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Camp: Sacred Space |
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Location: Blogs Brad's BlogMid-Week Missive |
 | | Posted by: Brad Miller | 6/4/2008 11:17 AM | Greetings on this steamy day,
As many of you know, when I was growing up, I was lucky enough to be able to go to camp every summer, all summer long! How was that possible? My parents ran the camp, Conely Methodist Camp on the St. Mary’s River in Michigan’s beautiful Upper Peninsula. (You’ve heard what they say about the U.P., eh? God created the heavens and the earth and learning from his mistakes, created the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.) That camp holds a very special place in my heart. Besides being a beautiful part of the world where we could spend our time swimming in the river, hiking through the woods, playing baseball or volleyball on the camp grounds, it was also a place where I connected with many, many friends. Year after year, families would return to the camp, and I would get to renew friendships from the previous summers. For years, if I ran into someone and we somehow thought we knew each other, but couldn’t quite figure out from where, I would eventually ask, “Did you ever go to Camp Conely?” And a good deal of the time, the answer would be an enthusiastic “Yes!”
It was also the place that I remember first beginning to fully appreciate the awesome creation that God has given us, the first place I began to understand God’s pull on my life and to feel God’s presence in a very real way. Over the years, I have talked with several of my clergy colleagues and many of them had similar awakenings in their camp experiences. Barna and Associates, a polling firm, has reported that upwards of 80% of all ordained clergy first discerned a call to ministry at a summer camp. And you can multiply that number by the thousands of lay people whose faith journey was awakened and nurtured by a camp somewhere.
For all these reasons, I am a big supporter of our camping program here in Georgia. In the last 10 years, Camp Christian in Gordon, Georgia has made huge strides forward as a well appointed, well maintained residential camp. Boating, swimming, crafts, daily devotions, friends, counselors, cook outs….they are all the stuff of the camp experience at Camp Christian. Ably led by our Associate Regional Minsiter, Michael Weeks and a staff of volunteer camp directors and counselors, Camp Christian continues a long tradition of introducing our children to a different way to “do church.”
This summer we have 12 kids from BCC heading off to different camps at Camp Christian. And this summer we have a chance to do something to let them know we are thinking of them, that we hope they are having a great time, and maybe even that we are just the slightest bit jealous! Those of us with e-mail can send an e-mail to campers at Camp Christian and they will be delivered to the campers at dinner. And let me tell you from my experience as a camp director, that nothing lights up a kids face like hearing their name read during mail call! So, here’s what you do: for every camper you want to send an e-mail to, the address is camp@gadisciples.org and you put in the subject line “Campers name – name of camp” For instance, this week, Junior Camp is in session, so the subject line would be “Sally Smith – Junior Camp”. The camp staff will deliver the e-mails every day, barring any internet or printer breakdowns!
Here are the campers for this summer, with the dates and the names of the camp:
This week (through Friday): Junior Camp: Emma Kenfield, Mackenzie Parker, Morgan Money and Morgan’s new step-brother Austyn Spell.
This weekend (Friday 6/6 through Sunday 6/8): Chrysalis Camp: Nathan Whatley, Jacob Kenfield
Next week: Monday June 9 – Saturday June 14: CYF Camp: Derrick Fey
Week of Monday June 16 to Saturday June 21: Chi Rho Camp: Charly Jo Olson
Week of Monday June 23 to Saturday June 28: Mid-High Camp: Landon Loaiza Flavio, Hannah Chipman, Tomas Chipman, Kaitlyn Fey
I will remind you each Wednesday of who is away at camp that week so that you can send off a note. Let’s flood the kids with e-mails and let them know how much we care about them, and to help make the week even more special.
Please Pray:
Please keep Doris and Daonne Caldwell in your prayers as they travel to Mississippi to celebrate the life of Doris’ sister and Daonne’s aunt, Everdeen Stevenson, who passed away yesterday morning. Please keep them close in this difficult time of grief.
Please be in prayer for all those who live on the margins of our society. We have been receiving more and more requests for assistance due to escalating costs and job disruption and loss.
Announcements:
The Board Meeting for the second quarter of 2008 will be held on June 22nd. While this is a mandatory meeting for all board members, we want to extend a special invitation to all members and friends of BCC to a board meeting that will be a little different:
· It will be held immediately following worship, in the sanctuary.
· It will be only 30 minutes in duration…GUARANTEED! (This guarantee brought to you by Charles Kinney, Congregation President)
· It will be very informative – focusing on what has happened and what is going to happen with regards to us potentially remodeling and upgrading our facilities.
I hope you will make every effort to attend!
Don’t forget that Vacation Bible School is coming! We will doing things a little differently this year by beginning on Saturday Night…VBS will run Saturday evening June 21, Sunday Evening June 22 and Monday Evening June 23. We can still use volunteers and kids will be able to sign up this Sunday in the Narthex following worship, or by contacting Debbie Kinney at debbie@brookhavenchristian.org There will be no adult program this year so that all of us adults can focus our attention on volunteering in support of providing a great VBS experience for all our kids!
I hope you will be able to make it to worship this Sunday as we gather once again to celebrate the Lord’s Day together. This month the overall theme for worship is “Miracles All Around” and this week’s sermon is entitled “The Miracle of Abundance” and the scripture is 2 Kings 4: 1-7. Have a great rest of the week!avHavHHaH
Be peaceful,
Brad | | | Permalink | Trackback |
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