Why I Loved My Summer Job

This summer I had the awesome opportunity to work at my church as one of the youth ministry interns. My church is fairly big, so there are lots of staff members. There are activities with the kids every day of the week, and then of course church on Sunday. It was a busy summer. It was also an emotional summer. I don't know about you, but I was completely overwhelmed with having to get up, get dressed and look nice, and having to interact with people all. day. long. The youth ministry at my church is like a family. It has its ups and downs, and the staff can get testy with one another. Working in student ministry can get emotional, because there are real kids with real lives that have problems and sometimes it was just sad to be a witness to some stuff. I learned a lot of lessons in self-control, in patience. I learned that I am not cut out to hang out with middle schoolers day in and day out; bless those of you who do. I learned that working in a relationship-heavy job is emotionally daunting and exhausting. I know that as a teacher I will be working in a similar yet completely different environment, so I suppose it's good that I learned these things now. 

But on a happier note and the purpose of this post: one of those staff members happened to be a family member. That family member happened to be my dad. 

The absolute best thing about my job this summer was getting to spend so much time with my daddy. (I hope you're reading this and crying :P) 

There are so many wonderful things about my dad that I can't even begin to describe, but I really feel as though our relationship was strengthened in mighty ways this summer. At least two mornings out of the week, we rode to work together, and during these times (aside from listening to the Bert Show), we would talk about ministry, family, the Lord, and everything in between. We laughed and ranted together and even cried together (well, okay, that was just me blubbering). I have never felt more freedom to talk that open and honestly with my dad. It's not that we don't have a good relationship, because we do, but we've never spent that much time together that many days in a row, and ultimately we were working towards a common goal together within the youth ministry this summer. It was definitely part of the Lord's plan this summer to open a door for me to work at the church with so many wonderful people, but most importantly, my dad. I love you daddy.

"Listen, my son, to your father's instruction, and do not forsake your mother's teaching. They are a garland to grace your head and a chain to adorn your neck." -Proverbs 1:8-9

Always,

Caroline