I’ve never seen anyone get more joy out of shooting baskets than my friend Robert.
It was our first day at the Sound and he was LOVING it. Not only did he relentlessly shoot and retrieve, he also collected any stray balls from other shooters on the court, trading his ball for theirs while going out of his way to get the ball furthest out.
Robert is prone to seizures when overheated, and we were watching out for him, but it happened before we knew it. As Robert lay there, locked up in a seizure, he could not speak, but I could see through his eyes a man who was struggling to emerge from a very frustrating situation. It was as if he was saying, “Not again. I was having so much fun.”
With the help of some seizure medication, Robert was quickly OK, but it was a tough start to the trip and an abrupt end to the only time on the camp schedule for basketball.
At our evening reflection, we focused on John 14. We considered the idea that home is where Jesus is, and that Jesus desires us to know that we are always at home because he is always with us. Because the Spirit is with us and in us (14:17) we are never stranded as orphans without a home or family. Admittedly, the comfort of home can seem fleeting to us now, especially in the midst of frightening seizures, and worse. However, it is precisely because we are already at home in Christ that we can taste home (in spite of the bad stuff) and anticipate the banquet that awaits us at HOME (without the bad stuff)!
What a time we had enjoying the Sound – communion around meals, relaxing in a gorgeous setting, the beach, worship, sharing and prayer. Before departure on the last morning, I noticed Robert was missing from the group. Where was he? Fittingly, Greg had taken him back to the basketball court, replacing a bad taste with a good one. Nowhere more than in the redemptive economy of Jesus Christ is the saying truer: The end is always good. If it’s not good, it’s not the end!
Greg and Robert poignantly illustrate the hope that gets us through, and that we enjoy sharing together at Reality. Camping at the Sound provides exquisite opportunities for such transformational moments, tasting “the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living” (Ps 27:13).
We have four more Sound adventures coming up in August, as well as a day trip to the beach (to include friends for whom overnight camp is not a good fit) and we’ll also have two weeks of SummerFest Day Camp. We never allow lack of financial resources to prohibit anyone from full participation in Reality activities. Your contributions make all of this possible for so many Realty friends; it simply can’t happen without you.
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