It's girls camp this week. I don't have daughters going this year - but for a LOT of years - I've been to camp in one capacity or another. I just did some quick math - the first year I went to camp as an adult, our oldest daughter was 4 or 5. She's now 27 going on 28! That's a lot of time at girl's camp and I do love it though and am grateful for the opportunity to rub shoulders with the amazing youth of the church! They are so much stronger in the gospel than I was at their age.
Anyway - the Stake RS presidency was invited to be at camp on Monday evening to make a presentation to the youth leaders who will be there and to provide breakfast for them on Tuesday morning. We are each making 4 dozen muffins - I thought today was a good time to get that out of the way. Our presentation is on Testimony. Using a talk from General Conference a few years back, we are taking the steps to having a strong testimony and likening them to things they might put in their suitcases as they pack to head off to college, as many of them will be doing this year or next. As we hold the suitcase with all of the things that help create a strong testimony - we will encourage them to 'Hold On To Your Testimony'. After the presentation I'll try to put a copy up of the bookmarks that our President made for them to help them remember and the steps and likening that we used.
As a youth, I always looked forward to girls camp - and I have to say that the experiences I had at girls camp helped to strengthen my tender testimony. I grew up in a home where I was the only active member, so the gospel wasn't a part of my everyday life. Being at girls camp, seeing the example of our amazing leaders and having testimony building experiences helped me be who I am today. I'll always be grateful for those experiences. I hope my daughters had similar testimony building experiences at girls camp.
Happy camping all!
