2012 Youth Camp - A Perspective

Hi guys! Its been a while since camp but here is my take from it. The theme of the camp in 2012 was the same as the Youth theme, which was “I Am His and He Is Mine”. The 2 things that really stood out during camp were - numbness and worth.

Numbness. A number of people shared, both within the groups and with the rest of the campers how they had gone through painful times in their lives. What happens when one experiences pain/conflict? 2 reactions, fight or flight. You can not actually “fight” a pain literally so fight here would mean to confront/face. Or flight, which is basically running away from whatever. Many shared how they at first tried or are still trying to run away from their hurts. As often preached in movies and music is the saying, “time will heal all things”. This message has permeated into the world and a lot of people actually live by this. Problem occurs, ignore it, live normally and hope that it will go away. Now these problems can range from relationships to bad habits to basically anything. We try to tell ourselves that everything is “ok” and that we can “move on” by just avoiding it. We numb ourselves to it. We just stop thinking about it. We cut out our “feelings”. Just imagined if we did this with every problem that we had in our lives. After a while, you will probably end up as someone who trust no one and who relies only on himself. “Well at the end of the day, I feel better so it does not matter” is our thought.

Worth. This was an issue that lot of people shared about. Where they placed their worth in whether it be their abilities, friends, family or achievements. It’s a struggle, especially when we live in a world that screams, “YOU can do it”, “work hard and you will make it” and the likes.

These things change our worldview. As Christians, we have been called to live a life for Christ. We have been called to spread the good news. We have been reassured that it is not by our works but by grace that we have been saved.

Psalm 62:1-2“Truly my soul finds rest in God, my salvation comes from Him. Truly he is my rock and my salvation, He is my fortress and I will never be shaken.”

How can we live for God when we have numbed ourselves to others? How can we proclaim that we have been saved by grace when we place our worth in ourselves? Jesus has called us to deny ourselves, take up our, cross and follow Him. As king David has expressed, God provides the way out. Surrender your pain to Him and confront the pain. Surely it would not be a pleasant experience but at the end of the day, in Him, we will not be shaken.

To end things, I would like to remind all of you about the people around you who you know are hurting. Whether it be from camp, in youth or just in school, care for them. Reassure them that God does in fact love them no matter what.

- Alex Tan

PS: snowed for a few hours here!

Images taken from:

http://oligo-lucky.blogspot.com/2012/08/new-symptoms-portent-for-3rd-recurrance.html
http://www.smarta.com/blog/2010/2