Camp - Day 2

Well last night was crazy and Jeff and I have many memories of the day yesterday. This morning started out really rough and cold, I wasn't sure I was going to make it through the day without escaping somewhere by myself to sleep. By the way there is nowhere here to escape by yourself especially when your tent is under water. 

The kids had breakfast (hard boiled eggs, bread and Nutella). I have come to find out that bread is a staple here. It comes with every meal no matter what you are having. That's my kinda meal! 

With an hours sleep under our belts we started the day with our first English lessons. Jeff was up first with "What is truth?"  It was a rough start probably due to the language barrier and the fact that the kids are just getting to know us and trust us. We had a little break and then onto the second English lesson. Kylie did a good job teaching them how to talk about "Entertainment".  After English lessons we had free time and then lunch. Lunch was French fries and sausage and a block of feta with cucumbers and tomatoes. We have all been pleasantly surprised by the food. It has been great! Not what we are used to but I think we expected much worse. :)

After lunch we had our camp games (today was Clothes Pin as Morgan calls it). After the game, we had free time until dinner. This is the longest stretch of free time and was challenging on this particular day with no sleep. 

I believe The Lord has stripped us of any strength of our own in order for us to truly lean on Him. It has been a hard couple of days but it has been so worth it. We can already feel sweet relationships being made. Even on day two the relationships have changed. I will probably say this many times but these people are so loving and happy and have energy for days. It is such a joy to just be around them. Right before dinner, Albanian music came on and everyone came out to the middle to see two of the pastors (Erion and Klody) doing an Albanian dance (not sure what it is called). Everyone joined in. I stood on the side to video this fun they were having and I felt my heart almost burst. I cannot seem to find adequate words to explain what I see in the pastors and the people. And to see the effect they have on the faces of these kids is overwhelming at times. Only one word... Love! 

We have a lot of kids at camp who say they are Christians so there is opportunity to talk about what that actually means. Jeff did a great job talking about the Beatitudes in Matthew 5 and of our favorite pastors, Erion, interpreted for him and it went really well. It was truly a work of The Lord to see Jeff give a message on no sleep and to see The Lord grow him in this right before my eyes. The kids were provoked to think about what their lives should look like in this Upsidedown Kingdom (the theme of camp). 

I'm not sure my heart can handle the rest of the week. I'm not even sure I really want to leave at all. Ok yes I want to leave the "camping" part of camp, but even going to Greece on Sunday seems like I will be leaving something and someone I have grown to love so deeply. I am so grateful to The Lord for bringing us here and for all of you who have supported and prayed for us. Thank you. 

By the way... I am sure my children will never be the same either. I have no doubt we can go home and get back into the rat race and importance of unimportant things but as I watch them interact with everyone in their way and without Jeff or I at all, I am sure their hearts will forever be changed just like mine.