How was the first week as a counselor?

As I thought about what to write for this blog post, to sum up the week that I just had, I found I had writers block… I still kind of do… this week is hard to process. As you all know in the week of preparation I had a lot of mixed emotions and thoughts but in the end I was told I was going to be a counselor and I was actually really excited for what God was going to do for the week. I was kind of expecting some grand work and some life changing experiences, but that wasn’t what God expected of the week. On Monday, the day the campers arrived I was told that I was going to be in a room with another counselor Jade, and that since there were two of us that we were going to have a full room and we were going to have the youngest campers. I was also told that the other counselor would not be sleeping in the dorms, which meant I would have all nine of the campers all night. As it turned out we had nine girls from age 5 to 7 (possibly one or two 8 year olds)… that’s a lot of little girls… and they need to be watched basically 24/7. The week turned out differently then I had thought it would. The little girl who is 5 is named Eva, and Eva was at my side almost every hour of everyday here at camp. She ended taking most of my attention and time. And to be honest with you it was really hard especially as the week went on and I saw the other girls drifting closer and closer to Jade and further and further away from me. At times I kind of wondered why I was a counselor if I wasn’t counseling anyone. I mean, I talked to some of the girls about church and God a little but their attachment and devotion was to Jade, and it was obvious. To be honest when the last of the girls left I was left kind of wondering what had happened this week. I tried to process how God had used me in this week to touch the lives of my campers and came up with little to go off of. I was a little down in Spirit. But then today my supervisor called me in and asked me about the week, both the good and the bad. We talked for a bit, and I felt a little better but after I talked to her I went and talked to my friend Bruna and in talking to her I said something that made me realize why God had me where he did this week. I realized that maybe it wasn’t my job to have a huge influence on the live of my nine girls but maybe it was to watch Eva and in doing so free up Jade to be used by God in mighty ways. I’ve no doubt that Jade had a huge influence on the lives of the other 8 girls, it was obvious. I may not have been the one to lead one of the girls to Christ or to have talked to the one who decided to dedicate her whole life to Christ, but God did use me to allow that to happen. He used the one who could more clear understand and talk to the girls to do the talking and he used all my experience and patience with very young, very dependent kids to take care of the little girl who needed so much attention thus freeing up Jade for the others. It was hard, I’m not going to lie. After all the time that I have spent in VBS, children’s church, AWANA, and other times being a “counselor” or leader and making connections with my group it was hard to see these little girls that I so desperately wanted to influence running to Jade instead of me, but I finally realized that God had a different plan for me for this week. I was to be the helper, not the leader, for whatever reason He wanted Jade to do it and wanted me to step back. Maybe it was to remind me that it’s His work, not mine. Maybe it was to remind me that all areas of ministry are equally important. Maybe it was to remind you of something. Only God knows all of the effects this week will have on everyone who was here or hears the stories. But the best part is that God does know. In the end it wasn’t some grand work on my part or some life changing experiences but it was grand work on God’s part and a heart changing experience for me. My hope is that He will use what I learned to help you grow too. Love you all.

~Heather

Romans 12:3-8

3 For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you. 4 Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, 5 so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. 6 We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If a man’s gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his[b] faith. 7 If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach; 8 if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully.

S.D.G.