PYV 2016 North Camp - Day Two

It’s wet today. Real wet. As we woke this morning to the sound of rain falling on the roof, some of us were thinking about the changes we would need to make to the plans for today. But not all things need to be changed. We will still eat in the same room, and worship indoors, and our study groups can shuffle around to find dry spaces.

After the early morning leaders’ meeting and a well-attended prayer meeting, we sat around the tables ready for breakfast. It was a breakfast that would cheer the hungriest of hobbits – although we only had one breakfast.

Today we have two worship sessions. Our first session began with answering some questions that youth have asked. This is, I believe, a very important element of ministry to youth. Young people have many questions about faith and we need to give them space to ask those questions, and we need to give them a reasonable answer. PYV will always seek to do this. Some questions are commonly asked but this makes them no less important to those who are asking.

Adam spoke from John 5 pointing us to the true story of a man who had been sitting waiting to be healed for so long. While he was unable to help himself, Jesus healed him so he could walk again. But this wasn’t the end of the story, nor is it the most important part of the story, for Jesus points out to this man that there is something greater. I was struck by this comment,

“What is this man’s greatest need? To have his legs healed, or to have his heart healed?”

Flipper Relay

Over morning tea I joined with a group of boys to play a game called “Jungle Speed”. Wow! I was completely left behind as these boys flipped cards over and quickly grabbed the pole in the middle of the table while I was still trying to work out what was going on. It was a whole lot of fun though.

Study groups today looked at the account of Jesus feeding the 5,000 with a very small meal. As we learn about these signs and what they teach us about Jesus, it helps to read these stories to learn, or be reminded, of all that Jesus is and all that Jesus does.

One of the spiritual disciplines is reading and studying the Bible each day. PYV is keen to help our young people to do this, so at each of our camps we set time aside for this. But we recognise that this is also something that will be foreign to many young people, so I am very pleased to look around and see leaders sitting with campers taking them through the quiet time page in their books. We hope that this will be something that the campers will take up when they return home. If you have some children at this camp, please ask them about this and give them every encouragement to continue this when they get home.

Because of the weather we did need to make a couple of changes to our planned activities, but not completely. Fortunately there was no rain, so some of the activities could be outside. Frisbee golf was fun, a flipper relay, and a couple of other games were on after lunch with the activity groups working together as a team in the competitions. The final scores were quite close which I take to mean that it was a fun afternoon for everyone.

Frisbee Golf

At this camp we are having four worship sessions, and this afternoon we had our second one for the day. I don’t think there are too many teenagers in the PCV who can say they attend two worship services on a Sunday, but they did today. In this session Adam took us through John chapter 9 – the healing of a man born blind. What a truly amazing miracle this is but, once again, the focus is not on the miracle but on the sign – this is pointing to something more than just a healing.

Dinner was amazing, and I should record my thanks to the team of cooks for making a special no-tomato lasagne. This is a good camp to be at for those of us with weird dietary requirements.

The evening activity was a night game of Pacman on the oval. I won’t describe it in detail, but just say that if you remember the game and imagine campers and leaders chasing each other and looking for fruit tokens, you might get the idea. From there the evening has finished with a campfire, games around the table, supper, and most importantly, many spiritual discussions taking place. My heart is warmed as I witness this happening.

The sky has now cleared, and the moon is shining brightly. Perhaps tomorrow will be a lovely day.

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.

PYV North Camp 2016

This is a copy of an email sent around the PCV Ministry Network email today:

Dear friends,

This weekend the 2016 PYV North Camp will be held at Camp Curumbene near Rochester. We are expecting it to be a great few days together regardless of what the weather may bring. Rev Adam Humphries will be speaking from the gospel of John using some of the miracles - the signs - that point to who Jesus really is.

Please pray for Adam as he presents these four messages. Please also pray for the PYV leaders who will engage the teenagers of this region in study groups and discussions about faith. Please pray for safety as we enjoy the space to play some games. And please pray with thanksgiving for those from Rochester who will serve the camp as cooks.

If you would like to keep an eye on what is happening, you can check some updates on PYV's Facebook page, or on my own blog - http://ministryandyouth.blogspot.com.au/

Thanks for your ongoing prayerful support for the work of PYV and for the young people of our church family.


Brian

PYV North Camp 2015

In Search of Adolescence

While doing some reading for some youth ministry stuff I'm teaching soon, I came across this book "In Search of Adolescence" by Crystal Kirgiss. Having read an article which summarised the book I was keen enough to buy the book and wait for it to arrive. (Kudos to Amazon - it was here in less than a week!)

The premise of the book is simple enough. Most contemporary youth leaders have learned that 'adolescence' as a social construct is around 100 years old. Some writers have even gone so far as to blame this interpretation for all kinds of current social ills (p18), but Kirgiss carefully and methodically shows that such an interpretation is just that - an interpretation. It is not the reality.

Kirgiss has a PhD in medieval language and literature, so I'm confident she has done much more than enter "adolescence" into Google and plagiarise the results. Her research and writing take her readers into a journey through time with thinkers, creators, and preachers on the search for adolescence through the ages.

The Thinkers

Throughout the centuries, the thinkers - philosophers, astronomers, doctors - have been dealing with and have been writing about adolescence. Some of them would divide life into various stages ranging from three stages to twelve. All would include an age that bridged childhood and adulthood, sometimes called 'youth' and other times 'adolescence'. (48) This would be seen to begin with puberty and end, depending on the writer, at eighteen, or twenty-one, or twenty-four. Perhaps extended adolescence isn't just a contemporary issue.

My favourite quote in this chapter comes from Aristotle in the fourth century BC. He describes youth as those who . . .
are always eager and ready to carry out their desires
lack the discipleing and self-control to rein in their sensual desires
hate being slighted or mocked
hope and expect to do great things
are extremely close to their friends and want to be with them as much as possible
think they know everything.

