Author: Elizabeth Mullins

Twenty-two campers ages 5 to 12 from 15 families served by 28 staff members (including 3 teenagers) made for a great time of loving God, loving others, having fun, and being safe at the Richardson Neighborhood Skills Camp. Organized by Grace Communion Richardson with help from our American Heritage Girls Troops TX1595 and TX0147 and Trail Life Troop 147, the young people were taught various life skills and the relational skills of kindness, truthfulness, forgiveness, and courage. It was our first neighborhood camp, and it went very smoothly, praise God, despite some initial trepidation in the planning phase.

The theme of camp was “Develop Your Superpowers.” The staff taught the campers that the skills and gifts that God has given all of us are meant to be developed and shared in love. Skills taught included cooking, gardening, auto care, first aid, graphic design, cartooning, cake decorating, sign language, chess, home repairs, ancient weapons, outdoor skills, sports fitness, and musical ear training. Classes were practical, hands-on, and fun. Role-playing interactions helped develop the relational skills mentioned above.

As Katherine, one of our staff members, shared, “watching Audrey* come out of her shell during the ‘Get to Know You’ games (when just a few minutes before that, she’d been sniffly and asking me to phone her mom), and seeing her really enjoying her first session of ‘Drawing Comics’, and then watching her beaming face skip into the room on the second morning with no hesitation or fear was one of my favorite memories!” Another staff member, Connor, said he loved that the kids got more and more confident during each relational skills session.

I was inspired by the hard work, graciousness, and love of the staff that permeated camp. And I felt it was all worth it when a number of the campers and parents requested that we hold camp again next year with more days added.

Gabriel Ojih, Pastor
Richardson, TX, US

*not her real name

Note: All the pictures were taken by our 14-year-old photographer, Naia Moya.

Editor’s Note: For our Ordinary Time Devotional series, you will be hearing entirely from young authors. They will be sharing their perspectives on the theme, “God is in the streets.” Enjoy reading how the next generation of emerging GCI leaders experiences God outside the walls of the Sunday church gathering.

From the time I was a young child, I have found it easy to sleep during car rides. Do you? If not, what hinders you from falling asleep? Is it because you are uncomfortable? Or is it perhaps a lack of trust in the person behind the wheel?

It reminds me of the time Jesus Christ slept through a storm:

Then he got into the boat and his disciples followed him. Suddenly a furious storm came up on the lake, so that the waves swept over the boat. But Jesus was sleeping. The disciples went and woke him, saying, “Lord, save us! We’re going to drown!” He replied, “You of little faith, why are you so afraid?” Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the waves, and it was completely calm. The men were amazed and asked, “What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the waves obey him!” Matthew 8:23-27 (NIV)

How often do we fully surrender ourselves to our God? It’s not always easy to ignore our worries and anxieties, and just take a moment to rest. Jesus reminded us how important it is to have faith that God already has a plan for us and that the Holy Spirit will guide and protect us. It is no use worrying about things that we cannot control. It is no use raging about the traffic or fretting about what you left at home. Let us learn to rest, to calm down, and converse with our triune God.

Prayer: Father, Jesus, and Spirit, we thank you that you are with us. We acknowledge your presence in every moment of our lives. We entrust to you all our worries and fears. Teach us to understand the power of rest. Teach us to have faith in your mighty plans that we may enjoy every breath we breathe as we worship you. Amen.

By Jessica Joy Pamor, GC Pili Youth Leader
Bicol, Philippines

On June 15 – 17, Grace Communion Jacksonville hosted its third annual neighborhood youth camp. From 9:00 am – 7:00 pm, Thursday through Saturday, we hosted 34 campers ages 7 – 18. This year we had a 33% increase over last year. About half were first-time campers, and over a third came from the neighborhoods surrounding our church building.

