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I accepted Christ as my personal Savior on Wednesday (July 23, 2008.) I'm so overwhelmed by everything I learned at camp this past week and I feel like I'm so behind in my walk with God. It's an indescribable feeling.

Long story short:
1.) I got my heart-knowledge mixed up with my head-knowledge and 2.) I took (my own advice and took) knowledge where it was offered. I have been going to Thompson Road Baptist Church since I was two years old and I've (sort of) grown up in a Christian home. All this time I have simply been observing everything going on around me. I have learned what someone who loves God is supposed to do and I've applied it to my life. But my motives were selfish. My motives weren't, "Hey! I'm gonna do this really cool thing so I can magnify how amazing my God is!" I'll admit, I'm a little disappointed in myself for wasting 17 years of my life but at the same time I'm so excited for my new life in Christ and I'm so excited to dedicate every part of my life to Him.

On the way to Northland, I was playing the liscence plate game (with myself) and an incredible thought hit me: each one of these cars is going somewhere. You're probably thinking, "Duh, okay." But that thought grew into the realization that each car actually belongs to a person or a family and those people might not be saved. As time passed, I was thinking less about whether the cars were from Wisconsin or Illinois or Michigan and more about the souls of the people driving them. I began to feel responsible for their salvation, which is almost silly because I was stuck on a bus... what was I supposed to do? Now that I'm home, I feel ready (and excited!) to spread the good news. "Go ye into all the world, and preach the Gospel to every creature (Mark 16:15.)"

It's been said that one of the key parts of camp is creating long-lasting friendships. I won't lie; I didn't even make an attempt at meeting any new people. Instead, I invested my free time getting to know my own youth group better. Proverbs 11:14 tells us that "where no counsel is, the people fall.. but in the multitude of counselors, there is safety." I never realized how blessed I am to be surrounded by friends who love God and who love each other. We all had a chance to be there for one other this week and it was so intimate and so personal and I absolutely loved every minute of it.

Bitterness was something else weighing heavily on my mind all week. Through God, I was able to turn that bitterness into something much bigger. I forgive you, even though you don't deserve it. See, here's the thing: I deserve Hell, yet Jesus Christ gave his life for mine. His blood was shed for all the terrible things I (Jessica Kane, specifically!) have done in my life. "Then came Peter to him, and said, 'Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Until seven times?' Jesus saith unto him, 'I say not unto thee until seven times, but until seventy times seven (Matthew 18:21-22.)" I know that you're not sorry, but I forgive you nonetheless. It's not in my hands anymore.

The only statement I can use to truly sum up my week at Northland is this: "When life gives you wires, make electricity!"