I am oh so excited to introduce you to Miss Clair today. I met Clair when I was working for a non-profit that puts on a little something something every summer called Op Camp [yep, the place that God used to talk to my heart about adoption? same place. it's pretty special part of my story] She now works full time for the ministry as the girls youth leader basically and she's amazing. like no one else I've ever met before. last week [when we went to hear Bob Goff, ya know?] well Clair was there as Op Camp was putting it on. and she said something really profound about her time with her girls at Op Camp, she said...."I helped change their story, but really more than that they changed mine".
I teared up a little bit because that's exactly my experience with Op Camp and I've taken it to every part of my life.
so I asked her to share today! Enjoy ;)
“I had a good loud voice, and I wasn’t afraid to be goofy or
zany.” – Carol Burnett
Anybody can change
the world: I’m just a clown.
Eight years ago, I lost my mind.
I lost my mind, and I loved it.
It happened when I stepped off a bus of screaming children
and into one of the most ridiculous and rewarding weeks of my life. Armed with
my Bible, a dirty A&M ball cap, and a suitcase full of outrageous costumes
– I only thought I was prepared for
what Opportunity Camp had in store for me.
If you’re not familiar with Opportunity Camp, let me break
it down for you – Take 200 at-risk elementary kids, 100 high school students on
fire for Jesus, throw them in cabins together for a week, teach them about
aforementioned Jesus, love them (even if they don’t want you to – especially if
they don’t want you to), eat as much food as possible, and act a complete fool
and I present you with: Op Camp.
Now, for a 15 year old girl who loved her Jesus, loved
people, and was nothing but braces and legs with a sense of humor attached to
‘em, this sounded like Heaven.
It sounded like Heaven, and I knew I was made for it.
For as long as I could remember, I’ve made people laugh. Being
the middle child, I’ve heard it’s something I have no control over. We’re
destined to be the entertainment. It only seemed fair that I take on this role
since my older brother Tom had the certified genius thing covered, and my
younger sister Grace had to take one for the team by being gorgeous and head
cheerleader. Obviously, we needed someone to cover jokes and being slightly
artistic - you’re welcome, family.
But I embraced it, and I loved every minute of it. I loved
it because it brought people joy. And if there’s one thing I know my Jesus is
all about – it’s joy. So I took that joy and my jokes to camp with me, and very
simply said, “Do with me what you will, Lord.”
And oh, how He did.
I could tell you countless stories from my experiences at Op
Camp. You may hear a few that sound like, “And I knew in that moment, the Lord
had changed something in her heart.” But more than likely you’ll hear ones that
sound like, “So, it was the middle of the night, and my entire cabin was
standing on the side of the hill, holding a mattress, and we were taking turns
surfing down to the bottom – all in complete silence – because we knew if we
woke up the adults, we were all dead.”
[just for fun, some of the girls at Op Camp summer 2011 (or was it 2010?) clair on far right, me on far left..right after we did a killer skit for the talent show]
But as I write this, there’s one story that’s sticking to my
heart.
It was my second year at camp and fourth session. By this
point, I was in a committed relationship with Op Camp, and we couldn’t be
happier. Before we loaded the bus to leave Midland, we had a little bit of time
to get to know our campers for the week. Things were looking pretty promising,
until I met Darrion. Now, you have to understand, I’ve always been tall. Tall
and lanky. (Tom often refers to me as Betty Spaghetti – I allow it because she
has killer hair) So, standing at 5’ 10” I rarely encountered another girl of my
height or taller, especially not one younger than me.
Enter Darrion. This girl walks into the gym, 6 feet tall,
180 pounds, and a look of “Get out of my face, or I’ll strangle you with your
nametag lanyard in 20 seconds.” Naturally, I wanted to be her best friend.
I came to two conclusions that day though:
1)
Darrion might kill me in my sleep.
2)
Darrion did
not want to be my best friend.
Despite her rejecting my best friendship advances, I didn’t
let this deter me. In classic Clair fashion, I persisted, and when we stepped
into our cabin that first day, I again quietly said, “Do with me what you will,
Lord.”
And that’s exactly what I did. I hugged her constantly, I
danced with and around her, I talked about what our best friends t-shirts would
look like, I engaged her, I made her feel uncomfortable, and finally, that
Wednesday – I made her laugh. Soon, she was hugging me back, hugging me first.
She was dancing with me. She was insisting our shirts be maroon.
She was smiling.
She was happy, and I loved her.
The following night, as we sat on her bunk bed, and she
said, “Miss Clair, tell me about Jesus.” I looked her in the eye and smiled.
“He loves you. More than anything.”
She gave her life to my Jesus that night, and He became our Jesus. The next morning, before we
loaded up the bus to return home, she woke me up and said, “Miss Clair, I heard
they’re baptizing people in the pool today. Will you baptize me?”
I tell you now, I have never been more humbled in my life.
That day, in the shallow end of a pool filled with freezing water, I baptized
all 6 feet and 180 pounds of Darrion… and then I baptized three of her friends.
Three friends who had listened as Darrion told them what the Lord had done in
her heart. Because of her, they made the decision to follow our Jesus.
Eight years ago, I lost my mind.
I lost my mind to gain His heart.
I love that Wynne asks us to challenge to you. I can’t limit
myself to just one, so I offer you –
CLAIR’S MAGICAL LIFE-CHANGING SUPER AWESOME CHALLENGES LIST
2013 (the title needs work)
1. Lose your mind. Jump into something insane and
simply say, “Do with me what you will, Lord.”
2. Laugh hard. Do whatever you can to bring joy to
those around you. Be goofy. Be terrible at dancing. Do a somersault and pop up
in front of someone you just met before shaking their hand. Be a clown.
3. Love hard. Hug until someone hugs you back.
Listen. Engage. Care. Gain His heart.
Anybody can change the world: I just like to make people
laugh.
Romans 15:13 May
the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the
power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.
“Joy is the serious business of Heaven.” -
C. S. Lewis
Clairsweatt@gmail.com
432.230.2959
PO Box 2411
Midland tx 79702
the full time Op Camp staff + Bob Goff.
they are doing amazing things for the kingdom of God by mentoring at risk youth.
would you pray for them today?
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thanks for the love!
wynne.elder@gmail.com