30 people. 8 churches. 6 vehicles. 1 mission. 3 things I discovered along the way.  

• “Roadblocks” are a means to deeper faith and higher praise (1 Peter 1:6-7) 

• There is so much power in the way we love one another (John 13:35) 

• God uses broken people for His glory! (Psalm 115:1) 

This summer, the Discover team was sent out on mission in the great state of Texas for the 9^th time! In case you are unfamiliar, Discover is our traveling Day Camp program that partners with local churches to bring camp to different cities across Texas. The heart and mission of Discover is to connect campers to the gospel, connect families to the local church, and connect staff to each other. You can probably imagine some of the complications we encounter as a traveling camp program: flat tires, dead batteries, Houston traffic, and Midland dust storms to name a few. These things can be easily seen as roadblocks in the way of the Discover mission, and they are difficult! But they can also be seen as opportunities and not just obstacles. 1 Peter 1:6-7 says, “In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith- more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire- may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” This summer I “discovered” that those inconveniences and roadblocks are a means to deeper faith and higher praise. God is good (all the time!) and that rings true even when things seemingly go wrong. The adversity that we navigate during the summer is an invitation to trust and depend on God more and more.  

The second thing I discovered is that there is so much value and power in the way that believers love one another. This seems like an obvious statement, but I get to watch it firsthand while being on mission with our college students. When we walk into a restaurant or gas station, we are often wearing matching shirts or just being loud and campy. As you can imagine, this draws attention to us very quickly. Discover staff is not known for flying under the radar in public places. This can be a stressor for me as a director, but when I take a step back, I get to watch the staff engage with each other in a way that draws others in to ask questions. John 13:35 says, “By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” When our dynamics pose a question, we get to respond with why we’re together. We are together because we all have a passion for sharing the good news of Jesus Christ with people all over Texas. We get to be the church everywhere we go (even in a Buccee’s!)  

Lastly, I discovered that God can absolutely use a group of broken 18–25-year-olds for His glory. Every week we get to watch lives be edified and transformed by God’s grace. This doesn’t just include the K-5^th graders, but also the Discover staff, host families, church staff, and anyone else we encounter along the way. God is so kind to allow us to take part in what He is doing to build His kingdom and give Him glory. It is truly humbling, and such an honor. Not to us, O Lord!  

“If you live gladly to make others glad in God, your life will be hard, your risks will be high, and your joy will be full.” -John Piper 

-Cassie Richey (Discover Camp Women’s Director)