Agape Valley - One of my favourite places in the world

We all seem to go through a season in our life (or multiple) where we feel out of place in ourselves. We question who we are, what we are capable of, and who we want to be. And no matter when or where these seasons, I have found that there will be people who see the best in you and will call it out in you.

Picture an awkward 8th grade girl. She is not quite comfortable in her own skin. She wants so desperately to do well and is so afraid of failing her own expectations of herself. She yearns to be seen, to be noticed and to be different. She wants to lead but is afraid of asking for a chance in case she fails. In her mind if she fails, she will lose her chance to lead and it will prove that she can’t do it.

That was me as I went to Agape Valley to be a leader at their summer camp. It has always been hard for me to express to people why I love that place so much. That place for me was where I started feeling more confident in myself and my abilities. It was the place that I first considered myself to be a real leader.

In one of my first summers there, we were short staffed a couple weeks. This meant that I was given opportunities to take on roles usually taken on by staff a few years older. I was never told “this might be too much for you” or “its okay if you can’t handle it”. I was told that I could do it and to ask questions when I needed to. If mistakes happened, it was okay as long as they were fixed. The weight of being trusted to carry out what needed to be done didn’t ever feel like a burden, it felt like a privilege.

There is something truly special when adults are committed to bringing the best out of you. At Agape I felt empowered, I felt loved for exactly who I was (even if I didn’t know who that was), and I felt heard. It never felt fake or overdone. It was pure and genuine.

featuring Joel Galenkamp about to devour pancakes.

I think that is how God loves us, exactly where we are. Even if you are an awkward 8th grader or a slightly less awkward 21-year-old, He takes the time to love you for where you are at and has so much grace for all your awkward moments.

I got to go back to Agape last weekend for their maple syrup days and it blows my mind how happy it made me just to be there again. I think it will always be one of my favourite places.

Ps. If you want to go to their maple syrup days there is only 2 days left (March 24 and April 6). All the proceeds go towards their Summer Bible Camp to make it more affordable.