These reflections could include all the time since school let out...the incredibly awesome experience it was to be the best man at my dear friend's wedding, the weeks of doing nothing but work as crop season was happening, or the spiritual renewal at events such as YC in Edmonton or the spiritual retreat at Pioneer Ranch. However, I am going to stay within the bounds of "Summer" as I defined it to my little sister last night - the months of July and August. Also, I haven't written in a blogging sense for a very long time, so I apologize for my rusty writing skills. If you don't read this I won't be offended. It's written as much for myself as it is for you.
This summer I had opportunity to minister in the setting of camp, but in a way quite different from any other summer. I spent 3 weeks at David Thompson Bible camp (a CSSM camp north of Grande Prairie) working as camp medic. They had 9 full-time staff and as many as 97 campers this summer, and so were quite reliant on volunteer help. The facilities themselves are quite rustic, but there is a wonderful spirit about that camp, as campers and staff alike are taught what it means to be a servant leader. I was also given opportunity to help at Pioneer Lodge near Sundre for 2 camps - Jr. Boys (9-12 year old boys) as camp medic and Plunge (14-17 year old boys and girls) as a cabin leader. This was my first time cabin-leading in years...I felt so out of practice. The community at Pioneer has drawn me in. I was so blessed to be a part of those camps and to be welcomed into the community of people my age (actually, mostly younger. I'm becoming more and more the oldest person in any given group of people you might find me with. How depressing :P ). We did ridiculous things like dress up as Uruk-Hai and kick yoga balls at each other. All in good fun! I went on a weekend camping trip at the end of July with a small group of friends from Bible School in the middle of nowhere, Alberta. We stayed by a lake in which no motorized boats were allowed, and so it was a quite peaceful time. We climbed a mountain and went boating and tried to stay dry - I think the sun was out for about an hour the entire weekend. I also was able to attend the entire Family Camp at my old alma mater - Camp Harmattan. I haven't done that for 4 or 5 years now as work requirements have limited my ability to attend. This was a week of real spiritual renewal, as there is little programming outside of morning and evening services where there is worship and teaching. Campfires in the evenings were rich with fellowship and authentic conversation (for the most part). I went to the front during one of the altar calls, feeling called by God to ask Him to sanctify my life again - make it holy for his use. Even in the less than a month since then, there has really seemed to be a change, a renewal in my life. I went to 2 weddings at the beginning of the summer, and rejoiced to see friends commit to love and serve one another for the rest of their lives. I also had a chance to visit Regina for 2 days to visit some dear friends from Bible School as well as finally explore the RCMP centennial museum and Depot - the RCMP training centre. Going to Depot was fulfilling a dream of mine that is 15 years old. What a cool place! These events made up my summer. I was home for only maybe a week across those 2 months, and even my birthday was spent away, but was it ever worth it.
I think, through the summer, there was only one close friend who I failed to see, and the only reason for that was because he was off to Africa for an internship with Wycliffe. On top of these old friends that I was able to continue building ties with, there have been dozens, maybe even hundreds, of new friends that I have met as a result of this summer. And I have never felt more invigorated. I style myself as an introvert - I like to have time where I am on my own. This summer has starkly reminded me of the need I have for relationship, and even encouraged me that I can meet and make friends with new people. That is good, because I am hoping to move to Edmonton soon, where I know some people, but will undoubtedly have to make some new friends there as well.
One of the relationships that I saw grow the most this summer was with Uncle John and Auntie Laurie (not my actual uncle and aunt, but they might as well be). We spent a lot of time together, and they have both greatly encouraged me in some of my weak places. They have directly and indirectly spoken into my life, both privately and publicly in a way that has strengthened me, has helped me see the impact that I have had so far in my life, and challenged me to aspire for greater things.
