June 24

I have been in Colorado for two weeks now and I am enjoying every minute of it. They have been keeping us really busy here. I work at the kids camp for 8 hours a day and I absolutely love being there. The first week was all training and this past week we actually have our kids their. I am one of the camp counselors for the fifth grade girls. Our days at camp are filled with crafts, activities, songs, bible stories, and quiet time spent with the Lord. I adore each one of my girls and am excited to see them grow over the summer. Today, we had a really cool conversation during our bible study time about things that we do that are displeasing to God. One girl raised her hand and said that she often spends more time with friends than God and that is something she would like to change. I was so impressed that a fifth grader could already love God that much! 

In the evenings we have been learning a lot about how to share the gospel more effectively. Then, we "practice" by talking to the people of Fort Collins. We learn to do more listening than talking, with the goal of the conversation being to leave the person with a positive experience with a Christian. While listening, we try to understand where they are in their spiritual journey (we learn that everyone is on one) and only if we feel it would be received well, do we share our beliefs in return. Listening to different speakers that come and talk to us has really helped me to understand how important it is to share the gospel with others. 

We have also been studying the book of Ephesians, which is really awesome because I also got to study that book during Bible study last semester at school. We go through the study on our own and then meet weekly to discuss it in our small groups. There is also a speaker that talks weekly about the section that we are studying. Also, in our small groups we did something called soul to soul, which is basically where every girl shares her life story with the others. It is an awesome way to begin to feel comfortable with each other and get to know each other better. 

Last weekend, we went white water rafting and it was so much fun! Today, the girls in my bible study went out for the evening to celebrate my 19th birthday. We ate dinner at a delicious salad place called MadGreens and had ice cream at a local favorite called The Walrus. We shopped around downtown a bit, and the girls even surprised me with a carriage ride! It was a lot of fun and I really enjoyed spending the evening with them, though I did miss my family a lot.

Tomorrow is more evangelism training and then talking to people in the community. I am excited for what God has in store for the rest of my trip!

~Sarah