participation

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I'm leading campfire devotions at our local church camp this week, hoping to shine a light in the lives of 30 or so 8 to 11 year olds and their teenage counselors. As I prayed about how to keep their attention at 9:30 p.m. after they had been on the go all day I decided to use the time to let them teach me.


"What did you learn today?" I asked.

"About David and Goliath," one girl offered.

"Cool!" I said. "Who is David?"

"I don't know," she replied.

"A boy," another little girl offered.

"A shepherd boy," a young guy who seemed to know his stuff helped.

"A king," another shared.

"That's right," I said. "David defeated Goliath in preparation to become king. How did you all prepare to come to camp?"

"I brought a sleeping bag."

"I brought clothes and a swim suit."

"Bug spray. Sunscreen. Hand sanitizer. Deodorant." (Yes, the same child named all of these.)

"Underwear." (Obviously this was met with lots of 8-11 year old giggles.)

"I brought shampoo and conditioner. And my mom made me bring bubble bath too."

I laughed. "Sometimes we do pack things we don't need."

"Like my toothbrush," one little boy offered. (Lots of "ew gross" from other campers and "yes you will be brushing your teeth" from the counselors.)

"Did anyone else bring something they don't need?" I asked.

"My brother," one girl said without even cracking a smile.

I had nothing to offer in response to that one.


These campers are awesome. They remind me of the "It's Not Complicated" AT&T commercials featuring the kids who have answers for everything. I'm excited to spend the rest of the week learning from them!
EMBRACE PARTICIPATION.

I'm smart enough to know I don't have all the answers, and wise enough to ask the kids who do.



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