The 22nd annual 5th and 6th grade overnighter for Covington kids was just completed yesterday. This is something I’ve been a part of since it’s inception. I remember being just a few months sober when I saw an ad in the local newspaper. It was an open invitation to anyone interested in helping the youth of Covington stand up to the temptations of using alcohol and drugs. I then thought about the vow I made to God in the chemical dependency center a few months earlier, it went something like this…”God if there is any good that can come out of this horrible situation I’ve created, then I am in!” I showed up at that meeting and it was the genesis of the “Overnighter.”
We are now seeing sons and daughters of our original overnighter kids participating in this dynamic, positive energy-producing weekend. My daughter, who is 21, was a family group leader at this year’s overnighter…what a delight that was for me. The adult leader of our high school TEAM (role models for the 5th and 6th graders) was a 5th grader in the very first overnighter in 1988 and she was also a member of the high school TEAM when she was a high schooler. I believe we have now touched over 3,000 people from our little community. This truly is a God thing.
What is amazing to me is I’ve never questioned the effectiveness of this program. When you say “yes” to God you try to do what you are told and trust God will take care of the results. I do not know how many kids have made good decisions because of the Overnighter. I do know that thousands have been exposed to the consequences of good and bad decisions.
As Christians it is important to walk the walk and say yes regardless of the results and/or any pats on the back. Sometimes the results of our work performed today will not be seen for a generation or two down the road. I believe the enemy wants us to get hung up on short term ”results” while God wants us to always remain focused on eternal and everlasting results.
If we truly have faith, then we simply walk the walk to the best of our ability and leave the timeline for the revelation of the results to God. Paul reminds us of this in 2 Corinthians 5:7 when he says “We live by faith, not by sight.”
P.E.A.C.E.
