking through the city and met these three women. They saw him down the street and yelled for him to come over. They ran a massage parlor, but when they met Steve they asked why he could speak some Thai and why he was in Thailand. When he told them that he was a Christian and wanted Thai people to know God’s love, they begged him to share more. He was able to share the Gospel with them and one of the women named Pak was ecstatic; she had been waiting for her friend Dtoi to hear the Gospel.
Dtoi had left Buddhism two years before but hadn’t felt like anything replaced it at all for her. She was a widow and had no family still connected to her.  The next night Steve and I went back to visit these ladies, they sat us down and gave us hot tea. Pak was excitedly telling me that they never meet foreign men with good intentions, and that Dtoi had decided to become a Christian. She had already thought some about Christianity,  but hearing the Gospel and seeing God’s love through Steve is what made her decide to convert.
Dtoi shared she was a very sinful, and we shared the parable that Jesus taught concerning another sinful woman — Those who are forgiven much, love much. Through this, Dtoi really experienced God’s love. It was amazing to see  these women encounter God’s love. Dtoi, an ex-buddhist widow became a believer, and Pak (who was Buddhist at the time) told us that she now believes in what Jesus has done, but that for her families sake, she is not ready to call herself a Christian. Despite that, Pak told us that she wants to tell all her friends about Jesus and that they should follow him.
To me it was such strong evidence that God loves Thai people, and that He is the one who leads us to the hearts of those who are ready. Steve had no idea these women were even there and Steve had no idea who these women even were and yet they called for him – it was like they were waiting for the Gospel; waiting to meet God and He let us be a part of it!

Leading by Interruption

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Many people think the secret to good leadership is in controlling interruptions and staying focused. They believe it’s prioritizing the important from the urgent and so on. When I look at Jesus I am not convinced that the standard lines we hear regarding leadership are really hitting the mark. Jesus it seems, did not really worry about those things very much. He came to serve people. He prayed and let God determine the schedule and the priority. It was people and God’s will that drove his daily schedule and priorities. It was taking care of himself that always seemed to be on the back burner. It was time alone that he had to fight for. If it is even proper to use a term like “fight for” in the context of Jesus’ schedule.

He had submitted his life, and therefore his schedule to God from the beginning. Our trouble is that we still like to think that we are the ones in charge of our life. We think it is up to us to figure it all out, that it is up to us to control our schedule. I don’t think either of those things are real. They are delusions of the modern world.

God knows what we need. We need to trust that he will give us the rest we need, and he will – as we do his will.

Here is the rub though, are we doing God’s will in our pursuits? Or are we driven by ambition (or the lack thereof), the need for control, or even fear instead? Our fallen nature will often go to extremes to maintain some sort of control. Our old nature does not seem to care if it has to resort to religious efforts or secular pursuits as long as it can stay in control. The feeling of control makes us feel safe and powerful, but it is a deep and primal lie. God is God and we are not. The desire for control is a delusion that keeps us from being all that we were created to be. And trying to be what we are not is exhausting in the long run.

Step One- Let go of the need to be in control.
Step Two- Let God control our agenda.
  • His agenda will revolve around serving (loving) people.
  • His agenda will be kingdom centered.

Much of my exhaustion comes from fighting things that God may in fact be bringing into my life. Particularly if what he is bringing into my life are people.

There is such a thing as a time to walk away from people. We see Jesus do this often. So when do we walk? In my experience God will help us with this. The people we need to walk from, are those that are actually keeping us from the kingdom work. Jesus told the truth and all those that followed the truth followed him and he gave them more time. The people that would not listen to the truth, but rather wanted Jesus’ attention for other reasons, got nothing from Him. Sometimes this is hard for us, especially if we know the people really well, or if we are related to them. People that do not accept the truth can not be helped – no matter how much we would want to. When we come to an impasse with someone, where the conversation or the actions seem to be going nowhere because of unbelief it is time to move on. No amount of human energy or ingenuity can convert the unbelief of others into faith.

What about rest?

We need rest. I think this fear of complete exhaustion is one of the main reasons we miss so many blessings and opportunities in the kingdom. Logically, it does not make sense that God would want to completely exhaust us with the opportunities he gives us. Unfortunately, we often act as if this is true and these silly fears cause us to say no to God.  Sometimes we just need to say good-bye or good-night so that we can get some rest and be available and useful to others whom God may bring into our path.