This has also been a summer for books. Realizing that I was not going back to school this year, I decided that it was time to invest in some books to help me continue to learn and grow over the coming months and years. This summer I was given opportunity in my different roles at camp to do some careful and meditative reading. This resulted in me reading Who Do You Think You Are? by Mark Driscoll written on the subject of what a believer's identity is in Christ, Every Body Matters by Gary Thomas which works through a theology of taking care physical care of your body, and now being almost through Spiritual Rhythm by Mark Buchanan which discusses the idea of there being different seasons in a believers life that cycle through many times - winter, spring, summer, and fall - and the responsibilities and potential pitfalls of each season. I give my hearty recommendation to each of these books. Reading these books across the summer has been a large part of why it has been so excellent. Sitting in Amazon boxes in my room are a number of other texts that I'm excited to get to, such as, Radical by David Platt, The Rest of God, by Mark Buchanan, Sacred Pathways by Gary Thomas, Emotionally Healthy Spirituality by Peter Scazzero, and Love Does by Bob Goff. On top of those are texts for enhancing my knowledge and proficiency in handling Koine (Biblical) Greek, as well as the tools to begin learning Biblical Hebrew (aaahhh!!!).
One of the greatest impacts of this summer has been a re-kindled joy in camp ministry. Between a bad experience at camp my last full summer working at a camp ("What happened?" "I had. A bad. Experience. And you think I'm deaf!") and spending lots of time with people who haven't had camp as a high (or even low) priority in their life, I had almost forgotten about camp ministry. I was a little jaded too from seeing kids and even some staff come back year after year, clean up their act for camp, and then hit a downward spiral in the other months of the year before repeating that again the next summer. This year I really caught a passion for camp ministry again, I was reminded about how good it can be, and I was affirmed in my gifting, abilities, and experience with camp. Once upon a time I had a deep passion for camp ministry. Sometime across the past five years I had allowed it to cool down to just a spark, but this summer has blown that flame back into life.
It has been good in this season to be without a girlfriend. I doubt that my adventures would have lived to half of their potential if I had been thinking of somebody who was back at home. This has made me think of some of the things that are important to me when looking for a spouse. I realize that there are some things that all Christians need to be looking for - such as the other person being a Christian. That seems like a good idea. However, I think that there is more to it than just that, and I think that it would be a good thing to find a woman who is also passionate about camp. I don't know how long camp ministry is going to be prominently in my future, but it seems to me that the type of person who is passionate about camp is the type of person that I would like to marry someday. If I can ever build up the nerve to ask out a girl again.
This summer has helped me as I have come in feeling burnt out from leadership at school. I'd served two years as a careleader, and was feeling the effects of that. However, leading at camp this summer I was able to lead under different directors who were able to minister to me and really help me lead. That was a huge and unexpected blessing. I did not expect to come out of camp more energetic than when I went in - that's just not the general way that camp works. But this summer was different. I imagine it was some of me recognizing that I need help and that I can't do everything on my own. I think there was an aspect of me intentionally taking better care of myself - physically, emotionally, relationally, and especially spiritually.
This summer I also have been able to really put a lot of work into physical fitness, both through camp and then working out outside of camp with friends or on my own. I would like to run an Ironman triathlon someday (maybe this is a too ambitious goal), and I have come to realize that I need to work to keep my physical fitness. For years, through my teenaged years and even through most of college, I did not need to do anything special to be one of the fastest and best conditioned athletes on a team or in a group of people. I realize many of you who are reading this are considerably older than you, so try not to laugh too hard at this. I can't expect my body to maintain a high level of fitness without intentional work anymore. And so I have begun laying a foundation for that this summer - and Gary Thomas's book Every Body Matters has helped me work through the spiritual implications of being physically ready for whatever gets placed in front of me.
This summer has renewed and re-energized me. I am now looking forward to the next months of life. I'm looking forward to working and helping out on the farm for a while. I'm excited to move out soon. And I am stoked to begin working towards my EMT certification, although that might not happen for some months yet. I'm excited to see how friendships develop and grow and continue on as I find myself in new contexts. These summer months have been among the best of my life, but they have also increased my desire to go home to be with God. I've seen a lot of brokenness in these months, a lot of need for God to come and set everything right. I've also seen God heal brokenness in my life. God has given me a deeper desire to see people come to relationship with Him. As much as I want to get married, have kids, have more adventures, and see new things - what I really want is to see God's kingdom come. I want that more after this summer than when I went in. And if that were the only thing that I came out of summer with, it would have been a good summer. Instead I come out with old relationships renewed, new relationships built, and so much more.
I'm going to leave you with a couple of songs that have been sticking with me recently - the first with the theme of living life to the full, and the second with the theme of wanting to go home and be with God.
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