| "Commander, I Love Camping!"
Friday afternoon meeting at the church to load up for the camping trip is always high anxiety. Parents drop off their son, his backpack, and his sleeping bag, while commanders are trying to get all the medical and parent permission forms to account for each boy going on the trip.
This trip was no different than any other. Commander Rick had been collecting the medical forms and I was working with the other commander putting equipment in the trailer when one of the moms said to me "Commander, could I speak with you for a moment?"
She said, "I need to tell you something my sons don't know yet. This weekend while they are on the campout with you, their father and I will be working out the final details and next week will be filing for divorce. We have been able to keep it between their father and I, and we want to make it a joint agreement to minimize disturbance in the boys' lives as much as possible."
I was stunned, and at the same time I felt angry and sorry for the boys. But I replied, "Could I pray with you before you leave?" She nodded yes. I don't remember the whole prayer, but I do remember that I prayed something like, "Father, would you please help this mother and the dad to seek Your will and help them in this time of real need. Father, help them make the correct decision that would be best for this family. Amen."
I asked if I could share this with the other commanders, and we would pray for them over the weekend while we were on the campout. She replied yes.
The camp was about two hours drive from the church and in the Upper High Sierras. It was a magnificent setting called the Lower Lindsey Lake. We had lots of activities, worked on merit awards and advancements, hiked to Upper Lindsey Lake, and then on Saturday evening we had a great council fire service planned. It was hard not to pay specific attention to the two brothers and know while they were having such a great time, their world might come down around them in the coming week. The commanders and I took additional time to pray throughout the day.
The council fire service that evening is still one of the most memorable outpost evening services I can remember today. We had the campfire set up on the other side of the small lake from our campsite. Near dark one of the commanders led the boys around the edge of the lake to the council fire site. Then we lit a Coleman lantern in our tipi and the boys could see the well-lit tipi across the lake as Commander Rick and I came out in our Indian costumes, got into the canoe, and made our way across the small lake.
We made a grand entrance into the campfire site and had skits, songs and stories. Then, as the devotion was being told, the Holy Spirit came down on this small outpost camp and touched every boy and commander that night like never before. The commanders escorted the boys back to the tent that evening, but several of us continued to pray specifically for this mom and dad.
The next day we had an early Sunday morning service and took prayer requests before we packed up and headed back to the church. (We like to be there about the time church is being let out so the boys can go home with their parents.)
When we got to the church, the mom was waiting for us in the parking lot. The boys were so excited, it was like a swarm of bees jetting around the trailer. While the boys were getting the trailer unpacked, the mom came up and said, "Thank you, Commander, for taking our boys this weekend. It gave us time to sit down and put everything down on paper to list the reasons we were going separate directions and the reasons for and against divorce." She continued, "I don't know if it was your prayer or the prayers at the camp, but we both realized that the issues could be resolved. As we weighed out everything, there was far more positive about our marriage than negative. So we are not filing for divorce and will work harder than ever to keep it together!"
Then the boys came running up to their mom with their packs and sleeping bags. "We're ready, Mom!" Then one of the boys turned to me and said, "Commander, I love camping!"
Continue to pray for your boys and their families!
Rich Mariott
National Commander
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