PYV West Camp 2019 – Day Two

There is a strange relationship between teenagers and sleep. With daylight savings ending early this morning it meant we had an extra hour of sleep. But there were still a number of campers straggling into breakfast this morning, and a few who would have liked more sleep. (I was one of the latter group.)

Breakfast provided a lot of options for us. There was cereal, toast, and porridge and it was all good.  The catering team have been amazing (especially with the scones at morning tea) and if anyone comes home complaining that they didn’t have enough to eat, I don’t think they’re being completely honest.

From breakfast we went into the morning session. Today we continued the theme of “The Gospel – what it is and what it isn’t” and Russ was able to help us see where the gospel – the good news – leads to. Yesterday we were in Genesis 3. Today we were in Mark 15 and 16 where we read about the trial and death of Jesus. The comment that stood out for me in comparing these two sections of scripture was regarding an exchange that is made in both of these. In Genesis, a terrible exchange is made when people exchange God the creator for the creation and so become infected with sin. In Mark 15 we see a great exchange happening when our sin is placed on Jesus and we are given

freedom.

But you might ask how do we see this second exchange? Jesus wasn’t the only one to die by crucifixion that day, after all. So we move into Mark 16 where we see the account of Jesus being alive again. This is what separates the death of Jesus from all other deaths. This is what separates Jesus from all other founders of different faiths.

At the end of his sermon, campers were given a card to fill in where we ask them about their faith and their understanding of the gospel of Jesus. This is essential, and proves tremendously helpful as leaders begin to talk about these issues with the campers in their study groups.

The weather is glorious in Halls Gap. Not too hot, and not cold, so it was a good afternoon to be heading out into the area. One group enjoyed a 6km walk to Boronia Peak. We’ve taken groups here before as it is a good hike from the camp site that ends with a great view. Another group drove to various spots in the area to enjoy the sights from a lookout, and then to the beauty of a waterfall. Those of us who enjoy things a little more sedate enjoyed a stroll into the township for an ice-cream. The shop proved very popular and the queue was out the door for most of the afternoon.

When we all returned it was the annual city vs country soccer game. I don’t know who scored the most goals and the only goal I did see was scored by Country so maybe they won, but it looked like everyone was having fun playing together. The dust did pick up a bit and made it hard to keep your eyes open, which was a shame as it is truly a beautiful place to play sport. 

The camp theme we’ve been enjoying is “Safari”. So our teams have names like “Cheetahs”, “Elephants”, “Rhinos”, etc. I’m always impressed by the imaginative ways that teenagers and our leaders are able to put these themes into creative costumes for our end of camp photo. While there was a disturbing number of onesies at this camp, there was still some clever and simple costumes. There were a lot of photos taken with the whole group, and then when we came into the dining room, the separate study groups had their own photo taken.

A big shout out to those who worked hard to decorate the dining room for our dinner tonight.

After dinner I sat at the campfire for the evening. Here I enjoyed some good conversations with campers and leaders as well as distributing marshmallows for those who wanted one or two . . . or four . . . or maybe a few more too. Other campers were busy with games in different sections of the campsite. During this time many leaders were having chats about faith with campers. I can’t tell you how encouraging it is to see this happen.

A two night camp always feels like a very short camp, and tomorrow we will finish after lunch. This means we have one more worship session, one more study group, one more devotional time and two more meals. May God work in the hearts of the young people here.

Thanks for praying for us today. God has been good to us.  

He looked bigger in real life.

Dust on the oval

Worship in singing

PYV West Camp 2019 – Day One

For some of us it was a very early start to the day to get to Halls Gap by 10.00am for camp setup. But it also meant it was a good drive through Melbourne to get to the western side.

Registrations opened at 11.00am, and as most campers were being transported by leaders, most of this happened before 11.00. It’s good to see such enthusiasm amongst the campers and leaders that they want to be here early.

As people arrived we had various games happening in different parts of the camp ground, which provided a good way for campers to meet up with old friends, meet new people, and generally mix with each other.

The introduction session is an integral part of our camps now, and in this session we just deal with the introductions of people (hence the name), explain some of the camp rules, and hear from the campsite managers. This means that having done this, when we meet for our worship session later in the day, we can have a better focus on God.

We have a great team in the kitchen again this year, and a lunch of make your own meat and salad rolls is always a winner. It makes the washing up simpler too. I expect that we will be eating well at this camp again. After lunch we had some outdoor activities on the oval. If you have a child here at camp, ask them about the game “Find the Shepherd”. It is a game that is new to me, and is fantastic! It’s a fun game for all ages.

