Dear Prayer
Warriors,
This
past week, July 14-18 for Session #5, was a busy one at Camp Alandale. We only
had three male counselors, so I (Michael) had three campers instead of the
typical two. In addition to that, two extra campers were sleeping in my tent at
night since they had female counselors. With five middle school boys in my
tent, it goes without saying that I had my hands full! Many of the guys had been
through a lot and their behavior reflected that, so I initially didn't think
that Roberto needed as much attention. His mother had left him at
an early age, but he now lives happily with his father, a recovering addict who
attends church three times a week. Roberto admitted to being a little burnt out
on church, but I assumed he had at least heard the core of the Gospel and spent
most of our one-on-one time talking about his life and how he could get
closer to God rather than why he should try to get closer. It wasn't
until later in the week that I realized I had thought wrong. During a Bible
study, one of my boys asked if anyone ever lived forever. I replied that
everyone who believed in Christ had eternal life, and Roberto's face instantly
lit up, “For reals?” I said yes, and that all he had to do was accept Jesus
into his heart, an offer he instantly accepted. Thankfully God was able to see
what I could not and was able to reach Miguel before he had to leave for the
week.
My
name is Irene, and I was counseling this last week. I found out I had one girl,
and one boy camper. I am always anxious when having a boy camper, hopeful that
they will open up to a girl counselor. My boy campers name was Rodrigo. He
was the funny guy of the week—always cracking jokes, extremely friendly and
very joyful. On Tuesday night I ended up getting really sick and threw up. I
was super bummed because that meant I couldn't have my one-on-one time with
Rodrigo that night. However, the next day at breakfast when he saw me, he was
extremely excited. He told me that he was praying for me and that he wanted to
share his testimony with me. You can bet that I was beyond excited! That day he
shared through tears how his mom left him when he was three, and he's been in
foster care since. He was extremely vulnerable. He struggled with understanding
his purpose in this world. It was incredible to see how God transformed his
heart through just one week at camp. He ended up really understanding how God
made him for a purpose. He became very interactive during Bible study and
wanted to answer every question. And, best of all he rededicated his life to
Christ! It's always incredible to see the amazing things that God can do in as
little as one week.
Continue
to pray for these precious campers, and for them to fully understand the love
that God has for them. Thank you for all your support and prayers. It is
extremely appreciated! God Bless you all.
In the name
of Jesus,
Michael
& Irene
Summer
Staff 2014
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