Camp Lakeside

The "camp" I referred to in my previous post is youth camp.  Our church started doing their own youth camp this year instead of attending an organized camp with other youth groups.  The leadership team, made up of students and adults, planned it all.  They found a camp (Camp Copass in Denton---camp staff did the cooking and cleaning up, we did the rest), came up with the theme (Ruined) brought in a speaker (Shawn Minix) and a band (Matt Roberson Band), wrote out skits, designed a t-shirt and stage decorations, planned recreation, and created the schedule.  I went as the sponsor for 9 girls who just completed their sophomore year.  As a family group, we met twice each day for Bible Study, quiet times, and prayer time.  We also sat together during worship and played together during free time.  We were in a cabin with the 9th and 11th grade girls and their sponsors.  It was crowded and these girls were prissy, meaning I had to fight for a shower each morning.  There were 4 showers for 34 girls and 4 sponsors---crazy times.  We actually did not once run out of hot water.  Miracle of all miracles.  I am being serious.  Really.  Hot water all the time.  Amazing.

As a sponsor, I also had a "rec-team" made up of 7th - 12th graders, boys and girls.  There were about 10 of us on our rec team.  We were assigned the color pink  and we had to come up with a team name, decorate our flag, and create a cheer.  Obviously the only name that would work for a pink team was "Conjunctivitis" (or pink eye).  Our pink flag simply had a blood-shot eye drawn onto it and our cheer went something like this:

It makes you look bad,

it makes you cry.

It makes ooze come out of your eye.

Conjunctivitis will bring you to tears.

Besides pranks, it's Shelly's worst fear (youth minister is very strict about pranks).

Very contagious, just like our spirit, 

Pink Eye is in it to win it!

Once we finally got our cheer down, it rocked and everyone thought it was funny.  We were a pretty awesome team and I've got a hat to prove it.  Not only did we win a lot of the games, we also had the best teamwork and sportsmanship...so we won first place among all the teams. Heck yea, we did!  As the first place prize, we all got hats with the camp theme on it.  They're awesome.

Obviously recreation was fun and I also loved getting to know my girls during the week.  But that's not why I'll go back next year.  It was a privilege to be there at all, but God had a message for me as well.  As I mentioned, the theme was "Ruined" and our scripture was Phil 3:7-10.  We focused on asking God to ruin our plans, dreams, desires...our very lives.  Shawn and others who shared their testimonies talked about what it looks like to have your life ruined by God.  We often make our plans and set about obtaining our dreams in life...how many kids, where we'll live, how we'll be involved at church, jobs, etc.  BUT sometimes God has something else for us, something greater that will bless us if we'll allow Him to ruin our own desires.  

The main thing that was "ruined" for me was Sunday School.  You see, we left an incredible church group when we left Waco.  Our friends came from our Sunday school class and life group there and we've missed that greatly.  When we came here, the class that we belonged to was small and couldn't seem to grow.  We did form relationships there but we've been hurting and longing for a more connected class.  This February, there were some changes in our church and several classes were combined to form one larger class.  Our new Sunday school class is thriving---we serve each other, pray for each other, and enjoy each other.  These last few months have been so refreshing for Jeff and me.  But on Monday at camp, one of the other sponsors asked me to pray about teaching a youth Sunday school class.  I told her that no, I would not, under any circumstances pray about that.  And I didn't.  Not one time did I purposefully pray about teaching youth.  BUT every time I asked God to ruin my life, He beat me over the head with Sunday school.  I've been happy and comfortable in my class and didn't want to let it go, but God made it abundantly clear to me this week that I need to sacrifice my adult class and be willing to take on more responsibility with the youth.  There's no doubt I'll be teaching a group of girls by the end of the year.  There are some other, smaller things that God would have me give up so that He can go about His business with me, but leaving my class is by far the biggest thing.  That ache in my heart that has been temporarily fixed by our Sunday school class has been replaced with a burning desire to obey God by leaving that particular comfort zone.  

There you have it---my life change taken from youth camp.  I will say that I've been to many camps but this was like no other.  It was intense from day 1, no fluffy stuff in the sermons or worship or Bible Studies.  Kids were coming to know the Lord before we had been there for 12 hours.  By the end, students were publicly confessing sin and asking for help from their peers and the adults there.  Lives are still being changed.  God is working in our church like I've never seen and I'm happy to be a part of it.  

And top of all that happened spiritually at camp, the food was incredible.  Phenomenal.  Amazing.  Scrumptious.  Best camp food in the history of the universe, ever.  Icing on the cake if you ask me.

Had to end on a light note.  Good night--I'm off to catch up on my sleep some more.  

You can see pics and video from camp by going to the Lakeside Student Ministry blog--the link is to the right.