Does God really intend to work us all to death if only we would listen to Him? Isn’t God the one who not only created the Sabbath, but also the one who took the first Sabbath and then later commanded us to follow His example? Our exhaustion does not come from God, it comes from our own desires which are constantly at war within ourselves and with God. If we love people and obey God, God will give us rest. Think of Psalm 23:2 “He leads me beside still waters, he restores my soul”

There is a work that brings true rest, as Jesus said: Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. (Matt 11:28)

A yoke is a device that harnesses an ox to a plow or other implement. Jesus is not setting us free from work but giving us a new job, a job that brings true rest. What is that new job? To answer this I want to use an unusual passage, it is Isaiah 28:12 and it is part of a longer rebuke of the leaders of God’s people. Here is the the cry of God’s heart as He is desperately trying to correct His people: “This is rest; give rest to the weary; and this is repose”; yet they would not hear. Their rest was supposed to be found in giving rest to the weary. But they would not hear it.

When Jesus says take my yoke upon you, he was saying “make my work yours”. And what is the work of Jesus? Salvation, healing, restoration – the work of Jesus is giving rest to those who need it. We will find rest as we help others find it.

This is beautifully consistent with the whole theme of Christianity. We are in Christ. Therefore, we are doing what he did and what he is still doing through us. We are the body of Christ. Therefore, we are the physical manifestation of Christ on the earth. We are the Jesus they can physically touch and physically see in the here and now.

We are told in John 7:38 that those who believe will have “rivers of living water” flowing out of their hearts and we are told that these out-flowing rivers are the Spirit of God. This is part of the ongoing paradox of the Christian life. We receive the Spirit of God, but that Spirit is a river that is just passing through us on it’s way to healing others.

We are healed as we heal others. Just as our rest is found in giving others rest. That same river heals all, as long as we allow it to flow out of us as God intended.

Our fallen nature often gets us thinking only of our need, but the Spirit was not given just to heal us individually it was given to heal all those that believe through Christ in us. To do this we need to let that river flow out of us, we must allow it to flow through us to others. We need to become true partners in the ministry of Christ in order to find the rest and healing that Jesus promises.

How do we apply this?

There are obviously many ways to apply this, so my first answer is to pray and ask God how you should respond to the people he brings into your life every day. However, I do have a couple practical suggestions as well.

Let God interrupt your schedule

Don’t fight against the people that God brings into your life. Read the New Testament again and see that most of the great stories of Jesus healing and teaching actually happened while Jesus was on his way to somewhere else. Jesus never said, well I would like to help but I am on my way to Jerusalem, I think I have an opening sometime next week, try me then.

Ask one more question

Many of us have a standard greeting in the the U.S. “How are you” the standard answer is of course “fine”. This may be polite but it is also quite empty. Ask one more question. I was afraid to do this for so long because I was convinced if I asked another question I would be there all day listening to some chronic victims long sad story. The truth however is actually quite different. The vast majority of my exchanges do not last more than a minute or two more, but they are transformed from a meaningless exchange to a meaningful conversation, even if it is short. A minute or two is a small price to pay to give Jesus a chance to work in someone’s life. It is a small price to pay for the chance to let the inexhaustible river of the Spirit flow through us to another person for whom Jesus died. Once in awhile it does take more than a minute or two, but these tend to be the best experiences not the worst ones as long as I remember the next point.

Make sure that you are asking for their benefit and not yours

This is the real secret in transforming these exchanges from a waste of time on the sidewalk to an actual encounter with Jesus through the overflowing of the Spirit of God.

Love is benefiting others at my expense. When you ask one more question make sure you have the other person’s benefit in mind. Maybe they are on their way to something important and have no time to talk to you, if you are thinking of their benefit you will let them go. The fact that you stopped and took time for them will not go unnoticed.

Making their benefit the motivation of your questions will also protect you from the trap of gossip. If we are truly looking to their benefit, we will not pry for information to satisfy our own curiosity nor will we try to take the Spirit’s role in their life though our self centered and self serving desires for control and significance.

Taking on the yoke of Jesus is to go where he says and do what he does. It is his yoke and not our yoke of ambition, and fear. We are not in this yoke alone, it is his yoke. We are in him and let’s be honest he is the one that is actually doing all the real work.

Let God lead you even in the interruptions and you will find rest just as Jesus promises. May it never be said of us.

“This is rest; give rest to the weary; and this is repose”; yet they would not hear.

