It’s the third week of kids camp, and very exciting in many ways. First of all this week all of the LITs are working as cabin leaders and are doing an excellent job. So in case you can’t keep track, because honestly I barely can anymore, that means that Matt R, Amanda, Josh B, Matt C, and Quinn are all cabin leading. Tiffany is in the kitchen working as an Assistant Cook and I’m still on the beach.
This week is also exciting because the number of people here from Westheights has exploded. This was the start of a new group of kids for the CREW program, so Brittany Lester, Jenna Winger and Jasmine Allen-Sferruzzi are all a part of the CREW program for the next two weeks. We also have a lot of kids up here as campers from our church which is always so much fun. Jordan Slater is in Josh’s cabin and Josh Burns is in Matt R’s cabin. Brooklyn Lester, Michelle Braun and Gabrielle Hamel are all in Amanda’s cabin, and Katie and Emylea Wiens are also all up here. I’m really looking forward to being able to build relationships with these kids here and be able to experience the amazingness of camp together (yes I know that amazingness isn’t actually a word, but after you’ve been at camp for a while anything goes).
Camp truly is amazing. Even though I’ve been coming for 13 years I always experience something new here that helps me grow. For me this year, I’ve started to learn to listen to God more and in different ways. For example, this morning I was laying on the end of the dock doing some devotions and was just struck by the beauty of the colours laid out in front of me – the deep blue of the lake, deep green of the forest and light blue of the sky. It was so beautiful and I just felt God telling me that he put these beautiful colours here to put a smile on my face every time I look out on the lake, but especially when I’m tired and drained.
A similar experience happened yesterday on my day off when myself and a bunch of friends went to some rapids just outside Huntsville. After having fun in the rapids we went and just laid on some rocks in the sun. The rocks were so toasty warm and it felt so wonderful. The more I laid there the less I felt the physical warmth from the sun on the rocks and the more I felt a deeper warmth radiating through my heart. It was the perfect way to be refilled on my day off. I always used to be discouraged that I couldn’t hear God’s voice in an audible way that some people experienced, but these past few days I felt God “speak” to me through more visual and sensual ways. I really hope that as we finish up these last two weeks of kids camp that I can continue to experience God in these new ways and my prayer is that everyone here – staff and campers – will also experience God in a new way that will help them go deeper in their faith.