Some moments impact your life forever.
One of those moments was the summer that I took time off from my secretary job to be a volunteer counselor for two 11-year-old foster girls at Royal Family Kids Camp. This is a week-long camp designed to ignite hope and deepen faith in the hearts of children ages seven to eleven who have been abandoned, abused or neglected.
Since we knew this was their last year attending camp, the girls and I lived life at high speed. They wanted to accomplish all the camp activities they had not tried in past years, learn new skills for the talent show, and savor every moment of the week. It was awesome to watch their delight as God blessed their efforts with success.
Throughout the week, I did not see the girls open up as I had the other years. The girls I met on Monday were the ones I spent the week with. What happened on Friday explained it all.
Preparing to leave is always difficult, and one of my girls was crying as she made her rounds, telling person after person good-bye. As she did, she kept looking out the window to see how close her foster mom was to the front of the line. She came to me just before her name was called and asked if I could tell that she had been crying. Since I could see no evidence of tears, I told her “No.” After a minute, I asked her, “Do you not want them to know?” She simply replied, “No.”
As I watched her “tough girl” mask drop into place, the realization came to me that she had been open from the beginning because camp was her safe place. More humbling, I realized that others in her life didn’t get to see the girl I knew: a vibrant, kind and amazing girl. A girl who thrives on the encouragement and praise of a special week at camp.
My goal for my single years was simple: to serve the Lord with my entire life. When I recall moments from my twenties like that Friday at Royal Family Kids Camp, I am awed by the realization that God used my obedience to bless others.
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