Monday, August 8, 2011

A Beautiful Exhaustion!

I'm officially home for the summer. Summer is over. Carolina Cross Connection, West Wilkes 2011's chapter is closed... It's time for the next "season" to come in.  


It's a weird feeling stepping back into a "normal" everyday life routine when your summer has been so radically different from anything you've ever experienced.  When I got home I suddenly realized all of the obligations I didn't have, and all of the faces I wouldn't be seeing at the late staff meeting we wouldn't be having.  (I also realized how great it was to not wear shower shoes, but that's a whole different topic.)  


To say I was sad would be an understatement, but along with exhaustion, I felt amazed at all of the work God did this summer.  Most camp weeks we averaged around 85 campers, making 12 Christian Mission Groups a week, or CMGs. The CMGs are the groups we send out to actually do the home repairs.  Each CMG had approximately 4 jobs per week. You do the math.  That means, on average, the campers touched the lives of 48 FAMILIES a week.  


These campers are INCREDIBLE.  They have  not only given up a week of their summer or job or vacation to help others, but they PAY to come.  How backwards is this thinking?  I think its radical.  Every week we remind the campers that while the world sees teenagers with a big black X on their forehead signalling trouble, they were breaking the stereotype.  They allowed God to use them as vessels to spread the Word of Christ.  HOW AMAZING.  


Ephesians 2:10 says, "For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do."  We were created to do good works to spread the love of Jesus.  I pray that each camper that came to CCC this year experienced the power of God working through and in them.  I know that I learned more from this summer than words can describe. 


Finally, because I didn't write as much as I had planned this summer, I think I'll continue the blog for a while. YAYYYY!!