 

Lecture Phase Wrap-Up

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It is a cold and rainy evening here in Lakeside, Montana, but we’re optimistic that as we head out into the backcountry for a 5 day backpacking trip tomorrow the weather will clear and the temperatures will rise.

Trip #6, as we call it, is our last full lecture week before outreach departure on September 19. It is also the capstone trip as we will be putting almost all of our outdoor skills and knowledge into practice. The team will be splitting into two groups, with each group accompanied by staff and a guest speaker. One team will start on the west end of our route and another team at the east end. On Wednesday we’ll cross paths. We eat like kings!

The teaching topic for the week is evangelism, which comes on the heels of last week’s teaching on missions. The other teaching since our update in week 8 was community development/worldview. While we’ve had lots of opportunity to “rub shoulders” with outdoor enthusiasts on our camping trips this summer, our focus is also geared towards reaching out to the Nepali people and the trekkers that we’ll meet along the way as we trek Annapurna base camp trail in a few weeks. We believe that God is calling us to this specific outreach in Nepal and we would appreciate your prayers as we go to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ to those that need to hear it and receive it.

A few other highlights over the past few weeks include the EDTS crew running children’s ministry at the YWAM MT staff retreat and lots of food dehydrating for trips 5 & 6. Another great adventure was a descent into an ice cave and a swiftwater rescue outing with the local search and rescue association (some had more opportunities than others to engage with this activity as I accidentally got the jet boat stuck and it took the better part of the morning to get it out of the water! I was showered with grace by the team and it made me very grateful to work with such a caring group).

Thank you for your prayers and encouragement throughout the past 12 weeks. We’ll try to send an update before the team leaves for outreach.

Trip #6 was a huge success and it had its share of challenges, including some dried up water sources, but the views, vistas and teaching for the week was transformational. A huge thank you to our fearless leaders and teachers for the week. And as always, thanks to our amazing students who continue to help pioneer Endurance DTS!

Click the image below to learn more about EDTS!

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The Importance of Sound Doctrine

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Titus 2:1 “But as for you teach what accords with sound doctrine.”

What is “sound doctrine”? Why did Paul stress the importance of teaching and holding to “sound doctrine” in so many of his letters? Paul knew the importance of the Word of God and the fact that “all scripture is breathed out by God” and Paul knew that the truth of God should never be altered, even in the smallest way. Paul continually warned churches about false teachers and those who taught only to gain riches and fame for themselves. These false teachers said what people wanted to hear and what sounded good. Paul taught the unfiltered truth from God, which can be difficult to hear at times but is something that refines, molds and builds character to be more like Jesus. Paul stressed sound doctrine in his writings because he knew that the truth of sound doctrine was so powerful that it could transform lives and give hope to humanity. Paul was also very careful to make sure others never watered down the power of God and his amazing character. The false teachers during Paul’s day were regularly trying to alter the truth of God, which ultimately affected how the nature and character of God was communicated and led many to lose sight of God’s hope for mankind. Looking back over the writings of Paul from thousands of years ago, what does this mean for us today? Has his emphasis on teaching sound doctrine changed? Short answer: No, the message and truth of what Paul was saying two thousand years ago about teaching sound doctrine has not changed in the slightest. Why? Because we still have people today trying to alter the truth of God just as they did in Paul’s day. It is vital for believers today to read and study the word of God so that we know what God has communicated about his nature and character.

The Bible is the sound doctrine that Paul fought so hard to defend and we must train ourselves to know it cover to cover so that our faith will be built on truth alone, and also to help teach those who might not understand it yet. We must take Paul’s message of holding to and teaching sound doctrine very seriously, because he lived and died for it. The Truth in the Bible is the very breath of God. God’s Word tells us about who he is, his character, and how he wants his people to live, so why would we want this message to get skewed? Why wouldn’t we do everything we can to protect and teach what is sound doctrine?

“Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. Whatever you have learned and received and heard and seen in me – practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.” Philippians 4:8-9

Fearing God

Posted on by JT Pharr

I’m not afraid of God.

So why are Christians commanded to “fear the Lord”?

