Changed through Serving

Although I have never attended MK Camp as a camper, it has impacted me with my experience on CREW. My first year on CREW was in the summer of 2015. I was only on for a week, but it was one of the best weeks of the summer. While on the team I also was leading worship and one of the photographers just for the 11-13 y/o camp. One thing I love about CREW is that every single morning after breakfast cleanup, then the team has a Bible study. One thing I love doing is talking about the Bible with others and seeing different points of view on scripture. It is an incredibly insightful time.
Over the week with the team, we developed really good bonds with one another. We would joke around and play games during our time to rest. When it was time to work, people did their jobs and it was so great to see everyone’s willing attitudes to do what they are asked. During CREW you really get to see people’s heart and love for God.
One of my favorite moments from that first summer with DPB was when I led worship and we all sang “Blessed Be Your Name.” All the campers were singing it at the tops of their lungs. It was incredibly encouraging seeing people really focus on the words they were singing and worshiping God in such a genuine way. Every single time I play that song now; I become overjoyed with the memory of camp.
My second time on CREW was in the summer of 2016. I believe that God used that time to encourage and stretch me. He brought incredibly important people into my life who fill me with such immense joy and love. They filled me with such wisdom and guidance when I needed help. The people on CREW that someone serves with are so important because God has placed them there for a specific reason and to have a specific impact on one’s life. I know that because of the people I have served with, they have impacted me for the better.
I remember asking a group of campers who would like to join CREW someday and one said he would like to. I then told him, “It is such an amazing experience, but be prepared to have a layer of sunscreen, bug spray, and sweat on every single day.” In CREW we create so many good memories, but we do a lot of hard work and it ends in taking multiple showers a day. The shared work, though, creates a sense of camaraderie because we all go through the same thing (though, the boys just carry heavier piles of wood). My time on CREW has been some of the best times with teams that I have ever experienced. Although I spent at most two weeks with them, you have a whole new understanding of people and you can know them on a deeper level (thanks to deep conversations by the campfire at night).
All in all, CREW has impacted me. It has changed the way I serve people and how I view service. It is not just something you do in order to please others, but show them the love of God and your love for God. In CREW we joke around, we serve, we love, and we praise God in all we do. In an environment like that, I don’t know how I wouldn’t be impacted. Thanks, DPB!

-Sofie