So, this past Camp Meeting I've had several very similar experiences.
The first Friday night, I decided to join my friend Chris in observing the Young Adult Camp Meeting section. As we walked down the hill towards the tent I asked, "Wait, is that Jonathan?" Surely it was, because in the middle of his message he was like, "Malcolm Douglas!?!"
Later he told the group, "This guy is the one who gave me Bible studies."
Then this past Sabbath as I sat with my youth in the back of the pavilion, somebody walked near us and then came back and kind of starred for a moment at us and then exclaimed, "Malcolm Douglas!?!" Still uncertain of who it was, he said, "Wow, I never thought I'd see you again. Do you remember me?" I responded, "Help me remember." The individual then responded, "You came to my church and preached a few years ago. Then you counseled me afterwards." "Where was this at?" I asked. "In Atlanta." "Oh, I remember that." "That changed my life," he said. "Oh," I said, "What did I say?" "I was struggling with my Christianity and then you showed me that verse in Proverbs, "A righteous man falls seven times and rises up again."
Soon after that incident this persons youth pastor walks by and says, "Malcolm Douglas!?! Wow, I never thought I'd see you again. Do you remember me? You came and spoke at my church in Sacramento." The other younger individual was like, "Wait, you know him?"
It's amazing how much people change in just a few short years. The first one is currently doing his PhD in Theology. The second one is going to start studying Theology and the last one is now a youth pastor to the second individual. Sometimes we don't fully know how much of an effect we will have on individuals. Praise God that He can use us all to lead others into a deeper experience with himself.