God is my Father, he is loving and generous and kind beyond comparison and far more than I deserve. There is nothing about that to be afraid of. And yet all through the Bible we see references to the fear of the Lord (Proverbs 1:7, Ecc 12:13, Luke 1:50, etc). That can be a hard thing to pinpoint a definition to. The more I read the Scriptures, the more I start to think that maybe it’s not God we’re supposed to be afraid of. As I’m growing in my relationship with God and walking through the process of sanctification, I realize more and more the weight of my sin. It’s like, the more I realize how good and lovely and perfect and holy God is, the more I realize how grossly inadequate I am. I’ve come to this place in my life where the knowledge of my sin and the destruction that it brings to my relationship with God terrifies me. It’s not my Savior that I’m fearful of, but it’s the idea of being without him that scares me. Now, I know I’m saved and I don’t question losing my salvation, but as God reveals his character to me, I understand more deeply how much I need him.

The reason I think we need the “fear of the Lord” is because all too often we don’t see the problem with our sin. I don’t see the problem with my sin. I become complacent. I start to think that I’m doing okay, and that’s when I know I’m really bad. Once I heard it stated that the sin we most defend is the one we should be most worried about – and I can attest to that from personal experience. So often I catch myself thinking that I’m fine, I’m doing ok, I’m not that prideful, I’m not that selfish, so on and so forth. And it’s in those times that I find myself the most susceptible to sin and the farthest away from God.

In Exodus we see the nation Israel stuck in slavery to Egypt. There was nothing they could do to get themselves out of it, and it was only by God’s great power and mercy that they were delivered. They realized that they couldn’t do life without God, they needed him desperately (and not just for deliverance from slavery, but for everyday life – such as getting manna from heaven when there was no food in the wilderness). There’s no room for complacency or self-sufficiency when you’re stranded in the wilderness for 40 years with no food. Israel was to be a nation completely dependent on God as their Creator, Savior, Redeemer, and Provider. In Exodus 20, Moses is given the 10 Commandments for Israel to follow whole-heartedly. This wasn’t just a bunch of rules, but God’s way of allowing his people to be close to him. They shouldn’t kill, they shouldn’t steal, they shouldn’t lie, etc, because those things would separate them from him.

“[…] if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is mine; and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation (Exodus 19:5-6).

Still today Christians are called to be set apart from the world and to fear God. I do not think that we are supposed to be literally scared of God, but I do think we should seriously consider the consequences of not being with him. Romans 6:23 says that “the wages of sin is death” – that’s what our sin does to us, it kills us – “[…]BUT the free gift of God is eternal life in Jesus Christ”. Our choice to have a relationship with Jesus will save our lives, but it will also require that we walk away from our old lifestyles and serve him whole-heartedly. Understanding the fear of the Lord doesn’t just serve to make us moral, upright, righteous people while we’re on earth. It allows us to have a real relationship with God (beginning right now), one that continues on into eternity and saves us from ourselves, in order that we can spend eternity with our Creator, Father, and Friend.

“Moses said to the people, ‘Do not fear, for God has come to test you, that the fear of him may be before you, that you may not sin”’ (Exodus 20:20).

The fear of the Lord causes us to run from sin, and draws us closer to God. Therefore, fear sin in a way that makes you flee from it, and cling to God, who loves us and gave his life for us.

Backcountry Skills

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As many of our readers know, one of the goals for EDTS is to equip students with “translatable” backcountry skills that will serve them in both the backcountry and on the mission field. Another goal of EDTS is to graduate students with credible skills that can serve them after DTS as they seek employment within the outdoor industry at a camp, gear shop, guide company or elsewhere. One of the most practical ways that we accomplish both of these goals is by facilitating a 4-day wilderness advanced first aid course (WAFA) run by a nationally, and internationally, recognized backcountry medicine education authority, Aerie Backcountry Medicine (https://aeriemedicine.com/).

The progression of this week in EDTS started with a basic 2-day AHA CPR/1st Aid course in 2011. In 2012, we integrated a 3-day Aerie wilderness first aid (WFA) course into the curriculum and now we added an extra day for a 36 hour WAFA course, complete with a mass casualty scenario.

Like most things in EDTS, all of our adventures are shared with friends and like-minded outdoor enthusiasts. We have been so blessed as a school to build a relationship with Aerie Backcountry Medicine and to become friends with several of their amazing instructors. This year was particularly special because Betsy and I re-certified our WFR certs (wilderness first responder) with the same instructors that taught our school in 2012 and then again this summer.

A huge thank you to everyone at Aerie for your dedication to excellence in teaching and training in outdoor backcountry medicine! Can you find the Aerie gear in this picture above? Major kudos for the Aerie Level II trauma kit and “most comfortable synthetic backpacking t-shirt ever”!

Click the image below to learn more about EDTS!

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