With Foreward by Dr.

Ted Baehr, MovieGuide

Becky Fischer

jesus camp my stor y

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Jesus Camp, My Story Copyright 2011 by Becky Fischer Written by Becky Fischer Published by Fire on the Altar Publications PO Box 549, Mandan, ND 58554 For purchase visit Kids in Ministry International at website: www.kidsinministry.org For information call 701-258-6786 or Email: kidsinministry@yahoo.com No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission from the author. All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America

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table of contents
dedication preface forward conflict chapter 1 a prayer conference chapter 2 this means war! chapter 3 horton hears a who chapter 4 the political twist chapter 5 ted haggard chapter 6 the many sides of conflict chapter 7 evangelicals are scary chapter 8 harry potter chapter 9 the untold stories chapter 10 levi, tory, & rachael today chapter 11 christians chapter 12 the end ten commandments appendix author biography pg 5 pg 7 pg 9 pg 11 pg 23 pg 39 pg 55 pg 71 pg 87 pg 95 pg 109 pg 139 pg 155 pg 171 pg 183 pg 193 pg 195 pg 196 pg 199

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dedication

This book is dedicated to the children and families who made Jesus Camp possible. Without their transparency, faith, and courage this movie would not have changed the lives of thousands worldwide. To each of them I say a heartfelt Thank you! Becky Fischer

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preface
Its been six years since we filmed the infamous movie Jesus Camp. To write this book is to relive the whole experience againthe good and the bad. Just like when it all happened, at times Im exhilarated, and other times Im in tears. Im writing it as much for my benefit and the benefit of the families who were in it as anyone else because there is so much more to what happened than what made it to the actual movie. There are such incredible stories yet to be toldso much that ended up on the proverbial cutting room floor and more that just never was filmed nor has been told anywhere. The movie seems to have taken on a life of its own and is still impacting people around the world after all this time. And their stories are all just as important as the movie itself. One of the great challenges I faced in writing this story behind the movie was who to select as my target audience for readership. There was such a diverse group of people who watched it and were impacted by it all the way from devout Christians to complete nonbelievers. Within both of those groups were people who hated me and had no grid whatsoever for what they were seeing, and the group who passionately loved me and wanted to see how they could become involved in our ministry. But I cant write two separate books, so I address these varied viewers all in this one volume. Only time will tell if I have been successful in meeting the needs of both.
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By the way, you will note I include dozens of emails from viewers throughout the book and all the comments are positive. These are the comments you never heard on the nightly news, read in the blogs, or saw under the videos posted on YouTube. I feel no obligation whatsoever to include the many negative emails I received over the years. If you want to see what my detractors have to say all you have to do is do a search for my name on the internet. I hope you enjoy reading these untold stories. Even more, I hope your life will be touched in powerful ways that only God can do. Becky Fischer Kids in Ministry International

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forward
Becky Fischers biographical book JESUS CAMP: My Story is fascinating in scope, depth, clarity, and charm. Becky continues to manifest the brilliant grace of a Christian who understands the truth of the subject matter contained in the documentary movie JESUS CAMP and the deeper Truth of the Good News of Jesus Christ. The 2006 movie was a sarcastic, biased, politically correct documentary that painted evangelical, fundamentalist, charismatic, and culturally concerned Christians as very shrill, warlike, and dangerous. It was an astutely negative portrayal of committed, enthusiastic believers like Becky, the featured children, friends and families; but, as this book aptly documents, many viewers were able to see past its caustic edge to the faithful representation of passionate believing Christian children and their leaders. The inspiring emails from viewers included throughout this book reveal committed Christians who understood that, in spite of the attempt to tar and feather them as people of faith, they and the individuals featured in this film are actually wiser, more enthusiastic, and more committed than other segments of society. They should be admired. Fischer refuses to stoop to the level of the filmmakers in this expos, but presents a cautionary tale that captivates the reader. She shows on the following pages that what the producers may have intended for evil, God has used for good. JESUS CAMP: My Story is well worth reading.

