The Idea
I knelt in the Camp Nahshii dirt, facing a wooden bench lined with girls, their faces enrapt and their spirits open. To my left stood Sappy Sophia, our small group's mascot, a scrawny spruce dripping with golden sap. The muted glow of the midnight sun draped its light over us, ambient light from an overcast sky. The camp was still as we were one of the only groups left awake in that magical time when night gives way and the morning comes young.
"Joyce, I want to tell you something," one of the girls spoke. The radiance in her face made me lean forward slightly in anticipation. She smiled as she said in her quiet, even voice, "I've decided to get baptized."
"Yes!!!!" I thought, inwardly fist-pumping. I can't remember what I said, probably something along the lines of, "That's awesome!" I expected a triumphal ceremony at camp with all of us gathered 'round, but that was not to be. The young lady said she decided to wait for her family, and I nodded. That was the best of ideas. But I was disappointed I couldn't be a witness.
The conversation drifted, but my mind hung on a notion that I'd like to come back, see her baptized. But I didn't think it possible, didn't know when that would happen. Camp came to a close for me, and soon I was back at my desk job, hustling paperwork and answering the endless stream of inquiries.
I kept in touch with the pastor's wife in Fort Yukon, which happened to be where the young lady from camp hailed from. I hadn't realized that a lot of my girls lived or had some connection there. One day, much sooner than anticipated (last Wednesday or Thursday, to be precise), I got a text that the baptism was going to take place that Saturday! The day before, I had just told a friend who works at my church in Fairbanks that I was hoping to witness the event, and she said she was praying I would be able to go.
I love to pack slowly, have everything organized a week prior and have all my house chores completed before I go somewhere so I can come back to a clean house. I love to have time to prepare, think of what I can bring, ease into things. I also didn't know if all the details would work out for the trip such as funding, rides, availability of a seat on the plane. I texted my best friend and long-time prayer partner to pray that if it was God's will, it'd all fall into place, and she texted back that she was praying! Scrambling, the first air company I checked out did not have availability, and the second I called was about ready to close for the evening! The first time I asked for was full, so I asked for another and boom, she had me booked for a flight out and a flight back in. The funds were there, I simply re-arranged several rows in Excel.
I discovered I had twice as much poundage for luggage than my trip to Nahshii, so then I thought I might as well fill it with stuff for the family. My brief tour of Fort Yukon made me realize the cost of groceries ($19 for a bag of chips!), so I had a mad dash to the store and some interesting packing, climbing on the scale, packing, adding and removing. One thing that's hard to get is fresh milk, so in my test run, I packed as much as I could into my cooler (too much) and ended up baptizing my kitchen in 2%, as one gallon exploded everywhere. But that was easily cleaned up and then I was done. I hoped. 6 am Saturday morning came all too quickly and soon I was waiting at the airport for a drowsy eternity (my ride had to be somewhere early).
The Realization
"Was it just like watching a couple of people get wet?" I was asked this about the baptism. It might have been, had I not felt God holding me up this trip. There were a lot of things that were not ideal, such as being tired and not getting my windfall weekend sleep, being anemic (I was bruising like crazy and thought I might faint Saturday night, but I didn't, praise God), and the unpleasant drowse and stupor that comes with having to take Dramamine for travel so I don't get uncontrollably sick. It was rainy and cold, and I was staying at a house that had cats.
I like cats, but I'm actually super allergic to them, and one of the conditions I told God about this trip was that I was to not have any problems breathing/breaking out if His blessing was on the trip. I did not sneeze once the whole trip and did not have to take my inhaler at all. In fact, Sunday morning, which would typically be the time I'd be dying in a house full of cats (after having slept in it), all three cats came running out to greet me as I sat in the dark and quietly drank my coffee with perfect breathing. I told one of the cats to stop trying to bite another cat, and then not to bite me, and then the cat decided it loved me and sat at my feet purring, so I guess we're friends now. But that's besides the point.
It was totally worth everything, the realization of this notion I had at camp. Another girl (from my small group too!) decided to get baptized, so there were two. The girls came at half past three, bearing gifts of gorgeous beaded jewelry, and we herded (like cats) toward the vehicles. I had a moment where I got a chance to talk to the girls alone, and I watched as their eyes filled with tears. I hoped in that moment, they realized the gravity of their decision and how proud I was of them! And that if I would fly from Fairbanks to see them baptized, how much more God loves them and was proud of them! The baptism itself was a blur, but I shouted and clapped and then we herded (more quickly this time) back into the truck to get warm. I don't know when I will see these young ladies next, but I am praying and believing for good things for their lives!
The Cream
God always has something extra on trips like this, and I think there was a lot of cream to be had, at least for me. Sadly, I think the night before I came, the staff discovered that the roof to an addition to the church, over the stage, had rotted. Upon inspection, it collapsed, leaving a mess of debris and insulation. I got to help clean this up and seal off the area for health reasons. It's funny, before I left, my hand hovered over my fine-particle mask I have for work in case patients come in with communicable diseases, but I decided against it. I did remember my work gloves, so with a borrowed mask from the staff, I was ready to help. The blessing in this situation was the news that my church back in Fairbanks had decided to cover the cost of the repairs, and I got to see the gratitude and hope in the eyes of the Fort Yukon congregation at their generosity! I was so happy to be a part of that!
The Fort Yukon staff also generously allowed me to help out with their church activities such as youth group and the main service. (I'm trusting that God will take my weakness and my willingness and use it for His glory.) My favorite part was feeding the teenagers gummy bears (you can tell I'm Korean), and the worship Sunday morning. There was such a sweet presence, I was touched to have been a part of that. Whenever I'm allowed to help out like this, though, I always feel like I come out of the wilderness a lioness.
Lastly, on the ride home, as the glow of the adventure started to fade and I was faced again with the reality of my life and several tough things I'd put off thinking/praying through, I was blessed with the kindness of an airplane pilot who I think would test as a "feeler" of some sort on the Meyers-Briggs test. There have been some hard things going on in the lives of friends and other folks that grieve me, and these were on my mind as I took the co-pilot seat. (I had no idea that when the pilot moved out his control, it moves out the one in front of me, so he accidentally boofed me in my stomach at first, until he reached over and adjusted my seat (I guess they aren't allowed to talk?). This was actually quite hilarious and I was so surprised nothing embarrassing had happened thus far on the trip.) Twice, he tapped my shoulder and gave me a thumbs up sign, indicating without words, "Cheer up, it will be ok." And you know what? I came back to my life and received very good news in regards to one situation I'd been praying for, and another situation ended up being resolved a day later!!!
God's so cool and I'm so glad to be a part of this adventure He has me on. I'm so thankful He allowed this little unexpected Camp Nahshii post script adventure, and I am excited to see what He has next.
