I have always been someone who has gone to church with her family all of her life. However up until the summer after my sophomore year, I never really understood Jesus in the way that I wanted to.
You see, I went to camp from age 12 until 16 up in the mountains of Mentone, Alabama. Those were the best years of my childhood, I met some of my closest friends and just had a grand old time! My camp is a Christian girl's camp, so we have morning devotionals, evening campfires, and church. It is the best.
The first four summers that camp was a part of my summers were summers where I would go and not really understand what the counselors were telling me about Him. That all changed on July 26th, 2014 at 9:30 PM CST.
I found Jesus.
For all I knew, July 26th was going to be a normal day, I remember going to all of my activities and having an amazing day overall. After dinner and the evening program, it was time to head to the evening campfire. The older and younger girls each have separate campfires because that way the message can be tailored to the age group. The message is the same, so the girls are all hearing some variation. On this particular evening, my all time favorite counselor (see A Letter to my Favorite Counselor) was actually the one doing my campfire. Needless to say, that made me pretty excited.
We sat down by the fire, and were ready to listen to what she had to say. From the moment the campfire started, it was clear that this campfire was extra special and raw. Knowing that someone that I look up to immensely was about to pour her heart out and share Jesus with us made me feel really honored to be there and worship with her and my friends.
Over the next 30 minutes or so, I hear a story of hard decisions, loss, and finding Him through times of struggle. What I was hearing spoke to me in a way that my friends and I could relate to. My counselor talked about how He puts situations in our lives for a reason, and we may not know why right off the bat. Someday however, we will know why. The verse she used to tell this story was John 13:7.
John 13:7 New International Version (NIV)
7 Jesus replied, "You do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand."
I have learning challenges, and so all throughout the campfire, I was relating everything to my LD. Pretty much everyone else listening was doing the same thing, because everyone including my counselor started to cry. It was a moment that I will never forget. We were all connected through our individual struggles, and bringing them to Him.
The coolest part of that night was something that we did right before the campfire was over. Each camper got two sheets of construction paper and a marker. We were told to write a struggle we had on one sheet of paper, and then write someone we could talk to on another. Then we were told to go up to the fire and literally throw the piece of paper with the struggle on it into the fire. It was so relieving to see my struggle go up to God. It told me that my struggles do not have to define me, and He has me if I fall.
After those two weeks at camp, I went home with a clearer view on what it means to be a child of God. Even almost four years after the initial night of me finding Him, my counselor and I are still in touch, She still shows me SO MUCH about Jesus through the way she treats others, and giving back. That example is inspiring. I am so thankful that she was the one to help me understand God.
July 26th, 2014 will forever be one of the most important days in my life. Every year I try to commemorate it with texting that counselor to thank her for bringing me to Jesus. What happened that night will never be forgotten.
