Next Generation Ministry Blog

Late night campfires, roasting marshmallows (which somehow got over every piece of clothing you owned), pranks on other cabins, jumping in a freezing cold lake, canoeing (or, at least attempting to canoe), eating 4 bowls of cereal for breakfast...because you could, realizing that there was peanut butter and jelly available at every meal, not showering for 4 days in a row (because everybody else stank too), making life long memories...

these are the things of camp.

As we've talked about in other places, loosing your marbles is a good thing.

One thing parents can do leverage their marbles well is to proactively connect their kids to other trusted adults and a regular group of peers.  This is particularly true in the middle and high school years.  Adolescent psychologists tell us that middle schoolers are attempting to shift from concrete thinking to abstract thinking.  And in the process, they are attempting to connect dots which, to us as leaders or parents, often sound incredibly left field…but not in their brains.  Applying this to one’s faith development, middle school is the time when middle schoolers are moving into the deeper things of God and doing their best to connect all the dots.  This can often lead to something that sounds like doubt.  Having a group of peers with whom they can wrestle through their ideas and a trusted adult who will continue to point them to Jesus becomes increasingly important.

Parents, let me ask you: when your daughter or son has a question that they don’t want to ask you about, don’t you want to know that there is another adult who will point them to Jesus?  Why not be proactive and help them form some of these relationships?  After all - once they’re in middle school, there is somewhere between 300-350 weeks left until they graduate high school.

It’s right here when an experience at camp is so profound.  It’s not only that it’s a beautiful location, or that the food is fun…but it is a place where your son or daughter is surrounded by a group of their peers and trusted adults.  It’s here that they can wrestle the things of faith all the while walking with people who will continue to point them to their Savior.

If you've never thought about sending your kids to camp...it's worth thinking through.  There are two camps in Michigan that we've worked with and highly recommend: Camps Concordia and Arcadia.  Both have options for teens (as a side note: Concordia also has options for elementary aged children while Arcadia has some great family options).  Registration is happening now.  So, my suggestion...get on it.