Yes, You Can Ministry

Camp Hawkins 2 – God.Is.Love.

Living in a tent in Africa and bathing with water from a five gallon bucket and eating mysterious delicacies wouldn’t have fazed me.  Being a counselor at a camp an hour from my house?  Now that is out of my comfort zone.  It’s a pretty long and detailed tale to explain how I ended up here, and it’s definitely one of those stories that only God could possibly have written.  I’m going to try to give the Reader’s Digest version of the story.  In February, I went to summer missions interview weekend with BCM.  I had been praying over three specific trips nearly daily for the previous  three weeks.  I want to teach ESL in a foreign country when I graduate, and these trips fit perfectly.    I had also reviewed the trips I was eligible for and available for, and I was pretty much certain it would be one of those three.   At interview weekend, you have group and individual interviews and do other activities.  At the end, you write down your top eight choices for trips.  I was honestly ready to go wherever God called me; it was figuring out where God was calling me that made me nervous.  I said all along that if He would just mail me a letter with the preferences I should write down, I would turn it in as-is.  But I knew it wouldn’t be that simple.  For that reason, I had been covering these trips in prayer in faith that God would take my willingness and send me where He wanted me. However, when I got to interview weekend  I woke up the first morning lacking passion for any of the trips.  Confused,  I went to the lake and prayed.   God so clearly said, “Lauren, just wait.”  I didn’t understand at all, but I said okay.

During interviews, this camp called Camp Hawkins (a week- long camp for kids with special needs) came up and I couldn’t get it off my heart.  I had never even thought twice about it before. But here is was, and it wouldn’t go away.  I took some time by myself to figure things out.   I was literally on my knees telling God how much I didn’t want to go to Camp Hawkins.   For quite a while.  I so wanted Him to call me to a different place.   I knew I could still follow my own plans, but I also knew I would be missing out on the best God had for me.  One of the main things that I thought about was this: my heart is to serve the “least of these”, those that have kind of been forgotten by society and aren’t loved the way that they should be.  All I want to do is tell them how much God loves them.  As I prayed/argued/rationalized, I asked God how I could do that if I couldn’t even communicate with the kids.  And He so clearly – like I can’t even explain it- said “Lauren, let me just show you how big My love is.”  That was pretty much all it took.  I knew that this was where I was supposed to go.  It makes no sense from a human perspective that God would send me here of all places, but I have never in my life felt so clearly called to a specific place.  So I know that I am here to show God’s love and to learn how big His love is.

God has showed me some amazing things as I have prepared to come here.  One is that these children are so precious to Him.  They are His children.  They are co-heirs with Jesus to the throne of God.  Jesus died for each one of them.  Jesus said that as we have done to the least of these, we have done to Him.  I completely believe that as I serve these kids, I am serving Jesus.  I know it’s going to be a lot of work, but He said that “If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ.” (1 peter 4:11).  I know that I don’t have to worry about how I am going to do this, because the same power that conquered the grave is within me!  And as I serve, it brings glory to my King.  God also promises that He “is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things and at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work” (2 Cor. 9:8).  It’s so incredible to see what God does when you surrender.  He may put you somewhere you would never have expected or He may put you a mile from your house, but no matter what task He gives you, He will prepare you to do it so that His name is glorified.

One of the first days of camp, I was absolutely terrified.  Everything here is so far from anything I have done.  As I was spending time with my Savior, He gave me absolute peace that even though I don’t always  know what to do, He will never leave me.   I came across these words from 1 John, which are my theme for this summer.  Chapter three says “dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth.” That is what I am here to do.  To love with actions.  That’s what Jesus did, and I want to follow in the example of my Redeemer.  Paul later says “we know and rely on the love God has for us.”    So, I am relying on God’s love; His unfailing, abounding, never ending love. And with the fullness of love that I receive for Him, I want to overflow that love to everyone here, campers and counselors.  I want to love as Jesus has loved me.

May grace and peace abound.

~lauren evans