Camping with Your Creator
By Abbey Hagopian, Summer Staff & Guide Alumna
In early February, I came across a post on social media from one of my favorite artists. It was a simplistic doodle: a yellow tent pitched among pine trees next to a river, with a mountainscape in the background. In the sky, text read, "I made camp in Your promises." While the art was not referring to a specific Bible verse, the caption held a reminder for us to rest in God's promises, and it made mention of Psalms 4:8, which says "In peace I will lie down and sleep, for You alone, Lord, make me dwell in safety." (NIV)
Up until this time, my mind had been racing with worries about the Guide Team's upcoming winter backpacking course, Wilderness Leadership Intensive (WLI), where we would spend twelve days in the cold wilderness of northern Pennsylvania and Georgia, learning the ins and outs of backcountry living and how to become backpacking instructors for Trek, the backpacking trip us Guide students would soon devise and lead on our own for OneLife students in April.
The cold was a large concern. Despite all the layers we were packing, we couldn't imagine ourselves ever feeling warm sleeping in weather 20 degrees and below. This in mind, we decided to test ourselves and our gear. Just a few days before we were to hit the trail, several members of our team grabbed tents, warm layers, and the gear we would be packing, and trekking down to the lake to simply sleep, outside, in the cold.
I was not comfortable that night, but I was at peace. While my tentmates were feeling warmer than anticipated and de-layering, I slept in all the layers I brought down, but as I lay in the tent, I was reminded of the art I had seen just the day before. I had made camp; all I had to do now was rest in the Lord and His promise that He is with me.
Little did I know, this was only foreshadowing the grace we would experience on Trek. From a glove dropped on trail being returned by the passing group right as we went to hike back for it, to perfectly timed rain which allowed us to use runoff from our tarp when our water filters were being finicky and we needed to have twenty-two full water bottles. From hiking in rain showers that stopped right at lunch time to rare sunlight just when we needed it to dry multiple soaked sleeping bags. When the rain foiled our plans of taking a rest day at what seemed to be the best campsite at the time, only for our next campsite to be even more beautiful and even better suited for our rest day–and we had clear skies! God was with us in every detail, every step of the way. Despite the challenges each day brought, I laid my head down in my tent at night, trusting in His promises.
The physical act of setting up a tent has gained so much more meaning to me. It is an intentional change in routine, but it is also a physical reminder to rest in His Presence. As you go about your daily routines, I encourage you to look for ways to rest, to make camp in the Lord's promises. There is something so special about camping with your Creator.