camp

This will be perhaps my only post concerning camp. While it was an amazing time (we'll get to that in a bit), there are parts I'm not particularly proud about, in retrospect. But isn't that just the tenor of life? The best situations - the best blessings (read: Eden/Camp) can be taken away with one simple mistake. One innocent decision can change the course of a blessing. That should add so much weight to every decision you and I make.

That all said, camp was amazing. And there is one particular reason which rises above all else: I saw the Body of Christ manifest among the students there.

Can we just take a step back and imagine the power - the magnificence of that statement? Truly, the Body of Christ was present... truly, the Church was ready and able to accomplish the work of the Father. Where, among adult congregations, that is often a hope and a dream and a prayer, here, with Sr. High students, it was a reality.

And what a powerful reality it was!

Students throughout the week demonstrated their concern for one another in powerful and moving ways. They humbly considered one another better than themselves, and consistently worked to bless and serve their brothers and sisters in Christ.

I began to catch a glimpse of what Christ ordained for his Body. It's not merely a gathering of believers. It's not merely a group of the sons and daughters of Christ. It is the power of God. It is the fulfillment of a blessing. It is the unity of the Spirit. It is something no power of Hell can ever overcome; something no man or women in his or her right mind can ever resist. It is truly beautiful.

And I saw it in High School students! High School students! Let no one ever again say that youth ministry is not the church of tomorrow; it is fully and possibly the church of today.

That is why camp was amazing. The power over the course of the week was not found in the messages, or the time of music, although those things contributed. Rather, the power - the manifestation of God - was found within the community. Within the interactions of students and the representation of Christ. It was amazing. It was truly awesome: worthy of awe.

I am still awed. I am still praying for wisdom as I take this beautiful revelation and begin to apply it to weekly youth meetings and visions for Youth Group.

I now know that God can do amazing things. I've seen it. I've watched it. I loved it.

And it changed lives.