"Therefore, prepare your minds for your action; be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed. As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. but just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: 'be holy, because I am holy.'" 1 Peter 1:13-16
We have now been at Camp Tejas for one month! Its amazing how fast time has flown by. Our transition out of Houston to Giddings, was really quick but went really smoothly for the most part. We had some wonderful friends help us pack and move, which we are so grateful for.
Leaving Houston, for a time at least, has truly been good for our souls. I don't think I realized how suffocated I was feeling living in the big city. Our first day at Camp I immediately felt this heaviness lift off my soul. It literally felt like walking out of darkness into the light. Don't get me wrong, we really did enjoy our time in Houston and really made some great friendships, but we are still trying seeking as to weather or not that is where we need to return after summer...but I'm not going to write about that this time :)
So, camp its been great (We hope you can tell by our photos)! We really are having a blast. We are working some really long hours, but we get to be with friends while doing it, so it doesn't feel like work so much. Along with working we are studying and memorizing Matthew 7, focusing on holiness, as a staff and then the guys and girls are studying different topics once a week. The girls are studying about choosing forgiveness, thankfulness, and security in Christ. The guys are reading a book called "Stepping Up: A call to courageous manhood" by Dennis Rainey.
There is so much that God is doing in our lives and the other staff members. I really feel like God wants to use this summer to show us how much He loves us and wants to restore the broken things of our past. I have found that I have been so bitter and cynical this past year. I really want to find freedom from bitterness and all negativity. I want to see people as Christ sees people and not just see the negative things. I feel slowly but surely, God is pulling these negative layers away and revealing to me truth once again. One of the ways He showed me this was with a group that was just here. One evening they wanted to do some baptisms at the Pool, so I had to go down and open the pool up and hang out until they were finished. There were over 90 baptisms that evening. Amazing, right. Unfortunately that was not my first thought. My first thought was the cynical side of me saying, " I wonder if its for real, I mean is this really going to change their life, do they really know what they are committing to?" I thought this while watching people hug and cry for about 45 minutes. Then I felt a whisper in my heart saying, "well, you chose to follow Me at camp when you were only 12, and you did, you let Me change you and you let Me lead you, not always, but you did choose Me and it stuck with you...so why beloved can you not believe the same for my children you are critically observing?" I was struck by my hardness of heart and began to tear up and remember all of the times that I cried because of Jesus...so many times I have cried. I was reminded that choosing Christ brings tears to the eyes of a heart that is in so much need of a savior. Your soul feels the relief when you finally say "okay, I can't do it anymore...I need you my King, please come and take me and make me yours." I pray that the Lord will continue to soften my heart and give me eyes to see. I need Him so desperately. There is so much sanctification that needs to happen in my life. I'm thankful that God has so much patience and that He never gives up on His children. Praise His glorious name that so many children chose to make Him their Lord and Savior during that week. I pray that they do make their lives all about Him.
Thanks for taking the time to read this brief update. I'll try to update more often. If you feel lead would love some prayer. I have listed some prayer requests below. Also, if you want to check out more photos from Camp Tejas you can follow this link http://photos.camptejas.org/Summer-Staff/2011.
Prayer Requests:
- What to do in the fall? Where to go?
- Freedom from bitterness and negativity
- Patience in leading
- That we would love unconditionally
- That Simeon and I would use our time well
- That we would grow more in discipline
- Relationships with other staff
- Health
- That would be completely surrendered to Christ's will for our lives
Rejoicing,
julie
