Invited In, part 1

One of Teen Mania's Campus Dorms

In the spring of 2010, I visited my son while he was an intern at Teen Mania's Honor Academy. He wanted to show me around the ranch's property, and on Saturday afternoon, we took a casual walk under the bright blue Texas sky. He showed me the physical training area, and the obstacle course designed to challenge the interns' physical maturity. We walked through the camping area that would be filled with missionaries during the summer, the high ropes course and paintball fields that are part of the summer Extreme Camps. He pointed out the hilly terrain spotted with prairie grass, turf and tufts of scraggly trees growing out of the red East Texas clay soil. He described with pride the year's LTE's (Life Transforming Events) that HA interns experience, including ESAOL, which has been remade into the PEARL.

Some of the camping quarters, ready for summer missionaries.

The road back to the main training and office building held special significance for me. Over 25 years ago, a Christian musician named Keith Green used that road as a runway for his ministry's small plane, and took off for the last time. His plane crashed, unexpectedly taking Keith and two of his young children to Heaven. As a young Christian, I remember hearing the news on the radio, and I felt a personal loss of a voice that spoke deeply into my heart.

As we headed back toward the main campus, another intern passed us. She was jogging, and as she passed, she and my son Ben shared a few words that created another indelible impression of how this ranch in East Texas is still transforming young lives or Christ. I don't know her name, but she wasn't particularly athletic and worked hard as she jogged up the road toward us.

“Is that your dad?” she asked Ben as she approached.

“Yes, I wanted to show him where we did ESOAL.” Ben beamed as he replied.

“Yes, I brought my mom back here too.” Her face flashed a smile that welled up from deep within. Her face showed no fear, or angst as she remembered ESOAL, only pride, and a joy that she shared with her mom earlier in the day.  With those few words, she passed us and the encounter was over.

It's not often that a dad gets invited into their teen's world. I felt blessed to have spent the afternoon walking and talking about Ben's months on campus, and to be invited into the memory of an LTE event that had meant so much to both of them.

(To be continued . . .)