Power From On High

    Camp is getting closer by the minute. It's hard to believe everything will start in less than 2 weeks. In preparation for the 10 weeks of summer camp ahead, the past two days, and for the rest of the next week and a half, the interns have been getting together to plan. Yesterday was very encouraging to me. I found out that our director hired a full-time staff member to help oversee the summer camp. So, a lot of the stress of planning, making phone calls, and doing a lot of the paperwork side of things has been delegated to her. But what was truly encouraging, as I got to meet her, was to see her heart for God and how He is working in her life. Additionally, her and her fiance's desire is to pour into the interns who are constantly pouring out to the kids daily. This, for me, is a huge blessing. Remembering last year, there were definitely days and even some entire weeks where my physical, mental, and spiritual stamina wore thin. This draining, going unchecked, could lead to me being less patient or less Spirit lead. I'm excited and encouraged to hear about this increase of the community of believers this summer.
    This is all fantastic, but, the main reason I wanted to blog today was to share something that God revealed to me today from His word. I've been studying Luke the past few days, and it just so happened that today I got to the end of the book. Now, to preface what I learned, yesterday in our short meeting, the new staff member and I were really digging into how to discipline the kids in a loving and effective way. Also, in general, the next two weeks are really heavy in planning and preparation for this summer. Long story short--there's a lot of decisions to be made about this summer. So, back to Luke. In the 24th chapter, Jesus resurrects, He appears to some people, and then He shares a few days with His disciples. Verse 49 really stuck out to me when Jesus said to his disciples, "I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high." And then, flash forward to Acts chapter 1 and 2 where Luke continues his writing to Theophilus. We see that the disciples stayed in Jerusalem until Pentecost when the Holy Spirit came upon them. Luke 24:52-53 says, "Then they worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy. And they stayed continually at the temple, praising God." As I began to process all of this, this question came to mind: "Why don't we do this today?" Meaning this: why doesn't the church, the body of Christ, wait upon Him for everything. You see in the text, the disciples and the small group of followers didn't run off and tell everyone what happened that day. They didn't go proclaim Jesus' resurrection from the rooftops. They didn't knock on people's doors, they didn't send out e-mails or broadcast it on television. They waited. They waited. And then they waited. And you know what they did, while they were waiting? They praised God continually. You see, the disciples had just gotten through making the biggest mistakes of their life. Jesus had told them multiple times about this soon coming death and resurrection, but even with all these warnings, the disciples fled the scene and hid. However, being witnesses to the glory of God and seeing the risen Christ face to face, you better believe that they weren't going to question his promises once again. So when Jesus promised the Holy Spirit--they waited. No one made plans. No one formed a committee. No one came up with a great idea. No one even tried. In fact, the only thing they did, besides praising God was to appoint Matthias to replace Judas, and even this was lead by God's word. What's even more amazing, all the followers and disciples of Jesus were together. They were all in the same place praising God while they were waiting. Their unity and their hearts of patience and dependence upon God are what hit me.
    So why do go in depth into all of this? Good question. Here's a better question: Why does the church in America today spend more time holding meetings, conferences, and coming up with good ideas rather than being completely dependent upon God? Take that a step further: Why don't you and I present all our requests before the Lord and wait upon Him? Why don't we wait to hear from the Holy Spirit before moving until the point where the Spirit just flows out of us because we're so intent upon yielding to God? Why do I do anything at all unless it's praising God or waiting upon the Spirit? However, when we do hear from the Spirit and we are filled, we move with boldness in the Spirit's power and in the promises of God. Read the rest of Acts. That's what the church should and can look like. My question to the world is, why doesn't it look like that? Here's the answer from scripture: Praise God, Wait Upon God, Move Being Led By God. There's a commonality in all of those 3 steps: God. If we put Him first, ourselves way out of the picture, and rely completely on Him, that's when the "body of Christ" truly becomes Jesus dispensing His love and care to the world through us, rather than us trying our best in our own power to do what we think is best for everyone else and ourselves.
    And how do I do this? How do I completely surrender and trust in Christ for everything? Well, in Mark 9:24 the father of a demon-possessed boy struggles in fully believing in the power of Jesus. His response to Jesus was, "I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!"Ask the Lord to strengthen your trust and belief in Him. Pray for it without ceasing.
    As an intern this summer, I don't want to do anything, make any decision, or come up with any plan, unless it is sought after in prayer and lead by the Spirit and word of God. Will I do that perfectly, no. But as God continues to transform me and grow me more and more each day, I see that His power in me will lead me to lean upon Him more and more, as I yield to Him. And I'm encouraged that this power inside of me is "from on high." It's greater than the grave, and greater than the one in the world.

