Being a pastor’s kid always has its ups and downs: I have been surrounded by the love of my church family and my own family, but have often encountered negative stereotypes of PKs and the image of the goody two-shoes. From the day I was born, I’ve grown up in a traditional Presbyterian church and I’ve got to say it’s never been… entertaining to me. To be honest, I always pictured myself moving to a different denomination when I grew up because I felt like I was called to another place.
But as soon as I entered Canada Youth, I saw all these other Presbyterians and how much fun we can have. I found it hilarious to rock out, dance as much as I could to these great gospel songs and then go completely seriously into a call to worship like a good old Presbyterian. My faith grew as tall as the mountain we seemed to climb that week—with my amazing, new, lifelong friends, the leaders I’ve met, the amazing speakers and pastors. And my faith grew not only in God but in the Presbyterian Church.
I can’t count how many great people I met. I went into CY with only my best friend, thinking we were just there to get out of our boring little town. We did so much more than that. These people I met changed me. Their spirits have inspired me entirely.
Adele Halliday taught us about our calling. We were all called by God to come together to rekindle our spirits.
On our last night together, a big group of us were all holding hands in a circle and we prayed for at least 10 minutes. We were all crying because we didn’t want to leave. I knew from experience and from a former youth leader that we cry because God has completed His job in us and we are sad that it has to end.
The last morning, we got together to do our final devotionals, to say our last prayers, to sign each other’s shirts and say our final goodbyes…
Then I finally could say I knew God called us all to Canada Youth 2012. And for that I’m grateful.
For 15 years, I’ve been a PK and, for most of that time, I’ve wanted to worship somewhere else. God called me to Canada Youth to help me realize I’ve been in the right place all this time. I just needed a different perspective on worship and I needed to know that the church isn’t dying; it’s just getting started.
And to my brand new best friends, I love you all. We may be on opposite sides of the country, but we’re never too far apart. We’re never alone. And one day, we’ll be back together. I promise.
We’ve climbed down the mountain, we’ve gone back to normalcy, but we still have the fire kindling in us. Thank you Canada Youth. See you in three years!
“Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened.”—Dr. Seuss.
More reflections from Canada Youth 2012
