Finally our last blogger from Lake Champion. Oh just this girl I like to call Becca Thomas! She is more than a big deal and makes me laugh at least 200 times a day. Just ask Gypsy he would agree. Without further adieu...
Give it up for BECCA THOMAS
i decided mid-second semester that i wanted to do summer staff...mostly because i knew that this is probably my last open summer to give up a month to work, but also because i remembered what a blessing and opportunity work crew was when i did it five years ago.
summer staff turned out to be totally just what i didn't know i needed. spiritually, i was comfortable - and after the month was over, i was realized what a rut i had been stuck in. i was living life on a "whats gonna happen next" basis and was losing sight of the "in the moment happenings".
as the month quickly approached, i was SO ready to go. i remember the whole week right before we left, Adrienne and I would randomly mention how excited we were to go on assignment. how happy to have a set schedule, 3 meals a day cooked FOR us, and just the overall community that you experience while you are there. the car ride up was great. i had the privilege of riding up with those mentioned below (Carter, Sarah, Beth Anne, and Danyelle) and they did a lot of talking about how nervous/excited they were. i loved being able to hear their reservations about the month, but also loved being able to be a distraction from those thoughts for the 9 hour car ride (needless to say, i introduced a lot of Thomas-family-roadtrip car games that were pretty short lived...we played a lot of 'would you rather', 'make it or break it', the alphabet game - which turned out to be a total flop due to the lack of road signs as we drove through Maryland and Pennsylvania, and a couple of games that i may or may not have made up on the spot :))
after successfully making it to camp, settling in, learning our jobs, and meeting what would become our family for the month, our first group of campers arrived on only our SECOND day there. the rest is history...
i remember journaling my first night there about my excitement but confusion as to what brought me there. i knew the Lord had big things in mind for me - specific plans as to why He had placed me there - but I could not for the life of me figure out why (HENCE the reason i learned that month that there are some things the Lord does not want us to know. Some things that he purposefully keeps hidden from us at the time being, just so he can blow us out of the water when HIS time is right)
our third morning at breakfast, Adrienne approached me looking very concerned and all she said was 'i need to talk to you. can you eat breakfast with me this morning?' i was freaking out. if you have ever experienced Adrienne and I together, you know that there are very little serious moments...
long story short, she asked me if i would be interested in doing 'real life' for the month. in short, 'real life' is a time at camp when real issues are brought up that coincide with the message the speaker gave the night before. its a great way for campers to visually and tangibly see the message put into real life terms, ending with another summer staff guy and i sharing our testimonies.
i remember the morning before sharing my testimony, every week might i add, feeling overly anxious and nervous. as the weeks went on, it only got harder and harder to share. going into it, i was very selfish in sharing my story. wondering what people would think about me after i gave it, how would they look at me, would they treat me differently, and the pressure of feeling like i had to appear perfect on the outside so that these campers could see Jesus IN me. and folks, THAT is when i learned alllllll about humility. the very last thing the Lord wanted me to do was cover up and try and mold my story into something it was not. i was making HIS story MY story. i literally remember feeling a total sense of peace when i got up on stage to tell my story. i can testify 100% to the Holy Spirit speaking through me on stage each day 6 of camp. i had no nerves. i spoke clearly. i glorified and praised the Lord for the work He had done in my life, and i never once thought twice about who would think what about me after i put all my baggage out onto the table. i learned to be bold. to say and to elaborate on my past and the miracle that the Lord worked in my life.
the second best part to sharing my testimony week after week and showing campers the freedom in being totally open and vulnerable, was the reactions i received from campers, leaders, staff, and peers. never once did i hear anything negative. never once did anyone question why. and never once did i feel convicted or judged by the person the Lord had molded me to become. it was SO cool to talk to campers throughout the rest of the day about their own struggles, and even sitting down with a few of them one-on-one to chat about life in general! vulnerability and i became good friends at camp, and i watched as the Lord began to change hearts because of it.
other than that, i feel like the Lord was continually faithful in teaching me little things throughout the month. i learned so much about my identity in Christ, and began to try and fully grasp His unconditional love for me (which I still believe is impossible to understand!) I was also blessed with such amazing people to share the month with, laugh with, and feel totally comfortable with. like i said, just what i didn't know i needed - but totally and utterly worth it.