Best Practices and Lessons Learned

• Twenty-six volunteer staff members helped with counseling, food, and activities. We also had a nurse. For those considering starting a neighborhood camp, you can do it with less staff. But we prefer to have three counselors with each of our grouping of campers, which we organize into four groups: pre-teen girls, pre-teen boys, teen girls, and teen boys. Of course, the kitchen crew is important. We offer three meals a day, and we’ve learned we usually need around 4-6 volunteers for a camp of 50 or more.
• Several other GCI congregations and ministries donated funds to help with the camp costs, and we’re very grateful. It enabled some deserving youth to be sponsored and helped to cover the expenses of our offsite outings.
• We’ve learned that the neighborhoods near our church are mainly positive towards churches and their members. So for us, it works well to have a spiritual focus. Each morning we start with breakfast, followed by a daily chapel service featuring praise and worship, and a prepared Christian message, with some interaction as well. Our three-year theme has been “God’s Grace” and each year we have taught various aspects and applications thereof. This year’s focus scripture was Titus 2:11-12 about how the grace of God has appeared and “teaches us to say ‘No’ to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age…” (NIV). All of this is shared within an atmosphere of love and acceptance shown for all the children, even when we do sometimes have to admonish them to show love to others at camp as well.
• We try to offer a wide variety of activities so that no one misses out on having some fun, and two off-site outings (the zoo and water park). We also include exposure to a Christian movie.

For more information, check out facebook.com/cffjax. As an aid in planning for your own neighborhood camp, we would also be happy to share our schedule, curriculum, and job descriptions.

Marty Davey, Pastor
Jacksonville, FL, US

On June 14 – 15, Grace Communion Derby hosted our first neighborhood day camp, “A Passport to Adventure.” The theme verse was Joshua 1:9. Camp ran from 7:30 am to 5 pm. God blessed us with 11 campers, 1st through 5th graders. Twenty-two staff members, ages 14 to 86, supported the camp. Fifteen came from GCDerby and three from local connections. We were also pleased to have the support and collaboration of three volunteers from two other GCI camps in our region.

On both mornings, campers arrived for a hot breakfast. Each day was filled with activities of music, worship skits, an escape room, arts and crafts, a science lab, board games, and outside events. The outside events included relay races, a water balloon toss, and any race that included getting wet to some degree.

We utilized church grounds and a city park across the street. Signage and flags identified the event to all who drove past. One of our members (74-year-old) served as a crossing guard.

A hot lunch and afternoon snack breaks were served each day. We ran two team tracks. Each team had an adult “navigator” leader. Campers had a personal passport with their picture. As they participated in the events, their passports would be stamped. Staff members came alongside the campers to support, cheer, and love them. No camper was left alone; someone would always engage and support them throughout the day.

As the camp concluded Thursday, parents came to a cookout and fixings for supper. Campers shared their artwork. The evening concluded with campers performing their musical skits.

Best Practices and Lessons Learned

• • Know your neighborhood. We served breakfast, because we learned that many campers participate in a free and reduced-price lunch program at their schools.
  • We offered scholarships to those who needed one. One parent told us that without the scholarship, her child would not have been able to come. Other parents expressed their gratitude.

Words cannot begin to share how much God blessed this camp. The universal feeling post-camp is we miss the campers!

Kirk Hayden, Pastor
Derby, KS, US

Grace Communion Big Sandy was blessed to hold our first neighborhood day camp. We had a great time with the young people that attended and are grateful for God giving us this opportunity to participate in Jesus’ ministry in our community. It took a lot of planning and work, but it was definitely worth it!

Below is a description from our Love Avenue Assistant, Anna McIver.

Jerome Ellard, Pastor
Big Sandy, TX, US

The camp was held from Thursday, June 8 to Saturday, June 10. Each day began with a free lunch at noon; activities started at 1:00 pm, with a brief snack break at 3:00 pm. The day ended at 5:00 pm. The theme for Thursday was Challenge Day: Mind and Body Challenge Games. The games on Friday added the challenge of water elements.

Camp ended on Saturday with a Family Day. Campers played a game called, Minute to Win It, learned dining etiquette, and helped prepare and serve dinner to their families. During the free spaghetti dinner, the campers and their families enjoyed a slideshow of camp. Fifty-two attended our dinner, including the staff. We also presented a few awards for the campers and mini campers. Afterwards, roughly 30 stayed for a movie. Some of our guests preferred to stay in the dining hall to continue their conversations.

Best Practices and Lessons Learned

• • Throughout the three days, we had 25 volunteer workers. Staff jobs included: registration, food crew, medics, activity directors, security, crafts, tech, and spaghetti dinner prep. Most staff doubled as activity assistants.
  • Pre-registration opened online a week before camp. A QR code linked to our google doc. Thirteen campers pre-registered, which helped the registration team and shortened the check-in time.
  • Thirty-one campers attended. We anticipated 25 campers as our max capacity, with a target audience of 5th – 12th grades. However, we only had 16 in this age range. We had 15 campers who were 5th graders or younger.

We had a great turnout for our first attempt at neighborhood camp.