I have to admit, dealing with 200+ middle schoolers for a week was really draining. Camp is always something I look forward to. By the end of the week I really want to go home though. Not because I don't like camp, but because I miss my bed, miss the quiet serenity that is my house, and miss the smell of candles instead of feet and body odor. Every camp has a highlight to it, there is always something that is more important than anything. This always has to do with Jesus and how the campers react to God pulling on their heart. This year was different than any other. The highlight really didn't take place at camp but on the ride home. I had the privilege of driving a van full of boys (except for my wife). This could be a suicide mission! Usually on the ride back I always wonder if the campers are going to leave what they have learned at camp or are they going to apply it to their lives back at home. So in this state of pondering if they are bringing anything back with them, I usually ask if they had fun, what did they learn, did God speak to anyone. This time was different. The response in the beginning of the ride was the typical 'I feel closer to God' and 'I made a lot of new friends' etc. So I thought it was just a typical camp with a few new things learned. We stopped about 45 minutes into the ride home for gas and all the boys thought it would be fun to buy a ton of energy drinks and coffee drinks, you know the stuff that parents dread. I began to fear the rest of the ride. But then something changed. Someone asked me to play a song on my mp3 player that they knew, a worship song. So I did, I put it on Lincoln Brewsters version of 'Surrender'. To my amazement everyone started singing...no, everyone started WORSHIPING! A little confused at the situation I looked in the rear view mirror only to see two of them with hands lifted and eyes closed. This wasn't because of my driving, they were worshiping Jesus. I started crying. I'm a baby when it comes to Jesus. In fact, I like to refer to my tears as a "Holy Spirit O Meter" because whenever I sense the Holy Spirit, I cry uncontrollably. At that point I knew that they were bringing back something new. I have never felt the Holy Spirit like that in the van ride back. To let the guys know who went to camp, I'm praying for you. I'm praying that all of you can apply your camp attitude, or campitude, here at home. Heck, you guys need to teach some adults how to worship. I'm praying that you will continue to grow spiritually. And I pray that I will be there to see that growth, because I love all of you guys.
It was a good camp.
Here is a great picture of Ben and Moses totally geeking out at Halo. For some reason they took great joy in destroying middle school kids at video games. So how many hours did you guys spend playing Halo this week?
3 comments:
that is awesome , was my brother in your van?? teee heee!! he did tell me that he enjoyed hangin with you dave. your love for them is evident. thank you for that.
you should've invited me...i could've taken them all on at halo :)
Was Moses using his eyes instead of the controller?
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