PYV North Camp 2016 - Day One

For some of us, mostly leaders, it was an early morning start as we made our way to Camp Curumbene in Corop. The drive itself is quite pleasant, but it was aiming to be here by 9.00am that made it a bit more difficult. 

As campers arrived, they were shown to their dorms then, while some of us talked with parents, the youth got involved in some basketball, or soccer, or enjoyed the chance to catch up with friends. Reconnecting face to face is better than just on social media. 

Yes I can!

An intro session before lunch meant we could have all the introductions and camp rules right at the start of the camp. There are new owners here and they gave us a very encouraging welcome. It’s good to be at Curumbene again. Lunch was fantastic, again, and looking at the pile of food that was brought in, we are expecting the food to continue to reach the high standard it did last year. A huge thanks to the crew from Rochester Church for their service. 

Young people need to get outside and run around. To begin the activities of camp we spent time outside on a beautiful day enjoying the space and enjoying some simple camp games. Some of them were camp games we are all familiar with – like the ‘numbers’ game – but there was a new one for me. ‘Ghost’. Imagine standing on the oval with your eyes closed listening hard to see if there was a camper (ghost) sneaking up on you. Who knew 40 teenagers could be so quiet?!?!?

Chats with Gresham

Our first worship session introduced a song that would be new to many, gave people an opportunity to listen to a testimony, and then Adam Humphries gave his first message. Through the camp we are working through seven signs that the gospel of John records that helps us to believe in Jesus. This afternoon we heard Adam speak about the incident in John 2 were Jesus turns water into wine. Adam was able to help us see that this is not a great party trick that Jesus did for a friend. Rather, this was Jesus making a statement about who he was and what he was going to do. I have been greatly encouraged by what I have heard this afternoon.

One of the study groups

Dinner was amazing (thanks team) and then we broke into our study groups to look at another sign – the healing of a sick boy. You can read about this in John chapter 4. 

As I write this, our first day is not over, but is coming to a close. Study groups are ending now and the familiar sound of table tennis and other games and general chatter is being heard. Attending a youth camp truly is a great experience. 

Thanks for praying for us.