I just returned from a week of camp at Blue Mountain Retreat Center outside of Fredericktown. The camp is for kids going into 6th, 7th and 8th grades. The last night is an opportunity for the kids to "say so." Twenty-four kids gave a first time confession of Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. For the counselors there, this makes the week of heat and exhaustion worth it.

Consider these two bits of scripture.

But what does it say? "The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart," that is, the word of faith we are proclaiming: That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved. As the Scripture says, "Anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame." - Romans 10:8-11

Yet at the same time many even among the leaders believed in him. But because of the Pharisees they would not confess their faith for fear they would be put out of the synagogue; for they loved praise from men more than praise from God. - John 12:42-43

What a thrill; 24 kids for the first time confessed Christ because they were more interested in the glory of God than the glory of their peers. And over 40 others recommitted their faith to Christ. That's a good week!

- Rob