On Arrival

We're here at Camp Pinnacle in the beautiful Helderberg Mountains just outside of Albany. The view from the camp is incredible, especially at the various lookout points around the acreage. Last night we went to one such point called "Sunset," so called for its spectacular view of the evening sky at dusk. It's a little bit of a hike, and even my dog was huffing and puffing and limping a bit by the time we reached the summit; but the view was well worth it. That was the hi-light.

The down and dirty of the day was that we had no real place prepared for us when we arrived at camp. The two bedroom apartment we had been shown and were promised is currently being used by a lovely missionary family whom we had the pleasure of meeting on Saturday. Apparently the family has been occupying the apartment since February, and will stay on indefinitely. They have three daughters, two twins aged five, and the youngest who is now three. Katie and Beth were enchanted with the girls already, and Bill and I truly enjoyed our shared lunch with the parents. They are wonderful people, and we would never dream of asking them to vacate the place for us. We did, however, begin to feel like the unwanted relatives when there was no place ready for us to stay.

Bill had called ahead and spoken to the pastor's wife to let her know we would arrive 2 days earlier than planned. We reminded her that we were bringing our dog, and asked again what we would need to bring for our housing, and what would be included (ie: linens, pots and pans, etc.) The answers were somewhat vague, but we were assured that there was a roomy RV for us, and that all we needed was our clothing and ourselves. Meals would be provided. Although we were doubtful about the RV working for a family of 4 plus a dog through the whole summer, we believed that God would provide. When we pulled in to camp on Saturday, we met a flustered pastor's wife who confessed she wasn't sure we were coming that day and a pastor totally in the dark about our early arrival. We were shown a small RV with no beds ready for our use and a single sized futon which we were encouraged to use in lieu of the double bed in the bedroom that had no linens. And where were the girls and dog to sleep?

We were then shown a tiny cabin with taller weeds, and more trash and rusted out appliances on the front lawn than a Jeff Foxworthy skit. I'm not kidding. Inside the cabin there was a mini fridge with a chunky gallon of milk and scary stains all over the inside. There was a shower stall with black mold all over the floor and along every fixture. There was a doubtful looking mattress and box spring resting on a broken bookshelf and blocks of wood. Finally, there was someone else's garbage and clothing left in all the drawers, closets, and shelves available, not that there were many. Although Vickie was apologetic and offered to clean the place for us, I refused and told her we were capable of cleaning. I knew she was busy with a conference that day and the many other responsibilities she shared with her husband to keep the place running. In spite of my assurances, inside we felt deflated. Didn't they want us here? Were they trying to make things so uncomfortable that we would give up and go home? The temptation to turn around and drive the 16 hours back to South Carolina was very real.

Instead, we rolled up our sleeves and worked hard all day yesterday after church. We scrubbed and dumped, moved and scrounged, and provided our own meals because, surprise, there were no meals offered Sunday through Wednesday. We spent close to $200 at Walmart and other stores to help fill in the gaps with food, and needed gear. Thankfully, Bill's mom came through big time with the offer of a coffee pot, a fan, and some plastic cups and a pitcher she wasn't using. After hours of cleaning, as well as moving and replacing all the unsuitable furniture, the place didn't seem so bad. In fact, we were quite proud of what our efforts had wrought. Wild flowers in a vase sit on a clean table on the porch. A clean desk, refrigerator, living room, bedroom, and bathroom now all smell wonderfully fresh. The shower floor, to our surprise, turned out to be white! More importantly, during this whole process, we were broken and humbled.

God reminded us yesterday that we came to this camp to serve him, not to be served by others. It's a good lesson at the beginning of a summer full of long days, hard work, and ultimately ministry in the lives of campers and staff. We are once again feeling privileged to be here. A big thank you to those of you who are praying for us this summer. God is already beginning to work!