Deeply Rooted in Love

To some of you out there, 32 summers is nothing. A drop in the bucket, the blink of an eye. But to me, 32 is all the summers of my life, and how long I’ve been coming to Paisano.

I was asked to speak about love, something I think all of us associate with Paisano. I consulted a lot of sources to figure out what I was going to say tonight. Scripture, family members, my own memories. But in the end, it wasn’t very hard to put into words how deeply rooted in love Paisano and the people here are.

Love is a lot of things. I John 3:18 says “Dear children, let us not love with word or tongue but with actions and in truth.” Putting love into action is a longstanding tradition at Paisano. The people who prepare and serve our meals, the men and women who provide teaching and preaching, the people who deliver our children’s programs, the families who keep coming back year after year, those who have introduced new generations to Paisano; these people are putting their love into action. Thanks to them, we have the opportunity to fellowship around tables, there is always a rotation of inspiring messages, and this tabernacle is filled with people who have committed or re-committed their lives to Christ on this hallowed ground. Some were even baptized here, including the three that were baptized today and my brother, 19 years ago.

Love is a choice and a commitment. In I John 4:14-15, John wrote, “And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the savior of the world. If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in him and he in God.” Every day we, as Christians choose to follow Jesus by showing love to others. The choices the people of Paisano make show their love for this place and for each other. For those of us that grew up coming to Paisano with our families, there came a time when we had to choose whether or not to keep Paisano in our lives. As we completed our educations, began careers, started families, we transitioned from being children who were brought out here by our parents or grandparents to being adults who chose to love Paisano for ourselves. By choosing to come out year after year, by choosing to make this place a part of our families’ lives, by choosing to follow Jesus here, we choose Jesus’ love. The choices we make the other 51 weeks of the year are also shaped by our choice to keep coming back to Paisano. Many of us, including myself, can think back to an experience we had at Paisano that has helped us make a decision or otherwise played an important part in our lives beyond this place. I did not make my profession of faith here, but I have no doubt that the teaching, love and Godly examples I received here prepared me to commit my life to the Lord at the time that I did.

Love can be hard. I John 2:6 says, “Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did.” Walking as Jesus did is a tough proposition. Finding the time to come to Paisano year after year, much less contributing in a significant way, requires a commitment that isn’t always easy to keep. Even surviving the rugged landscape and the flora and fauna out here can be tricky. I think there are a lot of us who don’t particularly like the dirt, the stickers, the bugs, or the occasional snake we find out here, but the love we have for Paisano and the people here allows us to overlook these minor unpleasantries. It isn’t always easy to factor Paisano into our budgets either, but we do it anyway, year after year, because we know it’s up to us to keep this place going. The fact that we have such a large attendance at camp, after 100 years, is a testament to the commitment we have all made to Paisano. In today’s hectic world, it’s not always easy to commit an entire week to coming to Paisano. I myself could only come for the last part of the week. But the love I have for this place and the people I get to see here meant that there was no way I was going to miss coming.

For me, Paisano has always been like a big family reunion. Both sides of my family and quite a bit of my extended family have found a love for this place over the many years since my grandparents first came with FBC Midland in the 1950s. But beyond just kin, Paisano is a family all its own. There are people I only see here, just one week a year, but we can pick up like no time has passed at all. The reason this is possible is because once people are introduced to Paisano, they KEEP COMING BACK. And they keep coming back because of the love that radiates from this place.

I would like to thank each one of you for making Paisano the place it is, full of family, laughter, and most of all, the unconditional love of Christ. This place has been deeply rooted in love for the last 100 years, may it remain so for 100 more. Let each of us endeavor to love in our daily lives the way we are loved at Paisano.

Corrie Moak