Summer Update
Hello,
I hope this finds you well. It has been a fairly busy summer for me since I began work at Camp Oak Hills this June. I have really enjoyed working as a kitchen assistant at the camp. We have had a few weeks of campers now. There is a lot of work to be done and it can be a challenge to finish our tasks.
We have gotten a few volunteers that come in to help serve. They help in many areas at the camp including our kitchen. This helps relieve some of the crunch-time stress before meals. I can end up being someone that worries a lot. I will be worried about having enough noodles or just trying to keep up with things. It is these small things that end up stressing me out. I have to be reminded to take a break.
I ended up injuring my knee one day on accident. I went in for it but I kept hoping it would get better with time. I did need to go in again and the MRI showed I had a tear in my knee cartilage. If I am on my feet a lot I need to take a break and sit down. I also try to drink enough water and Gatorade so that I don't get overheated and lightheaded.
Camp has been challenging. Overall it has been a really good experience. There are times I feel like quitting or at least just taking a day off besides Saturdays, but I know that as with any ministry they need all the help they can get right now. We are there to work for these kids. I really do care for them. They make a mess of the salad bar and sometimes take way too many paper towels, but it is good to be part of their lives. I hope that this summer will be a summer of transformation for some of them.
I think that God is working at my stubborn, independent heart to try to get me out of overdrive. I don't like to need help. I don't like to admit when I'm not doing well. I don't want to need other people. But the truth is that I do need other people a lot. I need their encouragement and acceptance in my life. I don't want to have to perform for others and be something I'm not.
I may make a lot of mistakes and have flaws, but my heart is that I am trying. I say things that hurt people and I take too much on myself. It's really hard for me to trust people, especially men. After a bad breakup about a year and a half ago I really didn't want to trust people. If I don't let people in close, how can they hurt me? I feel like I am criticized for being too quiet, so I will at least open up here on this blank page.
I think that in my life I work really hard so that I will not have to rely on other people. Something will then happen beyond my control where I need people, and where I need God. I think sometimes he chides me for taking myself so seriously. He looks at my pitiful attempts until I am able to let him handle it. You know how a little kid tries so hard to do something beyond their ability because they want to be independent? That is me in my life. Jesus is still taking my hand and my broken heart to guide me through it.
It's funny to be in this place of my life where what I do now sets the direction of my whole life. It takes intentionality to turn my focus onto what matters eternally. The little things I worry about so much are not what is going to matter in the long run. How I invest into others and spend time with them matters. How I live my life matters, not just what I do for a living. I am trying to keep all of these things in focus and just BREATHE and know that it will work out somehow.
"I feel like I am walking into the future blindfolded... This place in life is hard. I am cutting my own path here wack by wack. It's not paved for me anymore. God is good, but this is hard. I keep thinking that I will hit a clearing and someday it will be a smoother ride. That's probably wishful thinking. Life takes so much hard work and discipline... I hope that someday the pieces of my life will come together and make something beautiful. I really do." -my journal
"Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him." -Psalm 37:7
Thanks for reading. If you would like to support me in ministry at Camp Oak Hills, you can donate to the camp with it being allocated toward my summer mission fund (our living arrangements and food are covered at camp but we fundraise for a main part of our salary).
This is the link to donate: http://www.campoakhills.org/summermis…/jasminefairbanks.html
I hope this finds you well. It has been a fairly busy summer for me since I began work at Camp Oak Hills this June. I have really enjoyed working as a kitchen assistant at the camp. We have had a few weeks of campers now. There is a lot of work to be done and it can be a challenge to finish our tasks.
We have gotten a few volunteers that come in to help serve. They help in many areas at the camp including our kitchen. This helps relieve some of the crunch-time stress before meals. I can end up being someone that worries a lot. I will be worried about having enough noodles or just trying to keep up with things. It is these small things that end up stressing me out. I have to be reminded to take a break.
I ended up injuring my knee one day on accident. I went in for it but I kept hoping it would get better with time. I did need to go in again and the MRI showed I had a tear in my knee cartilage. If I am on my feet a lot I need to take a break and sit down. I also try to drink enough water and Gatorade so that I don't get overheated and lightheaded.
Camp has been challenging. Overall it has been a really good experience. There are times I feel like quitting or at least just taking a day off besides Saturdays, but I know that as with any ministry they need all the help they can get right now. We are there to work for these kids. I really do care for them. They make a mess of the salad bar and sometimes take way too many paper towels, but it is good to be part of their lives. I hope that this summer will be a summer of transformation for some of them.
I think that God is working at my stubborn, independent heart to try to get me out of overdrive. I don't like to need help. I don't like to admit when I'm not doing well. I don't want to need other people. But the truth is that I do need other people a lot. I need their encouragement and acceptance in my life. I don't want to have to perform for others and be something I'm not.
I may make a lot of mistakes and have flaws, but my heart is that I am trying. I say things that hurt people and I take too much on myself. It's really hard for me to trust people, especially men. After a bad breakup about a year and a half ago I really didn't want to trust people. If I don't let people in close, how can they hurt me? I feel like I am criticized for being too quiet, so I will at least open up here on this blank page.
I think that in my life I work really hard so that I will not have to rely on other people. Something will then happen beyond my control where I need people, and where I need God. I think sometimes he chides me for taking myself so seriously. He looks at my pitiful attempts until I am able to let him handle it. You know how a little kid tries so hard to do something beyond their ability because they want to be independent? That is me in my life. Jesus is still taking my hand and my broken heart to guide me through it.
It's funny to be in this place of my life where what I do now sets the direction of my whole life. It takes intentionality to turn my focus onto what matters eternally. The little things I worry about so much are not what is going to matter in the long run. How I invest into others and spend time with them matters. How I live my life matters, not just what I do for a living. I am trying to keep all of these things in focus and just BREATHE and know that it will work out somehow.
"I feel like I am walking into the future blindfolded... This place in life is hard. I am cutting my own path here wack by wack. It's not paved for me anymore. God is good, but this is hard. I keep thinking that I will hit a clearing and someday it will be a smoother ride. That's probably wishful thinking. Life takes so much hard work and discipline... I hope that someday the pieces of my life will come together and make something beautiful. I really do." -my journal
"Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him." -Psalm 37:7
Thanks for reading. If you would like to support me in ministry at Camp Oak Hills, you can donate to the camp with it being allocated toward my summer mission fund (our living arrangements and food are covered at camp but we fundraise for a main part of our salary).
This is the link to donate: http://www.campoakhills.org/summermis…/jasminefairbanks.html
Camp Oak Hills Dining Hall
One of the cabins I have stayed in (Salem).
Me and "The Amigo!"
A view from Elm cabin.
Me at work with coworker Evelyn, amazing cook.
Me and good camp friend Lydia (dining hall).
Me in the kitchen (full of baking cocoa).
A lake view from drive today.
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