Jesus said, “Whoever welcomes you welcomes me. And whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me.” This imparts the agency relationship Jesus has with his Father and which he extends to his disciples. Agency means you operate directly in line with your agency interests.

The most famous secret agent ever is, of course, James Bond.  You may know that the author of the James Bond novels, Ian Fleming, was a real British Naval Intelligence officer and spy in World War II. Few will have heard of Bill Stephenson, one of the key spies who inspired Fleming.

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I’m happy to report that we had a great week at Camp Wingmann. I look forward to it every year for a few reasons. First is the opportunity to be with the campers. There are joys with each age group, elementary, middle and high school kids. I’ve chosen the elementary camp the last few years in the hope that my being there will help Good Shepherd kids and their parents choose to go.

For most of our kids, it’s their first time to be away from home for five nights. That’s a big deal. It’s a big deal when they make the decision to go to camp, and it’s a big deal once they get there. I cannot tell you how many kids got homesick at least once during the week, usually in the evening and they are tired from a busy day. Their eyes look at you, wide as saucers, a little wet. You know the dam is about to burst. And it’s not just being away from home. The kids are in a cabin with a bunch of other kids. Some of those kids are annoying, or maybe they all seem annoying.

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We are in a wonderful season. Summer is great. The days are long. Many people have opportunities to get away to visit family or take a vacation. Traffic is a little less horrible. It’s nice and warm. And it is a season of growth, including spiritual growth for our children and youth.

When we moved to Belleview in 2003, one of the first things Meg did was get a list of all the vacation Bible schools in the Ocala area. (I think the paper published a list. But in any case, she found them!) So, our younger kids were going to VBS somewhere almost every week.

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