In Praise of Church Camps
We’re spending this week at Outlaw Ranch Lutheran Camp, located in the beautiful Black Hills of South Dakota. I’ve been fortunate that over the years I’ve been invited to teach at a number of our summer church camps and always look forward to spending time with family and with friends old and new learning about and worshiping God in the beauty of God’s creation.
In fact, let me say that a little more forcefully. I don’t just look forward to this time, I long for it, as I’ve come to have a tremendous appreciation for what our summer camps do for our youth and families and, indeed, for the whole church.
The Lutheran Church of which I’m a part is blessed with a number of fantastic camps. Each is distinct, with their own histories and traditions and with plenty of folks who would swear that their camp is the best place on earth. 🙂 And yet each of them also bears some common characteristics, and I wanted to share just a few of the ones that have made an impression on me:
1) There is a profound emphasis on gratitude. Perhaps it’s that most of our camps are located in beautiful parts of nature, a reminder – especially for those who live in urban and suburban environments – of just how beautiful God’s creation is. It’s hard not to give thanks for these kinds of environments, and giving thanks for creation helps us recognize the many other blessings we enjoy. I’ve often thought that gratitude is the noblest emotion because it draws us out of ourselves into a recognition of how much we have to be thankful for in and through others and God.
2) Camps create and celebrate community. Sometimes that community is family community, in that families who spend so much of their time rushing about getting to one activity or event or another are invited to slow down, reconnect with each other, relax and renew. Sometimes that community is related to age-groups, as kids and adults alike are thrown in with folks they hadn’t know through their age-grouped activities and Bible studies and enjoy the company of new friends. And sometimes – indeed, many times – that community is built around a shared faith, as worship around the campfire or singing prayers of thanksgiving before meal time reminds us of the larger family and community of God of which we are a part. We live during a time when community is hard to find, and perhaps for that reason the community many of us have found at summer camp is that much more precious.
3) Camps nurture vibrant faith. Part of this is because of the multiple opportunities for worship and Bible study. Part of this, though, is also because church camp provides opportunities to talk about your faith. You see this most clearly in the camp counselors, who are regularly invited to share some of their faith story as part of worship. But you see it in campers of all ages as well, as kids, teens, and adults are all not just invited, but also provided a safe space and encouraged, to share something about where they see God in their lives and in the world. And if there’s one thing I’ve learned at camp, it’s that there’s nothing that grows faith more than having a chance to share it. And this is why church camp is so important, not just to the folks who come, but to the whole church, as our church camps nurture a vital, vibrant faith that gets passed down from generation to generation, often at camp.
So there it is: my little testimony of praise to our church camps. If you’ve got moment, share a memory or story of yours from camp, how it shaped you and helped make you the Christian you are today. And, even more, take a moment to offer a word of thanks to God for all those women and men who lead and care for our camps. They are a gift to us all.
Quick note. In addition to Outlaw Ranch, my family and I have had great times at Rainbow Trail, Christikon, Holden Village, and Luther Academy of the Rockies. If you want more information about any of these camps, just click on their name. And if you want info. about Lutheran Church camps more generally, you’ll find it here.
David–
Just a few weeks ago, I was sorting through some of my mother’s personal possessions and correspondence with my father–a difficult task for both of us, with her death only months behind us. We found, among her treasured possessions hidden away in a drawer in her dresser, the crudely painted and glass bead bejeweled wooden box I had made for her during craft time at Camp Alpine (a camp–an LCA camp near Richmond, IL, that is no longer there) when I was in fourth grade. That week away from home was a rare experience of independence for me (the youngest of three), and that handmade gift an even rarer thing. It may well have been the first gift I ever gave! And that week away at camp may well have been the first time that I began to realize what a blessing it was to have a mom like her. Isn’t it amazing that she still had that box nearly 50 years later?
Interesting to read this article while sitting in a cabin at “Luther Village” in Ontario, Canada (ELCIC Camp). Your list enumerating qualities that make camp a special experience is spot on. I also love the idea that we all learn from each other.
You are at one of my favorite places on earth! I pray that your time there has been all that you and your family needed it to be and that you return to the Luther community and home recharged! Blessings to you on the remainder of your week in the Hills and at Outlaw!
I could go on and on…but I will keep it simple. As I near the one month anniversary of my ordination, I know that without outdoor ministry and the faith sharing I did at camp I never would have fully recognized that I was being called to ordained ministry. Thanks, outdoor ministry!
Good for you – Enjoy your family and camp. Camp Luther in NE Ohio is our refuge too. I was able to go for just 50+ hours this year over the July 4th holiday – and every minute was wonderful and much needed. And a sermon illustration about baptism came out of it. Nothing like affirmation of faith around a camp pool. Camp has been a huge part of our family – two out of three kids were counselors (and the third wanted to be….) and daughter Melissa was at Rainbow Trail during retreat season and as a Travel Director a few years ago. Great country out there.
I think of a week at camp as a little slice of kingdom living…
Blessings!
Christian camping has a HUGE place in bringing me to ministry and keeping me close to Jesus as a kid. now that I’m a youth pastor, camping is an integral part of my students’ faith journeys. our time at camp is always a highlight. thank you for sharing!
Amen, preach it David. I am president of Lutheran Outdoor Ministries this year and am doing my sabbatical study this fall on the elements of camp as they relate to emergence Christianity and faith formation.
So here’s a question for the ELCA: The average cost of going to a gathering is $1200. A kid could go to camp for three years for that price and the research shows a much more impactful experience. So why does the ELCA push gatherings and neglect camps?
FYI, I’m still delighted to be teaching the concentration in outdoor ministries for CYF at Luther.
I’ve been to many church camps and love what Christian community does to make ministry outdoors come alive! My most recent experience was at Global Village Camp 2012 at Pine Lake Camp of Crossways Camping Ministry in Waupaca, WI. Faith unfolded so easily among 25 South Africans; international seminary students and their kids from Hong Kong, India, Ethiopia, and Slovenia; and a mix of church folks from the midwest. Add to that the college age camp staff, who practice hospitality at its best, and you’ve got heaven right here on earth!! It’ good to be in a place apart where you are encouraged to be yourself and share yourself, take time to listen and look and breathe in what is right in front of you! It’s good to be with people who believe Jesus loves everyone, so we get to do that, too!! It’s not that camp is perfect or that the community all goes without problems; it’s that the importance given to relationship building helps us become one body and reminds us that Christ makes that possible. At camp we are living the Gospel, not just talking about it!!
I would not be the person I am today, married to the wife I love, with children I love, had it not been for outdoor ministry. Throughout my life, going to camp has been my way of reconnecting with God, to recharge my spiritual life. In my family it’s not a matter of IF but WHEN are we going to camp? I have always believed in the purpose of outdoor ministry – to create places “apart” where we can experience the joy and love of Jesus Christ. That’s what it’s all about. I’m going to give a shout out to Camp Luther in Conneaut, Ohio, Camp Mowana in Mansfield, Ohio, and Lutheran Memorial Camp in Mt. Gilead, Ohio. Great places doing awesome ministry! Thank you for all that you have given to my life.
I used to be a counselor at Outlaw Ranch! Two wonderful summers that definitely impacted me! I do have to say I am extremely biased and think Outlaw is the greatest! 😉 I’m a big fan of the family camp system they have there!
I read this to the summer staff this year at an Lutheran camp in Alberta, Canada and am using it again today for a camp in California. Thank you again for your words on ministry and even in the middle of winter, what great short term ministry can mean for people.