"James"

I would like to tell you about one of our campers, a young man. To honor his privacy, I'll call him"James."

As these campers arrived yesterday, my attention was drawn to James. With sandy blond hair, a golden tan, and a medium yet athletic build, you would think he was a lifeguard in the beach instead of an orphan in Romania. Always looking for the soccer ball, James loves the sport. His English is excellent, the best of any of the kids I've met. In fact, I've asked him to serve ad translator for me several times.

James is intelligent. Almost scary the way his brain works. And he's a deep thinker, always commenting on a much higher level than others. Unfortunately, his intelligence gets him into trouble. James is always plotting to get out of scheduled activities and play soccer or smoke behind the fence instead.

During rotation groups, Mary leads small group study time. I happened to be with James group during that time. The question Mary posed to the children was, "What do you see as the biggest problems in the world today, and how can we as Christians help?" Mary put the kids in pairs and gave each pair a poster-size piece of white paper with a circle in the center, representing the globe. They could draw or write in any way to express their answer. Afterward, each pair stood and explained their work.

James and his partner drew a face in the globe. I couldn't tell if it was a pirate, a clown, or what. James read what he wrote below the face. To summarize, the face represented indifference. James believes the end of times is near and we don't care about anything anymore. Choices don't matter. It makes no difference if we're good or bad, because it will all end soon.

His words and drawing touched me so. What pain, sadness, and hopelessness. Please pray for him. You don't need his name: God knows.

Dear Lord,
Touch James' heart. Give him hope. Ease his sense of "indifference." Show him your Grace. Let him grow into the intelligent leader he could be. Guide him down the path of righteousness. Provide Christian male roll models for James, Lord. And may NOROC be a tool for your will.
In Christ name we pray,
Amen