I think it's fair to say that summer feels more like summer now: I have made my way to Montreat, North Carolina.For those of you who don't know, Montreat is what some call the "Presbyterian Mecca." It's one of three national conference centers operated by the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), and it's situated next to Black Mountain, NC - close to Asheville.
I'm here to lead recreation for two weeks of Montreat Youth Conference, where each week one thousand high school youth will converge on this little place to enjoy one another's company, take some time away from "the world," and explore their faiths and their relationships with God. At least, that's officially why I'm here.
Frankly, I consider the fact that I'm here to be providential. Doing leadership for these conferences is something about which I have daydreamed ever since I began attending these conferences. And this is a place I have visited, for one reason or another, each of the last five years. This, the sixth year, was going to be the first summer in which I had no reason to visit Montreat. Too old to go to Youth Conference, too young to be a small group leader. College Conference isn't happening until January. And then, as I told in an earlier post, I was asked to fill in for someone who could no longer lead recreation for weeks three and four. Amazing.
I am optimistically and hopefully taking this course of events as a whispering from God. And
somewhere, in the midst of staying up late and leading energizers and going crazy and singing and feeling the energy, I'm hoping to find the space and the method for whispering back to God: it's been a while since the two of us had a good talk.I feel pretty certain that Montreat is a special and holy place, set apart from the rest of creation, from the business of life. My hopes for what I find here are high. Thanks be for Montreat.
