Austin Oaks Church Middle School Camp
Experience
Austin Oaks Church middle school summer camp (MSC) is always a highlight to my summer. When I was in middle school, I was a camper, so getting to be a counselor now that I am older has been so special and fun. MSC is a week long camp during the first week of August. It is a week of fun, worship and community. All the campers are split into teams and throughout the week, we play games and have some crazy competitions. One of my favorite competitions during the week is Ultimate Octopus!! Ultimate octopus is basically ultimate frisbee, but instead of a frisbee, we use a real octopus. As gross as it sounds, it is so fun. It's a competition that campers and counselors get to participate in, so it is always so fun seeing everyone get super competitive. While the games and competitions are fun, the main reason we are there is to bring these campers closer to God. Every morning and evening, we have worship and a sermon. Ultimate octopus is fun, but nothing will compare to watching a camper's heart being move by the Lord! We also have small group/bible study times which creates a space for campers to ask questions, talk about their experiences, questions, etc. I really love MSC!
Responsibilities
As a camp counselor, I had many responsibilities. I was responsible for getting the campers in my cabin up on time for breakfast, making sure all campers got to where they needed to go, ensuring no campers were unsafe or injured, being a leader/role model, and most importantly being a friend. Not only was I a camp counselor, but during free time, I was one of the lifeguards that had to watch the pool and lake dock.
Reflections
MSC is always such an amazing experience every year. While I am there to guide and teach campers about the Lord, they teach me just as much. There is something so special about making connections with campers and watch how they are so eager to learn about the Lord and how to be more like Him. My experience at MSC helped me to realize that, just because you are older, doesn't mean you're always wiser. That fact that I was learning new things from itty bitty 6th graders makes that statement all the more truthful.