Dr. Ted Baehr, Author, Syndicated Columnist, Media Pundit MOVIEGUIDE www.movieguide.org
Christian Film & Television Commission 9

LAUGH at the enemy and his accusations and abuse!!!! LAUGH!!!!! If you had not hit the nail on the head with this ministry the enemy would not have struck with such intense and horrible measures!! My husband and I support you and you are doing a fine job!!! Remember, Becky, the front person on the front line takes the first shot. Also, they walk through the mine field first to take the hit ahead of the army. Our Lord is your advocate and all will be well. You are being handed a golden opportunity for the cause of Christ that is a tough assignment.....one that only the Lord knows who best to assign it to!! Michael and Linda E., Arlington, TX

Children at Jesus Camp loved spending time worshipping God while they were being filmed for the movie.

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CHAPTER 1

conflict
The internet blogs were ablaze. YouTube was steaming, and my email box was spilling over with angry accusations. Child abuse! Brainwashing! Indoctrinating children! You should be ashamed of yourself! At the height of the malaise a quick Google search brought up over fifteen million results when you looked for Jesus Camp + Becky Fischer. That would be me. I really didnt know what to think once the trailer for the movie was released on the internet. However, the phrase being hit by a Mac truck does come to mind. I remember sitting alone in an airport in California once during the heat of the battle being in total angst that one of the TV networks playing in the concourses would do a quick blurb on Jesus Camp and show my picture resulting in someone recognizing me. Because of the tone of the emails I had been getting I really didnt know what would happen if one of those angry people came face to face with me. I remember calling Kristin, the Christian agent at Larry Ross Communications right then. She had been assigned to help me and promote the movie among the evangelical Christians. I was on the edge of tears when I asked her to pray with me to help calm my fears. I just needed some moral support.
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We had to bring some conflict into the movie, Becky, I was told by Heidi Ewing, codirector of Loki Films. People were starting to ask us how much Kids in Ministry paid us to produce it because it put you in such a favorable light. She went on, If you would have gotten the movie you wanted no one would have gone to see it but your family and a few close friends. I hated to admit it but she had a point. However, we had been expecting a movie about kids operating in the supernatural realm of Godkids praying, worshiping, prophesying, healing the sick, doing miraclesnot a something that made us look like we were raising up the next generation of religious political right wing activists or little Christian jihadists. I gotta tell youwe just didnt see that one coming!

no surprise
Im not entirely stupid. I knew the risks allowing a secular film company to do a film about us. But I had nothing to hide and peace in my heart about going ahead. I had several prophetic words years before saying I would be on TV with kids operating in the supernatural and really, it seemed like a very natural thing to do. In fact after it was all done, Heidi mused, You werent even surprised when we called you and asked you to do this movie. My response was, No, I wasnt surprised. Ive been expecting a call. The surprise was that it was a secular film company and not Paul and Jan Crouch from the Christian TV network TBN (Trinity Broadcasting Network). I could not understand why a secular company would be interested in what we were doing with children. But regardless, I really felt we were to move ahead with
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it. In hindsight, however, I admit I highly underestimated how secular media, not to mention a secular audience, could so completely misunderstand and misinterpret nearly everything we said and did. In the first months after the advertising was out, I was conflicted inside most of the time. One minute I loved the movie because I could feel the power of God when I watched Levi, Rachael and Tori, the children in the film. The next minute I hated it when I saw the political slant, as I would think, Thats not who we are! Yes, I have to be honest and say there were times I felt betrayed by the filmmakers. But it was more than that. Had I totally misinterpreted Gods leading? When I saw, not just the secular crowds venomous reaction, but an outcry from many Christians as well, my head was spinning. Had I somehow unwittingly brought shame on the Gospel of Jesus Christ and my fellow Christians? There were few things about the whole experience that could bring tears to my eyes quicker than this one question alone to which I did not have answer for a long time. Filmmakers Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady said they got their fair share of positive and negative emails too. Some loved what they did. Others were angry with them for putting Christians in a bad light. Still other critics felt they had been fair and balanced in their presentation of both sides of the issues. Heidi wrote me: Yikes! Were getting scathing reviews too! A very liberal left wing syndicated publication said the film was terrible, and it was transparent we were basically doing a hatchet job. We cant win on any side of this it seems. Everyone is mad at us too, Becky!!!! OK, we all need to take a breath and realize this is a once and in a life time thing. Heidi
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later observed, It was like people were watching two different movies. From my perspective I had to agree. Viewers either loved it or hated it. No one seemed to be neutral.