Here's a challenge for all those reading: What is something you've been planning, or something you're planning on doing? Maybe a big decision, or a small one. Maybe it's even some thing near or something far off. I challenge you, as we see in scriptures, to respond to Jesus like the disciples did: praise God, wait on God, and then move as God leads you. Don't be consumed in plans, but plan on being consumed by God.

WELCOME BACK!!!

    So, yesterday about 3pm, me and some of the interns from last summer went to the house downtown to visit the kids for a few hours. On the way, Emily (an intern from last summer) and I picked up some ice cream sandwiches and nutty buddies for the kids to enjoy. Arriving there was so weird, but in a good sense. Simply pulling into the gravel driveway, walking up the porch steps, and finally entering the familiar family/game room brought back so many memories and laughs all in an instant. It wasn't too long before Emily and I started exchanging questions beginning with, "Do you remember when…?" or "Can you believe last summer when…?". Reminiscing over the crazy and stressful, yet hilariously awesome moments of last summer's camp was well enjoyed.

    KB's director was there as well. It was great to catch up with him and discuss the new things that we're going to try and accomplish this summer. There appears to be a lot of details that still need to be worked out. A local church is looking at getting really involved with the ministry this summer and for the long-term as well. However, sometimes coordinating all of this administration and support can be a bit of a headache. However, I'm hopeful that, with a local church's support, the ministry can affect and touch even more kids and families in order to share the love of Christ with them.

    Once Kyle (another intern) arrived, we hopped into the classic 14-passenger van to round up all of the kids. I was surprised at how well I still remembered the route we took to pick them all up. Soon enough, a lot of the kids were in the van, even some new ones! But of course, new kids means new names, and I'm terrible at pronunciation. And surely all of the new names were at least 4 syllables. Ha! But it will come with time, I suppose.

    As we headed back to the house, I noticed something a little different about the kids. They weren't arguing. They weren't yelling. I wasn't even having to ask them to calm down. They were just being really awesome and behaving so well. Even more so, this behavior carried over to the basketball court! Sure, they made a few competitive remarks to each other, but nothing that isn't commonplace for any 11 or 12-year-old to make. It was so amazing and encouraging to witness all of this! After spending countless hours praying for them and over them, instructing, encouraging, and disciplining them last summer, there has been serious positive change taking place in their lives. One 13-year-old girl imparticular, who was known last summer for her sharp tongue and quick wit, had recently accepted Christ, been baptized, and joined a local Church and the choir. The fruit of her relationship with Jesus was evident in her behavior yesterday. She was so loving, gentle, and calm. She was silencing arguments instead of instigating them. Plus, the coolest part about her heart being changed by Jesus is that she's not the only one being changed! Her younger brother, frequently known for his temper tantrums and meltdowns of disobedience, was the epitome of calm yesterday. I heard that he had gotten baptized and joined that same church too. I surmised by asking him a few questions about his new church, that he might not fully understand what it all means yet, but that is just fuel for my motivation to be persistent this summer in teaching, in loving, and in discipling these kids.

    Anyways, I don't want to overwhelm you all just yet with stories. I simply wanted to give you a sneak peek of what's ahead, and maybe for those who are new to understanding this ministry, this first post will be a way of beginning to see how awesome God has been and will be in this ministry so long as we put Him first in everything.

    One last thing. I just sent out my first batch of support letters yesterday. I mentioned to the recipients to check out my blog. So, I want to thank you if you got a letter and are taking the time to read this. I hope this blog serves not only as information about the summer, but also as encouragement to others, as they see what God is doing in my life, as well as in the lives of all who are involved with the camp this summer.

PS- I have a specific prayer request that God would provide some other male interns for this summer. At the moment, I think I'm the only guy. I definitely am going to need some brotherhood for this summer. So as you remember, please pray for that. Thanks!