You never know until you try
by Pastor Terry Allison, Children Ministry

Last Friday night I helped pick up 16 of the Cumberland Pointe children we sent to Camp Joy El—a beautiful Christian retreat center near Greencastle, PA. When I went to the boys’ cabin I learned that one of the boys who had accepted Jesus Christ as his Savior at camp was Jamil.  Jamil (not his real name) is/was Muslim.Jamil was not in the group of kids waiting for us at Cumberland Pointe when we pulled up in the church bus.  I walked to his townhouse where I found him sitting outside.  He had forgotten that it was the day to go to camp so I urged him to get packed while I waited for him.  I was hopeful that as a boy he could pack quickly since we had 15 other kids and three adults waiting in the 90+ degree heat back in the non-air conditioned church bus.  

To be honest, I was nervous and praying as I waited for Jamil because even though his family had registered him for camp, I wasn’t sure how much they understood that it was a Christian camp to which they were sending their son or how long he would be gone.  His family is Somali so there is a language and cultural barrier to overcome in addition to the spiritual one between Muslim and Christian.  In no more than five minutes, Jamil came with a bag of clothes and a pillow.  He had to run back to the house to grab his swimsuit while I proceeded to the bus carrying the rest of his stuff.  I just wanted to get him on that bus and off to camp as quickly as possible before he or someone in his family changed their mind about him going to camp.

The camp theme for this summer is the "Wild, Wild West" and I informed the camp staff when we checked in with the Cumberland Pointe kids that the west had just gotten a lot wilder with their arrival.  Throughout the week I prayed for all the Cumberland Pointe kids, the counselors and staff, and the other campers but I especially prayed for Jamil and that he would come to faith in Christ. 

Jamil, as a Somali Muslim, was possibly one of the least likely kids to go to a Christian summer camp let alone accept Christ as His Savior.  I could have easily not given him a camp brochure, assuming that he and/or his family wouldn’t want him going to Camp Joy El.  I could have easily assumed that he and/or his family had changed their minds about him going to camp when he wasn’t waiting for us when we pulled up in the bus.  I could have avoided walking to his house to see if he was going and then not waited for him to pack.  But look at what God did that I would have missed!

As you look at opportunities to invite other children to Awesome Adventure ministries, don’t avoid inviting those you assume are least likely to attend.  You might miss out on God using you in a similar way that He used me in Jamil’s life.  You wouldn’t want that, would you?