the ESBS...a God story
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| phillips and students at the Walled Off |
Subscribe in a reader12 years ago while I was working at Lurecrest as a summer camp counselor Ken Helser, then the camp pastor, came up to me one night at chapel and said that he had a picture in his mind of me walking out of the Walled Off at Lurerest with my wife and two children. Being 19 at the time, and not having any idea what the future held, I tucked the word away in my heart and though "I wonder if that's ever going to come to pass."
When Ken spoke those words the Walled Off was more than a little run down, and it was used to house the camp speaker for the summer camping season. The other 40 or so weeks of the year it sat empty...so naturally I thought "well that probably means that one day I'll be the summer camp pastor at Lurecrest, and my wife and two kids will come to camp for a week with me."
Little did I know that 12 years later, God would have Julia and I living in Lake Lure full-time, and that the Walled-Off would become the ESBS dining area and student lounge.
Just three weeks ago we welcomed our second child into the world, and now, as a family of 4 we walk out of the Walled Off together daily.
Ken Helser's vision was from the Lord, and no one really knew what it meant at the time . Not me, not him...but God knew, and for the past 12 years God has guarded his plans for this program, and in his grace he has brought it to where it is today. Im so thankful for His hand in my life, and for having the opportunity to see this dream of the school come to pass, and flourish as it has. It confirms in my heart that this school is God's school. It is in His hands, and He is in our midst.