Another busy month is coming to a close! I was blessed enough to have participated in the Surfside Camp at Twin Rocks early in the month. It was a wonderful experience being there and serving as an Elder for the camp. I had some really great conversations with counselors and students alike. I got to play games and generally be ridiculous for Jesus (which suits me more than I should be comfortable with) and was overwhelmed by the welcoming love of everyone involved! Camps are always a highlight for me. I love them. I want to keep going and serving in whatever way I can as long as I can. I know how much camp experiences have meant in my development as a Christian (and still do). Why would I not want the chance to be renewed and refreshed with brothers and sisters in the Lord over the course of a few days focused on what God wants to do in and through us?

I was also blessed with the chance to attend the Dove Fest concert this month! I volunteered with Drew Krupp to serve as an usher. Most of my evening was spent on my feet asking if people had their tickets. While many people were frustrated by my repeated insistence to follow the rules many more were glad that I let them know to get their ticket so they could make it back to their seat. I am a rule follower. It is a part of who I am and I like following the rules I agree with. There are times, however, that my rebel side comes out and a rule I disagree with shows up. In those times I have to make a choice between following the rules and doing what is right or disobeying the rules and acting as I please.

It can be a struggle to follow the rules when we disagree with them. Our will gets in the way of our obedience to the rules. Often in our Christian walk we fall into the same trap. Our will gets in the way of our obedience to God’s will. Our natural (fallen/sinful) state is one of rebellion and pride, we do our things our way and feel like that is how things should be. In Christ we have a new will to follow and new ways of doing things, essentially we have a new set of rules which we can follow or break. At Camp we had to deal with some people who wanted to exercise their will in ways that were contrary to the rules established for our time together. This brought some conflict and tension into the camp environment and could have been a negative experience if it weren’t for the camp directors guiding the situation to a positive outcome.

Following the rules for Kingdom living is going to be difficult and cause conflict and tension in our lives. If we let Christ guide us through these times of conflict and tension we will certainly see a positive outcome. Maybe not today or tomorrow but in the end through Christ’s leadership and love we will see the purpose for these messy lives and know that it was all for something greater than we could have known at the time.