Self discovery and sampler day 2

Dr Ott spoke to the group of samplers today. She invited us all to spend some time creating a spiritual timeline. As each of the kids presented I was struck by two things: one was the role of camp as a spiritual high point for so many of the youth. The other was the role of programs and events in people’s spiritual lives. I’m not sure what to do with this insight just yet, but it does underscore for me the importance of programmatic ministry.

When it came time for me to share about my spiritual journey, I felt compelled to put on the timeline my recent troubles at David. It was the strangest thing, I managed to tell the group about all sorts of things which were difficult times in my life including when my dad was activated for Desert Storm and when my grandparents died, but when it came time to talk about having to leave David I got all choked up. I suppose that this means that I still have some grieving to do over that situation.

She also put up on the board a quote that I found very interesting, “Thou has formed us for Thyself and our hears are restless until they find rest in Thee.” ~Augustine.

This quote really speaks to me as I still struggle though having an overactive mind and trying to find a way to get some quiet

One of the sad things that I encountered today was dealing with one of the VBS kids, Cory. Cory is entering the 7^th grade and he cannot read well or process numbers. I have no idea how he has gotten into the 7^th grade except through social promotion. I genuinely fear for this kid as he gets older. Reading and recognizing numbers are significant skills to have and a deficiency there will hold him back a great deal.

One of the things that I want to explore in the coming days is how to deal with the pain that is caused by a relationship with a church. This theme came up today as the kids were telling about their spiritual journey and it plays a prominent role in my own. I will have a chance on Friday to lead some devotional time and I may spend a portion of that time working through this issue with the kids. Frankly, each one of them is going to be wounded in some way or another by the church. I know that I would appreciate some clarity in how to deal with this issue and I suspect that it will be useful to them as well.