who is the King of glory?

Junior Camp 1: Ron DeGarde

Who is the King of glory?
The Lord strong & mighty; the Lord mighty in battle.
(Psalm 24:8)

This week started with a little bit of apprehensive anticipation. After all, it was my first week of counseling! The counselors congregated in the chapel at 2 o'clock as we waited for the junior campers to flood in & begin the first week of Frontier Frenzy 2010. I'll admit, I was shakin' in my boots! God is good, though and it was an awesome week. I met my five junior campers, Ashleyn, Jennifer, Evelyn, Rachell, & Leslie, & we settled in for the exciting week to come. I couldn't wait to see how God would change each of us over the next 5 days.

During the evening service, Brother DeGarde introduced his theme for the week: Psalm 24:8. At each service he would say, "Who is the King of glory?" & the campers would reply, "The Lord strong & mighty; the Lord mighty in battle." That simple verse put my heart in check for the week--my God is the King of glory, He can do anything!

My apprehensiveness wore off as I got more comfortable with the girls & just enjoyed being a counselor at camp. Sometimes it was hard to get on to the girls (some of them are just so cute!), but overall they were well behaved & enthusiastic. Several times throughout the week my cabin could be heard reciting all the blue team cheers as well as screaming our cabin cheer at the the top of their lungs!

One thing God taught me this week was to praise Him even through difficult (or just plain interesting) situations. At the beginning of the week my shower began leaking into my closet. I thanked the Lord that I had a shower, closet, & a good supply of towels. On Wednesday, the plug in the tank of my toilet corroded to the point that the toilet would no longer flush. I thanked the Lord that I knew how to take care of the problem & theat Cody Bill would soon take care of the situation. Wednesday afternoon, after the watergame & swimming, we were blessed with an hour & a half of torrential downpours. I praised the Lord for the hour to get to know my girls (we were stranded in the cabin) & getting to know Rebecca, but I had a hard time praising Him for the leak that appeared above my bed. All in all, I learned to thank the Lord for what He has given me, especially maintainance men like Cody Bill who fixed all of my leaks & issues on Friday afternoon!

The Friday evening service is still ringing in my ears. I dedicated my life to full-time Christian service not long after being saved, but Brother DeGarde's message on surrendering reminded me that I must be continually living in dedication to God's will. Yes, I am still on the right track, but sometimes I have been a little distracted by selfish desires.

At the invitation, one of my campers went forward to dedicate her life to missions. It was so exciting to walk through the verses of how God has a plan for our lives with her! Afterwards, we went & talked with Tina, the lead counselor. She explained that we must keep our lives clean & ready to be used by the Lord.

What a rebuke! Am I an empty vessle, fit for the Master's use?

I hope so.

But there is one thing I know. When I am asked, "Who is the King of glory?" I will proudly answer, "the Lord strong & mighty; the Lord mighty in battle!" Through Him, I can do anything!