The summer of 2000 I worked my first summer missions camp in the inner cities of West Palm Beach, FL. It was a summer youth camp where students would come from all over the US to do missions. Every week day I would take a group of teenagers into the rough neighborhoods of WPB, and we would conduct sports camps and share the Gospel. I would do this for about 10 weeks in the summer. I remember my first day like it was yesterday.
I had met with the lady that was over the Weed and Seed program there in WPB, and she stated that there would be no more than 20 kids (ranging anywhere from 7 to 13 years old) coming to this camp, so I began preparing games and fun activities for 20 kids. I had it all mapped out in my head, and when the teenage campers showed up week 1, I was "ready". I had this amazing sports camp planned that I thought was going to revolutionize how the church was going to reach out to the children of the inner city. I was so excited to bring this plan to these 20 kids.
Monday came and we loaded up our van and headed to the park where this camp was going to be held. We passed by this park on our way, but I made the driver of the van keep going, because that couldn't be our camp there were WAY to many kids to be ours. After circling the park several times I finally figured out this WAS the park we were suppose to be at.
When I got out of the van I was amazed at how many children had shown up. There was at least 120 kids, a far cry from the 20 that was promised. I pulled my team together and told them what we planned would go on as scheduled. We wouldn't let the numbers change anything.
Our life changing plan was to break the children into groups and play fun games with each group. At the end of every activity we would share a Bible story with them, and then rotate the groups. At that time it sounded like a great plan. Boy was I wrong.
As soon as I blew the whistle for the children to get into groups all H-E- double hockey sticks broke out. I broke up fight after fight. I had an 8 year old call me every name in the book. I had a 10 year girl cursing so bad that it would make a sailor blush. I had kids biting my campers and adult chaperons. I had kids hitting each other with the handles of the foam boppers we had brought. Kids where screaming, kids where everywhere, and I felt helpless!!!!
When I looked around it was like that moment in the movies when the bad guys are winning, and it goes to that slow motion effect to make it more dramatic, I felt like Satan was winning and everything was in slow motion. I had only been at the park for an hour and I was ready to pack my bags and get back to Louisiana, and then, God broke me. He drew my mind to this chapter, and He said to me, "John, love me and love these children". To say that was a turning point in my faith is a major understatement. In that moment I finally got it!!
You see every since I had given my life to Christ I thought I did an awesome job of loving God and loving people, but in that moment God was breaking me, I realized I had only loved people that were easy to love. The great commandment is so easy to live out when you surround yourself with people like you and people that are easy to love. I finally knew what Jesus was saying in this text when He said love God and love people!!
I had never experienced the inner city culture before, and my cookie cutter world didn't fit their world. Once I figured out how to love these kids God sent revival to that area. Kids came to know Christ on a daily basis, and in the end God got all the glory. That summer I saw the inner city kids learn to love God so much that they began leading the campers who came to the camp to Christ.
If you really want to know how that Great commandment really plays out in your life, learn to love people that seem unlovable, and watch how God will radically change their lives but also yours!
John
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