Clown Camp Day 1

Why are you going to clown camp??

I was asking myself the same question as I walked in – why am I doing this??

Well 22 years ago when I went to UNI, the Wesley Foundation UMC Campus ministry I attended for church had a clown troupe.  I loved the make-up, the costumes, the skits, but I was just to self conscious, too timid as an 18 year old to be a clown. 

So this past January I was contemplating the new year and my 40^th birthday and the things I haven’t done and what goals I wanted to set for myself and one thing that came to mind was clown camp.  The joy, the laughter, the silliness seemed just what I needed.  So I signed up and paid a little each month – now I’m here!

Its amazing how God knows what you need and provides it so much better than I could ever have hoped.  I arrived at camp and found that the clown camp is held at a Catholic retreat center.  There is a chapel where there is worship every morning and I’ve already stopped in for some personal reflection.  There is a gorgeous view of a lake and the grounds are full of flowers and meditation places to walk too. 

I had no idea in January where I would be today with the struggles with my family and the church building - but God knew and God knew what I would need in the midst of this.

I’m certain that I came to be a clown, but God knew I also needed some retreat time.  And here I’m getting both – some quiet meditation and prayer combined with a lot of laughter and silliness.   And I’m having to reach out and be with people I’ve never met before from all across America – a great learning lab for me on outreach too!

God is great!