I’m not sure how many of you reading this have ever been to summer camp. Some of you may have really great memories of bonfires, great friendships, and hilarious stories of that one time you painted all the boys fingernails with glow in the dark nail polish. Some you may have awful memories of poison ivy, mosquito bites, sun burns, swimmer’s ear, or maybe some poorly executed pranks. For me camp was always so much fun. It was one of my favorite parts about the summer. As a child I loved going to church camp. I love the crafts, swimming, and the recreational games that included things like gack(this green slimy stuff) or flour. My absolute favorite thing was the rock slide. It was literally a slide made out of rock with a small waterfall running over it that made it really smooth to slide down. As a teenager I loved getting to see old friends you only got to see at camp, being in nature, and the bonfires that usually included lots of watermelon. I even went back several years as a camp counselor and still had so much fun!
I say all this because this week our ministry is a summer camp in Burgas, Bulgaria which is about two and half hours from Varna. Burgas is a beach town on the Black Sea. It is so beautiful. Our ministry here hasn’t really looked like “ministry”. We aren’t playing with children doing bible skits and singing VBS songs or street evangelizing. We are doing simple, random tasks that need to get done. Things like sitting at the phone charging station monitoring the phone to make sure none get stolen or picked up mistakenly by the wrong person or walking around the camp in two hour shifts to keep an eye on people’s tents and make sure things are ok. We have had a small opportunity to help with the children’s program as well. We even at times have been able to visit the beach and participate in the worship sessions and hear some the talks. It has been really amazing to see how God uses our willingness and availability for His Kingdom.
It has been so incredible being here. I am always so encouraged when I get to worship and do life with students. I strongly believe in this generation and how The Lord is going to use us for His Kingdom. It has been so much fun to get to know some the campers, to hear there stories, to worship with them, and to just laugh and be silly with them. It has been incredible to see their hearts for Jesus and their hearts are beautiful.
The Lord is doing an incredible work in the lives of theses students here this week. He is breaking off chains and strongholds. He is bringing freedom and healing. He is showing His face and His presence is so thick. He is going to use this generation of Bulgarians to bring revival to this country. This generation craves something real, something deeper that what religion has given them. They crave Jesus and not just to know about him but to know him. I can see in the way they talk about him, in the way that they pray, and the way they worship. He is more than a picture on a wall to them. There faith is childlike and it is precious. These students are going to bring Bulgaria back to life and I am so excited!!!!
Please join me in praying for them and this country. They are a powerful force for The Kingdom and the enemy will do everything he can to try and stop them. Pray that they will be strengthened in The Lord. Pray for the gifts to be released over them and for The Lord to move through them in mighty way. Pray for blessing and favor to go before them. I am so excited for all the Kingdom they are going to bring and all the hearts that are going to be set free because of their faith in The Lord and all the ones who are going to come to know Jesus because of them. It is going to be so good.
