Camping with Christ... For Lives of Faith...
This statement is the motto we live out at Camp of the Cross Ministries, but what does it really mean to CAMP with Christ for a LIFE of faith?
Camp of the Cross has been part of my life since I was a young camper. I remember my first week as a camper very well. I was the camper that constantly had to know where we were going next, what the time was, and what was for dinner. I was the camper whose faith life was ignited at Camp of the Cross. I was the camper who got in the car at the end of the week and told my parents that I was going to work at camp one day.
As a camper, I remember being on fire for Jesus after a week of camp. It was so easy to be excited about God and about my faith when I was surrounded by counselors, peers, and mentors who were as excited about their faith as I was. The struggle for me came when I left this beautiful place. How could I continue to live a life of faith?
As a staff member I always find myself pondering this question. How can Camp of the Cross help campers continue to live out their faith after they leave this place? How can we, visitors and supporters of camp, continue to live out lives of faith?
Camp of the Cross provides a place for people to get away from their daily lives to learn about what it means to be a Christian. It is a time for people to camp with Christ. To live in community, talk about struggles and strengths, support friends new and old, grow in their own faith, take a break from social media, escape the news of violence and oppression in the world, and find the presence of God in people and things around them. That’s what camping with Christ is to me. Camping with Christ for me was the solid ground upon which my faith was built.
Matthew 7:24-29 answers my question about how to continue to live a life of faith in our daily chaos. Jesus teaches that those who listen to His teachings will have a solid foundation on which to build a house that will withstand any storm. Camp of the Cross helps people build a solid faith foundation by providing the needs for people to Camp with Christ. Camping with Christ ignites a desire to live a life of faith. It supports us in our times of struggle in the midst of our daily lives, and it sets us up to live lives of faith away from Camp of the Cross.
The story doesn’t end there. The ellipses at the end of each statement (Camping with Christ…for Lives of Faith…) show that each individual that Camps with Christ continues their own story after they leave Camp of the Cross.
This is what Camp of the Cross is to me. Camp is a place to develop my own faith while supporting others in their faith development.
“On Christ the solid rock, I stand. All other ground is sinking sand.”
-Alyssa Nelson, Summer On-Site Coordinator