Dana's Christian Journey

After the Friday afternoon infusion in Girona, I was a new man… not 100%, but at least able to stand and speak with a stronger voice. On Saturday morning, we read: “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.” (Ephesians 1:3) What are these spiritual blessings we have in Christ? It is a good question to ponder and it good to search the Word to see what the Spirit says. It is encouraging to listen to brothers and sisters in Christ from different nations praise God for blessings in Christ. So many are using God’s gifts for His Kingdom.

Perhaps the best athlete in the group of American coaches is a girl about Karlyn’s age named Maggie. (I wrote about her last year.) She coaches college cheerleaders, high school and middle school athletes, and young girls in Tyler, Texas. Maggie has an unbelievable way of connecting with kids, but she is a no-nonsense coach. Having cheered at Baylor University and then professionally for the Houston Rockets and the Indianapolis Colts, she knows what it takes to be good. Maggie has the gift of ‘speaking the truth in love.’ This is a spiritual blessing in Christ that God wants us all to put to use. ‘Yes,’ the world needs to hear truth, but truth must be told in love. Jesus did this perfectly and we must depend on the Holy Spirit to follow Him. Maggie does just that.

On Sunday, we met in the large dining dining pavilion as many past counselors and leaders joined us for worship and Communion. The campers were to arrive Sunday afternoon. As the hour approached to kick off camp, where should we focus? While Jesus ate His Last Supper with His disciples before His death, He also taught. He gave new meaning to the unleavened bread and fruit of the vine in the Passover meal. He then left us an example: “Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you should wash one another’s feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you.” (John 13:14-15)

As Jesus served, so we are to serve…. As Jesus loves us, so we are to love others… as Jesus gave Himself away, so we are to give ourselves away. The philosophy of L’Arcada is to provide a setting where kids can work hard at the sports they love and experience the love of God through relationships built. ‘They must see Jesus in us!’ At the end of the week, someone shares the Gospel verbally, but other conversations come throughout the week as campers notice something different in these counselors and coaches who follow Jesus.

Dave and Cindy reported at the end of the summer that God had worked powerfully in all of the 2022 camps. There seemed to be more ‘seeking’ than ever before. Teenagers who had never read a Bible were asking where they might get one. One hundred Bibles in the Catalan language were ordered and anyone who asked for one received. On their own, kids were getting up early in the morning to pray and seek God’s will in His Word. Coaches and counselors were able to answer questions and discuss ‘problems in real life.’ Several campers and at least one Spanish worker gave themselves to Christ and many seeds were planted.

We told everyone ‘good-bye’ Sunday night and the Sanchezes took us back to the Girona Hospital Monday morning. We hoped I could quickly receive two units of platelets and take the train to Barcelona to spend most of our last day in Spain. My doctor friend had other plans. I suspect she ordered the platelets be given to me as late in the day as possible so they would hold for the flight home. We spent 11.5 hours at the hospital. The trains had shut down by the time I was released. Dave, who had led the grueling first two days of camp, picked us up and drove 1.5 hours to a hotel Susan reserved near the airport in Barcelona. We arrived after 11:00 pm, then Dave turned around and drove 2 hours back to camp. He sacrificed himself for us. Dave and Cindy are true friends.

After a wonderful breakfast at the hotel Tuesday morning, we took a shuttle to the airport and caught our flight to Atlanta. The platelets held; our dear friend Tim picked us up; God got us home.

‘My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you.’ John 15:12

Our Friday morning session in Spain dealt with brokenness. God not only loves all of us broken people; He uses our brokenness for His glory. Once again, the Samaritan woman is a good example. She was an outcast, she was ashamed of her past, and she was resigned to her life as it was. Then Jesus revealed Himself as the Source of Life and promised to give His Spirit (Living Water) to anyone who would come to Him. Skeptical at first, the woman ended up proclaiming the Good News throughout her village!

Spain is a beautiful country full of beautiful people, but statistically it measures to be one of the most broken nations in Europe… drug abuse, abortion, mental illness… Our own U.S.A., though a world power, is quickly becoming famous for its brokenness. But God does not write off nations or people as being beyond hope… He seeks them out.

On each of our three visits, I have marveled at the atmosphere in L’Arcada Sports Camp. Intentional about being ‘real’ and ‘honest,’ the counselors, who went to the camp while young, and the American coaches, many of whom have served several years, are not hesitant to be vulnerable. ‘But God rescued me…’ seemed to always be the conclusion. Friday’s session was full of tears and confession, but God received much glory… as broken men and women praised Him and loved one another. ‘How we all need Jesus,’ I thought, ‘and how we all need one another.’

At the close, our friend Dave shared with everyone that I was going to the hospital and there was a good possibility Susan and I would be leaving Spain soon. The whole group gathered around us and prayed. One person appealed, “Lord, we ask that Dana and Susan be able to finish their time with us.” Much love was poured out and I remembered again that the most beautiful thing on planet Earth is the Body of Christ.

I had asked if any of the Spanish volunteers had witnessed parts of the Olympics held in Barcelona in 1992. The closest town, Banyoles, hosted the rowing events and the citizens are still quite proud.

All the counselors were too young to have witnessed the ’92 Olympics, but Dan, a local leader at the camp, claimed to have been there. His parents watched several games and his mom was pregnant with him!

Shortly after our morning gathering, Viky and Pedro Sanchez, Dan’s parents, took Susan and me to the hospital in Girona, which reminded me of Emory in Atlanta. They laughed about Dan’s claim to have been at the Olympics and confirmed its truth. We told of our experiences during the ’96 Olympics in Atlanta, but we could not outdo their story of watching the Dream Team play the Spain team in the championship basketball game.

