Mysterious ways

Apparently, Drew hosts a lot of camps for children and teens during the summers. A brand new group of soccer campers rolled in this morning, and we've also had Governor's School kids. But, the interesting group to me is the Shakespeare group. These are teenagers interested in learning and acting Shakespeare. I've seen them outside learning how to do some of kind of dance, and I've seen them learning how to do stage fencing.

That was a blast from the past. For three summers in my own teen years, I went to a 6-week drama camp at the N.C. School of the Arts. Living in a dorm was WAY more fun back then. But, I, too, learned how to fence - at least how to fence for theatrical purposes. Those were some of the best summers - making new friends from all over the country who were interested in the same things I was interested in.

I watched the kids practicing for a little while, and I wondered what they would grow up to do. I had all intentions of being the greatest thing to hit the American stage, but as it turns out, I'm a pastor in rockin' church in N.C. and a doctoral student at Drew. But, you know, those summers weren't wasted. I learned how to speak in public. My skills as a drama queen were finely honed. And, I learned how to step out of my comfort zone. All of those things have served me well in my adult life.

I guess God does indeed work in mysterious ways.

That' all I've got for today. It's been a long one.