Waiting for a bite, Deontrey sits by the pond while fishing today at
There have been many times this week that the counselors have stopped their campers in the woods or by the lake to have them admire God’s creation. God created everything, but there is something about the openness and quietness of the country that makes you stop and remember that.
Each day, the campers loaded up on bug spray, caught a dozen frogs, and I think that one boy had a pound of mud on his shoe when he came home. But each day this week, the campers have had an experience that I know they will be talking about for months to come.
Today was another exciting day at
Today on the way home, one camper said, “I can’t wait until camp tomorrow. I don’t even know what we are doing, but I can’t wait!"
Brothers Kerry and Deontrey pose with their counselor from
Continue to pray for GREAT weather. Besides a couple of rain showers, it has been wonderful. The kids are doing a great job of keeping good attitudes, even in the rain. That is what
A field trip starting with water balloons has to be good! As soon as the students of the elementary program unloaded the vans at
The highlight of the day, though, was the
They were split up into four teams: Red, Yellow, Blue and Green. Each team had a cheer that they would shout throughout the games. An example of one of the cheers was: R-E-D, Jesus died for me. With the most enthusiastic voices and jumping up and down, the kids were yelling their praising cheers!
Along with the cheers they played many relay and team games such as bowling pin relays and bean bag toss. They had a blast cheering on their team and the other teams as well. It is awesome to see kids having fun being kids and learning about Jesus as well.
I was thankful for such a great day for a field trip, even though it was hot! We also have great staff and volunteers that keep things fun and organized. The kids had a great time and will sleep good tonight…or at least I will!
One incident that brought great pride and joy to my heart occurred several days into the week at Southwood Luthern Camp. As I entered her classroom, I immediately noticed a girl from our program sulking in the corner. At a moment we had to ourselves, I asked her what was wrong. She pointed to a little blonde girl wearing a sparkly pink t-shirt and stylish Gap cap.
"She don't like
I wasn't sure how to respond to this, being white, I can only imagine the pain of feeling that kind of discrimination, so I gave her the best advice I could give.
"You know what? Maybe you're right, maybe she doesn't have many black friends, but do you know that you could change that? All you have to do is show her how nice you can be." I was a bit surprised to see this girl looking at me sincerely, straight in the eye. She nodded as I continued. "If you think someone doesn't like you, just be nice to them, then you know that they have no reason to dislike you." I gave her a squeeze on the shoulder and sent her back in the classroom, hoping my elementary advice would have some impact on her. I said a quick prayer for her, that she would be able to use her strong personality to encourage rather than intimidate.
Later that afternoon I heard her talking to the little blonde girl, "Hey! Do you want to sit by me? Cute hat!" I sat back and watched the two engage in a positive conversation about the craft they'd made in class. In all honesty, I'd never seen her so outgoing and friendly to another student, much less someone who she thought didn't like her! I couldn't help but smile as the little girl looked taken aback by her compliments and the all important, female ritualistic invitation to the bathroom. Although the little girl didn't respond as positively as one would hope to her invitation, I couldn't wait to pull her aside and tell her how absolutely proud I was of her. As we stood in the hallway, I gave her a huge hug and held her hand. I asked her how it felt to "just be nice". She replied with a shy smile, as if she even surprised herself, and said "It feels good!” The rest of the week I noticed her efforts to befriend her classmate and I thanked the Lord for His loving-kindness, His love for this and how good it feels "just being nice".
Exactly three weeks ago today, while speaking at a banquet, I shared a story about two young men who had removed from City Impact’s summer Teen Job Club program as a result of poor behavior. However, I had a plan, and I encouraged those attending the banquet to check our blog in three weeks to see if my plan worked.
Unfortunately, my plan has not worked – at least not yet. But the seeds have been planted, the soil has been tilled, and I believe it is simply a matter of time before both of them not only return to City Impact, but return successfully.
While I’m not yet ready to share my idea for these two youth with the world, I will say that it involves creating a culture of caring in our youth programs. It involves young people showing kindness and sacrificial love to one another. For a glimpse into what this could look like, I encourage everyone to read the July 7th blog post entitled Sacrificial Love Among Teens by Erica Schmidt. It is a powerful and moving story about kids caring for kids.
Three weeks from today, I will be back with another update on the status of these two young men. I hope my news at that time is more positive.