New Blog Post-Crossroads Summer Camp and Jack's life decision!
In 1996 my friend Clayton King started a camp for teenagers at Gardner Webb University in Boiling Springs NC. What started as small one week event for a couple hundred kids has now stood the test of time, trends and culture. I began taking groups of kids from the church that I worked at in 1997, those kids are all grown up now, in ministry, have jobs, families and kids. Over the years I've observed hundreds of young people see, hear and receive the Gospel in their lives. To be forgiven of their sin, set free to really live. I've also seen hundreds stand before their peers and proclaim that Jesus is worthy of everything that they can give back and commit their lives to missions. It truly has been an honor and a blessing to be both on the board and an occasional speaker with some dear friends in this ministry.
This week though was especially good as my kids, both camp age, joined their friends from our church for another week at Crossroads. My daughter in her 4th year and my son now going on his 2nd trip. My son Jack came back from camp and boldly asked me, "When are we going to Nepal?"
You see over the last 15 years, one of the priorities that I have made is going to other parts of the world to share the news that I received about 18 years ago about Jesus. The Gospel changed me and I know this good news can change anyone! It has long been a dream of mine to have my family accompany me on one of these trips. So when Jack asked, "When are we going to Nepal?" part of my dream was realized...having a child who wants to go.
This week when the opportunity to say, by way of public proclamation in front of all their friends, students rose to the their feet and indicated that they would make the mission of the Gospel their life's focus. My son Jack was one of those students!
I could not be prouder!
Lots of parents want their kids to grow up to be successful, and I certainly want that for my kids...but even more...I want them to be faithful, faithful to the calling of God, to sharing the Gospel, to reaching the lost, to healing the broken, setting captives free...faithful to what God wants them to do and not the world's idea of what it means to be a success or even mine!
So many thanks to faithfulness of Clayton, Charie, Matt, Seth, Brittany and the rest of my friends at Crossroads Worldwide. You can find out more about their ministry here.
This week though was especially good as my kids, both camp age, joined their friends from our church for another week at Crossroads. My daughter in her 4th year and my son now going on his 2nd trip. My son Jack came back from camp and boldly asked me, "When are we going to Nepal?"
You see over the last 15 years, one of the priorities that I have made is going to other parts of the world to share the news that I received about 18 years ago about Jesus. The Gospel changed me and I know this good news can change anyone! It has long been a dream of mine to have my family accompany me on one of these trips. So when Jack asked, "When are we going to Nepal?" part of my dream was realized...having a child who wants to go.
This week when the opportunity to say, by way of public proclamation in front of all their friends, students rose to the their feet and indicated that they would make the mission of the Gospel their life's focus. My son Jack was one of those students!
I could not be prouder!
Lots of parents want their kids to grow up to be successful, and I certainly want that for my kids...but even more...I want them to be faithful, faithful to the calling of God, to sharing the Gospel, to reaching the lost, to healing the broken, setting captives free...faithful to what God wants them to do and not the world's idea of what it means to be a success or even mine!
So many thanks to faithfulness of Clayton, Charie, Matt, Seth, Brittany and the rest of my friends at Crossroads Worldwide. You can find out more about their ministry here.
Comments
Lois and I have always sought to involve our kids in what we were doing in ministry at home and abroad so that taking the gospel out to people is seen by them to be a normal part of Christian life. So they have spent a couple of summers in Venezuela and just a couple of weeks ago my oldest son went with me to India to minister to people in the slums. He's also begging to go back and do more.
It's also a blessing to have my son remind me of a part of the gospel I was about to miss. Just as I was closing one presentation right after the propitiation, he nudged me and said, "Don't leave Jesus in the grave." Doh! I'm glad I brought him along or someone might not have gotten the whole message.
So let's keep raising the next generation of faithful Christians!