Giving God Glory for a Recent God Story

Today on the blog, I’d love to share a special God story with you. This story isn’t necessarily mine to tell, but I did watch it unfold, every little detail, and I can tell you it’s a story worth sharing. God stories alway are...

On February 1st, the day after his 18th birthday, Caleb had an interview for an internship. Mind you, this wasn’t some random internship he happened upon. This was THE opportunity he’d been anticipating for about two years now. You see, after he attended Summit (summer of 2019) in Manitou Springs, Colorado, he knew that the summer after his first year of college (2021), he wanted to be a video team intern for the ministry. So, as soon as applications for summer interns opened this year, he submitted his, and prayed God would open the door and make a way to work for a ministry so very instrumental in his spiritual growth — a ministry with a message he was passionate about and would gladly help share through his video work.

Fast forward a few weeks to the end of February when Caleb received the dreaded email — you know the one, “We loved getting to know you. Your resume looks great. You have so much potential, BUT we’ve hired another candidate. We hope you apply again next summer.” Basically, it was the nicest rejection letter ever (and was even followed up with a gift from the guys who oversee the video interns). So, even in his devastation from missing out on the job, he was extremely encouraged by just being a part of the process. He knew then, it obviously was not God’s plan for this summer, and he moved on to Plan B, which he quickly had to figure out since summer was approaching, and in his excitement about Summit, he really hadn’t thought about other options.

He reached out to a local video production company he had job shadowed and interned with while in high school, and was waiting to hear back from them.

And now is the perfect time to talk about God‘s perfect timing…

In September 2020, I was asked to speak at a women’s conference in Travelers Rest, South Carolina at Look Up Lodge, a camp that was very near and dear to my heart. I grew up going there as a camper and then worked there the summer of 1995 while in college as a camp counselor. I’ve always wanted my family to see/experience this special place, and when the invitation to speak was extended to me, it was also extended to my entire family to come along and spend the weekend at Look Up.

March 12-14, 2021 we did just that! We made the 10 hour road trip to Travelers Rest, SC with a stop half way in Lynchburg, VA to pick up Caleb. While we were there, some of the staff members took time to talk to Caleb, show him around camp, and tell him all about a summer staff position (for college students). Caleb was immediately interested because he loved what he saw and experienced during that God ordained, perfectly timed trip to LUL, but he had to quickly apply for the job since the application deadline was the Monday after that weekend!

He was yet again excited about an opportunity God had literally and instantly provided (unlike the waiting and anticipating for the Summit internship). So, he quickly got to work, completed the application, had a zoom interview, and was offered the position. He immediately accepted the position because not only had he already been praying about what he should do this summer, he was also watching God answer those prayers by orchestrating the details that had led him to this point, and there was no denying the hand of God in establishing the work of Caleb’s hands this summer.

And had this God story ended there, it would have been enough — a tale worth telling and retelling, giving God glory for writing such a timely story.

But God. He’s always extra, ya know. More than enough because He likes going over and above.

So, literally the day after Caleb accepted the position as a summer staffer at Look Up, he received an email and subsequent phone call from Summit informing him that due to a change in location this summer, the intern they hired had to now decline the offer, and Caleb was the runner up, the next in line, and they were reaching out to offer him a job as a video intern at the Covenant College (Georgia) location of Summit Summer 2021.

The dream job, he’d been actually dreaming of for two years was now being handed to him, and because you can’t make this stuff up, another detail I’d be remiss not to share, also in Caleb’s inbox, delivered at nearly the same time as this offer, was an email from the local video production company he’d reached out to about a summer internship. Yep, you got it, they were interested in hiring him as well!

Caleb, being fully convinced in his heart he had already made the right decision, and knowing he would not decline the offer to work at Look Up at this stage of the game, still, in his humanness, pondered the timing of it all. Had those emails been received just twenty-four hours earlier, he might have made a different decision.

But God. His timing is perfect. His ways are higher, and Caleb’s heart is at peace knowing God will continue writing this story He was so beautifully starting with words He was continually imparting.

Caleb is headed back to LU (Look Up) from LU (Liberty University) this weekend (April 23-25) for orientation (so pray for him and the other summer staffers as they meet and learn more about all God has in store for the summer ahead). Then, he’ll finish up the semester and move to South Carolina for the summer. If you’d like to hear more about what he’ll be doing (and how you could be a part of it), I’ve included his words below from a letter he just sent out to friends and family this week…

Hello,

I hope this email finds you well. I wanted to let you know about an amazing opportunity God has given me this summer! I will be spending the summer serving as a summer staffer at Look Up Lodge in South Carolina.

Look Up Lodge is a Christian Camp that exists to serve God and further His Kingdom by offering Christ-centered summer camp experiences to over 5,000 students each summer. I found out about Look Up through my mom, who grew up going to camps there and even was a summer staffer once herself.

God has been using Look Up to make a difference in the lives of students for fifty years, and I am excited to be a part of it this summer. Look Up doesn’t hire just anyone as a summer staffer, which is why I am thrilled they saw me as a good fit for this position. I’m doing this because I want to be used to make a lasting impact on the lives of the kids that come to Look Up Lodge.

Kids from ages 8-18 will be coming with over 200 churches to Look Up this summer. Each one of them needing God to show up in their own unique way. For twelve weeks, I will be helping students to come to a new or stronger belief in Christ by leading small groups in Bible Study, discussion, and application times. I will help run the activities and recreation times, clean rooms, work in the kitchen, do facility maintenance, meet one on one with campers, listen, counsel, pray, worship, study, and learn. It is going to be a lot, but if God uses the efforts of the other staffers and me to change the life of even one kid, then it will be more than worth every bit of commitment.

On top of the benefit I will have on others this summer, I believe God will use this opportunity to further grow me into the man He wants me to be. I hope to one day be a good father as well as a mentor to the younger generation. I believe working as a summer staffer will help strengthen my ability to teach kids and be an example to them in everything. I also hope to build my character in other ways through working with my fellow staffers and serving others almost non-stop.

This is where you come in! I need to raise $1,650 by May 15th in order to support this opportunity. Perhaps even more importantly, I’m also looking for at least 15 people to support me in prayer this summer (there’s nothing special about 15, the more prayer the better!). You can specifically be praying that God would use the other staff and me to draw many people into a relationship with Him and that He would give me the strength to wholly invest in the campers all summer long. I want to ask you to support me this summer through your prayers, and to consider giving to help fund this incredible occasion. Look Up Lodge is a non-profit organization, so your gift will be tax-deductible. You can find more information about Look Up at www.lookuplodge.com and support me by either clicking the donate button found on the "Partner" tab or by writing a check out to Look Up Lodge on my behalf. If you choose to partner with me this summer and give through the website, please put my name in the memo when donating so that they will know you are part of my support team!

I would be more than happy to answer any questions you have, just respond to this email if you want more information! I want to thank you for your prayerful consideration of this request. I have no doubt God will do amazing things through Look Up Lodge this summer, and I am thankful to be a part of them.

Sincerely,

Caleb Deller

I told ya. God stories are the best stories, and they are always worth sharing!