"ain't no grave gonna hold me down"

Bill's brother Greg has been the dean of a week of camp at RLCA for close to 30 summers. He started out on Lodge side with Junior High/High school but moved to Camp Side for one of the 5th/6th grade weeks after a few years. I have been blessed to be involved as a dorm mom/teacher most of those years and it is always one of the highlights of my summer. 

BUT, that said, I always dread the week beforehand. 

Why? 

Because traditionally something unpleasant or difficult, usually relational, and always unnecessary and unexpected comes up during that last week of final preparation, tempting me toward distraction or discouragement.

Until this year.

I don't understand it, but I am not questioning why the week before camp this year was stress free. My Powerpoint presentation and materials for the hands on activity were, like most years, prepped weeks before. Monday I used five of my grand daughters as guinea pigs for the lesson. They liked it and understood it. Tuesday I went to the July 4th picnic at church. Wednesday I ran errands and did some necessary, unhurried shopping. Thursday I enjoyed a late lunch date with a dear friend. Friday I mowed the lawn, did laundry and cleaned the church. I packed the car for camp, except for last minute things, Saturday afternoon. I even had time to clean the house Saturday evening and enjoy a bonfire with other dear friends! I woke up early enough, without an alarm set, to drive 3 hours north and attend Greg's church on the way to camp Sunday.

I credited the change in tradition to the fact that Greg had asked me to teach Friday's lesson. I love to teach. Waiting until Friday is always hard. And the topic was not easy. This year's theme is United. The lessons, beginning with Monday, were being united in...prayer, (power of praying together in addition to individually), purpose (together we can do more), generosity (each of us doing a little makes a bigger impact), love (God sent Jesus so we could be united with Him) and hope (hope in death). 

When I began working on my lesson in late March the ideas, Scripture and talking points came together together quickly and evolved naturally into "those who follow Jesus have hope in life and hope in death." Ordering what I needed to follow through with the ideas I had for the hands on activities fell into place easily. Even the last minute idea I got as a bonus wasn't hard to put together. The Powerpoint did take some time, but most of that was because I am not very adept at Keynote. And every time I went through it I tweaked it. 

Last Sunday as I drove north I was praying, thinking through the week ahead, thanking God for how smoothly the week behind me had gone and going over the material I was going to share. I got misty eyed a few times as I thought about why I am qualified to present a lesson on Hope. At one point David Crowder's song "Ain't no grave gonna hold me down" began to play. As that line and the one that follows it sank into my my mind, "I will rise, I will rise..." I hit replay and began to sing out loud along with the music, and through my tears spoke these words-"ain't no grave gonna hold me down. Not mine. Not Bill's. I will continue to rise, to get up and go on living as long as God gives me breath and the ability to move, 'cause ain't no grave gonna hold me down. Why? Because Jesus has overcome the power of death to keep me down."