March 24, 1999
Texas camps for children
are gaining in popularity
___By Jeff Huett
___Special Correspondent
___When the final bell sounds and the schoolhouse door closes for the last time of the season, Nancy Conlin feels a sense of urgency.
___It's at this time of year that she and others in children's ministry throughout Texas and across the nation have the opportunity to affect the lives of children for Christ in ways not possible during the school year.
___In other words, it's time for camp. And summer camps aren't just for teenagers anymore.
___For some children, the idea of summer camp means a week-long day camp held at the church, while for others it means a four-day stay at one the state's 30 Baptist campsites.
___No matter the activity, the goal is the same--to help children grow in knowledge of God, while having a good time as well.
___"We spend more time with these children during the four days of the summer preteen camp than we do at any other time of the year," said Conlin, who is minister to children at First Baptist Church of Bryan.
___ "The camp is a great evangelism and discipleship opportunity and usually brings about a lot of decisions for Christ," she added
___Aaron Weast is in his 11th year as director of Camp Buck-ner and structures his camp to provide the "spiritual food" that is so important to children.
___"Our goal is to place the campers in the most positive Christian atmosphere there is, but we're not here to beat a Bible over their heads," he said. "We want to plant a seed in them through positive Christian examples and through the positive activities that go on."
___Bible study is a major emphasis at the camp, along with recreational activities that the campers each choose from a list of options. Days at the camp begin with cabin clean-up and breakfast, followed by recreation activities, team sports and a camp-wide devotion. Time also is allotted for the campers to end their day in the intimacy of their own cabin with a small group devotion with trained counselors.
___Camp Buckner's focus of strengthening relationships mirrors that of Baptist camps nationwide.
___David Garrard, minister to children at St. Matthews Baptist Church in Louisville, Ky., has written nine curricula for groups to use at children's camps. His focus is strengthening relationships through strengthening children's commitment to Christ.
___"The children need to work on a commitment to Christ and realize that it will affect every aspect of their lives," Garrard said. "It affects relationships, friendships and respect of others. But the starting point for all of this is Jesus Christ."
___Garrard has found that the materials he developed work well with the children and the leaders and stress issues that campers can follow and learn. He also has learned that small day trips are a great way to minister to the children.
___"On the Road with Pastor Les" has become a favorite for the children at his church, where two or three times during the summer, Pastor Les Hollon takes the children to the workplace of a church member. The adults in the workplace tell the children about their jobs and lead tours of the facility before the group prays for each other.
___Ginger Bumguardner, minister of childhood education at First Baptist Church of Abilene, said the activities she plans for children are centered in teaching the Bible while building children's creativity. Through programs like "A Day in the Country," a week-long day camp, or the preteen camp, the church is reaches children who may never have been to church.
___The "Day in the County" program was organized to allow the children to make their own fun by enjoying nature.
___"Kids aren't being creative today because we have other things like Nintendo that keep their minds occupied," Bumguardner said. "So we go out into God's world and look for bugs."
___While the children first looked to her for something to do out in the country, they soon began finding their own ways to have fun by building forts, tree houses and simply playing with each other.
___The main thing, said Red Colquitt, a Missions Service Corps volunteer for the North American Mission Board, is that the children go home from summer camp with something meaningful and something they can build on.
___"Children at the preteen age are still open to the gospel, and because of this, we see a lot of decisions," he said. "God is doing a mighty work in Christian camping."
___Colquitt said 293,288 people attended Baptist camps in Texas last year. Of those, 7,551 made first-time professions of faith, 8,721 recommitted their lives to Christ and 846 made commitments to vocational Christian ministry.
___Although these numbers include all age groups, he said the statistics speak well for the effectiveness of Baptist camps in the state.Frontpage / Contents/ Masthead / Why We're Here / Links / Archive / E-mail us/ SUBSCRIBE!