The topic that is central to this camp is “The Gospel – what it is and what it isn’t”. Today our speaker, Russ Grinter, spoke about the gospel of Jesus by beginning at Genesis 3 and the account of sin entering the world. It is important to know why we need the promise that the gospel of Jesus brings, and sin is the problem that nothing else can solve but Jesus. It was a great talk that we heard today, and I’m looking forward to what is yet to come.

Our study groups are a key facet of PYV Camps, and as I wandered around the campsite to see each group, I was encouraged to see people talking together, praying together, asking questions, and thinking deeply about the study questions. Our leaders are brilliant in the way the encourage groups of people who have just met to talk with each other. Please continue to pray for these groups.

After dinner it was the annual night game of “Capture the Flag”. The weather has been brilliant for our outdoor activities today and tonight was beautiful. But when we came inside for supper, it was even better to watch all the campers and leaders playing various board games around the tables. I got involved with a game of ‘Jungle Speed’, which took me a while to grasp, but was a lot of fun as well.

Now everyone is in their dorms, hopefully building some good friendships there before the lights are turned off and we get some sleep.

Daylight savings ends tonight. We wonder how this will affect campers in the morning. We’ll find out.

Thanks for praying.

PYV West Camp 2019 - Beginning tomorrow

Here is the text of an email sent to the Presbyterian Church of Victoria Email network today. 

 

If you'd like more info about West Camp, click here - https://www.pyv.org.au/camps/west 

Dear Friends, 

The 2019 PYV West Camp begins on Saturday morning, April 6 2019. We are expecting a great weekend with around 100 people gathering in Halls Gap for this camp. We will have Rev Russ Grinter speaking on the topic "The Gospel - what it is and what it isn't" and trust that God will use this to make himself known. 

Can I again ask you all to be praying for us over the weekend? When you meet in your church communities on Sunday morning, perhaps you could include this in your time of prayer. We thank you for that. 

As usual, I will endeavour to post a blog each day of camp at https://ministryandyouth.blogspot.com and we will keep adding bits to the PYV Facebook and Instagram pages. 

We conclude after lunch on Monday, so while your enjoying lunch, please pray for us as we journey home again. 

Thank you for your constant support of PYV and your interest in the youth of the PCV. 

Rev Brian Harvey

Youth Ministries Director

e: ymd@pyv.org.au

p: 0432 916 967

w: www.pyv.org.au

268 Canterbury Rd

Heathmont    3135

Mental Health - Some resources to help you help others.

Friends, the life of those who minister to young people is often a full one. This means that we can easily become so distracted with everything that's going on, that we miss the chance to learn something new, even when it might just be something that is essential to our ministry. 

Today, I want to urge you to take some time, or find some time, to learn about Mental Health First Aid. Three years ago I attended a course on this, and am now due for a refresher. Because I did this, I became more aware of the life struggle for many teenagers in our communities. Some of these teenagers are in your youth group. 

So here are some resources that will be helpful to you. 

First, this page has a number of guides you can download. I particularly encourage you to read the ones on Depression and Suicide. Why would I do this? Because these issues have come up in the PYV camps over the last three years and we want our leaders to be better prepared. 

https://mhfa.com.au/mental-health-first-aid-guidelines

If you are coming to West Camp this weekend, I'll have some copies of these sheets for you to read through. (For those not coming to camp this weekend, please be praying for those who are.)

The second resource links to this and is a podcast. This discussion between Aaron Garth and Dr Claire Kelly deals with the issue of non-suicidal self injury. If you're a person who would rather listen to something than read it, then this will be worth your time. 

https://ultimateyouthworker.com.au/2019/03/podcast-020-non-suicidal-self-injury-part-one/

https://ultimateyouthworker.com.au/2019/03/podcast-021-non-suicidal-self-injury-part-two/

The third resource also features Aaron Garth. PYV hosted a training event with Aaron in 2017 on the issue of Mental Health first aid. It was a good event to be a part of, and I'd encourage you to listen to this at some time. 

https://www.pyv.org.au/training/pyv-training-events-recordings (scroll to "Topic: Mental Health First Aid" about halfway down the page.)

Aaron is deeply interested in supporting and training youth workers to be better helpers for youth. Have a look at the Ultimate Youth Worker site for further information - https://ultimateyouthworker.com.au/

If you sign up for the newsletter, you won't be bombarded with weekly emails. Just the occasional encouragement. 

Friends, I offer these links to you as something that might be of help to you and to the people you minister to. If there is any other way I can support you, please let me know. 

I'm praying for you and all that God will do through you. 

Rev Brian Harvey

Youth Ministries Director