Teachable Moment -- Day 1

Again, the location and the messenger do not have to be expected. You can learn some pretty great stuff in some weird places with some strange people. Basically, all you have to do is listen and process it.

On the first day of camp, the staff member (I can't even rememeber who she was) who was sharing devotions shared 1 Cor. 9:23:

23 I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings.

That phrase, for the sake of the gospel was the rally cry for day 1. Was I doinig everything that I could for the sake of the gospel? Was everything passing through the grid of "will this advance or retreat the cause of Christ on this campus today with this person?". That is a fine filter!

But with that in mind, I mentally added our team's own power pump, 2 Peter 1:3:

2PE 1:3 His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.

Everything I need to accomplish life and godliness has already been supplied! This thing called ministry, in all of its exhaustion and frustration and stress was divinely powered and worth every minute!

For the cause of Christ, the gospel of Christ and the growth of believers,
Mike

Ministry Team Update

At our return to our "regularity" of life back in Wyoming, the memories of camp ministry were shared at a special reporting service on Sunday 8/20. I was excited to hear the young people share some really in depth stuff. Some shared their disappointments, some shared the change that had occurred in their plans, some shared a new challenge/task that they had performed. The two favorite episodes seem to be the demolition and the Afternoon Away with God.

I wish that there were some way to upload an mp3 of the service -- it was rewarding to hear young people going beyond this was a great time of fun.

My most teachable moment happened as I interacted with a kitchen crew member with something written on his arm. I asked him about it and he described the inscriptions. They formed a triad (a three partate formula for understanding the whole). They were God's love, God's wisdom and God's sovereignty. these three, he explained, kept him balanced in his thinking. God loved him too much to let hurtful/damaging things to happen to him; God was so wise as to never make any mistakes with his life; God was so sovereign that he was working all of these things together for his life. I haven't got the statements verabtim, but that was the gist. The only response I really had for him was, "Oh." He had blown me away with the depth of his concentration on serving in the kitchen instead of the cabins.

To all of you who are reading this blog and who work with youth, remember, you have no control over what they are thinking or even when they will respond. So, my advice, from my own philosophy of YM, keep pumping it in their heads and pray like mad that their heads don't explode! :)

For the renewing of our minds,
Mike