Built By God for God

Next week, I'll have the opportunity to spend the week teaching at Nebraska Youth Camp, where I'll be sharing God's Word with our Southwest students alongside teenagers from churches across the region. The theme for the week is "Built by God for God," based on Ephesians 2:10: "For we are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.” It's a simple reminder with life-changing implications: every person is here on purpose. We are not accidents, random collections of cells, or meaningless products of chance. We were intentionally created by a loving God who knows us, values us, and has a purpose for our lives.

Our world often tells us that our worth is found in what we accomplish, how successful we become, or how others see us. Scripture tells a different story. Our value isn't something we earn—it's something we receive because we bear the image of our Creator. Before we ever achieved anything, God declared His creation "very good." He knit each of us together with unique gifts, personalities, and opportunities to reflect His character. When we understand that we were built by God, we begin to see that our lives have meaning far beyond ourselves.

As I spend the week with our Southwest teens and so many other students at camp, my prayer is that each of them leaves convinced of this truth: they were created by God and for God. My hope is that they won't spend their lives searching for purpose in temporary things, but will discover the joy of walking in the good works God has already prepared for them. I would invite our church family to pray alongside us this week—for our students, the many other campers, the counselors, and the teaching team—that hearts would be open, lives would be changed, and every student would come home knowing they are God's masterpiece, created on purpose and for a purpose.

– Jamey