August 01, 2006

teen week and now

I decided to brave the dial-up-on-an-old-pc wilderness and write an entry in the counselor lounge. So I have a book (Instruments in the Redeemer’s Hands) in my lap for the waits and hope to finish this entry in less than 3 sittings.

We’re just coming off a really good teen week here at camp and now are back to two more junior weeks (7-12 year olds). Perhaps the most visibly encouraging ministry last week came through the guest speaker, Trevor Brown (proclaimonline.com). The theme of the week (and theme song) was Purify My Heart.

It was a little bit of an easier week for me in that there were no long counseling opportunities, and the counselors made my job easy—they really seem to be pursuing peace and holiness among each other and in desiring to live God-ward lives.


Counselors shared that there were many good one-on-one ministry opportunities and encouraging responses from the campers. Some of them have really been through a lot and have put themselves through a lot.

In seeing so many teens breaking down at one evening service in particular, I found plenty of opportunities for me to fight skepticism. Even without the whole drawn-out, music-laden invitation system, sometimes I’m quick to assume that responses or decisions are merely emotion.

But after hearing several people share the truth that drove the emotion, I took some time in the prayer chapel to pray and ask God if it had been Him at work. I became increasing confident that it had been, which in turn led me to confess my general coldness toward and doubt of it.

On Thursday night, many teens shared the great things God had done in their hearts that week. My prayer for them is much the same as it is for the guy counselors I meet with—that they would be spiritually parented after leaving this spiritual orphanage. I want to hear in the coming months and years that they are being discipled, that they have people in their churches who are like Paul to them.

“To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. Him we proclaim, warning everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ.” (Colossians 1:27-28)

Some other things I wanted to share—

--Praise God for two counselors who responded well to correction this past week.

--Praise God for reconciliation between two of us who had misunderstood each other.

--Please pray for three or four counselors who are sick.

--Please pray for me to handle wisely a situation at camp that I don’t know how to summarize.

--hmm…pray that my foot would heal without getting infected. I cut it a little deep this weekend and it’s driving me nuts. Super hard to keep clean at camp when everything seems wet and dirty all the time.

--Praise God for bringing my friend and dear brother in Christ Joel back from Africa (see his blog link on the side). I’m excited to go to his house this weekend to hang out with him, his sister Liz, and his parents. I was there almost every weekend two years ago when I counseled here, so it’s been weird to spend most of my weekends still at camp this summer.


Thanks for praying for me. I usually don’t have phone service but I try to check my e-mail every once in a while. The one I check the most is [email protected]. Love to hear from you and hear how you are doing.

This is the address here:
165 Camp Good News Rd.
Charlestown, NH
03603

Posted by mgemb at August 1, 2006 10:13 PM
Comments

even though I don't know you, it was encouraging to read that post. i can understand your skepticism. i used to attend a camp in the summer and looking back on it now all i see is emotion, emotion, emotion and i know personally for myself i made decisions then in those weeks that i forgot the next week i came home. if it is really a work of God, if He has really breathed on you, it is a lasting work, and you are really changed. we don't see that a lot in this day and age. there are two ends of the spectrum. either we are caught up in formalism, or caught up in emotionalism. Even after the Lord has worked in your heart, it is extremely hard to keep the fire burning if we're not on our knees a sufficient amount of time. Anyways, thanks for the post, I'll be praying, (and I mean that) that God will continue to do a work in us and make us Christians that are seperated and broken.

Posted by: esther at August 16, 2006 02:27 PM

there were definitely some times growing up when it would have been good for me to hear the warning in Ecclesiastes that it is better not to make a vow than to make it and not fulfill it.

I think having invitations so rarely at camp this summer made it kind of strange for me to know how to react when a speaker actually had one. I tended to view them negatively very easily (because growing up I barely saw a service without one and for other reasons--see http://www.gracesermons.com/hisbygrace/invitation.html), but I didn't want to be arrogant and assume that a simple invitational was always bad. hmm. I dunno.

you made a good point, though. Committments, solemnity, or spiritual fire that come in response to the Word must be maintained by continuing in the spiritual disciplines, and will wear off quickly otherwise. It has to be different than new year's resolutions.
thanks for the comment

Posted by: mgemb at August 18, 2006 10:40 PM
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