I spent last week at a youth camp, Institute 2010: God’s All Stars, which is a ministry of the Conference Council on Youth Ministry of the Kansas East Annual Conference. This post is part of a series reflecting on the week and making applications for the local church.
I have a tendency, for good and bad, to focus on the outcomes of projects, events or ministry areas to which I commit my time. The outcomes of Institute seem to be a mixed bag for me. This year there were clearly students whose lives were changed by their experience of God at camp. This is an undeniable outcome that is difficult to dispute. If even one life is changed or one student decides to follow Jesus, is not the entire effort worth it? Maybe so… I cannot deny that God is at work through Institute. At the same time, I believe that with changes the week could be more meaningful for a greater number of students with lower anxiety for leaders, student and adult.
What about your local church? What are the outcomes of the projects, events or ministry areas? Is there good as well as bad that is accomplished through the work of the community?
I spent last week at a youth camp, Institute 2010: God’s All Stars, which is a ministry of the Conference Council on Youth Ministry of the Kansas East Annual Conference. This post is part of a series reflecting on the week and making applications for the local church.
Institute is an institution with the good and the bad that it brings. There are rich traditions and a history that brings the past to light and looks to the future. Many of the adult leaders at camp this summer remember an experience of the very same camp when they were young. One of the pastors among the adult leaders remembers feeling first called to ministry in the very place where we had morning worship during the week. However, the rich history has the side effect of narrowing the vision of what could be possible for a camp among the high school students of the Kansas East Conference. There are some practices that are clearly leftovers from time gone by and while faithful have ceased to be relevant.
What about in your local church? How has the past shaped who the community is today? In what ways does the history shape both the present and the future?
I spent last week at a youth camp, Institute 2010: God’s All Stars, which is a ministry of the Conference Council on Youth Ministry of the Kansas East Annual Conference. This post is part of a series reflecting on the week and making applications for the local church.
Part of the practice of the week at camp was to share a prayer square. Here is the practice of the prayer squares:
Choose a strip of cloth from the cross as a part of morning worship.
Write your name on the square and carry it with you throughout the day.
Return the strip of cloth to the cross as a part of evening worship.
Repeat the next day and continue to be in prayer for all those whose names are written on the cloth.
On the last day, take one home with you.
This is a cool practice. In addition to the opportunity to be in prayer, I was struck by the power of the entire camp moving forward to the cross. These pictures are from morning worship. You can see the cross in the front covered with green prayer squares and the students moving forward to the cross.
In what ways is your local church inviting people to the cross?
I spent last week at a youth camp, Institute 2010: God’s All Stars, which is a ministry of the Conference Council on Youth Ministry of the Kansas East Annual Conference. This post is part of a series reflecting on the week and making applications for the local church.
On the first day, I realized that Institute is a clique. There are insider language, traditions, games, jokes and expectations. My first response was negative, do high school students really need another clique? As the week continued I realized a significant difference in the clique that is Institute and others which exist in the world:
Institute is a clique where everyone is in.
If you are present at the camp, you are in. You can be part of the exclusive group, learn the traditions, language, games, jokes and expectations. Everyone is accepted into the clique.
What about your local church? Is there there insiders and outsiders? How do the common words and practices of your local church seem to those who are new? Is everyone in?
A week ago today, I was at a UMR Communications board of directors meeting. This was my first meeting. There are a great deal of challenges and opportunities that are before UMR Communications. I am excited to see what will be next. Will you please share how you connect with UMR Communications? It may be through the United Methodist Reporter, umportal.org, other publications, digital printing, books and journals or design services.
These are the top search terms over the past quarter that lead to viewing my blog – http://andrewconard.com. What does this list tell you about this blog or about searching people do on the internet?
My wife, Nicole, and I are expecting our first child in January. I am looking forward to the Dad Life, however I am not sure I’m looking forward to exactly what is depicted in this hilarious video.
Today begins my first experience of Kansas East Youth Institute. From a promotional poster:
For almost 100 years, young people have come to Baker University in Baldwin City, Kan., to attend United Methodist Youth Institute. Institute is a tradition of the Kansas East Conference Council on Youth Ministry. Institute is a unique week of spiritual formation and discipleship for senior high youth. At Institute, youth are taught to both receive and give care as taught by Jesus Christ.
Youth who have completed the eighth grade through graduating high school seniors are eligible to attend Institute.
The 2010 summer theme is “God’s All-Stars.” The Institute Vision Team selected this theme with you in mind. We will consider how people whom God calls upon for leadership are often a different type of All-Star than those the rest of the world calls upon for leadership.
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