We just finished our middle school ministry’s summer camp on Sunday. After a good two days of recovery, most of which was me sleeping on the couch and drinking hot tea for my thrashed vocal cords, I found myself in major reflection mode.
In no particular order, here are one youth pastor’s reflections from another completed summer camp.
Youth ministry thrives when done by body of united people
It may take a village to raise a child, but it takes a church to do youth ministry. There are few other places where this is more obvious than summer camp.
This week, I watched my 20 person youth ministry team work with passion, intelligence, love, and sacrificial service. I watched my shepherd leaders lovingly endure multiple nights sleeping on the hard ground just to be around the students they serve. I observed parents helping prep and clean for meals and even get dirty in some of the games themselves! I saw my very gifted interns lead devotions in the morning and games throughout the day. I was blessed to know that if I bowed out for a few hours to review my night’s sermon, my leaders would be handling everything fine without me. It was a fresh reminder for me that gospel ministry is a team sport.
Songs are powerful means of teaching and responsive worship
Our teaching series was called, One God: The True God Among Imposters. The series was focused on how our True God calls us away from our idols and toward Himself. Along with the preaching, our song leader Steven Shaw made sure to sing this excellent song by Ghost Ship after every sermon. It was powerful for me to hear the students sing lyrics like these as I stepped down from preaching.
Prophets proclaimed to our fathers long ago
To turn from your statues and your idols made of gold
Rise from your knees, stop worshiping
The splinters of broken gods, turn and see your King
There is one God over all kings and rulers
And he reigns alone
By the end of camp, the students memorized the entire song by heart and I couldn’t be more excited. Don’t underestimate the power of songs as a means of teaching. Knowing that kiddos will most likely memorize the songs you sing at church, make sure to make them worth memorizing.
Recreation is a good fertilizer for growing relationships
The interns prepared to represent their teams as their gladiators.
Although the Word of God is the primary means by which God accomplishes His will, we must make sure to not neglect other important gifts God has given us. One of those things is the importance of playtime and recreation.
Although recreation shouldn’t be the primary mission of youth ministry, I don’t think it’s wise to reject or neglect it. It was a blessing to watch old and new students alike bond with their friends and leaders in the front lines of a Water Balloon Launcher War or toes-to-head in the Hot Dog Relay or cheering on their team leader as he battled against the other leaders in the last night’s Gladiator Battle. The games helped acquaintances leave as friends and new students leave with a feeling of belonging. Further, I found the game times as a helpful means to prepare the students for more focused time of singing, praying, preaching, and small groups later on.
Parents are extraordinarily helpful and skilled for youth ministry (Duh)
I will say it as simply as I can: parents are essential for any fruitful youth ministry both as the objects of ministry and the subjects of ministry. A wise youth ministry seeks to bless parents and have students blessed by parents.
This week at summer camp, I had the pleasure of partnering with four parents from our church in ministering to our youth. I was encouraged by their support and thankful for their service. No matter the need, they were ready to tackle it with diligence, skill, and passion. On a practical level, with their experience in raising children of their own, parents are equipped to handle the numerous and diverse issues that happen at camp camp (e.g. minor boo-boos, splinters, drama, etc.). It’s a great reminder: parents have much more to offer than many youth ministries often think.
The front cover of our camp booklet.
Camp booklets are the single most helpful tool I know of for leading such events
On a very practical note, making booklets for camp has become an essential to any overnight trip I do. For our camp we made booklets that contained schedules, mealtimes, camp rules, sermon notes, devotionals, songbook, camp challenges, extra articles, and even book recommendations. The booklets serve as the perfect information center for the students and also make fantastic keepsakes for the students to help remember all they learned and experienced at camp.
If you’d like, here is the booklet we used for camp this past week.
Youth ministry offers experiences I know I will always cherish
Upon ending the week, although I was exhausted, I was sad to see the students and leaders go home. Not only was camp a blast for the kids, but it was for my wife and I as well. I know I will always remember the games, the conversations, the sessions, the singing, the early mornings, the strong black coffee, the late night snacking/laughing with the leaders, and the students’ laughter and smiles with fondness. Although it takes a ton of work to pull off a successful camp, it is well worth it and, by God’s grace, I pray its value will prove itself in eternity to come.
Ready for camp!
