Today, we are all tired...

 The hard work and heat has begun to hit us, but it has not dampened our spirit at all!  We started the day off with Mass and continued our work.  Some teams that were finished with jobs got assigned new ones for today.  My group, hardworking as they are, haven't finished all the work needed at the horse farm, so we went back today and will be going back tomorrow.  Something happened at the farm last night that spooked one of the horses, and he tried to escape by jumping over one of the new fences.  The horse is fine, but unfortunately he broke the brand new gate.  That had to be fixed, but by the end of the day, Isabella, Shannon, Micheal, Yinghong, and I were able to get all six gates completed (one day early!). 

On my van ride this morning, there was some discussion about Adoration last night.  I'm delighted to hear how this program affected the kids.  A good chunk of them mentioned that they got a little emotional, and the simple fact that they were willing to share that with the group seems like a win in my book.  I don't remember being in a headspace or feeling comfortable enough to share that sort of information with my peers when I was their age. 

Each day at lunch, we have a sort of group devotional to participate in as a group.  We start lunch with a prayer, socialize a little bit, and then our prayer leaders in the group begin by reading a short passage.  Today, one of the conversation prompts asked us to share some of the "thorns" in their lives as teenagers.  I was impressed with contributions and self-awareness the kids displayed.  Bullying was a topic of conversation, but we also spoke about the negative aspects of social media for a while.  The kids seem well versed in the problems they create in the lives of people in general, but also for them as teenagers.  

I added that they are at an age, and will be for another 10 years at least, where they have to make these decisions about who they are going to be.  In a very literal sense, they have to take the time to define that.  If they are sitting on the sidelines in their own life, things like social media are going to absolutely have an effect on how they are molded as a person.  In my opinion, those types of influences are certainly going to sway their trajectory on their track towards happiness, and ultimately Jesus.  The fact that they are so aware of the dangers of social media and predatory technologies calms some of the anxieties I have about the world kids like my daughters age are facing.  

Tonight, the program consisted of an event called Four Corners.  It opens with some worship songs, and then the kids spread out throughout the four corners of the room.  Each corner has a different prayer topic (pray for others, pray for yourself, etc).  There is also a corner for Reconciliation.  It's another powerful night of reflection and the kids seemed to like it.  There are candles, music accompaniment, and some adults volunteer to pray with kids if they would like someone to pray with.  It certainly is a night of growth. 

Because we are beginning to start the process of finishing up our sites and closing out the camp, I wanted to say a few words to the kids as they have come off of these two nights of introspection into their spiritual lives.  

I spoke to them tonight about the need for clear intentions.  Last night, one of the skits spotlighted three different people praying to God.  As each one prayed, the audience could clearly see some issues.  One of the actors started to fall asleep and she promised God that should would finish the prayer later after her nap.  Another actor had a laundry list of items and actually asked God to finish reading his list because he was too lazy and God was "better at reading anyways" etc etc.  

What I personally pulled personally from that skit was that these people did not have the right intention.   They were not praying to become closer to God.  Their prayers were selfish (which is the opposite of what your kids have been practicing this week: Selflessness). These people weren't necessarily exhibiting any ill will towards the Lord, just a sloth-like attitude in their efforts to develop a relationship with him. 

The story of Noah and the Ark isn't about saving animals (as much as I love those creatures!).  It's exactly about this whole idea of having a particular aim or target.  Defining that aim, and then traveling towards it.  Noah spent years building that Ark (building his relationship with God), despite how his surrounding community thought he was crazy (he trusted God).  But Noah defined what he wanted and worked towards that.  He didn't stray from his path.  The important thing here is that he had a path. Many people do not have a path, and simply because they haven't defined it.  But with our lives as Christians, our path towards God and happiness by living his will and finding our true freedom, we need to define how to get there: surrounding ourselves with good people, loving those around us, sacrificing ourselves like we are doing this week by serving others, going to church and participating in community, receiving the sacraments, etc.  This focus, this aim, and exercising the discipline to achieve it, THAT is what gives our lives order.  By having strong faith, and by practicing it, we strengthen our ability to weather the storm.  I told the kids that it is inevitable that they will encounter struggles in their lives, but they can rest assured that as long as they have faith in God, and keep laser focus on their end goal, those practices that they define will help keep that order I mentioned, and save them from the chaos of the storm.  If they don't have something to rely on (like God, and close friends & family, and faith communities), they will be swept away when the floods come.  But Noah was saved by his intention to build a solid relationship with God, and that is what saved him from the storm.  We never know when a storm is coming in our lives, we need to be there for each other and support each other in our quests to be close to God. 

Here are some pictures from today.  They are a mixture of the various work crews.  Unfortunately, uploading that video yesterday took forever and I'm going to #unsubscribe from trying to do that again.  I'll get these videos sent out via email later.  I had some kids give tours of the work they did at our site on the Horse Farm.  I'll try to get some more videos from some of the other groups.  There is a picture of the trainer at the horse farm giving a riding lesson to two kids with special needs.  I'll be having Natalie also give us a tour of the farm so that everyone can get a good idea of the facilities and all of the things that happen there. 

Have a great night, all!