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I hope that what I post here and what you read may in some way encourage, challenge, inspire, or simply interest you... The Week 1 - 21 posts are a series dedicated to EXCEL School of Performing Arts Tour 2015. It's impossible to capture the whole experience, but here I choose to share at least one thing I learnt in each week of XLTT15.

I'm Special and God Loves Me

Simple as that really! The title is basically all I want to say within this post. It's the core message right there. But why do I make such a bold statement to you? Let me share a story...

I finished semester one at Excel which was full of lectures, assignments, training, rehearsals, assessments, and exams. I was definitely ready for my three week mid-year break. I had long looked forward to this break. Not because I don't like my studies - I couldn't imagine a better fit for me! - but because I had signed up for and booked flights to Wellington to lead at El Rancho winter kids camp. It's been two years now since I started as a cabin leader at these holiday kids camps. Honestly I'm so glad I did because each and every one has had immense impact on me. I missed Autumn Camp because it was during my semester so that got me all the more excited to come back for this one. 

I learnt a lot at this 5 day camp. But if I were to pinpoint a specific thing that stood out to me, it would be the title to this post - I'm Special and God Loves Me. 

To explain a bit more, this isn't just a camp where kids come to have fun and make friends. It's a camp where sharing the good news of Jesus Christ is central. The camp organizers, staff, and all us leaders who go to serve all have the same passion and desire to see kids come to know about God either for the first time or in an even deeper way than before. Our purpose there is to show them a love they've never before experienced. On top of that, we also have stack loads of fun and excitement and craziness! 

Each morning we have a teaching session where Levi, the programmes and events coordinator (aka boss of kids camp) shares a message. The kids that come are aged from 8 to 12 years old. So obviously the style and content of this 'mini-sermon' is made to suit them. However it constantly amazes me how God can speak to teens and grown-ups through these simple concepts too. It may seem like we're beyond that but just when we think we know it all BAM! God shows up to work on our hearts. 

This exact thing happened to me at this camp. Levi was talking about treasure. This is something that is very valuable and precious. It has immense worth, right? You don't just call any ol thang TREASURE. Well, Levi was sharing with everyone in the room the fact that God sees US as treasure. Each and every one of us. God cares for all of us more than we will ever be able to fully understand. How do we know God loves us so much? Well, He came to Earth as Jesus, the perfect human both man and God, and died in the place we should of. He took the blame for OUR sins, our mess-ups, our short-comings and failings. He died, so that we can live forever! What I'm getting to here, is that if God loves us so incredibly to do that for us... We must be pretty special! He must really truly see something in us if He went to such lengths for us to be close with Him. You know what it is? HIMSELF. 

God created every human being in His Image. (Genesis 1:26). What does that mean? Well what does God look like? Put as plain as can be: God is love. (1 John 4:8) Friends, we are created in the image of love! How beautiful is that?! How SPECIAL is that?! 

At the morning session that we talked about this topic, Levi started pointing at people in the crowd and asking, "Do you believe you're special and that God loves you?" If they said yes, Levi invited them to come join him on stage. As the number of people on stage grew, I sat there and began to cry. Fully cry. Not a little sniffle, I'm talking tear drops down my cheeks crying! Seeing kids respond "Yes" to that question filled me with so much joy. I truly believe that understanding this simple truth is the key to finding your purpose and identity. Sitting there, I was asked, "Sonya, do you believe you're special and that God loves you?" A flood of acceptance, joy, peace, and LOVE came over me and I couldn't even get words to come out my mouth but I just smiled and nodded and knew. This is who I am. This is why I was created. To be loved by a God who IS love.  

I think some people don't believe that they're unique and loved just because no body has taken the time to tell them that they are. So if you're reading this and thinking, "Good for her, but what about me?" I want to say to you right now, this doesn't apply to just me. Or to just "good people" or to just people who go to Church every Sunday. It applies to every person ever in existence. 
 I believe wholeheartedly that when you start living in that truth, things will start changing for you. You'll see the beauty in yourself and others. You'll find the reason you're alive. You'll discover and understand things that never made sense before. Try it! Believe those words. Speak them over your life. Let the voice of God and what He thinks about you become louder than the negative voices that say anything less. Because, my friend, YOU are special and God loves YOU.