Without this Christian couple, we would never have gotten into the Girona Emergency Room; no one in Admissions spoke English. Viky was the perfect advocate! The young medical professionals in the first room I visited aimed to stop my bleeding. They finally inserted silver nitrate into my nostrils. Success! I have only had it in Spain, but I am a big fan of silver nitrate…

In another room, they took some blood and measured my cells. The hemoglobin count was good; the platelet count was not. An expert hematologist visited from another part of the hospital. I could tell she knew her stuff as she drew close and said in perfect English, “Mr. Davis, your platelets are 2000.” I knew she was thinking: ‘So what are you doing out of your country and in mine?’ Meekly, I told her 2000 is kind of normal for me… would she mind giving me enough platelets to get home? Also, would she mind signing an insurance form saying I am fit to fly?

She ordered one unit of platelets, took the form and left. A while later, she returned. “Mr. Davis, I filled out this form but had to stop at the last page. Honestly, I cannot say with confidence that you are fit to fly. If something bad happens on your flight home, our hospital could be held liable.” “I understand,” I replied, “and we don’t want that to happen. So what should we do?”

The doctor inquired about the return time on our original ticket and gave her advice. “This bag of platelets we are giving you today will hold you till Monday. Come back then and we will give you enough platelets to fly home Tuesday morning.” Susan and I looked at each other and knew this was God’s plan. He did not want us to leave Spain early. “We’ll be here Monday morning. Thank you, Doctor.”

We were so thankful the bleeding had stopped and that I had enough platelets for a few days. By the time we got back to camp, I was feeling much, much better. By God’s grace, it looked like we would complete the trip…

“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” II Corinthians 12:9

Story summary so far: We left Atlanta the first Tuesday afternoon in July. We landed mid-morning Wednesday in Barcelona and headed off to find a hospital that could stop the bleeding caused by a little shot in my stomach. Thankfully, the doctors stopped the bleeding and Susan and I took a train to meet the rest of the coaches in Gerona, a town not too far from L’Arcada Sports Camp. We ate a late dinner and as we settled into our cabin, my nose started bleeding.

According to the report the previous day at the hospital, I should not have been bleeding, because my blood counts seemed pretty good. I arose early Thursday morning, went to the huge eating pavilion, and talked to God. He still gave His peace and I knew He was with us. I had not slept very well as my nose bled through the night. I prayed I would feel stronger as the day went on, but after breakfast, I felt weaker. As the 10:00 meeting approached, where I planned to encourage everyone with ‘the truth that God has chosen us and we are His beloved children,’ the bleeding started again and I filled my pockets with tissues.

After a time of worship, where I couldn’t even sing, Dave introduced me as the guest speaker for the week. I knew around 30% of the people there, and wondered what everyone thought as this guy wearing a mask stayed in his seat and thanked everyone for the welcome.

Then I noticed the raised hand of a twenty-four-year-old young lady. “Yes?” I asked. “Do you mind if I pray for you?” “Yes! Please do!” I must have really looked bad as this was the first question of the day. Hannah prayed a sweet prayer and it seemed everyone was pulling for their guest speaker to survive our first session.

Though I was still bleeding and my voice was weak, the discussion was rich. The question centered on God choosing those no one else would choose. Are the lost and outcast and hopeless ‘beloved’ too? Dan, a leader from Spain, reminded us of the story of the Samaritan woman and referred to its video depiction in The Chosen series. What a perfect example! Jesus re-routed a long journey to Jerusalem in order to reveal this woman’s worth and to let her know she was loved by God. God wants this powerful message to be heard and believed today! He wanted everyone in the room to know they had been chosen and that in a few days over a hundred campers, most of whom had never even heard the Gospel, would have a chance to know the One who created them and to know how much He loves them.

After the morning meeting concluded, Hannah, the girl who had prayed for me, asked to visit. She told Susan and me that I reminded her of her dad, who had been a doctor and died of cancer when she was 12 years old. “If Dad were still alive, he’d be sharing the same message you shared today. After he passed away, so many people told us they loved and followed Jesus because of his influence. Even up to the last month he lived, Dad represented Jesus and let people know of God’s love.” Susan and I were honored Hannah told us about her Dad.

I spent most of Thursday with an ice pack on my nose. “Susan, I don’t know that I can finish the week. Think you should call Delta and see if we can catch an earlier flight home?” Susan called and then asked Taylor to call from the States. There were some seat openings, but it would cost $2000 per ticket to change the dates. Since we only paid $1000 per ticket for the round trip, this was not a good deal. I asked, “What about the emergency insurance we had to buy before signing up to work at the camp?” We called them and they were very nice. Their company would get us home, but we first had to have a doctor’s signature saying I was healthy enough to fly.

We told Dave and Cindy that we needed to go to another hospital to check my blood counts and ask a doctor to sign the documents the insurance company sent us. The plan was made for Dan’s parents to drive us to Girona after I led the second session Friday. I asked two brothers I had gotten to know to lead the last two sessions if we worked things out to leave early.

Meanwhile, I just continued to feel weaker and weaker. “Help us Lord.”

“I love the Lord for He heard my voice; He heard my cry for mercy. Because He turned His ear to me, I will call on Him as long as I live. The chords of death entangled me; the anguish of the grave came over me; I was overcome by distress and sorrow. Then I called on the name of the Lord: ‘Lord, save me!’ The Lord is gracious and righteous; our God is full of compassion. The Lord protects the simplehearted. I was helpless and He saved me.” Psalm 116:1-6