the phone call

I had been busy working away at the computer the day I got a phone call from a total stranger from New York City. Hello. My name is Heidi Ewing and I am a documentary filmmaker. We were given your name as a contact for a film were thinking of doing. Do you know any children who like to preach? I know a few children who like to preach, I responded, but I know a whole lot more who like to pray for the sick, prophesy and things like that. Why do you want to know about child preachers? Loki Films had just finished producing another Oscar nominated documentary called Boys of Baraka, I was told. It was an intriguing look at a handful of inner city boys who were at risk of falling through the cracks of society because of their environment and subsequent failing in school. They were whisked away to Kenya, East Africa in an elaborate intervention plan to help them get back on track in their education and thus have a chance to succeed at life. One of the boys was a twelve-year-old Baptist boy who loved to preach and was shown twice doing so in the movie. He did a good job. He fascinated the filmmakers and many of the viewers because they had never seen a child so committed to his faith before. So Heidi and Rachel began wondering if there were any other kids like him anywhere else. In doing their research they had been told by several people,
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We took our gang of 20 to see the movie on Friday night. I loved it. We brought our kids to your camp over the summer in MO. I can see why you got so much against you. You took a huge risk to make this public. I admire you for that, I see your passion and I love your stance with your life and the kids. I will be praying for you. Anyway, keep up the faith, we are praying for you and are looking forward in the next camp. I can tell you after this your camps will all be full and you are probable going to have to get a bigger building for the next one. All 16 of our kids want to come. We went to a restaurant after the movie and the kids talked about it the whole time. They too are on fire. Kim, Azusa, CA

The conference being filmed for the movie Jesus Camp was a prayer conference. Here children pray on a giant world map for other people.

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You need to talk to Becky Fischer. They found me on the internet. Heidi asked if they could fly out to talk to me. But I wanted to do my homework, too, so I asked them what other films they had done and if I could see some of their work. They promptly sent me Boys of Baraka and I also checked out their website for some of their other films. I saw nothing that alarmed me, and in fact in watching I was intrigued with their style of filmmaking. There was none of the usual talking heads and interviews like you typically see in documentaries which I find quite boring. These filmmakers never appear in their movies at all. They run like a story using the characters in the films to do their own talking.

on a mission
After another conversation I agreed to let them come out to North Dakota and meet me. So they did along with a videographer who filmed our encounter, some of which appeared in the movie. They told me later they knew they had a film because they had found someone on a mission. And on a mission I was. It was to bring children into their full destiny in Christ, empowering them to walk in the supernatural life they were created for by God. It was a supernatural life of prayer, worship, hearing Gods voice, being led by the Holy Spirit, healing the sick, doing signs, wonders, and miracles like Jesus did and more while they were still children rather than waiting till they grew up. This was something most Christian adults had no grid for at all, much less practiced. Most Christian
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adults I knew were quite content to merely share a handful of well-known Bible stories with kids navely thinking it was all they could understand or were capable of handling spiritually. But I knew from years of experience that kids were truly hungry for the supernatural and there is no one more supernatural than Jesus Christ. So bringing kids into the supernatural lifestyle of Jesus became the focus of our ministry. I fully believed when Jesus said in the Bible, these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover,* He never put an age restriction on those believers. If a child believes then he or she qualifies for miracles just like any adult does. In the first few years of our ministry we had seen amazing miracles at the hands of children. Miracle testimonies were coming in from around the world from those connected with our ministry as well from other childrens ministries confirming our belief. So I agreed to do the film. I was totally excited about the potential of letting people see for themselves what it was like for the Holy Spirit to rest on children and to see their reaction to the presence of God. I wanted them to see how powerful it was to watch children pray, worship, and do the miracles Jesus did when they were taught how on their level of understanding. Kids come alive with excitement when they are taught to do these things. Children naturally fall in love with Jesus when given an opportunity to be in His presence. I desperately wanted the body of Christ in particular (i.e., Christians
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who identify themselves as born again believers*) to realize we have cheated our kids out of an exciting walk with God when we continually pump them with repetitious Bible stories and nothing else for the first twelve years of their lives without ever offering to let them actually experience His power for themselves.

