It proved to be one of the most challenging, yet most rewarding summers of my life. (Funny how those two words: challenging/rewarding often go hand in hand!) I had just completed my senior year of college and had been selected to serve on Lifeway's Centrifuge camp staff at Union University in Jackson, TN.
I was pretty excited for a number of reasons. One reason being that it was a different experience. I had served as a lifeguard and swimming instructor in my hometown for five summers and as a lifeguard for Gulfshore Baptist Assembly (our state convention's resort center - later to be destroyed by Hurricane Katrina) for two summers. A second reason being that it was out of my comfort zone: different place, different people, different requirements, etc. And a third reason being that I was excited to share about the many ways God had proved himself to be true in my life in the last few years.
Upon arriving on campus and getting acquainted with roommates, Bible Study rooms, and Track Time expectations, we set aside time to share our testimonies with our "would be family". We spent a few days listening to the journeys each of our lives had taken to bring us to this summer. Every story was weaved with sadness and heartache, happiness and joy, and confusion and knowledge. It was clear that God had brought us together for the summer of 1997 for more than teaching and leading youth to know Him more. He had brought us together to teach and lead US to know Him more through seeing each other in a real live way!
*I am fourth from the left, standing, back row*
As one guy from my staff told his journey, I was overcome with how different our lives had been. I was overwhelmed with how small my heartaches were, my fortune in being provided for, my stability in my family...and the list goes on. For my fellow staffer was telling a different story. He and his siblings had a single mom who loved them, but just couldn't meet their needs. Thus began the saga of foster care. They were split and tossed from home to home. Foster homes that were kind, foster homes that were abusive. Foster homes that were caring, foster homes that were neglectful. His biological mom still wanted more, wanted better. After seeing the system fail over and over in caring for her children, she signed them over to the Louisiana Baptist Children's Home. And as a pre-teen my new friend, Michael, found love, provision, stability, protection, and oversight all while remaining close to his siblings and in contact with his biological mom. Years passed and his mom would not only see him graduate from high school but attend college.
This story will take several posts to tell...please stay tuned to see how it turns out!
**The details of this story are told from memory. I did my best to recount the way the story unfolded.**
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