If you’re one of the media people at Kids Camp, you’ll hear these questions all day:
“Can you take a picture of me?”
“Can you put me in the video?”
“If I do this..will you put me in?”
And it doesn’t matter the setting.
Say we’re in the middle of serious spiritual moment like an altar call.
I’m walking around trying to find shots and kids will tap me on the shoulder.
“Hey get a shot of me” as they raise their hands in worship.
There’s different ways I’ve reacted to these situations.
Sometimes I try to have a discipleship talk in that moment.
Often I’m annoyed.
Occasionally I’m stressed out, particularly when I’m at the pool. Picture a hundred kids yelling at you to get a shot of them doing a flip. It’s not fun.
Now, I’ve learned to be compassionate.
This want to have their likeness captured for a camp video or photo dump is a disguise for the desire to be seen.
For many of us, to be seen is to be loved.
A camper begging to have the camera pointed at them is a kid craving attention.
A longing for someone to say “I see you. You matter. Let’s show you to the world so they can see too.”
I quite haven’t cracked the code of fitting in every camper into a social media post.
Even if I did, that itch to be seen would still need scratched again.
Imagine if we could help these students know and believe that there’s a God who “sees” them.
In Genesis chapter 16, we see a rejected Hagar running for her life to nowhere. Abandoned by everyone and everything she knows. Yet God meets here where she’s at and in response, she give this God a name: El-Roi.
“You are the God who sees me.” (Genesis 16:13)
And He isn’t a passive observer.
He cares about you.
He pursued you first and wants a relationship with you.
He wants to not only save you, but heal you.
He wants you to have life and life to the full.
He wants you to experience His Kingdom on Earth as it is in Heaven.
If God had a smartphone, your photo would be his wallpaper.
Will you answer His call?
Will you accept His invite?
Will you quit substituting attention from others for the love of God?
There’s adults who need to hear that, let alone kids.
And through moments like camp, we have an opportunity to help them realize this truth.
Let’s bring on Week 2!