The next day

Yeah, I don't remember exactly what we did this day. We had club in the morning. We had lots of free time, hot tub time, time in our cabins, a clean-your-cabin-competition (we SO should have won that - we got jipped.) We strung the over-shoulder-boulder-holders across the room with the sign reading "We only need God's support" across our clean cabin. :) I think this is also the day we got up early to go rockclimbing. I had a sprained foot (fell of the bus - YES!) so I had to do it one-footed (but I made it to the top!). We convinced all the girls to attempt it, and eventually they did.

We had a bonfire/luau that night on the beach and another club that evening. The speaker talked about how living alone (without God) we are self-centered, even if we don't 'want' to be. He talked about how living self-centered instead of God-centered is what sin is all about. We author our own story and it messes up everything else. He also talked about a definition of death being "opposite of life to the full" - desire unmet, hope unanswered, eternity taken away and relationships broken. "I'm not who God created me to be, I know it, I'm trying to fix it, and it's killing me."

The devotional for the day for the leaders had a part in it that really stood out to me. After dealing with what I've dealt with in my life, and now hearing about the traumatic things these girls are dealing with, or have been through, this devotional was a good one for me. It read:

"Suffering - Pain, humiliation, sickness and failure - is but a kiss of Jesus. Once, I met a lady who had a terrible cancer. She was suffering so much. I told her, "Now you come to Jesus on the cross that he is kissing you." Then she joined hands and said, "Mother Theresa, please tell Jesus to not stop kissing me." It was so beautiful. She understood. Suffering is a gift of God. A gift that makes us more Christlike. People must not accept suffering as punishment. (Mother Theresa in Words of Love)

"Believe more deeply. Hold your face up to the light, even though for the moment you do not see." (Bill Wilson)

"Don't vex your minds by trying to explain the suffering you have to endure in this life...Even in the midst of your suffering you are in His kingdom. You are always His children, and He has His protecting arm around you...Don't ask why; don't try to understand. Does a child understand everything His father does? Can he comprehend parental wisdom? No- but he can confidently nestle in his father's arms and feel perfect happiness, even while his tears glisten in his eyes because he is his father's child." (Albert Schwitzer in Reverence for Life)

This was a hard cabin time for the girls. They felt like their sin was exposed, like the speaker was telling them they weren't 'good enough'. Some even told us they felt depressed that evening. It was so hard for me to keep a secret that the next night they would get to hear the rest of the story. We talked about if God punishes, or allows. We talked about how we feel that God is crying and hurting when we are and never leaves. Some of the girls came to the realization that if some of the things that had happened in their lives hadn't happened, they would have no reason to turn to and try to understand God, or rely on Him, or trust in Him.

Verse to Ponder: 1 Peter 4:12-13, 19 (The Message) Friends, when life gets really difficult, don't jump to the conclusion that God isn't on the job. Instead, be glad that you are in the very thick of what Christ experienced. This is a spiritual refining process, with glory just around the corner. So if you find life difficult because you're doing what God said, take it in stride. Trust him. He knows what he's doing, and he'll keep on doing it.