I SURVIVED MY FIRST CAMP AS A COUNSELOR! Every ounce of energy was drained out of me, which translates to an immediate 3 hour nap/coma after the campers left the site! Although the experience was exhausting and overwhelming… I loved it. I loved my campers, the other small group leaders, the activities/games, the sermons and worship. At the same time, my heart was continually breaking.
I grew up as an only child and was blessed with a pretty great childhood. I had yearly vacations, food at the table for every meal, and two parents who would read me a story before bed every single night. I’ve never really been around kids so my heart was ignorant to how easily Satan could attack God’s children, even at a young age. I thought the only hard times a child could possibly experience is the death of their beloved dog, or their parents getting divorced. Boy, was I wrong and honestly, I wish I wasn’t.
What broke my heart was the realization that these 5th and 6th graders were experiencing things in their life that I feel like no 10-12 year child should be having to deal with at such a young age. Some were living with parents who were raging alcoholics. Some girls had already developed eating disorders. Some of them believed they weren’t worthy of receiving love. Some were victims of physical and emotional abuse. Some of my campers hated themselves when they looked in the mirror. Some thought that the world would be a better place if they weren’t there.
I HATE that. I hate hate hate hate that. It was already hard enough struggling with an eating disorder and depression at 22…but for my age, it was extremely common and talked about in a college setting. If I was dealing with that at age 10-12, I have no idea where I would have been able to turn. What I also hate about this… is that it isn’t just 5th and 6th graders who experience this. It’s all around the world and at every age. I have the same insecurities and struggles as them, and I know I’m not the only one.
The slogan of the camp this week was “YOU’RE ONE IN A MINION.” Cheesy… but absolutely relevant to anyone at any age. We need to start believing in God’s truth about us and stop allowing the lies of social media and culture to define our thinkings.
On the first day, we were told to draw a picture of how we see ourselves. I saw some of my kids drawing themselves with tears and sad faces, writing sentences about how they were “too much” or “not enough” of something. To be vulnerable with you, I wrote on my paper that I look too skinny, a disappointment to my family, not smart enough, always worried, might forever be single, used goods, etc. On the last day, we took those drawings and words about ourselves and threw them into the fire. We told them to re-draw new pictures… pictures of ourselves the way that God wanted us to see ourselves. Some of the words I saw on my campers’ papers were: redeemed, child of God, loved, worthy, princess. How beautiful is that?
What did warm my heart is that each and every one of the campers in my small group knew the story of Jesus Christ. Not only that, but they BELIEVED it. It’s beyond beautiful to see having faith like a child. During the camp, we had the kids do a local challenge (think of a camp version of The Amazing Race). Some of the scenarios included telling a police officer a joke, picking up trash around the beach, memorizing a verse, building a sandcastle, doing something nice for a stranger and getting buried in the sand. What really surprised me was how willing some of them were to walk up to someone they’ve never met before and BOLDLY ask if they could pray for them/tell them the story of Jesus. This is the future generation of evangelists and the foundation of The Body of Christ for decades to come.
My Prayer Requests: Thank you, Jesus, for this beautiful experience. You never said that we wouldn’t suffer on this earth but You did bring us hope. We can put our faith in YOU… to know that you conquered death. You continually carry the weight of not only our sins but our worries and struggles as well. Just like you DEFEATED my depression, suicidal thoughts and eating disorder… I know you want to do the same for all your children all over the world.
