I started working for Student Life Camp right after my freshman year of college. I had been a camper pretty much every year that I could be, and was thrilled to make it on staff as an actress. I worked the next year as well, and then came back as a Program Director a few years later. Life happened, full-time jobs happened, teacher certification happened, and it didn't work out for me to go back. I was sad, but knew that everyone's summer camp time came to an end at some point. My brother was still working for them, so I knew I would still be connected to that community.
Ryan continued to work for SL and became a camp team director. I watched him grow into an incredible leader and wished that I had gotten the chance to serve on one of his teams. In the meantime, I very happily became a theatre teacher, as I had long dreamed of doing.
In early June this year, I was wrapping up my second year of teaching. Evie, my sweet Lab, and I had just moved into our cute new little apartment. I was very much looking forward to a summer of laying by the pool, working out, eating healthy, and getting everything in order for the next school year. On a Sunday morning, I walked into Target to buy dog food, curtains, and some cleaner for the new place. Instead, I walked out with khaki shorts and a pair of shoes for Reg Day. While in the store, I got the call from Ryan that their Family Group Coordinator had decided that she wasn't supposed to be serving on the team this summer, and they needed someone to take her spot--fast. I wasn't exactly sure how I was going to make it work in light of several issues, but I knew God was planning on getting me back on the road for one more summer.
Over the next couple of days, all of the concerns I had for the summer were worked out for me. My ever gracious landlords happily accepted the responsibility of watching my dog--oh, and by the way, if I wasn't going to be in the house they didn't see why I should pay full rent, so they just went ahead and knocked $200 off the months I would be gone. I could not be more grateful for their help in making this summer of ministry possible. The summer events that I had planned and could not miss were all contained within one week, and were scheduled at a time that it would totally be possible for me to come back to Texas for a week. These were just the big things--a million small details came together in this beautifully orchestrated plan.
One of the toughest things about working camp in the summer is that it's usually done during a season in your life when you don't really know what you'll be going back to in the Fall. That was certainly the case for me in the previous years I had worked, but this time, I knew exactly what was next. I would be coming home to a new apartment, my sweet dog, a full-time job, and a church home. I knew that being free of these concerns would allow me to minister to the people on my team in a way I had never been able to before. I was also coming into this significantly older than a lot of the people on my team. While I knew this could potentially make for a disconnect, I also knew that it could make my teammates see me as someone they could confide in. I was so ready to invest in these 22 people.
What I never imagined was how much they would minister to me. It literally took me until the end of the summer to realize just how spiritually drained I had felt in the last year as a result of the tough environment at work. The spiritual and literal poverty at this school is draining, and the time of worship, learning, and fellowship this summer was exactly the rejuvenation I needed.
The second I met each and every teammate, they immediately made me feel as if I was not only a part of the team, but that we had known each other for years and were already great friends. They wanted to know about me, they wanted to pray for me, they wanted to take care of me. And in those first couple of days, that was exactly what I needed. I had barely slept, I had forgotten just how bad camp food was, and I immediately jumped into a job that I hadn't had the week of training for everyone else had gotten. I was overwhelmed, but more so by the immediate community I had than by the daunting task of assigning out 100 family groups and finding places for all of them to meet.
In the weeks that followed, I spent hours chatting, laughing, crying, scheming, dancing, serving, and living with these (mostly) college students. I went to bed earlier than most of them, joked about how I was way too old for this job and we realized that a couple of them had been at the first camps I had ever worked--and that it was their first camp as 7th grade campers--but throughout all of that, they never made me feel as if I was too old to be a part of them. I was just one of the team, as much as any of them.
The community shared among these 23 people this summer was one of the greatest examples of the Kingdom I've ever seen. Each had their role, that they were specially gifted for, but every single person was willing to lend a hand in any area that it was needed. I could literally write an entire book on all of the wonderful experiences we had, but I'll just leave it at this--I went into this summer expecting to just serve a team, and left with some of the dearest friends I think I'll ever have. The faithfulness of the Lord to not only rejuvenate and teach me, but to also provide amazing companionship for me this summer, is so overwhelming.
To my dear sweet OT13 family--I can only hope I served you a fraction as well as you served me. Your love, laughs, and impact on my life will be long-lasting. Thank you for your incredible service to the Kingdom this summer.
Family on three!
So glad God had such a wonderful plan for you and for the other members of OT13. Love you and your devoted heart!
ReplyDelete