By Debbie Leonard

Another summer is flying by and we just finished enjoying our annual week of camp. Yes, 135 campers, 35 counselors, cit’s (counselors in training), coaches and assistants spent last week playing soccer, basketball, hockey, and crazy games and doing lots of creative, imaginative artwork.

As great as that was, it is not what camp is all about. It may be what brings the kids to camp, but it is not the “why” of camp.

Camp was created to bring our neighborhood kids into an environment where we can spend time teaching them spiritual truths. Five days of telling them how much God loves them, how much He wants to know them, and all that He has done for them to have a new life. In many ways it is the most exciting week of the year for those of us in children’s ministry.

We know that 60% of our campers do not come from New Life Dresher. That doesn’t mean, of course, that they are all unchurched or unbelieving. But a portion are hearing about Jesus for the first time or for one of the only times.

We feel the weight of that, but also the joy! God brings these kids into camp. Every year new families sign up and we are given the chance to talk to them about our great God.

We know spiritual seeds are planted and we pray for that. We pray for God to take our feeble attempts and to use them for His glory. This year one of our 3rd-graders came to Todd Hill and asked him if the Bible stories we spoke about are true. And when we pray, are we really talking to God and does He talk back to us?

That story is so exciting and we are praising God for how He will continue use our week with our campers.