Pine Cove Towers
- Brittney Roszell aka A-Dora-Bowl
- Jul 16, 2018
- 11 min read
Updated: Mar 27, 2024
As I sit down to write this post all I can think about is how I felt about going to camp before I left. When the time was approaching for me to head to Tyler, Texas I was consumed with so much fear and anxiety that I almost backed out of going. I remember listening to a preacher say that as Christians we needed to do a better job at holding our word to God. In hearing this, I knew right away that God was speaking to me about camp. I knew I had to go despite of my doubts. On May 17th I packed up my car and left not knowing what God had in store for me. I now know that what he had in store was better than anything I could have prayed for.
Now I am going to break down this summer by sharing the lessons God taught me through different Children, Friends, and Circumstances.
GOD PROVIDES COMMUNITY
Coming to camp I struggled with the thought of being alone and not knowing anyone around me. I wasn't used to not having a cell phone in my hand whenever I needed it and being able to be in constant communication with my loved ones and this terrified me. Graciously God allowed me to be hired at a camp that had three girls from Auburn working there, this gave me some peace. The first day was very overwhelming however, I felt at ease. I was meeting so many like minded people whose priority for the summer was to glorify God. These people were full of optimism, encouragement, hope, and love. Little did I know that I would meet some of my best friends this day. I stuck with the same few girls throughout all of training and we got very close by sharing our testimonies and praying over each other.
It was finally here, campers were arriving for the first week of camp. However, I wasn't being placed into a cabin this week I was on the work crew (we are going to get to this lesson soon don't worry). God placed me and four other girls onto work crew for week one. One of these girls was one that I had been close with sense the beginning and this week would make that friendship grow greater. The other three girls I didn't know as well. I had been placed into a prayer group with two of them on girls night and I got to pray over one girl who had struggles that were very close to some of my own. I was blessed to be given the opportunity to hang out with all of these girls this week and develop relationships that would carry on for the next four weeks. I also got to become close with people who were not counselors but were serving the Lord in a completely different way. These girls were counselors in training and cook chaos which meant they spent a lot of their time in the kitchen. I thank God for placing me on work crew first week so that I could have these friendships from the beginning. These girls loved serving and even though their jobs were unrecognized they gave it their all and loved every second of it (well not every second but thats life). Then comes the breathe taker, so at camp we have this activity class that is a part of the ropes course. all the kids love it, and somehow I got placed working here. I didn't start of here I started of at the Gauntlet another part of the ropes course which, by the way I was not ropes trained for so... I did a lot of harnessing. Through being at these activity classes I was able to form friendships that were unexpected. These friendships would show me what it looks like to have brothers in christ and friends that make you happier and laugh harder then ever before. Each of these relationships that I made grew stronger and stronger as the weeks went on from sharing personal stories, ER visits(story to come later), and having in depth conversations about the disciples. Through the six weeks we helped each other grow deeper and deeper in our faith and built a firm community that I will cherish forever.
There are several ways to serve the kingdom
Like I said earlier I didn't get placed into a cabin for the first week of camp, I was placed on work crew with ten other counselors. Before we got our cabin assignments for the week God spoke to me and told me that I wouldn't be getting a cabin this week. He did this by placing it on my heart to pray that I would be content not having a cabin but, serving the children in a different way. I prayed for a week straight for what God placed on my heart and then it happened. God is so faithful in preparing his children's hearts. For those of you who don't know what work crew is, it is a group of counselors who are in charge of setting up for meals, washing dishes, running theme nights and free time activities, and helping out wherever there is a need. Throughout the week I was able to see what it looks like to serve people in a way other than pouring into them. From washing dishes to sitting with cabins so that a counselor could use the bathroom I saw God moving and using us to glorify him while he was also humbling us. I got to witness many people who would be in this role all summer. These people knew their job wasn't appreciated as much by the campers as counselors were but, they enjoyed every minute that the Lord allowed them to serve. It was humbling to see such people serving this way and it prepared me to be a counselor the next week. I knew that I would need to do more than just be present with the kids and pour into them. I needed to do anything I could through out the week to make work crew and everyone else that was behind the scenes job easier because it was a hard job.
God showed me that you don't have to serve the kingdom by sharing the word, but that you can serve the kingdom by being just that a servant to those around you. whether that be by washing dishes, volunteering at a soup kitchen, or cleaning your house when your roommate's are stressed; you are serving the kingdom. I was reminded that Jesus came down to earth not to be served but, to serve. Since we are created in his image and are to strive to be like him we need to also serve and not be served in all areas of our lives.
God can always teach you more about Himself
Our bible study theme for this summer was the "I Am" Statements from the bible that are found in John. Each day as a counselor you would lead a bible study in the cabin with your campers. Each day there was a different lesson. Monday's lesson was John 6:35, which is when Jesus declares, "I am the bread of Life." Tuesday's lesson was John 8:12, where Jesus declares, "I am the light of the world." Wednesday's lesson was on John 10:11, which says, "I am the good shepherd." Thursday's lesson was on John 14:6, which says, "I am the way, the truth, and the life." Lastly Friday's lesson was on John 15:5, which says, "I am the vine, you are the branches." Each of these lessons were to teach the campers of who Jesus says he is and how he is our key into heaven. As a counselor it was powerful to see how most of the campers already knew these statements about Jesus and that they whole heartily believed them. These lessons also were a reminder to myself of who God says he is and how he is faithful in the things he says.
