On May 2nd at 6 a.m., I boarded a flight in
Charlotte heading for Seattle with nervous anticipation. This grand adventure
that the Lord had called me to was finally beginning. The plane took off and I
felt the Lord calming me as I left my life in South Carolina behind. My name is Sara Betenbaugh and this summer I'm serving as Young Life's Beyond Malibu Guest Services Coordinator.
I reflected on my Work Crew experience at Malibu in 2010. I
was always intimidated by how “cool” and “outdoorsy” the Beyond staff were.
When I was on Summer Staff at Malibu in 2012, I heard a Beyond representative
talk about staff opportunities and thought to myself, “I would never do that.”
Chuckling at my own ignorance, I couldn’t get over the evidence of the Lord’s
sovereignty and grace. When I thought I could never serve in that capacity, the
Lord opened doors and moved in ways beyond my comprehension. So, as I write
this post, I am currently sitting in Beyond Malibu's Base Camp office. Oh how the Lord has His humor!
I spent the month of May helping out in Malibu Club’s
kitchen for the pre-season. It was a great month of serving and community, but
I felt my heart yearning and longing to be down the inlet at Beyond. On the few
sunny days of May, I would try and catch glimpses of the green roofs of Beyond
from Malibu’s inner dock. I would search for any sign of Beyond because I knew
that it was going to be my new “home.” It would be where I would see the Lord
work in mighty ways. I felt so incredibly close to starting this journey with
Beyond but June was weeks away and alas, Beyond was two miles away.
One day after dinner, I found myself jumping into a boat
with three friends as we made our way down the inlet to explore Beyond. I could
hardly contain my excitement as I headed towards Beyond’s small dock and was
caught off guard when I remarked to my Malibu friends, “Welcome to my home.”
Home.
This place would become my new home in just a few short
weeks. As I bounded up the gravel pathway, I felt the Lord’s assurance. “My
child, this is where I have called you.” As we walked around the overgrown
paths and tried to find any crack in the boarded up buildings, I couldn’t help
but wonder which building was which. Where would I sleep? Where would I work?
Where would I worship and spend time with my fellow brothers and sisters? There
were cobwebs and fallen branches everywhere and while I knew that the buildings
had been boarded up nine months, I could feel that the Lord was present in this
place.
After counting down the days, part of my new Beyond family
finally arrived. The Beyond portion of this great summer adventure had
officially begun. We immediately started hauling supplies and equipment from
Malibu to Beyond and with every trip of equipment, more boards started coming
down. With each board coming down, more light was finally coming into these
buildings that had stood vacant. Our days consisted of scrubbing, hauling water
from the creek, sorting equipment, and getting electricity. People started
moving into buildings, toothbrushes started lining up next to the main sink,
and shoes started to pile up outside doors. Base Camp had finally come to life.
Our first evening as a full staff, we had fifty-five people
sitting on two sides of our long dinner table. As we sat elbow to elbow and
sang the doxology as a prayer, I truly felt like I was getting a glimpse of
heaven. Of true community and fellowship with believers who all had the same
goals, serving God and bringing Him glory. What I had first viewed as boarded
up buildings with cobwebs had turned into a sacred place full of the true life
that only Jesus gives. What a sweet blessing it is to call this thin place
where heaven meets earth my summer “home.”
By Sara Betenbaugh
June 2014
By Sara Betenbaugh
June 2014
