Monday, July 22, 2013

Post Youth Camp


"And I will be a father to you, And you shall be sons and daughters to Me," Says the Lord Almighty.    2 Corinthians 6:18

The week before last I went to Intensity Youth Camp.  I have been waiting to go for many years.  I have four kids and my youngest is now old enough to go so it was finally my turn this year to be a counselor.

As I suspected, I was blessed beyond words.  The camp pastor was great, the music amazing and the group of girls I worked with were a very special group of girls.  They are strong, rock solid, Christian girls who love the Lord and want to live their lives for His glory. 

The theme of camp was unity in the body of Christ.  The camp pastor spoke of how we are all called by name.  God calls us all by name – each person specifically – to have a relationship with Him.  He seeks us, He wants us.  That is unfathomable.  The God who created this universe seeks a relationship with me?  He does.  He seeks me and you too.  He wants our devotion and love.  He wants our praise and adoration.  He wants a conversation, to know the desires of your heart.  He cares about me.  He cares about you.  We also learned that we are sons and daughters of the King, heirs to His kingdom.  So, not only does God want a relationship with me, He loves me like a daughter?  The King of Kings, highest of all royalty calls me daughter.

One thing that the girls in my group really picked up on this week was that in God’s eyes they do not have to be perfect.  They all feel a lot of pressure to be perfect to everyone around them – family and friends.  They embraced the fact that they don’t have to do anything at all for God to see them as absolutely perfect.  His perception is the only one that really matters!  We can never measure up to our own expectations and we are harder on ourselves than anyone else ever is. Often we feel like we don’t measure up but that is not how others see us.  Others may see us as having it all together when we don’t feel like we do.  God loves us where we are.  He picks us up out of the miry clay, filthy with sin, and accepts us without judgment.  He does not expect us to be perfect, knows that we cannot be perfect, when the world does.

Another point that really stuck from the messages was the simple fact that we just plain forget sometimes – Jesus rose from the grave.  Jesus rose from the grave, Jesus rose from the grave!  He rose from the grave, from death, so what can He not do?  Nothing!  There is no problem too big for Him to solve, no pain too great for Him to soothe, no failure so great He can’t forgive.  He can handle everything and anything! 

This year I hope I can help my kids keep some of that passion alive.  Maybe since I experienced it too I can remind them of some of the things we learned.  Even though you may not have gone to camp this past week or had a mountain top experience in a long time, I challenge you to answer the call of the King.  He requests your presence.  He requests your investment in Him and a relationship that will change your life – not just for a week, for an eternity.

Scripture to Claim:
But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.  1 Peter 2:9

Submitted By Lara Cook

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