Hope

This past week, I have had the privilege of volunteering for Camp Virtue, a week-long camp for middle school students that provides fun, adventurous, and spiritual opportunities. Throughout this time together, it has been so wonderful to experience awesome new places with the kids, talk with the other volunteers, and hear great testimonies from inspiring Catholics living in nearby communities.

Today, we took our campers and volunteers to a nearby river to kayak. Being a bit of a water bug, I was super excited, as I knew this would be a fun and new experience for myself and plenty of the campers. Little did I know, however, just how special this time would be.

We started on our route through the woods in the early afternoon, knowing we had quite a long trek ahead of us (about 7.5 miles worth of creek believe it or not!). The trip was relatively peaceful, with a few minor hiccups involving invading spiders amidst a kayak or two. Our path was wide enough to comfortably fit five kayaks or so width-wise across the stream, but was fairly shaded, surrounding us with walls of trees on either side. Given this and the several miles of water we had just paddled through, it was clear that many (myself included) were starting to feel tired and about ready to spot the finish line after several hours of kayaking. Fortunately, we ran into a grand finale that we weren't expecting:

It was like the sky had opened up, and light had been re-invented. Almost like those movies where several explorers make their way through a sinister cave, to finally step into a refreshing glow of sunlight. The sky, river, and surrounding hills had opened themselves up, and waves of immense peace washed over me.

In that moment, I felt God closer than many of my other encounters with nature; I felt as if the wind was His whisper, the hills were His arms, and the sky was His promise. I felt blessed beyond belief, knowing that my God, Father, Teacher, and Lover created all of this......for me. That was the ticket. I knew in that instant that Christ's love was so immeasurable, not even the skies could define it. It was love in its purest, most selfless form.

This week, Camp Virtue spoke of Hope as a fundamental virtue we all should strive for in our lives; not the kind of hope that is mere optimism, but the kind that endures at the core of our souls, the kind that encourages complete surrender to God, the only hope that we can cling to in the deepest disparities of life. The scene described above was a reminder of that Hope, a gift that I truly didn't see coming. Praise be to God for His immense love and devotion to us!

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"....but we even boast of our afflictions, knowing that affliction produces endurance, and endurance, proven character, and proven character, hope, and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out into our hearts through the holy Spirit that has been given to us."

~Romans 5:3-5