Just after my freshman year of college in Spokane, WA I took an internship with the teen and campus ministries in Omaha, NE. One of the highlights of the summer was being sent to the ICMC conference in Boston.
In Boston I had the chance to reconnect with my college friends from Spokane and my high school friends from my hometown of Denver. Yes, it did take a while to explain to people where I was from. Oftentimes in my life as a disciple, I've noticed a parallel between growth in my spiritual walk and growth in the depth of my relationships. Boston is a prime example of that. Some of the memories I made there are some of the best of my college experience. I still laugh about the time my friends from Spokane "accidentally" missed their Saturday evening flight so they could go to church on Sunday. We ended up staying up all night trying to find them a return flight and became so delirious from the lack of sleep that we loudly recreated the Harry Potter Puppet Pals YouTube video in the middle of a Rock Bottom Brewery. Those are the types of experiences you can only have at an ICMC.
This year I'm so excited to have the ICMC US West in my own backyard. Estes Park, just a short drive from the gorgeous Rocky Mountain National Park, is a place where you can truly see God's glory. It will be an amazing opportunity to take our relationships with God and each other even higher.
God works in amazing ways. About four years later I ended up dating one of those Puppet Pals (Hermoine) and we've been together almost six months. I look at our time at the Boston ICMC as one of the bricks in a foundation built on the rock, built to last. There's no telling how God will use the ICMC to impact your life, but He always brings us higher.
Registration is filling up quickly so register today at www.hereamisendme.net. Once we reach capacity we will not be able to take additional registrations. Check out the ICMC US West ICMC Facebook Page to find rides, roommates and dates before you arrive in Estes Park. I look forward to seeing you July 28-31, 2011 in Estes Park!
Lauren Baity - Boulder, CO