“God was speaking to her heart – He knew she needed to be at camp.”

I didn’t know what I was getting into when asked to come to camp, but I said yes. My children had been cabin leaders so they advised me on “How to Be a Cabin Leader,” and what to pack. The week of camp arrived and I, with two friends, were the rookie cabin leaders although we were the seniors in senior teen week! My first camper was very excited to be there: “I love camp and have been here three times!” The second camper arrived and her enthusiasm was not so much. As we were walking to the cabin she rolled her eyes at me and said, “Just to let you know, I DO NOT want to be here.” “OK” I smiled back and inside my head I began to pray for her. How am I going to reach her? The afternoon continued and the cabin filled with girls from a variety of backgrounds, lifestyles and personalities, and where they were in their walk with Jesus. I became an elastic band. Being stretched with talking and dealing with life experiences, issues and seeing God work in the lives of these girls. We became a family for that week. I learned why I was to be at camp: so God could use me to show these girls Jesus, and who He was to be in their lives. The girl who rolled her eyes at me opened her heart the second night, sharing some of the lies she doesn’t want to believe. I shared the Gospel and talked through some of those lies. God was speaking to her heart – He knew she needed to be at camp. She saw God’s love through the cabin leaders and her attitude changed. Another camper stayed on for a few more weeks with the Work Crew Program. By the end she was a different girl than the one who arrived. Camp was many weeks ago; my life at camp was a blessing to me. Sharing who Jesus is, sharing my faith walk, and seeing how God is working in the lives of the campers, making friends with cabin leaders much younger than I, and learning from them.