God showed me how fast he can change a heart this summer. I had one camper who was very cold to the idea of the Gospel. During one of our hang times she told me that she didn't care to know it and really didn't want to hear anymore about it. To hear those words from a 2nd-5th grader was heartbreaking. I went back to the cabin and prayed that God would soften her heart and allow her to see who he is... and did God do just that. A few days later during bible study she looked at me and said "I want to be saved", this was such a shock to me in knowing her feelings toward God earlier in the week. I asked her, "do you know what being saved means?" and she looked at me and said "Yes, it means that you believe the gospel and that you want God to come into your heart." I could've cried right then. I was able to lead her in a prayer to save her soul forever and all the other girls were so excited they all placed a hand on her and prayed for her during this time. It was amazing to see that God can transform a heart in a matter of days. This gave me hope for all those who are lost in my life, and gave me a stronger hope in God.
Another awesome thing God allowed me to do this summer was pour into a camper who didn't have a father figure in her life. I knew that she had been struggling through out the week listening to the other girls explain to me how loving their father was. During our hang time she opened up to me about how her father was not in the picture anymore and that she didn't really know who he was. I could see how hurt she was by this and it broke my heart. However, what came next was breathtaking. I got to explain to her that God is our father. That he is a perfect father who will never leave us no matter how far we stray from him. I got to proclaim to her how much God loves her and how even though he orchestrated for her father not to be in the picture that he did that in knowing it would make her stronger and rely on him as her father even more. When she heard this truth the biggest smile came to her face and I could see how happy she was to know that she has one of the greatest fathers anyone could have. This girl was one of the strongest campers I had and I was blessed that God allowed me to meet her and that he poured out to her through me. Through this conversation I was reminded of how much love God has for each of his children and how he also is my perfect father.
One more thing, that I think is so important that God taught me was that the Gospel is so powerful and that there are many ways to share it. I've always shared the Gospel by the "bridge method." This method is where you show someone that we were separated from Jesus before he died on the cross and that he died so that he could make a bridge, being the cross, so that we could be able to have a relationship with him. However, through camp I saw the gospel being taught many different ways. One way that stood out to me was through discipline. The senior counselors were in charge of disciplining kids that were causing trouble. They would take the kid to pick up rocks, once the rocks got to heavy for the child to carry the senior counselor would then take them from their hands and carry it for them. This represented how Jesus carried our burden and sins for us and died on the cross so that we wouldn't have to die to sin but could live. They would explain this to the kids while, they were carrying the rocks and it was so powerful to witness. On Friday's we would play a game called "secret church." All the campers would come tell us the different soul (rocky, path, good, and thorns) the gospel. We would display to them how different people percieve the gospel like the good soul accepts it and goes to church, but the rocky soul accepts it but then decides they can find satisfaction in something else. Through this game we were able to see how the children perceive the gospel and what they truly believe. It was awesome to hear the truth of God spoken so many different ways. God truly is amazing.
These are just a few of the many amazing things God did through my campers and camp this summer, each of these girls taught me more about God and more about myself. I am forever thankful for the lessons God taught me through these vessels.
God doesn't use equipped people he equips those he chooses to use
This last lesson was one of the hardest for me to realize. At the end of week three I started to get the "Camp Crud" which is code name for allergies/ a cold. I went to the nurse and got what they usually give out but, my body didn't react well to the medicine they gave me. The end of that week was one of the hardest times at camp for me. I felt so weak and awful but, I wanted to be there a 100 percent for my campers. So, I pushed through camp little did I know that I actually had bronchitis. I had to go to a hospital during our off time and they gave me some medicine and put me on bed rest until that next Wednesday. This meant that I would not be going into the cabin I had been placed in. They had to move a counselor off of work crew into my cabin and I was disappointed in myself and I didn't understand why God would assign me to this cabin just to take it away from me. Well it got worse, the medicine I was put on from the hospital didn't work as planned and actually made me sicker. I felt like my chest was being crushed with every breath I took. I went to the Doctor at pine cove and they had to give me breathing treatments and a whole different set of medicines, and they put me on bed rest until Friday. This means that I was going to miss a whole week of camp and that I also would be alone for majority of the time since everyone else was away from cabins working. During this time alone I was able to talk to God a lot and I wanted answers on why this was happening. God provided these answers to me, he made me realize that he needed to humble me. He took me out of the cabin I was placed to show me that he can use anyone in any situation and that I can't think that I was chosen for this cabin because God thinks I am qualified to do it. This isn't the case at all, God places people where he knows they need to be in order to glorify him best. God knew by putting me on bed rest or you could say by isolating me, that I would be able to glorify him best by realizing that he doesn't use equipped people but equips those he uses. This gave me a appreciation for God that he would take the time to equip each one of the people that he calls to do his work. In Hebrews 13:20-21 it says "May the God of peace, who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of sheep. Equip you with everything good for doing his will, and may he work in us what is pleasing to him, through Jesus Christ to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen." It says in scripture that God equips us with all things good that we need to do his work, I was just missing this because I was caught up in my own pride. I thought I was placed here because I could do it on my own, which was false. Knowing that God equips us and that my own strength does nothing allows me to realize that I can do anything God calls me to if I think I can or not. I am thankful for this truly awful week that made me throw out my pride.
Wow. God, you truly knew what you were doing sending me to Pine Cove Towers.
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