Another End Starts a New Beginning.

Well, LOTS of goodbye's have been said, & lots of hugs given. It's almost the end of the summer, & last Saturday marked the end of my summer at camp. It was definitely the best summer so far! The Lord taught me so much, broke me of several strongholds, gave me a ton of amazing new friends, & allowed me to be discipled by some people that I've looked up to for a long time. Among those was Evangelist Will Galkin & Evangelist Steve Pettit. This summer actually marked the end of Brother Pettit's 29 years as camp director. He has had a HUGE impact on countless lives & his investment into the staff will continue even next summer when he is no longer director. The Lord is moving Brother Pettit into a new ministry! He accepted Christ as his Savior at a state university many years ago as a result of a campus ministry, & now he has been asked to be the director of a similar ministry called Cross Impact. It will be exciting to see how the Lord works through him in this new opportunity.

I had some AMAZING roommates this summer! Sarah, & Betsy were a huge encouragement to me. Sarah actually travels with the Galkin Team, & she was a blessing. She has a beautiful voice, plays flute, & penny whistle, & always had a funny story to share =)

This is my wonderful roomie, Betsy! She's from Georgia & has an amazing southern accent. No joke--you couldn't hang out with this girl for too long without picking up a drawl. I actually had people ask me which part of the south I was from! Hahaha! She had the best attitude even when she went through a very big trial during the summer. Although she was in a lot of pain that even medication would not help, she never once complained. She kept saying over & over that if God was allowing this pain in her life, He knew it was best for her, & that He had a better plan for her than the plan she had for herself. God used Betsy in my life in a big way, by making me more aware of my attitude in trials, & being more aware of the needs of others. She really lived out the concept of faith & grace during trials that we studied in James this summer. She is also the most fun to be around/funniest person I have EVER met & I miss her terribly.

This is my lovely friend, Rophe! We had many good talks, & we also had some adventures trying to catch a fish named Gigantor...with a fork.....don't ask.

These are two of my fellow lifeguards! Zach & Ethan were both a huge encouragement to me this summer! Zach became like a big brother to me, & he always challenged me with his humility, & servant's heart. He would go above & beyond what he was asked to do & he even jumped in to help other departments when he wasn't busy with lifeguard duties. Ethan was such fun to be around, & it was awesome to see how God worked in him this summer! He grew so much! He's always such a gentleman, even to the point of jumping into the lake to search for my earring that fell in. Hahaha!

I can't thank the Lord enough for the AMAZING summer he allowed me to be a part of. As we studied James, lives were changed through God's word. Campers that came into camp hating their parents, hating God, & suffering from depression, came to know Christ as their Savior & finally let go of the bitterness that was eating them alive. Staff members who came into the summer anxious, burdened, & hurting were refreshed by studying God's word & having part in amazing Christian fellowship. I keep saying this, but I really feel like God did a complete overhaul on my heart this summer, & I am just amazed by His patience with me. Some of the lessons I learned this summer, I know God has been specifically speaking to me about those things for years & it took me this long to surrender. But with surrender came the sweetest peace & the deepest joy I have ever experienced. I thought that my plan for my life was good, but God had something infinitely better & I'm excited to see what He has in store for the rest of the year. Thank you for your prayers! I look forward to updating y'all again soon =)