PYV East Camp 2017 - Day Three

Another chilly start to the day, but we are getting used to it. The weather might be cold, but it has been truly magnificent here in Rawson. We haven’t seen any rain. In fact, we’ve hardly seen a cloud until today. If we were in control of the weather, this is almost exactly how I would have organised it. But we’re not, so it is another reason for us to praise God.

Yesterday we learned that we needed to be out of our rooms an hour earlier than expected. This meant an earlier morning for some than might have been planned, but everyone did their bit and the rooms were empty before 8.00am. Parents, you might want to keep this in mind next time your child wants to sleep in. They have proven they can be up and functioning well before 8.00.

None of this changed the planned leader’s meeting at 7.00am, and the prayer meeting at 7.30. A shout out to the boys from Frankston Presbyterian Church who were the only campers at the prayer meeting today. We moved breakfast back to 8.30am to allow time for that earlier clean up. So there were plenty of hungry people ready for bacon, hash browns, toast, and cereal to get the day truly started.

Our final worship session for the camp included another blog post from the OS17 crew in Malawi, and an opportunity to pray for this team. We believe that they are bringing a great blessing to the people in Malawi, and to the people involved with Orbus. How we wish we could do so much more for these people. Now that we have heard more from this ministry, and that we have our friends there, our hearts are touched by what is happening there.

We opened our Bibles to Romans 5, and Andrew preached from verses 1-8. We have been reminded, or told, that we will never be the same once we meet Jesus. Many who read this should be able to look back on your own life and realise the truth of this statement. You who have met with and now follow Jesus know what it means to have your life radically and completely changed. This chapter of scripture addresses that topic, but perhaps not in the way we might first expect, for while we learn that we now have peace with God, we also learn that this peace will be made clear in our suffering.

Thank you, Andrew, for your preaching.

This was a point that we should think about more than we do. We are well aware that many around the world suffer for their faith, but even here in Australia we should know that it will be the same for us. It might come in different ways, but it will be there. How do we deal with it? We boast in our sufferings. Not in a “Look at me and my suffering” kind of boasting, but more that we would be known for our trust in God in that suffering. What a great reminder that we are not alone in our suffering – God is with us.

God’s love is proven to us as well. The point here is not that Christ died, but rather when he died. “While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

Andrew laid down some challenges for our teenagers. You might want to talk with your teenagers when they get home from camp about these. One of these was to read Romans 5-8 and see what a transformed life should look like. He then finished with these four questions:

1. Will you plan to maintain and grow your relationship with God?
2. Will you keep meeting with other Christians intentionally?
3. Will you change?
4. Will you share Jesus with others?

After morning tea, we moved into our study groups for the final time. Our leadership team is quite a young team this year, and as they have moved through the camp we have seen them grow in confidence in leading a study group, and in talking with the campers under their care. We hope they will continue to use the gifts and abilities they have been given in wonderful ways.

Our camp time together finished with lunch, and from there we spent some time playing games, talking, and saying our goodbyes.

So, did this camp have any impact on anyone? I believe it did. Near the end of camp I heard from two of our leaders of two young people who clearly had God do something in their lives. We have had great preaching, terrific conversations in the study groups, and most of us have had enough sleep too.

Thanks for praying for us.

Congratulations Team Rangers.

Happy birthday Daniel. Sorry we couldn't sing in tune.

Two fine young men leading a camp.

PYV East Camp 2017 – Day Two

If we thought it was cold on Saturday morning, that was nothing compared to the chilliness that welcomed us when we woke up today! I was surprised not to find a very thick frost on the grass, but there was at least one frozen puddle.

The leaders were up early for a leader’s meeting at 7.00am and I want to thank those who got there early to put on the heaters. I am always encouraged to see the leaders meeting together at the start of a day at a PYV camp. It is here that we are reminded of what is coming up in the day ahead, but we also have a chance to talk about any concerns that we have, any campers we think might need some special attention, and generally it is a place to encourage one another.

This was followed by a prayer meetings. It was good to be praying for the camp we are attending, but a special blessing to be able to pray together for the OS1 team currently in Malawi. How wonderful it is to know that as we pray to our great God in country Victoria, that same God is just as present in Africa as he is here. How good is this God we adore!

Some people had a slow start to get to breakfast, but none of those in my cabin. We were ALL awake at 6.00!!! On a positive note, at least I know that our campers will have at least one shower over the weekend. Those who were late to breakfast didn’t miss out though. There was plenty of food cooked and ready for us to enjoy. Rawson Village does food very well. Especially for vegetarians.

Our morning session gave us a chance to do what we would normally doing on a Sunday morning – meeting together with others to worship. Here we worship with a different group. Today we were reminded what the word ‘reformation’ refers to, and we heard one of the blogs from the Malawi trip as it was read to us. To hear these words while looking at some of the amazing photos was wonderful. It was good to pray for our friends in Malawi even though they are so far away. The scriptures were read and today we opened our Bibles to Romans 3. This is a chapter of scripture that is both confronting and freeing. It confronts us with what we truly are, and then offers us the greatest freedom we could hope for.

