Am I Good Enough?

“What if I am not everything that they want in a counselor?”

This is the question that Shelby “BruiZinga” Story asked himself before his fourth week as a counselor at the Shores this summer. Because the campers in his cabin were entering their senior year of high school, this would be their last week as Pine Cove campers. A weight hung over BruiZinga as he realized that his attitude and actions would directly impact their final week of camp. Would he be enough? Could he be?

BruiZinga’s campers wanted a week of excitement and pushed BruiZinga out of his comfort zone. He recalls the day they hung a small basketball hoop on the cabin door and shot a foam ball into it while they laid on their bunks during FOB, which is supposed to be a time of silence.

“I was laying there half asleep, and they were just shooting hoops,” he said.

More than once, BruiZinga remembers thinking he was definitely failing at this whole counselor thing.

Despite BruiZinga’s insecurity about leading these rambunctious teens, other counselors provided spiritual encouragement. They reminded him, “You are here for a reason. You were put into that specific cabin for those specific guys.”

During his time as a Pine Cove counselor, BruiZinga learned to value humility in service. Being a counselor was harder than he anticipated, but the rewards were more than worth it.

BruiZinga realized that his summer was dedicated to impacting the lives of campers for eternity. He had to see past his own feelings of inadequacy and allow God to work through him. If God is seen most powerfully through our weaknesses (2 Corinthians 12:9), then camp was the perfect place to show God’s glory!

At the end of the week, BruiZinga realized that God was not only working in the lives of his campers, but also in himself.

“God’s got a plan for us,” he said. “As long as we keep pushing forward, He is going to make something out of us.”

We’ve all wondered if we are good enough at something in life. Whether it’s being a camp counselor, or an athlete, or even a parent, we can take hope in the fact that God will continue to work in and through us (Philippians 1:6). He even sees our weaknesses as strength!