Summertime brings back quite a few memories for me. As a kid I would go to summer camps that the youth group would offer, one specific being Camp Blue Haven. I remember all the fun I had, the friends I made, and the beautiful view of the mountaintops. I remember the hikes, the huge zipline, and the ghost stories that were told. Of course, it was a Christian camp so there were Bible classes and we sang worship songs. However, when I was younger, Bible reading and memorizing verses didn’t sink in. I was pretty much there to have fun with friends and run around the mountains like most of the campers. It was in high school that everything started to sink in, where I started to really understand what it means to be a Christian.
The summer before my Senior year, I had a counselor named Leland, who was the best counselor I had at Blue Haven. Not only was he a friendly and fun person to be around, but he showed Christ to us through his words and actions. One night after the counselors put on skits for us, we had a cabin devotional and were discussing one of the serious skits they had done. I don’t remember what the skit was about, but I remember Leland was getting passionate about it. He said a phrase that has stuck with me and laid a path before me. He said, “Don’t talk about it, be about it.”
During my high school Senior year, through ACU, to now, those words have been in my heart, pulsating through my veins. They have helped me truly understand what it means to be a follower of Christ. They helped me understand how to truly spread the Gospel. “Don’t talk about it, be about it.” I could talk day and night about Jesus, but if I live it – a life transformed by Jesus – then other people will see it and want to know more.
One verse that has stuck with me has been Luke 9:23, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.” After reading this I asked myself, “What did this look like?” I didn’t think that I saw anyone living their life this way, not even at church. Of course, I would eventually notice it when I went to ACU, got older and started living life with brothers and sisters in Christ who wanted to “deny themselves” and “take up a cross” and “follow Jesus.” Summertime and Blue Haven hold a special place in my heart. During these times I began my journey to follow Jesus and truly understand that simple phrase. “Don’t talk about it, be about it.”
