A Taste of the Kingdom by Jim Branch

Today I had the privilege of going to one of my favorite places in the world—Windy Gap. And guess who I saw there?  I saw you, Young Life leader! O, maybe not you literally (or maybe so), but I saw you.

I saw you, who prayed so hard for months (or even years) that your friends would sign up. 

I saw you, who worked so hard every weekend to raise enough money so that your friends could go. 

And I saw you, finally sitting beside them in club, laughing, singing, and still praying that they might hear about the incredible love the Savior has for them. The very same love you have been captured by time after time, otherwise you wouldn’t be here in the first place.  

And you know what I saw today when I saw you? I saw a hero. Yeah, I know, most days you don’t feel very heroic.  Most true heroes don’t. But that doesn’t change the fact that you are one. 

What you are doing this summer—whether you are home from camp already and trying your best to continually pursue your friends who went, or literally at camp right now, pouring yourself out for an entire week so that your friends might come face-to-face with Jesus, or yet to go to camp and still praying that God might get your friends on the bus—is nothing short of heroic. 

Thank you for giving yourself to give your friends a taste of the kingdom. Today you brought a smile to my face, and more importantly, you brought great joy to the heart of our God.

Written by Jim Branch, author of The Blue Book.

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