Our students were in Black Mountain last weekend attending Winter Camp. It was an incredible time for them with amazing music, teaching, and games. We asked the students what stood out the most to them from the weekend after our last session and I feel like their answers need to be shared. I believe that each of us could benefit from these reminders right now.

If you have hung around church for any amount of time you have probably heard at least one person talking about how they feel “called” to this thing or that thing, or that God is “calling” them to do this or that. Maybe you have never felt like God was calling you to anything in particular. Maybe God has called you to something in the past, but you said no. Maybe God is calling you now and you are not sure that you are ready to answer just yet.

Does it feel like 2022 is starting a little like 2021? If so, it doesn’t have to. As you head into this year, what if you made a different choice? The choice to fight disconnection and to grow in the things that really matter.

I ran into an old foe last week. This old foe popped up one day last week and tried to weasel its way right back into my life. I wasn’t about to let that happen, so I reached out to a couple of friends and asked for some prayer. This old foe of mine was relentless and continued to fight for my attention day in and day out. Each time it popped up in my face, I went to God in prayer. I was praying near constantly the whole time thinking that I was being a good little Christian and praying without ceasing like the Bible tells me to. Then God stepped in and showed me how wrong I was.

Joy.

It is such a small word, but it carries such a big feeling. It’s funny. Joy is one of those words that we really only talk about during the Christmas season, and for many of us, that is the hardest time to feel joy. Christmas time is not always the most wonderful time of the year for people. Many people feel increased anxiety this time of year. Many people feel extremely lonely this time of year. Many people would probably say that they have a hard time feeling joy this time of year. So how do we find joy in the midst of loss, anxiety, and loneliness this time of year?