This past weekend, I had the opportunity to go back to Camp Sumatanga (a place I have talked about before: see here). As I have said before, I can’t imagine a place on this Earth that is more bathed in prayer or has a more consistent and palpable presence of God.
This time, I had the great privilege of attending a once a lifetime experience called “Walk to Emmaus”. The walk is based on Luke 24:13-35 where Jesus appears to two disciples on the first Easter afternoon. First let me say this: I was a little freaked out by the idea of this experience. I mean, I know that everyone says it is a positive and wonderful experience. The thing is, no one will tell you much about it. I didn’t understand why, but now I know. To try to explain my experience would be meaningless to you. I can tell you some of the things I got from it, but if you went through the whole thing sitting next to me, you’re experience would be different. Of the men I talked to, no two people got the same message.
What I will say is this: My life will never be the same. I will never look at the world quite the same again. I know i’m going to fall, I know I’ll probably have days where I am cynical and the mountain top I’m on right now is bound to lead to a valley. Any journey must move forward and this one is no exception.
I learned about and experienced God’s Grace, love and his forgiveness in a way that I had never before felt. The whole weekend was full of new friends, new perspectives and a new appreciation for God’s call on my life.
For now, I will just say this: Christ is counting on you to be his hands and feet in this world. Go out there and share his love!
De Colores!
Ann and I started praying some time ago about the direction our lives should go. I have been asking God about a very specific path that I have always felt was a call on my life, but that I don’t feel like I have ever really implemented. I guess it’s more about the realization that I have had that what I am doing in my career, while it is a good career choice, just isn’t what I really want in my life. After we started praying about it, I started noticing some changes in my life. I have had an opportunity to get some of my spiritual “junk” out and give it to God, I’ve seen a difference in my attitude on life and the most amazing thing is that i’ve started to see a change in my opportunities. God has started showing me some doors. They aren’t open just yet, but I can see them. I don’t even know where they may lead, but I am encouraged that it seems like He’s started placing people in my life that may put me in a position to make a move into another place in my life in the next few months or years.
My gut is that this won’t be quick, it probably won’t be easy and it very likely will cost me something. I just know that whatever I sacrifice for God will be worth it. What I don’t know is what it will look like, whether it will be something I can manage to do full time or if it just means that God is letting me get a taste of it to see something bigger. It is the desire of my heart to move out of the “norm” I am in now into something completely extraordinary, but only if that is with God and it fits his purpose for my life.
You can’t get a better boss…
If you pray, pray with me on this. You don’t have to know specifics but when I feel like I am released to talk more about it, I will.
I was reading a former boss, and friend’s blog this morning and he had written about going to a Christian writers conference at a retreat center in the mountains of North Carolina. His blog post got me to thinking about the time I spent at Camp Sumatanga when I was younger.
Camp Sumatanga is a United Methodist owned and sponsored camp in the lower Appalachian mountains several miles from my home. I started going there the summer before my freshman year of high school expecting the usual “Church Camp” stuff. You probably know what I mean by that. I was expecting to be beat over the head with the “30 pound Bible on a stick” but in such a way that we were having “fun” and by “fun” I mean we would be forced into silly activities and games that would make us look like complete dorks.
Well, I guess to some extent that was true… at least my first day or so there. We did play some games and were forced into activities like dancing (I know.. Methodists…) to some silly songs and doing hand motions during the songs at “service” times.
What I didn’t expect was that we would dive into really loving God and finding him in the quiet that made up a large portion of every day. Every morning at 6:00 am the music played over the camp to wake us up so we could get a shower and be ready to eat at 6:30 (NEVER… I repeat NEVER eat the eggs at breakfast.) 6:00 am. Who were they kidding? IT’S SUMMER! I’m not supposed to be up at 6:00 am! Well, the truth is, it was such a beautiful time of day in the valley of that camp looking around at the mountains that by the time I made it to breakfast every day it didn’t matter. Now, realize I am a stupid 14 year old kid… but somehow I managed to appreciate the beauty of the sun coming over the mountain. Just one of the little “tricks” they had that got my attention.
After breakfast there was morning watch. We were given a sheet of paper with some scriptures to look up (yes, we had to look them up, not just read them from the page) and some devotional material on it that related to the theme of the week. We had to be completely silent during this time and we were supposed to go find a place in the camp that was isolated… somewhere we could be alone with God. Then there was a prayer at the end. I am not a big fan of reading a prayer that someone else wrote for me to pray. I’ve always felt like that was someone else’s prayer and that I needed to do my own thing… these prayers were different. Somehow those prayers managed to set the tone of the entire day and really get me ready for the message God had in store.
