Camille R. – January 28, 2019

Two years ago when I was at camp, I heard a speech that changed my perspective on life. I was 12 years old, and one of the staff members gave a speech about when she was little and her relationship with God. She talked about how she had always gone to church and grew up in a Christian home, but when someone asked if she died right then she wasn’t sure if she would actually go to Heaven or not. This was when she really caught my attention. She talked about how she always considered herself a Christian, but she didn’t really live like a Christian. She never thought about Jesus on a day to day basis. She

spoke to us about how she was living her life without the major influence of God.

I realized that I was actually the same way. Of course, I knew about God and I
believed in Him, but I never really incorporated God into my everyday life. I realized that I hadn’t really fully accepted the Lord into my heart. After the speech, I found the staff member and talked to her about how I had this realization. She sat me down and we had a really good talk. She told me that what I realized is really great, and it was good that I was being honest with myself and that I wanted to make a change. After we talked I felt so much
better. I realized that I was ready to start living in God’s way more.

This was actually pretty easy at camp. We had chapel in the morning and talked
about Jesus a lot, so it was easy to stay focused on Jesus. We also didn’t have our phones at camp, so we didn’t get sucked into social media drama or anything like that. It became difficult when I went home. That was when I got my phone back, I didn't have church every day, and I got flooded with all sorts of responsibilities again. I started gossiping with my friends over text, or I stopped going to church for a little while, or maybe I just felt like I didn’t even have time to think about Jesus because I had so much to do. Life got in the way.

One night I was laying in bed and realized how long I had gone without praying. It had been weeks. I realized that I got off track again. I tried to get back to the way I was living at camp, but it was difficult. Sometimes it’s hard to do the right thing. The important thing is to realize it and to try to fix it. I started to pray more, and I tried to remember to ask for forgiveness. I was on a roll for a while. I picked up a devotion and tried to live more like a Christian. But just like before that didn’t last forever. It’s easy to slip out of a Christian state of mind. Like when a loved one dies, or bad grades start appearing, or when things just aren’t going great. It is easy to want to put the blame on God, and get frustrated with Him.
It’s very tempting to stop my devotional, stop praying, and stop living the way God wants me to live. This still happens to me every now and then. I have to reel myself back in and remind myself of who I am and who I worship. Instead of going straight to sleep, I read a nightly devotional. Maybe I pray if I’m feeling really anxious about an upcoming test or quiz. These are all little things that help me get back on track. Even to this day, it’s extremely tempting to stop living like a Christian. Being a Christian is hard work, but the extra effort is worth it. This I believe.