I had been waiting for four years for the next International Conference. I had had such a good time in junior high that I was dying to come back again. And this time, I was in high school. I could stay with other high school people and stay up later. The purpose of the conference, though, was to praise God, learn about Him, and learn about our godly heritage, and that is what we did.

Every morning after breakfast we went to class. Every class started out with a chemistry experiment, performed by John Stahl. Each experiment demonstrated a truth about God. for example, Mr. Stahl created a vacuum, and said that each person has a God-shape vacuum in his or her heart. This vacuum cannot he filled by money, possessions, love, or any other earthly pleasure, hut only by God. The experiments were also interesting because they were eye-catching (and ear-catching!). Mr. Stahl made balloons explode, smelted iron, and made stuff glow in the dark. (Don’t ask me what was glowing; I don’t know that kind of chemistry!)

After the daily experiment, an adult came in to share a testimony with us. Their testimonies were really incredible. It was amazing and wonderful to hear what God had done in their lives. Some of them had made really dramatic changes in their lives when they came to know God. It was encouraging to hear of God’s grace and how He had changed them. “Hc brought me up out of the pit of destruction, out of the miry clay; and He set my feet upon a rock making my footsteps firm” (Ps. 40:2).

Herb McCracken was the main speaker for our class. Every morning he spent the last portion of the class speaking to us about topics that had to do with the overall conference theme of ‘A Godly Heritage.” Some people have had the privilege of being horn into Christian families, while others have not had that privilege. Even so, we have a responsibility to pass on a godly heritage to our children. “The Lord is the portion of my inheritance and my cup; thou dost sup port my lot” (Ps. 16:5).

Between lunch and dinner had free time for recreation. There were planned sports, like softball, volleyball, and races. and also open gym and pool time.

Each evening everyone gathered in the main auditorium for the evening pro gram. There were a couple evenings during the week when josh McEwen led the high school age group in some energetic and fin (but weird, of’ course) activities, Some high school people also participated in the Matthew quiz, which was a quiz game over the book of Matthew. This was a good test of our knowledge of Matthew and its content. “You however, continue in the things you have learned and become convinced of, knowing from whom you have learned them; and that from childhood you have known the sacred writings which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus” (2 Tim. 3:14-15).

Every day we also had an opportunity to serve others. Each counseling group was assigned to stand at an entrance to a dining hall during a meal in order to assist mothers with small children or any elderly persons who needed help. It was not a hard thing to do, and was convenient for those who needed help. “For you were called to freedom, brethren; only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one an other” (Gal. 5:13).

At night our counseling groups met for a while to have a time of discussion and prayer. Sometimes we talked about class that clay, and sometimes we talked about other topics that our counselor brought up. One other thing that my counseling group did was to share their favorite verse or life verse. There were many good verses shared, anti no two people had the same verse. This was an encouraging time of fellowship, to hear from others and to share. “Therefore encourage one another, and build up one another, just as you also are doing’ (1 Thess. 5:11).

I can’t speak for everyone. hut I know I had a great time at the conference. It is something I will remember for the rest of my life. I have my Heinz Pickle Pin stuck on my purse right now! It was a great time to learn, meet new people, and see old friends. Singing the psalms with over one thousand people was also an overwhelmingly incredible experience. I am already looking forward to the next international conference.