Last night I spoke to the teens about a radical obedience. The fact of needing to follow God exactly the way that He has called us to. We are always able to come up with millions of reasons why we shouldn't, but we it is God, and He has our best interest in mind. I had them close their eyes, and think about a situation or group that they know God has been asking them to be obedient to, and if they had some that they needed a push, or that they know they need to be obedient, to simply open their eyes and look at me. Just about all looked up at me. I then felt that I was suppose to give them a chance to come up front, and have the camp staff and counselors pray for them. Some of the staff came forward, and not one teen came up. I decided not to be discouraged because it was God who asked me to offer, and I did what I was suppose to do. I asked the counselors to reach out their hands toward the campers, and I prayed.
As I sent the campers and counselors off to cabin time to discuss what God was speaking and doing in their lives, I stayed in the room and just sat in the front row. I was still reeling from speaking, which is a good thing, and knowing that there was something wrong, just began to pray for understanding. There has been a good connection with the teens all week, and God has been moving, so the lack of coming up front was particularly disturbing to me. It is not something I do all the time, just when I feel I am suppose to offer.
I looked to the back of the room and saw the 3 directors still sitting in the same spot, and praying.
It began to feel like there was a lid on top of the campers, and it wasn't lifting off. Like one more layer to get through. He continued to show me that we are dealing with a number of campers that have grown up in the church, and are more than likely leaders in their youth group, and that they have more than likely created this facade of themselves and they are not able to break that. They have been duped into believing, just as I was a teenager, and even into my adult life, that I had to look like I had it all together all the time to be a leader. I was looked up to and put on a pedastel by my peers, and I had to live up to it.
In came a friend of mine, that had been on staff for a number of years at Camp Gideon, busting the door open. It was more like just opening a door, but in the midst of what God was doing, it seemed more like busting. He came in and said a few things to the directors quietly and made his way towards me. I was still under the influence of what God was doing, and yet went ahead and asked him how he was doing. I was listening the best that I could, and yet still looking to the directors to see where they were at, and believing in my heart that this was a distraction from what God was doing. Nothing sinister or wrong on his part, just timing wise, God was doing something and he came in. Next, another person "burst" through the door, someone that is on staff for the summer, but was not working this week, and came to the camp for the first time last night. I knew that the two could not be a coincidence.
I looked at my friend and apologized to him and asked if he would join us in some prayer. I brought him back to the directors along with the other person and asked if they would all pray with me. I explained what God was doing and where I believed he was going, and we prayed. It was a great prayer time.
Through this, I was able to see what I am suppose to talk about tonight. Having such a short notice and prep time, I was not prepared for tonight, but God revealed it in His time.
Once we finished praying, I apologized again to my friend for interupting our conversation, but I could not fully concentrate on him until God was finished doing what He was doing.
The camp director later told me that she knew God was doing something and that she knew we had some distractions trying to get us off track.
This leading and understanding is not something that happens real often, but when it does, I pray that I can continue to realize it and not have an ADD moment and tune it out.
I am pumped to see what God has in store for this night, and how He is going to work.
Scott
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