Ever have one of those moments where you feel truly passionate about something? Where you can sense your eyes shinning and your heart feels so full!? I had one of those moments tonight and it had been so long since I felt like this that I wanted to skip around the room or go sing off of a mountain top.
Today was a great day! I was off and headed to the springs and church was held in the park and we spent the morning worshiping and in community eating lunch and playing games. I got to see some friends I haven't seen in a while and relax in the sunshine. It was a really great day with friends. I miss it sometimes. As I drove back to camp my love tank was definitely full ;)
Young Life is at camp. For the next three weeks about 250 kids every five days will cover the camp grounds. This is my fourth summer working with Young Life at Quaker Ridge and the more I see them work the more I see how incredible their ministry is. Tonight we got a chance to hear about what they do and a little history behind their ministry. I love that our staffs get to work together for the next three weeks and I hope we have the chance to build a strong community. Hearing the stories about what Young Life is about makes my heart swell up.
They talk about relationships and being there. The director told his Young Life story. How he just walked into a local middle school and started living life with these kids. He was there and loved them. He built these relationships for two years before they went to a Young Life camp and it was there that 8 boys dedicated their lives to Christ. He invested in these boys and ultimately was a friend. Someone to be there during sports games cheering them on. Someone to answer the phone when they decide to try and end their lives. These are the leaders we get all summer with these kids. Some camps have counselors that meet their kids when they arrive and may never see them again after that week (which is not a bad thing). Young Life is a little different. Leaders spend all year with their students doing life together and then they get to spend an amazing week at camp together. Then they get to go back home together. And we get to be a small part of that.
The director, Jeremy, talked about how he got into Young Life because he wished someone would have been there for him during those times in his life. He wished he had someone investing and pouring into his life and he wanted to do that for others. That is my heart. I wish I had someone to pour into my life in middle and high school. When he said that I felt a whisper in my heart telling me that is where I am meant to be. I want to pour into others. I want to build relationships and do life with kids who may have no one else. I want to love recklessly even when it hurts. As I looked around our chapel I saw heads nodding and I smiled knowing that the people surrounding me had the same heart and same passion. I know the next few weeks are just the beginning and they are going to be crazy but I am excited to see lives being changed!
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