Amazing, beautiful, gentle, ‘grunty’!
Sitting on the balcony, I looked out at the nearby trees and was gradually drawn in and caught up in the incredible beauty, artistically spread out before me – different shades and depths of green, different shapes, different heights, all perfectly complementing each other in the light and shadows of each other created by the afternoon sun, while from the hidden depths came a chorus of birdsong, hundreds of little birds singing their hearts out, as if in praise to their Maker.
The Lord seemed to say, “This camp is for Me. Like that garden of trees, each person is beautiful and precious and wonderfully made by Me. Each one will grow and become who I meant them to be, for each one has an eternal purpose in My scheme of things. And in the depths of each one I have placed the capacity to yield My Spirit, to sing, to praise, to call and touch My heart. I listen and I watch over each one with tender love”.
And for me, this simply sums up camp. I go away each year humbled by the beauty I have experienced: Determination, perseverance, hard fought victory, in the face of ongoing adversity, joy in the face of pain, incredible self-giving, seen and unseen – and always an awareness of the wonderful presence of the Lord Jesus Himself.
And as I go away, I always think, “This place, and these people are incredible. I must come back again.”