Kidzone Extreme-- Sacrificial Love

As soon as I published the last post I realized that I should probably say more about camp last week, too. One thing that really stood out to me the whole week was just the total service mind that you have to have to be a camp counselor. We must have taken the kids to the bathroom 20 times a day, we refilled their drinks at meals, we played and cheered louder than they at games, but then gave them piggy-back rides when they were tired. We allowed our lives and schedules to revolve around those kids because we considered their good to be more important than our own. Kidzone was an exercise in intentional, sacrificial love. Even now that the kids are gone and I have returned to a quieter life, I pray that the lesson of sacrifice stays with me.

That being said, I also want to throw out a caveat: How long can one serve at such a fever pitch without becoming burned out? What is the role of rest in this equation? I'm not going to try to evaluate that question now, but invite comments. :-)

Misc.

This past week I've been working on my Spearhead support letter, along with trying to get ready for our summer party (which has taken a considerable amount of time, energy and sweat!) and I think that I have made considerable progress on both. My goal is to send the letter to be proofread tonight before going to the Compel picnic/goodbye time for Pastor Dan and Terry. Wow, our church is going through some crazy times. But I trust that God is in control and is working all things together for the good of those who love Him. And Lord, help us to love you more!

Well, that was a random post, but it did the trick as far as life updates go... and that's the goal of a blog, right?

Love,

Caro

Statue of Liberty.

Past and Future

Two things: First I want to say that I have so much to write about KidZone Extreme Camp... but no time right now. In a nutshell, it was an exhausting yet incredible week. God showed me a about sacrificial love and patience, but also really revealed His own goodness and faithfulness to me throughout the week. I won't promise a longer post right now, but do suspect that I will be sharing nuggets as time goes by.

The second thing, I've just been thinking about life after Mexico a bit (ironic, since I haven't even gone there yet) but you know how it is when people always ask you what your plans are... and you don't really know what to tell them? Well, I find myself there again tonight. I really believe that God would have me involved in an immigrant community in the US. Which always brings up the issue of illegal immigration and where I stand on that. Still working on my answer to that question and praying that the Lord will guide me. For the time being, read this poem to guess where my heart currently tends:

The New Colossus
Emma Lazarus

Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,
with conquering limbs astride from land to land;
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
a mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame,
"Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!" cries she
with silent lips. "Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore,
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"

Hello

Well, this is my blog. And this is weird for me, because I'm not much of a blogger. I mean, for crying out loud, I rarely even write Facebook messages! But, with my year-long trip to Mexico in just a couple of months, I think I'd probably better try to use this means of communication.

So... we'll see how this looks. Really, I'm just pretty much trying to learn the ropes with this one.