Diversity

Fourteen girls, nine white and five African-American, neither group sure what to do with the other group. The nine acting very cliquish because most of them had grown up together to the point where they were excluding the others while the five trying to make friends with them. The nine speed walking everywhere we went, the five strolling slowly along enjoying themselves. The Five were energetic, noisy, and full of life at night but slow as turtles in the morning, and the other half was the exact opposite. This is one of the first things my two co-counselors and I noticed Sunday and Monday about our group of preteen girls. As counselors we wanted to teach the girls to include others so we had them do several different group activities and other things so that by the end of the week they were doing better at talking to each other and making everyone feel more included.

Wednesday night, after a dedication service, I got to talk to some of them about what that night meant to them. One of them said she had trusted in Christ to save her from her sins for the first time! The others were  letting others things go, like swearing or being a hypocrite at school. We could have talked all night, but it was getting late so I told them I would like to talk to them all one on one during the next two days and they could feel free to pull me aside any time they wanted to. The next day one of them came up and did just that and we had a great conversation about how to keep thoughts and conversations centered on God. 

I've loved learning how to have amazing conversations with campers in the midst of a busy life. While being stretched and challenged I've grown so much closer to the Lord. I'm so glad I decided to stay here for the summer so I could have this opportunity to see the Lord working in these girls lives. I still miss all of you and teaching 5-Day Clubs with Child Evangelism Fellowship, but this really has been so worth it.