Northern CA Camp

This past year at our summer camp....

Our camp is for middle and high school students and each year we seem to watch God move in incredible ways, but this year was one I'll never forget. 

Every morning we meet with all staff and counselors to talk, pray, encourage and simply check in to see how their camp is going and how their night talks are going with their students.  One person had asked for prayer as two boys had spoken out in their night talk and told everyone they were atheists. How they made it to our camp, must have been a total God move. 

So we prayed that God would soften their hearts. 

That night our speaker Clint Dupin was offering an opportunity to stay after, be prayed for and accept Christ.  As he was giving the invitation, I felt and overwhelming sense from God to pray for these two boys.  I grabbed a few adults around me and we just started laying their names powerfully before God, begging Him to open their hearts to His love. 

After the invitation was over one boy bolted for the back door and one of the men who prayed with me went after him to see if they could connect.  The other boy who we prayed for stayed behind.  I thought to myself "Yes, so excited you moved God, let's do this!" As I approached his seat he ended up standing up and at that moment as he stood my heart sank. He walked by me.  I asked him if everything was ok and he simply shrugged and headed for the back door.

My thoughts now towards God were upset, let down, disappointed since we prayed with such a high level of expectancy.  Our prayer time ended and even though those two boys walked out I was still encouraged by the multitude of others accepting Jesus for the first time and asking for prayer. The man who chased the boy out of the room came back to talk to me after everyone had left. 

He said he lost the boy as soon as he headed outside so just came back to hang outside to see if anyone needed prayer. He then described to me a boy who looked upset and went up to him and said "Buddy, you ok? You need to talk?" 

The boy simply replied I am fine. 

The man walked away, but had a stirring that everything wasn't ok.  He turned around, approached the boy and said "Listen, I'm nobody and I can assure you whatever is bothering you, whatever you've done, I've done worse and it's ok." 

To this the boy began to break down in tears and started sharing all he felt he had done wrong, to which the man simply smiled and said God loves you buddy. Then he lead the boy in a prayer that would change his life forever.  A prayer to accept Jesus as his personal savior. 

The boy then came in and signed up to be baptized the next night.

I interrupted Brian and asked the boys name.  He said it was Saiso.  I said to the man who I had prayed with earlier who didn't know the boy that Saiso was one of the atheist boys we had been praying desperately that God would soften his heart. 

The next night we all watched 42 students get baptized in a beautiful lake tucked in the woods near lake Tahoe and along with those 42 students I had the privilege to baptize a young boy named Saiso.  God is so good!

Youth Pastor 

Faith Legacy Church

Brennan McCurdy