Just came back from serving in "DARE to Believe" Adventure Camp and although it was very tiring and strenuous, I really enjoyed being a part of it. I feel that having an opportunity to serve is really a privilege and it really does not feel like work at all. I remember starting out as an usher in TeenZeal/DARE and serving just felt like the natural thing to do.
Helping to facilitate a camp that has an activity intensive program, it's very easy to do things without realizing the significance of it. After a tiring first day I woke up the next day and I just had to tell God again that as a server, I want my portion from this camp, even if it was meant for the DARE youths, I refuse to believe that servers cannot receive anything. It was at that moment that God reminded me about a little journey that He took me through a few weeks back.
It was during The Zone launch in Sunday service. In order to create awareness of the coming together of the three ministries under one name, we were giving out leaflets and speaking with youths or people who have questions about the youth ministry. As I walked down the queue line and tried to initiation conversations with youths that I saw I felt very redundant and inadequate. Talking to youths that I do not know is just not my thing and it did not make a difference whether they were younger than me (may God continue to teach me not to have this fear of man). I tried to talking to this boy who answered in short quick replies as if to say, "Don't bother me, I don't want to talk to you." (On hindsight I realize that kids usually do that when they are shy and not used to being talked to.) At that time I felt a tinge of self-condemnation as I felt I was inadequate in talking with a youth and that affected me for a while as I continued to walk down the line.
I started asking God why would He even ask me to serve in the first place? Why even get me down on that day when there are more capable people who could do it. The ushers can give out the leaflets and other people can do the talking, why must I be there?
When I finally quieted down on the inside, I started thinking that it is possible for God to move in big ways even through small acts. I started to think that even if I just gave out leaflets, God can place them in the right hands. It was at that moment that I decided not to worry about whether I was redundant or not but to just to be faithful with what was in my hands. It did not matter whether I spoke with a youth and got their particulars down but I started to believe that even through just giving leaflets, God will move.
As I just decided to give out the leaflets, I was pleasantly surprised when a youth came up to me and ask me about youth ministry. As I got to know him I found out that he was actually a JC youth! Of all the people assigned there, it had to be at that time when we JC leaders were on duty that a JC youth came and I felt humbled to be used by God in that small instance. After that I felt that that journey was worth it for that one person and it just reminded me of how Jesus would go out of his way to minister even to one person.
It was that lesson that God reminded me about during the camp. We can never know the significance of the things that we did, whether it was moving heavy tables and benches or facilitating activities, or simply talking with the youths, God could use that to minister to the youths and even if only one out of all of the youths was impacted, it was all worth it.
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The camp verse and the camp name was really such an encouragement to me as it remind me again not to give up on God's Word and continue to believe until I see the complete manifestation of what I am believing for. Dare to believe that God can, because He has given us a hope that does not disappoint and a glorious inheritance and He has given us the same power that raised Jesus from the grave.
May the eyes of my understanding be enlightened...
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