As a member of the “boomerang staff” club, I keep coming back to camp because God is always at work here. Whether in my own life or in our guests’ lives, I have seen Him move time and time again, and this past season was no exception.

CODES at Mile High Pines is a public school program that focuses on science, leadership, and pre-evangelism. Although our curriculum does not directly proselytize, my teammates and I demonstrate the reality and love of God to the students through our words, deeds, and by intentionally helping them remove personal obstacles that may be preventing them from coming to know Jesus.

“A voice of one calling: ‘In the wilderness prepare the way for the Lord; make straight in the desert a highway for our God.'” Isaiah 40:3

I remember a particular week in March when the first thing I learned about the girls in my cabin was not their names, but that they were at war with the girls in the adjacent cabin. As the week progressed, so did their conflicts and dislike for one another. Each day began with a reiteration of the enemy’s sins through gossip, slander, mean looks and whatever other ammunition was available. After a few days of doing our best to keep the cabins separate and peacefully ending small skirmishes here and there, the Cabin Leader of the other “warring nation” and I knew that the time was right for a joint Character Talk.

On the final night of camp both cabins came together to have an open, honest discussion on the topics of gossip and friendship. As we talked, the girls became more and more invested in the lesson, seemingly absorbing all of it. At the end of our time, we left the group with the challenge of individually deciding whether they wanted to change the memory of their camp experience. So far they’d done nothing more than miss out on opportunities to grow by refusing to lay down their arms, extend forgiveness, make new friendships, or to simply having fun at camp. “You only have one day left to change that,” we cautioned.

When Friday came, I wasn’t sure whether the words God had prompted us to share would show in the girls’ actions, but fortunately, it wasn’t long before I received an answer. Just before we loaded the buses, the main instigator from the neighboring cabin came over to share with us that the Character Talk inspired her to apologize and reconcile with the main antagonist in my cabin. “Praise God!” I thought to myself. This action then created a chain reaction in the other girls, and by the time the buses were loaded, the war was over.

God is always at work here. No matter the issue a student may bring, He sees them all, and whether we openly profess Him with our mouths or our hands, He continues to remove obstacles so that kids can experience freedom in Him through camp.

-Alex M.