Jackie

Dear Jackie,

Someday when we get to Heaven, we’re going to have a lot to talk about.

Someday you can tell me all your thoughts and express your feelings and why you do what you do.

Someday Renpenning won’t stand in between us and we can talk about our years together.

You know what, Jackie?  We’re a lot alike.

As you’ve transitioned in your preferred activities at camp, moving from hours of swinging to traversing across camp to be with all sorts of different people, God’s begun to show me just how similar we are.

We both love to connect people.

For me this looks like introducing people to each other and figuring out mutual acquaintances.  For you it looks like taking one person’s hand and touching it to someone else’s or leading people across camp to place yourself right in the midst of another; bringing people together.

We both love to experience things with people.

For me this looks like creating an atmosphere or planning an event and then getting to be in it with everyone else.  For you it looks like wanting to walk all sorts of different places with people.

And you know what’s really amazing?  Seeing how sometimes, when people make it clear they’re going in a different direction than you’re heading, you change your mind about where you’re going and take their hand and begin to lead them in the direction they were already heading.  

It teaches me a lot about what it looks like to walk through things with people; about knowing when to give up my own ideas and destinations and walk alongside people to theirs.  

The tests say that my spiritual gift is encouragement and I’m fairly certain yours is too.  Encouragement is all about giving people courage.  I see this working itself out practically by finding out what people are passionate about, their ideas and desires, and helping move them in that direction.  This requires getting to know people and where they’re headed.  Sometimes this means letting go of where I’m wanting to go and helping people reach where they want to go.  

I’ve seen you do that.

As I sat at the campfire on the last night, filled with such joy at getting to help impact the group of young people around me in a unique way, I was reminded of just how much I love to help shepherd a group of people.  I love getting to see a group be unified and move in a direction together.  And it hit me how you impact the group at camp; bringing people together.  By bringing people together, you unify the group.   

I’ve seen how our gifts, when used incorrectly, can end up as weaknesses.  We both like control.  Sometimes, we don’t want to give up where we’re headed for the sake of others.  We both can get overwhelmed and overstimulated because by wanting to connect people, we have lots of people to keep up with.  

But you’ve helped me see how these things should be lived out.

Jackie, you’ve helped me process the importance of having a destination when bringing people along; how people are more likely to commit when they know you’re headed somewhere.  And yet, you’ve showed me the importance of letting go of my destination when needed.  You’ve blessed me with the ability to get to know all sorts of different people at camp because you want to meet them all.  You’ve shown me how having your “inner circle” is what works best in bringing people together because it’s impossible to have the same depth of relationship with every single person.  And you’ve shown me the importance of being yourself.