All the Differences

I am exhausted so I apologize in advance if this post is all over the place. I have been at CAMP-of-the-WOODS for about a week and a half now. I think this is a good time to write about my experiences because I am not loving the place right now but I am not hating it either. If it was not for the people that I have meet here, I know that I would not be enjoying myself as much as I am. The short time amount of time that I have been here has already affected my attitude and views of life as I know it. That sounds much more dramatic than it really is, but allow me to explain. Here I am in the middle of nowhere, the nearest anything is about an hour away, yet I feel like I have never been more surrounded by city life and their culture before. If I am being honest with myself, little Gowanda and even Buffalo are pretty safe and tame. I am used to the passiveness of quaint little towns like Gowanda and Grove City, and thanks to these places and these life experiences I have fallen in love with the outdoors, hiking, swimming, and anything else that might involve getting my hands dirty. So what I have realized is that it is a rather naïve thought to believe that most people have the same attitude and outlook on life. Of course I knew this, but never to the extent which I know now.

What really amazes me here is that while we all come from different backgrounds, most of us are all Christians, and a lot of us have very different stories and different paths that we have taken to get to where we are now. I have really enjoyed getting to know these girls though and hear their stories, because they are so real and have truly opened my eyes to what is going on elsewhere in the world. I just find it ironic that I am in the middle of nowhere yet I am more exposed to city life than ever before. Thanks to two of my roommates and the girls on my staff I currently have my hair in cornrows and have been learning the city talk, which is almost a new language in itself.

A lot of times when we sit down and we just talk about life I don't feel like I have a lot to contribute because I have not been through half of the things that some of these girls have been through. What I have realized that I can do though is just be there to listen. Who am I to try and fix things for them and give them life-changing advice anyways? That is one thing about my personality, I love to help people and I want to "fix" them. What I have been learning is that the only person who is qualified to truly fix people is Christ and Christ alone. I have discovered that listening, being open and understanding is often times more fulfilling than giving advice anyways. Hearing about the lives and experiences of those who have lived completely different lives than I have has been an eye opening and learning experience for me. I have discovered that there is not one set way to bring glory and praise to Jesus Christ. It is an amazing thing that while we are all so different, we are united because of one person.

That thinking brings me to another realization. Is it just me or do you ever find yourself wondering why it was that Christ had to die for us? Of course I know and understand that he died for our sins and to save us from what we truly deserve, but I can't help but wonder if maybe there was more. And now as I sit here reflecting, I truly see that it is through Christ we are all united. I have trouble thinking of anything else that would bring such different people together except the blood of Christ. Together we sing out His praises and we worship him, despite our broken pasts and where we come from, we worship the creator and the God of the universe! So on that note, I have truly been blessed to be here and I can't think of any better way to end this post so I am going to leave it right here.