Andrew preached and pointed out these things to us. He pointed us to Romans 3:9-20 and made it very clear to us just how true these statements are. How did he do that? He simply asked us this question, “Do you always want to do what God wants you to do?” The honest answer from everyone was . . . silence. We know the sad truth of it.

Andrew has urged us to encourage one another in our faith, pointing out to us that this is what Paul was doing with the church in Rome when he wrote this letter. Then he left us with this statement:

The main reason we struggle to talk about Jesus with non-believers might just be that we struggle to talk about Jesus with other believers.

Morning tea followed our worship session – just like it would at most churches. Then we went into our study groups to think deeper about what we have heard in the preaching. I know most people won’t do this at home on a Sunday, and it is a key element of a PYV camp. It was encouraging to see these groups in their spaces around the camp buildings reading and talking together, then praying together at the end of this time. We pray that what they are learning will continue to stick deep in their minds.

Each camp includes a time for personal devotions – a quiet time. It is our hope that this won’t just be something that happens at camp, but rather a habit that the campers will take home with them and continue. To help this, we are using the method of Bible reading called C.O.M.A. I don’t think it’s a great name, but it is a very clear one. It stands for Context, Observation, Meaning, & Application. Once you get your head around this method, you can apply it to any section of the scriptures you are reading. This is our hope for this group of young people. Today I sat with another leader and a young camper and realised that what she was reading was all new for her. A good reminder for me that some of the words we use – like ‘the world’ – might not mean anything to these campers.

The afternoon activities were both outdoor and indoor, and the weather was magnificent, though a little cold in the shadows. With puzzles to solve, teamwork games to work through, and various other games, the teams gained points with every competition. I was amazed to see groups of people work together to complete the tasks laid out for them. Good job team.

Our dress up theme for this camp was “The Letter R”, so we had some excellent work put in by campers and leaders. We had riddlers, and red riding hoods, a referee, and even a Rebecca Fagan. It’s always good to see what these campers will come up with in their costumes.

Over the weekend, there has been an extra competition between the dorms. We knew that there would be an inspection happening at some point today and points were awarded for cleanliness, for something related to Lord of the Rings, and for an appropriate bribe to the judges, whoever they were. The winning cabin did an excellent job. I don’t want to boast, but I think the boys in my cabin are pretty pleased.

Tonight is very cold, so we moved our games indoors and played with glow sticks. One of the games was about building skeletons. Some may have had too many fingers, but they looked good.

It has been a great day at camp today. I’ve been encouraged to see people talking together, playing together, and building friendships. We are ending with another glow stick game, or the chance to sit by a camp-fire. 

Hopefully everyone will sleep well tonight.

What a great team!

PYV East Camp 2017 - Day One

We woke up at our homes this morning to learn that it was the coldest morning in Melbourne for two years. The perfect reason to get in the car and drive into the mountains for a PYV camp! With the sun pouring into the car windows, it was a pleasant drive up the hill from Moe to Rawson Village.

As campers were arriving, they were greeted by a happy team of leaders and other campers, signing in, collecting name tags and booklets, finding their dorms and then connecting with others. Camp really began a bit later with our first worship session for the weekend. Here the Camp leaders were introduced, rules were explained, and Bibles were handed to those who needed them.

Our speaker for the camp is Andrew Wort. Andrew is a youth pastor at Bundoora Presbyterian Church, and a man who is enthusiastic for the gospel of Jesus Christ. Our theme for the preaching is “Romans and Reformation”, and Andrew’s first sermon made it very clear that the gospel of Jesus is not only good news, it is good news that calls for a response.

A stand out moment of the sermon for me related to Romans 1:16 which says, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes.” Andrew pointed out that if we need to say we are unashamed of something, it is probably because others think we should be ashamed of it. What a blessing to live in the freedom of the gospel, and the freedom of Australia, that we don’t need to be ashamed of this gospel. 

“Don’t waste this freedom!”

After this session we had some afternoon tea and then onto the oval for some fun activities. Those who were running around weren’t feeling the cold as much as those who were just standing around. Maybe that’s the answer to keeping warm in this cold weather. We moved indoors and divided into our activity groups to give people a chance to get to know the other campers in the group. It is always good to see young people getting to know one another, or re-connecting after some time apart.

Dinner was great, and then it was into our study groups. Again there was some time to play some games to get to know each other in these groups before getting down to the business of a Bible study. I am always pleased to see young people studying the Bible together, and very pleased to see our young adults taking on a leadership role. These young leaders are growing in grace and in experience. Please encourage those who are returning to your church community. 

It is very cold in Rawson tonight. Hopefully, this will help enthusiastic people to stay in their rooms and to fall asleep early. We’ll see. 

Thanks for your prayers. We trust that God is at work here.