In December when we were planning for Allie's baby leave from Hey Helen I, like an idiot, completely forgot about the fact that we have WyldLife club on Fridays after school (aka worst leader ever), so I volunteered to work every Friday until the beginning of March.
Last week was our first club, and I missed it. I sat in an empty boutique as my middle school friends and teammates kicked off the semester in style. I was devastated. As a leader I felt worthless and like I have completely failed my team.
Going into this week knowing that I would be missing yet another club today I prayed that I would believe that I was sitting in this store and not at club for a purpose. I wasn't at club, but that didn't mean what I was doing wasn't important. Being a WL leader feels like something that is just ingrained in my DNA at this point so believing that my Friday can be purposeful and used by the Lord when I not at club is not going to be something that I believe easily, if at all.
God is good.
At around 3:20 today, the same time all the kids and leaders would be walking down from the elementary school to the club room a lady in a tie dyed shirt came into the store holding a stack of papers and asked if Allie was available. I told her Allie wasn't here today and assumed that she would hand me the papers, ask me to give them to Allie, and leave (we've had lots of people promoting things come in and that's always what happens).
This lady was different. She led me over to the counter and set down her stack of papers. "I'm going to tell you about this," she said, and starting telling me about a boy, her son, named Cameron who passed away a couple months before he graduated from Pulaski County High School and the run that they do every year to raise money for the PCHS scholarship in his memory. "Every part of the run is connected to Cameron," she told me. From the route (his paper route when he was 12) to the wrist bands (made in the town his grandparents live in) the whole thing is somehow related to the life of her son.
After explaining the details of the race and what Allie gets if she donated a door prize we make a little bit of small talk. I tell her that I'm a part of a church here in Floyd and that we're always looking for outreach opportunities to participate in and that I'd pass all this info along our people because odds are we'd love to be a part of this. "Oh, what church?" she asks. Oh its called Sojourn, we're only about 6 months old, yada yada. "Non-denominational??" Yeah! "There's a church in Radford Cameron loved - Valley Bible Church."
GOOSEBUMPS. One connection after another starts popping up. Sojourn is an off shoot of VBC, Pradeepa (from VBC, on YL staff) was Cameron's YL leader, he and his friends spend time in Floyd every weekend, etc, etc.
I obviously didn't know Cameron, but I think I would have liked to. I am thankful that his mom chose today, at the time that the second club I would miss this semester was just beginning, to walk into the store. I'm thankful that she decided to share her son's story, her faith, and how she intends to celebrate his life and encourage others even in his absence.
I am thankful that the Lord reminded me today that my time is not useless. I am thankful that even though I wasn't at club I got to share a special conversation with a very special woman, and be encouraged by her, and feel the Lord so present in our conversation - a conversation that would not have happened if I hadn't been sitting in this empty store.
Our God is good. And he is at work. He is at work through a life cut short, through a mom celebrating the short life of her son, through churches and Young Life. The Lord is at work all around us and he makes things purposeful and worthwhile and adds meaning to our day, and what an incredible blessing it is to be able to be a part of that.
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