For those of you that don’t know, I volunteer every summer at The Naming Project. The Naming Project is a Christian Camp that is designed as a space for LGBTQIA+ youth to come experience the wonder of who they are and know that they are not a mistake, incorrect, or unworthy of love and respect. With everything happening in our world surrounding the LGBTQIA+ community, I know I’m not alone when I say that as much as I need this week of camp, I’m also terrified. I’m scared for myself and for these campers, and I don’t know what I’ll say if someone asks a question about how we live in the world today.

I’ve made many posts about my uncertainty with church, so imagine my own surprise when (in the midst of nearly working up into a panic attack), I hear this quiet whisper in the back of my mind: the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness cannot overcome it.

Our theme for camp this year is Beautiful Things. We will be exploring our world, ourselves, creation, and all the beautiful things this world has to offer. On Thursday, we will talk about how each of us at camp is a beautiful, shining light (we’re using the verse in Matthew about salt and light, for my biblically/theologically inclined friends) and how we are called to shine into the darkness as our fullest selves. So this will become my mantra for the week: the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness cannot overcome it. I am a child of God, made to be a light in the darkness. This week, the campers will be my light in the darkness, reminding me of hope for the future and how to live fully even when I feel the darkness surrounding.

I want to also take a moment to remind you, whoever reads this: you are a beloved child of God, loved for who you truly are, a light in the darkness. Remember you are loved. Remember you are whole. Remember you are light.