the vision
I was barely into my ministry career with children in 1991 when I began seeing an inner image of myself producing Christian educational shows for kids. Bill Nye the Science Guy, the host of an educational TV show produced by Disney, was my educational hero. He was a master teacher combining humor, music, and entertainment with hard core science, biology, astronomy, and other sometimes hard to understand topics for kids. He created the most fun and fascinating shows to explain these technical concepts. I used to watch him and think, Why cant we use his concepts to teach children about the power of Jesus? Instead of just teaching kids about the bodys circulatory system, why not also teach them about the fascinating things the Bible has to say about the blood of Jesus? Or instead of just simply learning how our ears hear scientifically, why not also teach kids how to hear Gods voice and be led by His Spirit? Instead of only teaching them how our body has a defense system to ward of viruses and germs, why not go further and teach them how to heal sick people through power in the name Jesus? I have never lost that dream, but have just kept it hidden in my heart till the right time. The point is doing
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TV had been on my mind for a long time. I just didnt know how or when it would happen. In 1999 a friend in Oklahoma emailed saying he had been watching a Christian show in their area whose focus was healing the sick. The question kept rolling around in his mind, Becky, what is God saying to you about television? In 2003 while I was ministering in South Africa, a childrens pastor there prophesied over me, that television is going to open up to you for kids operating in the supernatural. This fit with the vision I had carried in my heart for years. He prophesied the same thing to me a second time two years later. But the real kicker which turned out to be the most prophetic was when another friend wrote, You will be on radio and TV even when you didnt ask for it, and you will be on the news and the headlines of newspapers. Having received these prophetic words was why I was so open to allowing our ministry to be filmed. I was expecting it. While in a whirlwind media tour in New York City promoting the movie with the filmmakers and Magnolia Pictures, the company which had purchased the theatre rights, Heidi warned me, Dont say anything about the prophecies, Becky. The media will tag you as a nut for sure! So I kept my mouth shut for the most part. It is interesting though, how many of those same media people she spoke of think nothing of going to psychics, holding sances, reading Tarot cards, inquiring of Ouija boards and looking to horoscopes for answers. But tell them we go to God in prayer and He speaks to us telling us things to come, and were the nuts! I can look back now and see these prophetic
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words have all come to pass as Jesus Camp has played in theatres worldwide, been shown in over forty nations, been released on DVD, and has played on television repeatedly in the USA on A&E Network, the Biography channel, and portions of the film on many others.

what made us unique

Loki Films wanted to begin filming our ministry immediately. So I told them the place they needed to be was our annual kids & family conference and camp. We always deliberately designed our events insisting parents accompany their children, because we wanted whole families to experience God together. The idea of just dropping your kids off at the door had to be challenged. If parents never saw the Holy Spirit moving on the hearts and lives of their children, they would never know what was possible. Nor would they have any idea how to keep those experiences alive in their children beyond a three or four day camp or conference experience. It so happened we were having our third annual kids conference in Lees Summit, Missouri about a month away. I had a good relationship with Christ Triumphant Church and pastors Alan and Carol Koch (pronounced cook). They loved my ministry and gave us credit for launching their kids to a new level spiritually a couple of years earlier. As a result I had been invited back to their church each year afterwards. They had been hunting for a childrens ministry which would take their kids into the deeper spiritual issues normally reserved for adults like the baptism in the Holy
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Spirit and the gifts of the Spirit. They, too, were tired of the limitations of rehashing only basic Bible stories over and over if they were not accompanied by something more significant for their kids to sink their spiritual teeth into. They wanted to see the children of their church spiritually mature and taking their place alongside adults as active members of the body of Christ. When they invited me into their church for the first time, they felt they found what they had been looking for. The Kochs still share how mightily their children were touched in those first meetings. They were so hungry for more of the Holy Spirit, lingering in prayer time for forty five minutes to an hour at the end of our services just enjoying Gods presence. They were seeing visions and hearing Gods voice. One little girl about ten was so lost in the glory of God she just wouldnt stop praying. Her father, not wanting to hinder what the Lord was obviously doing in her heart, eventually just gently carried her to the family car to take her home because everyone else was done praying and was ready to go. The parents and other adults were in awe and thrilled at how God had so powerfully touched their children. Those were the kinds of things we were known for in our camps and conferences. We fully expected the presence of God to be strong and to manifest in many different ways taking kids, teens, and their families to new levels in their relationship with Jesus. This is why we wanted the filmmakers to come to our events. We knew something powerful would happen in, to, and through the children. Time would prove we were right.
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