Dear Prayer Warriors and Camp Family,
It was
Rich's first time at Camp Alandale when he stepped off the bus Monday morning.
He was kind and excited for camp, but as the day progressed it was obvious that
he was carrying a heavy burden. At amphitheater and campfire the first day,
tears would well up in his eyes and pour down his cheeks. Each time he would
cry he would ask to go to the bathroom, not wanting anyone to witness his
emotion. That night, he lay on top of his sleeping bag, not even desiring to
cover himself in its warmth, and he cried silently through the night.
The
following day, his emotions continued to be aroused and now, instead of asking
he would suddenly run off to the bathroom to hide his tears. While he was
enjoying camp, his past continued to interrupt his day and overcome him with
emotions he did not understand. During counselor prayer, Rich was prayed for
and the counselors asked God to help him sleep through the night. By God’s
grace that simple prayer was answered, and as God often does He went above and
beyond the counselors’ request.
Wednesday
evening at campfire time, after two counselors had shared their testimonies the
opportunity was presented for the campers to share their life stories. To his
counselor’s utter surprise, Rich's hand was the first hand in the air. Rich walked boldly to the front of the amphitheater, sat down in front of the fire,
took the microphone in his hands, and told the entire camp his life story. Rich's father had left their family when Rich was just a toddler, and Rich's mother raised him and two younger brothers. His family recently moved from
Michigan to California, but after a brief stay with their aunt, the boys were
taken into foster care. Rich and his brothers are now living in a group home.
While there were few details to Rich's story, as he shared the pain and anger
he felt towards his father for leaving them, the tears once more rushed down
his face. Only this time, rather than running to the bathroom to hide his
perceived weakness Rich continued to tell his story and was received with many
hugs by fellow campers when he finished sharing.
That
night during his one-on-one, Rich admitted that he had struggled with showing
emotion in front of people, but he felt like he had conquered a fear by telling
his story even through the tears of his pain. And that evening, Rich got in his
bed, took off his shoes, wrapped himself in his sleeping bag, and slept soundly through the night.
At
the conclusion of the week, during Victory Circle when campers receive awards
from their counselors, Rich received an award stating that “Rich is
COURAGEOUS.” Rich is courageous for facing his fear and for recognizing the
emotion tied to his past. He is courageous because he cares for his brothers
and cares for his fellow campers.
God
is good, isn’t He? He boldly answers our prayers, and often He does more than
we even ask Him. Rich not only conquered his fear by God’s help, but he also
now knows that God loves him and protects him as His Heavenly Father. Just as
Romans 8 says, Rich as a follower of Christ is now God’s adopted child and
coheir with Christ, whereby he can boldly call upon God as his “Abba! Father!” Rich's counselor could not help but think that as Rich wrapped himself in his
sleeping bag after telling his life story, a weight had been lifted off of him and he now slept under the warm protection of His Heavenly Father.
In God’s Grace,
Alex Mailhot-Beutel
Summer Staff 2016
Summer Staff 2016
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