During the course of a day we would have two worship services, one was very focused, one very laid back. We had time to spend doing whatever we wanted and we had time where we would meet with a small group and discuss our “lesson” for the day. I hate using that word “lesson” because it really doesn’t describe it.. I think journey might be a better word, because every day started another journey. If you can imagine putting a group of high school kids who don’t know one another in a building with no air conditioning in June.. (remember, this is in Alabama) and that those kids could have a real experience with God and really get some meat from the word.
Of course, given that this was a high school group there was always drama. There was always some kid who didn’t want to spend a week in a cabin with no air conditioning, no TV, no radio and a hefty crop of mosquitoes and chiggers but their parents made them come there. There was almost certainly by Tuesday a number of “romances” going on that would more than likely end by the time Saturday came around. I guess even in the most intimate places with God there are going to be distractions. I was guilty of some of that myself, but thankfully God managed to get me focused back in when I needed it most.
I can’t really put it into words, and I know this post has been disjointed, but I can’t remember any other times in my life that I have ever felt like I was really immersed in Him. I came away from that week with a greater understanding and passion for God. It was in that place, at that time that knew God was really there. I knew that God was not only attainable, He was waiting on me to get quiet enough to hear His voice. A lot of days now, I miss that intimacy.
I’ve got to find a place and a time to get away and find that again. I still talk to God daily, and I still hear his voice, but it has never been so clear and so strong as it was when I got out of all the clutter and let myself focus on him.
One more memory… on Friday night we had a service where the lights were down in the chapel and we sort of “developed the film” of the journey from that week. It helped make things real. We had communion together, as a group of believers and as a group of people who had just spent a week in constant communion with God. We lit candles and walked out into an open area in the camp under the stars and the enormity of God’s creation and we prayed. We had a time to pray for each other, to laugh, cry and be a family. We had spent the last week on an accelerated journey together, and through it we had become a family. It was our chance to say goodbye to one another, because come Saturday morning we would have to go back into the world that had crowded our head with so much noise and clutter that it was difficult to hear from God. When we left that area we left in silence, no words were to be spoken, no music played and no unnecessary noise of any kind. We just soaked. I just got to absorb it all, to really feel the connection. I got a chance to hear from God, and to make my peace with him before going back out into the hectic world outside the gates of Camp Sumatanga. The silence was never awkward. Everyone knew that the silence was filled with praise and basking in God’s glory.
Responsibilities & Expectations
It is important for the pastor and congregation to have a clear understanding of their respective responsibilities and expectations. One of the best such covenants we’ve encountered was written by Dr. Hayes Wicker upon his call to the First Baptist Church of Naples, Florida. Note also the insightful way this defines the character of the church.
Covenant Understanding Between Pastor and People
1. We must discover the activity of God and adjust to it.
2. Undergird everything with prayer.
3. We must walk by faith. Think big not small. (“With God nothing is impossible.”)
4. The bottom line is not “can we afford it?” but “is it God’s will?” (Where He guides He provides.)
5. Everything should be done in the light of this mission statement, “To know Christ and to make Him known.” (We glorify God by reaching people.)
6. All matters should be subjected to the Scriptures. (The issue is truth not tradition or convenience.)
7. The Church is a hospital for sinners not a country club for saints.
8. Problems will be dealt with, not ignored.
9. Hard work is necessary. (William Carey said, “Expect great things from God, attempt great things for God.”)
10. Strive for week-long and year-long ministry (not just Sunday or the season).
11. There must be constant adjustment for growth. We cannot get overly comfortable. We must create new Bible study units, new ministries, and constantly improve the quality of education.
12. Recognizing that most people have limited time for church, then we must maximize time and do the most important.
13. Ministry is more important than meeting (committees, etc.).
14. Each Christian should discover his/her gift, passion and ministry.
15. We must seek to understand our cultural context and minister to it (baby-boomers, Florida leisure lifestyle, etc.).
16. We should strive for quality and excellence in every area (appearance, music, publication, etc.)
17. The Pastor and staff should be allowed to initiate and lead with trust, support and prayers of the church.
18. Criticism, murmuring and slander must not be allowed to disrupt the fellowship. The Deacons act as peacemakers.
19. We must recognize the need for additional staff to equip believers. (Rarely does a church have too many staff. They pay their way.) This involves more ministers and support personnel.
20. The family must be strengthened not undermined.
21. Outreach must be the priority.
22. We must be vitally concerned with meeting needs and healing hurts through ministries and developing relationships.
23. Biblical doctrine is nonnegotiable; methods are open to evaluation.
24. Since all sin and make mistakes, an attitude and atmosphere of grace must abound.
25. We must seek to develop a lighthouse ministry to all of Southwest Florida.
Goal of the Church
1. To exalt God in worship.
2. To evangelize, bringing people to a saving knowledge of Christ, with a church attitude that is outward oriented rather than a holy huddle mentality.
3. To edify, taking new Christians and maturing them in the faith.
4. To extend, reaching out into the community to meet physical, spiritual, relational, and emotional needs.
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