Experiencing God in the Present
I have always heard from mission teams that their ministry is just as much a blessing to the community as it is to themselves, and I am learning how true that is every day at Sonshine Day Camp. This is my first year with Toronto City Mission, and when I first started, there was an adjustment period over the first couple of weeks. I realized that many of my struggles were not related to behaviour management or relationship building as I had anticipated, but instead God is calling me to be present and surrender to His perfect plan for me.
On Mondays and Wednesdays, the team comes a bit earlier to spend personal time with God before we start our day, and my initial approach to it was to ask God what He wanted me to do so that His will could be done. I wanted to focus on my role at day camp and how I could glorify God with everything that I do. But as the weeks went on, I started realizing that God was telling me to open my eyes and look at what He was doing right in front of me. My worries about my performance and being able to follow God’s plans for me ended up clouding my vision of the real transformational works happening in the present. God is love, and the amount of love that fills up the Jesse Ketchum site is undeniable. I see it in the way the kids play with each other, the way they help each other up when one falls, and how they sing and dance with abandon during worship. Now when I spend my quiet time with God, I praise Him for these small moments where he touches the hearts of the children and leaders. I am learning to listen to God by tuning in to what is happening around me rather than what is happening in my head.
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. ”
One moment from camp that sticks in my mind is when I sat down to eat lunch with some of the kids and did a quick prayer before my meal. They asked me why I did that and told them that I just thanked God for providing me with my food and asked Him to give me strength and nourishment for the rest of the day. Later that week I sat with one of them outside by the park, and she asked me if I could pray again. It was such a heartwarming moment because even though she said she didn’t know what she wanted me to pray for, something about talking to God intrigued her or brought her joy. It’s moments like these where, even if it’s quiet, God is there moving in our hearts.
I am learning to find God in the present, in big and small moments, and in the very air I breathe. As much as I am watching God transform the community, He is transforming my heart and calling me to submit to him in all my ways.