It sounds like it could have been written anytime in the last fifty years, doesn't it.

The Creators

In the first chapter, she refers to "The Squire" from Chaucer's book "The Canterbury Tales" as a depiction of adolescence of the time. (I tried reading that book a couple of years ago. Might have another go.)

In this chapter, she refers to two pieces of art work that wonderfully and visually show that what adolescents were like in medieval times is so much the same to what they are today. One of these is the cover of her book, and comes from Omne Bonum (All Good Things) a fourteenth century encyclopaedia. The picture associated with the word 'adolescence' shows a young woman staring into a mirror while raising her skirt. The young man has no beard, has his hand on his heart showing he is smitten, and is he reaching for a sword or . . .?

The second one comes from De Proprietatibus Rerum (On The Properties of Things). The entry for "the seven ages of man" includes this picture. Guess which one represents youth. (Hint - the one dressed differently and looking away from the adults and looking down on the younger ones.)


Kirgiss comments "We are often told that before the nineteenth century, youth as a rule followed in their parents' footsteps. But in both literature and life, there are many examples of just the opposite." (77)

Maybe we should read some old books and see what we can learn about teenagers from centuries past. It might be an encouragement for the youth in your church now to know that the struggles they deal with aren't completely unfamiliar to youth in ages past.

The Preachers

What did old-time medieval preachers say about youth?

Look abroad into the world: consider the generality of our youth in this age, what they are, what manner of lives they lead, how vain, lewd, and debauched the most are in their conversation; how rare it is to find one amongst many that is solid, sober, and religious, that makes real conscience of avoiding all known sin, and of performing holy duties, or of exercising himself to godliness, as becomes his Christian profession. Nay, do not many of them walk, and act, and talk more like atheists, or infidels, than Christians … ~ Samuel Peck 1686, 

From A New-Years Gift for Youth. Being the Substance of a Sermon, Preached at the Funeral of M. Elizabeth Bell, Aged Sixteen Years, Odd Months

There's a fair bit of this kind of language in sermons that Kirgiss refers to, BUT it would be a travesty for us to believe this was the whole message of preaching to youth in past ages. She notes that even the most damnably vitriolic statements about adolescentce are embedded in sermons that were not ultimately vitriolic deep down at their cores (90). Preachers were infinitely more concerned about the state of the souls of the youth of their parish.

Keep in mind, that preachers believed that a life of genuine devotion was in fact possible for adolescents. Do you believe that?

This is stunningly significant: Those adults who were the most vocal about the sins, weaknesses, and failings of adolescents were also the most hopeful about the potential of those adolescents to experience true and lasting inner transformation, not just modified outward behavior. (103)

For those of us involved in preaching, this is a chapter well worth reading through. Point people to Jesus knowing that youth can be faithful disciples of Jesus Christ.

Does it matter?

It's a fair question to ask. Does our view of the history of 'adolescence' really matter? Does it affect what we do today? Well, for a number of people it probably doesn't. But I reckon it actually does, and in ways we may not first realise. Primarily for this reason - we tend to romanticize or villify the past. You know the statements "Youth today have never had it so good." or "Things have never been so difficult for youth as they are now." Neither of these statements is wholly true, but we won't know that if we don't know any history.   

Finally

Youth ministers of all shape and manner are today standing on the shoulders of faithful followers of Christ from every previous era, and a new generation of youth ministers will someday be standing on our shoulders. Our shoulders— which are really just the hands and feet of Jesus. But still. It’s quite astounding to consider. (127)

PYV East Camp 2016 - Day Three

It's still cold in Rawson. Especially in the morning.

Today is our last day at camp, and that means we need to give some time to packing and cleaning up. I want all my readers to know just how well the campers and leaders do this. Whether it's packing your own bags and getting them out of the dorms picking up rubbish from other rooms; moving furniture back where it needs to be; or just helping where they can, this is an excellent team of people. Thank you all for doing your bit.

Remember what I said yesterday about cooked breakfasts? Today we had pancakes. So I changed my mind. I think I made the right decision there. They were good.

In our morning session we opened up the question box and had four of our leaders seeking to answer the questions that were on the minds of some of the campers. We never have enough time to give a lengthy answer, so some people might still have a question to ask. If that is someone in your church or your family, let me know and we will answer what we can. Today we had questions about life (What do I do if I'm at camp but would rather go home?); Bible (Are there any myths in the Bible?); Theology (Is there a heaven?) and Faith (What can I do to make sure I'm living a Christian life? I may have re-worded that last one.) Good questions to ask.

And there was a question about dating. Want to know what the question was? Or the answer I gave? Ask someone who came to camp. I expect they will remember.

Preparing for Worship

Stephen's message today took us to John 11 - the story of Lazarus being raised from the dead. What an encouraging message we heard today as we considered the power of one who is in charge of life and death; of one who destroys the power of death; of one in whom we can find life. Death doesn't always mean death.

Morning tea was enjoyed before moving into our study groups - this time in some different locations as the campsite is preparing for the next group to come in this afternoon.

For those who were at Summer Camp, I am very happy to report a marked improvement in the lunches. It has been very good, and a conversation with the new managers helps me to believe that this will continue. After lunch it was good to be able to say "Thank You" to all those who have worked hard in the lead up to camp, as well as during the camp itself. A huge thank you to Nichola who has been working on East Camp for months as well as doing her Uni work.

So East Camp 2016 has come to an end. It has been cold but the sun has been shining to make it a perfect weekend for a camp in winter.

Thanks for coming along everyone. We look forward to seeing you again in 2017!

PS. We will have the talks up online soon. Please keep an eye on pyv.org.au or on the PYV Facebook page.