Youth Camp was a success this year – everyone had a great time! If you see Craig, Jered, Candice or Jaci, please give them a thank you for going as sponsors and spending time with our kids! The biggest overall hit of camp was the group times we had together from discussion to rec time – which made my Youth Minister heart happy that the students enjoyed hanging out as a large group. However, the biggest hit was easily the day we skipped Rec, rebellious I know.
I’ll be honest, recreation this year was not well ran by the camp and by day 3 our kids were bored. So, we took a vote – partake in 2 hours of boring Rec or partake in 2 hours of Rec as a group, the latter won. Our slightly rebellious group decided to host a large volleyball tournament, 4 teams each led by an adult sponsor. It was a massive hit – we played volleyball from 10:45am tell 1:00pm! We even had a group invent a new game for those who didn’t enjoy traditional volleyball! It was a blast and gave us a chance to spend time together as a whole group.
Our decision to skip rec led to one of the best group bonding moments of the week, a time where every person enjoyed some aspect of the moment! I think ministry should often feel and look the same way in comparison to our world. Let’s be honest our world is poorly run, after all it is a broken and sinful world. Our ministries should look different from the rest of the world, for example, Church should not simply be a Sunday routine or our small groups should not just be a group hangout. Rather they should be a gathering of the Saints who are focused on the Lord for the Lord.
Jesus tells Pilate while on trial for his life in John 18:36 that “My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have been fighting, that I might not be delivered to over to the Jews.” He is saying that his kingdom and his saints do not look like the rest of the world. In fact, the saints’ behaviors are so different that the rest of the world notice.
A simple decision to skip Rec was the opposite of what had been planned for us yet led to one of the best times at camp. Our ministries are called to be different and bold from the world; it was bold to let Jesus die yet was the best thing possible for his believers! I encourage you this week to take some time to pray with the Lord and ask are our lives and ministries bold or do they fit right in with the world?
- Slade Knowlton
I’ll be honest, recreation this year was not well ran by the camp and by day 3 our kids were bored. So, we took a vote – partake in 2 hours of boring Rec or partake in 2 hours of Rec as a group, the latter won. Our slightly rebellious group decided to host a large volleyball tournament, 4 teams each led by an adult sponsor. It was a massive hit – we played volleyball from 10:45am tell 1:00pm! We even had a group invent a new game for those who didn’t enjoy traditional volleyball! It was a blast and gave us a chance to spend time together as a whole group.
Our decision to skip rec led to one of the best group bonding moments of the week, a time where every person enjoyed some aspect of the moment! I think ministry should often feel and look the same way in comparison to our world. Let’s be honest our world is poorly run, after all it is a broken and sinful world. Our ministries should look different from the rest of the world, for example, Church should not simply be a Sunday routine or our small groups should not just be a group hangout. Rather they should be a gathering of the Saints who are focused on the Lord for the Lord.
Jesus tells Pilate while on trial for his life in John 18:36 that “My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have been fighting, that I might not be delivered to over to the Jews.” He is saying that his kingdom and his saints do not look like the rest of the world. In fact, the saints’ behaviors are so different that the rest of the world notice.
A simple decision to skip Rec was the opposite of what had been planned for us yet led to one of the best times at camp. Our ministries are called to be different and bold from the world; it was bold to let Jesus die yet was the best thing possible for his believers! I encourage you this week to take some time to pray with the Lord and ask are our lives and ministries bold or do they fit right in with the world?
- Slade Knowlton
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