It Happened at Church Camp

1 Corinthians 12: 4-13
Roger Lynn
July 30, 2017
(click here for the audio for this sermon)

I spent this past week watching a miracle unfold before my eyes. In fact, I participated in the unfolding. And I want to tell you about it because you made it possible for me to be there in the midst of the unfolding. Last week I was the chaplain at the middle school camp at Mimanagish, our church’s camp located on the Boulder River in the middle of the wilderness about an hour south of Big Timber. I could spend the week doing that because you allowed me the time to be there. I was, quite literally, there on your behalf. So it seems fitting that I share with you a bit of what took place in that amazingly beautiful setting. 

There were 17 middle-school aged youth, along with six adult volunteers, plus a small handful of support staff. We also shared the camp facility with another camp for high school youth. We had separated programming, but shared meals together. The staff arrived on Saturday afternoon and the youth arrived on Sunday afternoon. And almost immediately something remarkable began to take shape. Community began to form. Old friendships were re-kindled and new ones began to take shape. And over the course of the week it would become more and more apparent that something remarkable was happening. The community that formed was more than just a random group of early adolescents who were thrown together for a week. There was a tangible sense that God’s Spirit was actively at work in the midst of us, opening hearts and weaving connections. By the time we said good-bye yesterday morning and headed back down the road to resume our “normal” lives it was obvious that none of us were the same people who had arrived at camp a week earlier. Like butterflies emerging from cocoons, our lives had been transformed. These amazing young people were learning to spread their wings and soar on the winds of Spirit. 

One of my jobs as chaplain for this camp was to help instill a sense of awareness of the presence of God among us. Three of the primary ways I did this were by leading the morning watch devotional times just prior to breakfast, by helping to lead the singing at mealtimes, and to help small groups of youth plan and lead the vespers campfire worship each evening. It was such a privilege to work with these youth in these endeavors. They brought with them a willingness to be open to new ideas and new experiences. They exhibited genuine creativity in the planning of worship. And they stepped into leadership roles with poise, grace, and maturity. 

Each morning I shared a few brief thoughts about the spiritual theme for the day, offered them a handout with a poem on it, and sent them off to find a quiet spot to sit and reflect for a few minutes before the breakfast bell rang. Every single one of them responded by immersing themselves in the experience. One morning as I was watching them find their places scattered among the trees and settle in for their few moments of precious stillness I was deeply touched by the truly priceless privilege I had been given of spending the week with them. A wave of incredible love and connection washed over me. 

Early on in the week I was leading the singing at lunch and we were singing one of the songs I had taught them the day before. Almost immediately I was struck by the powerful way they were singing with such amazing heart. That brief glimpse of spiritual community being formed right before my very eyes nearly took my breath away. We were singing a song by Libby Roderick that I chose to share with them because of the message it contains that I believe is absolutely vital for them to hear. (Sing “How Can Anyone Ever Tell You”) And what I heard from them in that moment as they sang with such heart was that they got it – way down deep in their bones they got it. That single moment made the whole week worthwhile. And in this moment, I want to invite you to join me in singing it with as much heart as they expressed. (Sing it together.)

The experience of working with them in the planning and leading of vespers gave me hope for the future of the church and the world. They listened patiently while I explained some of the basics of worship planning. And they brought their whole selves to the process. In less than two hours each day they went from a few fragments of a theme to a fully fleshed out and creative worship experience which they then shared with the whole camp. They stood up in front of their peers and helped to guide them through a thoughtful and powerful experience of God’s presence, complete with songs, readings, dramatic presentations, and moments of group interaction. I know lots of adults with a lifetime of experience in the church who couldn’t do it any better.

There were, of course, other experiences as well. There was laughter. There were tears. There was hiking in the woods and getting caught out in the rain. There was time spent hanging out in the craft lodge creating small gifts to share with their secret pals. There was eating together and playing silly games together and learning to dance and drum and do archery. There was an adaptive staff who rolled with last minutes challenges which always present themselves in such situations. And all of it, the moments of obvious spiritual presence and the moments of quiet silliness, all of it blended together to mold us and shape us into a community where lives were touched and shaped and transformed by God. We stood together on holy ground. And there we learned to risk sharing ourselves honestly and deeply, because it was safe to do so within the community which was formed.

I spent this past week watching a miracle unfold before my eyes. And I am grateful for the privilege of being present to participate in its unfolding. Thank you for the opportunity to represent you in such a sacred endeavor.