Training camp was intimidating to say the least. The food was…interesting, sleeping in a tent was uncharted territory for me, being so completely vulnerable with new people took a lot of trust, and mostly, encountering the Holy Spirit in ways that I never could have imagined was scary.
Where there were physical struggles that came along with training camp-we joked that we were actually at fat camp with the amount that we exercised and the food we ate-what I want to focus on most is what I learned about Jesus during this ten-day adventure.
There is so much I could tell you about how I encountered God in the sessions and sermons and worship throughout the camp, but there is one instance that I would really like to highlight and that is what I learned about God’s infinite Grace.
I’m going to share my journal entry from the night I heard the message:
“Tonight’s message on grace totally and completely changed my faith. I now know that I don’t need to try and impress Him, He is already impressed by me because he created me in his own image. It is not by works that we get into heaven and that truth is so freeing. As the pastor from South Africa spoke I learned that God loves me. Not because of what I can do for him or offer him, because, lets be real, apart from him I am nothing. He loves me with an everlasting love. I pray that over people so often but I don’t think I’ve ever stopped to think about how amazing it is that His love is everlasting, never ending, constant, unending, no matter what. My God is a faithful God. His love endures forever. ”
My prayer is that as this blog entry goes out, those who read it would understand how much our Father loves them.
As I begin to prepare for this nine-month journey I can’t help but be overwhelmingly excited about what is to come. If I can learn so much in ten days, how much will I be able to learn in nine months?
I am thankful that the Lord created me in his likeness. I am thankful that apart from Him, I am nothing. I am thankful for his never-ending grace. I am thankful for his everlasting love for me.
