“He found the same hope I once found at camp” Stephen shared. “There was a camper in my cabin who was similar to me. He was going through some turmoil with his family and it was at camp where he realized the benefit of having a relationship with Jesus.”
Stephen had been a camper at Joy El since elementary school. He was well-known by the staff and faced many challenges in his childhood, which sometimes led him to act out. Yet, week after week, summer after summer, he returned to camp for many years, and God continued to work in his life. Eventually, he rededicated his life to the Lord.
“I began a relationship with Jesus before camp but rededicated my life because I began understanding what it meant when I was at camp,” Stephen explained.
When he was older, life changes prevented Stephen from attending Joy El during high school. This left many staff wondering about his future. However, the Lord knew Stephen’s time at Joy El was not over.
At Joy El’s 50 years of Christian Camping celebration, a beloved camp speaker, Miss Jackie, planned to share a testimony about when she remembered teaching Stephen years ago as an elementary camper. To her surprise, as she walked through the Dining Hall shortly before the celebration, she saw a familiar face. To her shock, she realized it was Stephen; now he was a college student. Earlier that year, Stephen had unexpectedly run into one of his old summer camp counselors. This reconnection led to Stephen returning to Joy El as a camp counselor this past summer.
During the testimony, Miss Jackie recalled Stephen’s attendance at every week of summer camp and his struggles with his home life. Yet, she knew God was working in him. “Camp is for children like Stephen,” she shared with the crowd. “Children like Stephen need the hope of Jesus, and they are able to find this hope at Joy El.”
Stephen, sitting in the midst of a few hundred others, was moved to tears as he heard Miss Jackie share about his story. His story was coming full circle. Not only had he found the hope of Jesus at camp, but he was preparing for a summer where he could share this same hope with his campers.
Of the many campers Stephen worked with during the summer, there was one he would not forget. Stephen had the opportunity to share the gospel with a camper who was facing challenges similar to his own past. He helped the camper understand the meaning of a relationship with Jesus and prayed with him.
“I’m way more open about sharing the gospel with people than I used to be” Stephen during the end of summer camp fire. “Helping campers come to Christ gave me confidence to continue spreading the gospel at college.”
It’s a blessing to see God’s hand at work in the lives of children and to witness how He intentionally uses summer staff to plant seeds. Although some seeds take time to bear fruit, God has placed people to nurture and tend to them each summer. Let’s continue to pray that more children like Stephen will find the hope of Jesus at Joy El.
As 1 Corinthians 3:6-9 reminds us, “I planted, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow. So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow.
He who plants and he who waters have one purpose, and they will each be rewarded according to their labor.”
