It’s camp season! We’ve been working hard for weeks in preparation for our camps, and they’re finally here. The days leading up to camp are intense. Since we rent a campground, we load a U-Haul, unload, and set up—all in one day—before camps begin! By the time day one starts, we’re already pretty tired. It almost feels like pushing a cart uphill. But once night one of services begins and we see students responding to the call of salvation, the cart tilts and starts moving downhill. Seeing immediate fruit from all that hard work is such a relief and brings tremendous joy. It’s the kind of joy that makes us do it all over again the next year—and do it gladly.

Have you ever watched kids make friends? It amazes me how effortlessly my boys can walk up to other kids on a playground and just start playing. Sometimes it’s as easy as saying, “Hey! Want to be my friend?” Other times, they don’t even start with an introduction. They just start running and chasing each other, and before you know it, they’re introducing me to their “new best friend.” I wish making friends was that easy as an adult!

Have you ever read a story where you thought it was going one way, but it ended up going somewhere entirely different? That’s exactly what happened to me with this one. To give you a little background: Joab, a mighty warrior in King David’s army, is pursuing a man named Sheba. Sheba is causing great division in the kingdom and trying to stir rebellion against David’s rule. In fact, King David feared Sheba might cause even more damage than his own son, Absalom.

I don’t know about you, but I get really frustrated when life feels out of my control. Still, it’s an inevitable part of life—we can make all the plans we want and be great at setting goals and achieving them, but sometimes life throws us curveballs we didn’t see coming.

We find many incredible miracle stories told during the life of the prophet Elijah. One time, there was a drought in the land that lasted several years. God provided food and water for Elijah through ravens and a brook—until the brook eventually ran dry. Then, God told Elijah to go to a new location where a widow would provide for him next. Little did he know, upon his arrival, the widow had a pretty big need of her own: she had only enough for one final meal before she and her son would die from starvation. Not only did God use the widow to provide for Elijah, but He also used Elijah to provide for the widow. Elijah’s response to the widow was miraculous—but also intriguing. He responded to her need by telling her to feed him first.