Hello again!
I made it back from Camp Barnabas a little over a week ago, and as each day has passed since the day I got home, I’ve been trying so hard to think how I could possibly sum up a week-long missions trip into one letter. It’s a hard task, and very impossible. But I believe in a God who makes all things possible. So here it goes.
On July 22, I set out to Camp Barnabas for my second year in a row. I was so excited this year, with typical anxious thoughts, but overall I was really looking forward to the things God had in store for me. As most of you know, our God works in crazy ways…ways that sometimes throw us off-guard. As we drove up onto Camp Barnabas property in Purdy, Missouri, I knew I was in for something new. A new team, new year, new week, and new people. As I shared with all of you before I left, we went during Autism week this year, and I prepared in the best way I could to care for a camper with autism. However, God had something “new” and different in mind for me this week.
The day we arrived, we were placed in our cabins to meet with our fellow CIA’s (Christians In Action) and the Staff people that we would be serving with for the week. This is also the time where we pick our campers. I was put in a girl’s cabin this year! That was exciting for me, considering the fact that I was with a boys cabin last year, and I was excited to try something new this time around. Everything was going as I had expected up until our staffers started to speak to us about the upcoming week; it was then that God caught me “off-guard”. One of the staff girls turned to all the CIA’s in my cabin and said, “if you didn’t already know, this week you have been placed in a siblings cabin, and you will be taking care of siblings all week.” Now that was something I had not expected! But God surely took the unexpected and unplanned, and blessed my week greatly!
A siblings cabin, if you hadn’t guessed already, is a cabin made for the siblings of the campers that do have a disability, like autism. I was in a junior sibling’s cabin, which meant that every member of our cabin had an older brother or sister with autism and/or some other disability. They have these cabins so that the siblings can have their very own week of camp, apart from their brother/sister. I also learned a lot of things about these siblings; the struggles that they face on a daily basis and the problems that they encounter themselves. My cabin had different training apart from the other cabins that were assigned campers with autism, and there I learned about the various things to look out for when hanging out and taking care of sibling campers. I was told how many siblings can be very hard on themselves (they expect a lot out of themselves) and they develop OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder) because they find little things that they can actually control in their lives, since most of them often feel out of control, especially when it comes to their sibling with the disability. I also learned that siblings may develop characteristics of just the opposite. They can be excessively wild and out-of-control, with very little self-expectancy. Above all, I learned that despite everything, each one of these sibling campers would need to be loved and shown much affection throughout the week. This was our time to finally give these kids the attention that they have been longing and searching for all of their life, but have never received. After coming to know all of this, I learned very quickly exactly why God had placed me in this cabin.
I ended up picking two campers this year. Since we were in a siblings cabin we had 11 campers and only 6 CIA’s. This gave us the opportunity to love on more than one camper! I picked two girls who had never been to Camp Barnabas before and were both 7 years old. The first one, Abbie, had a twin sister coming to camp as well, who had autism and some mental retardation. Gracie, my other camper, had a 9 year old sister who had Downs Syndrome. I came to know these two girls very well and completely fell in love with their adorable laughs and beautiful personalities. I also got to know the other nine girl campers in our cabin on a deeper level…they were all so beautiful! If I could sum up the physical aspects for me serving in a siblings cabin, it would be this: many piggy back rides, a lot of tickling, various hair up-do’s, and COUNTLESS imaginative story telling. It was like babysitting for a week and I enjoyed every minute of it!
This year God taught me the usual things: more patience, self-sacrifice, pure joy, unconditional love. But on top of that God revealed to me exactly what it means to meet others where they are and accept them at that place (Romans 14:1-4). That was a big lesson for me that made itself known throughout the week. One more thing that was really evident was how much God makes Himself present in the “unplanned”. In other words, our unexpected events are more than often His most intended happenings. About mid-week, my one camper, Abbie, was taken home due to the fact that her twin sister had 34 seizures within 24 hours, and needed to receive more medical attention than what Barnabas could offer. So I rode with Abbie and this very sweet lady named Laura, who worked at Barnabas, all the way to Springfield, MO to drop Abbie off with her parents. That day was hard for me to see Abbie leave. She had been enjoying herself so much and I had invested so much time getting to know her that it was hard to let her go so soon. However, that two hour ride to Springfield and two hours back was one of the most rewarding, greatest, and best times I had all week long. On the way back from dropping Abbie off with her parents, I talked with Laura about my life story, Camp Barnabas, and all these things that I never thought I would tell someone I had just met. That day I developed this incredible friendship that I know will last for a long time. God really made Himself known in the most unexpected and unplanned time, and He taught me that just because I didn’t plan it, doesn’t mean He didn’t have that moment arranged for me all along.
This year set itself apart from last year in so many ways, and I had the best time! I enjoyed every moment…everything from the kids covering me in mustard & chocolate syrup (yes, it was disgusting) to the amazing bible studies we shared together every morning, I loved it all because the campers did! There’s this overwhelming joy that radiates from the campers to you when you serve at Barnabas, and it’s an incredible experience. So much so that I have made the decision to apply for a staff position next year. I would absolutely love working there for half my summer. I think it is something that God is calling me to do because He knows I need the challenge, and I believe He can work through me in great ways. Thank you all for supporting me in every way possible. For devoting your time to pray for me (I have no doubt it’s immense help throughout my week), for trusting God with your money to send me there, and for being by my side every step of the way. Your support through prayers and finances, not only sent me to Camp Barnabas and helped me while I was there, but they opened up opportunities for God to use me, speak to me and through me, and opened my eyes to see God in another new and amazing way. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. You all are amazing to me. Thank you for allowing God to use you to support me in the way you do so well. I love you all, and I couldn’t thank you enough!
In His everlasting grip,
Kelsey
He will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit." –Jeremiah 17:8
Me with my two adorable campers! (Gracie left, Abbie right)
1 comment:
Love the pix of you and your girls. When you get to school, email me your address...I have something I want to send you: RoachKB@Comcast.net
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