Posts Tagged campmeeting
Another Great Campmeeting Website
Posted by admin in General Camp Meeting Issues on May 20th, 2010
Take time to familiarize yourself with World Gospel Missionary John Muehleisen website with a lot of great information on camp meetings
www.campmeeting.us
News and Notes
Posted by admin in General Camp Meeting Issues on January 19th, 2009
Now is the time people are making plans for their summer… are you on their radar with an email or brochure?
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This Friday Ed Bryson will be in New Jersey and he and I are planning to meet to discuss the 2009 conference which will be held in Wilmore Kentucky with the Francis Asbury Society as the host and lead sponsor. In the next several weeks we will have more details. Here is some basic information for you as you plan to attend.
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- The dates are October 7-9, 2009
- A block of 25 rooms has been reserved at the Asbury Inn on the campus of Asbury Theological Seminary. There are 35 rooms in the Inn, so we will have the place largely to ourselves.
- We will be meeting at the new Francis Asbury Society Conference Center.
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One passing thought – this past week our church welcomed a pastoral intern, Josiah Beers. Josiah’s dad, Jerry was the evangelist at Delanco Camp and preached the night I accepted Christ. I have run into the family occasionally over the last 20 years but it was this summer at Hollow Rock that God really gave me time to reconnect with my friends. Josiah shared his call to ministry and a desire to come and possibly spend some time with me, maybe as a summer intern.
God worked things out so that he was available this spring semester so we have enrolled him at the local community college (a great option for young people to save money, especially if planning to head on to grad school!), are finding him a job, found him a place to live with a church member and he is serving with our church. Who in your camp might benefit from an arrangement like this?
We have a beautiful opportunity at our camps to host and identify the best of the best young leaders, encourage and equip them and introduce them to pastors and leaders to help them grow. This is certainly part of the unique calling we have as camp leaders, an impact way to enrich the Kingdom!
Live Christmas Nativity at Camp Wesley
Posted by admin in General Camp Meeting Issues on December 11th, 2008
At our conference this past October, Trent Patterson, President of Camp Wesley from Mooresville, NC shared with the group about a partnership the camp had forged with a group named, “Walk thru Bethlehem” to produce a live nativity at the camp.
Here is an update for Trent about the event:
Rain kept the attendance at about half of what they were expecting, but nearly one thousand visitors came despite the weather. 180 staff and volunteers served to create the experience.
The next weekend with better weather will bring an expected few thousand visitors.
You can see the photo album for the event here
The majority of people who attended had never heard of Camp Wesley before.
Finding strategic partners to work with during your off-season can be a double edged sword. The wrong partnership can damage your facility and your reputation in the community. However the right partnership can greatly increase your ministry in numerous ways:
- Public Relations – more potential campers will learn about your facilities and program
- Fundraising – Potential Donors see what you are all about
- Government Relations – the more people you bless the more will defend you against encroachment.
- Stewardship – enabling ministry to happen year round
If you are going to entertain or have already formed partnerships I recommend you develop a fairly detailed memorandum of understanding so both parties know what the expectations are in the relationship.
It is also important to monitor the ministry and their activities on your grounds. Demand the group produces an insurance rider which lists you as additionally insured with a bare minimum of $1 million dollars of protection.
Also, ask that each group adds a link on their website to your website and spend a few minutes talking about your ministry during their program. Have brochures available in the dining hall or in places where groups might congregate.
There are several possibilities for complimentary ministry in your area. One I would recommend which has local chapters nationwide is the Walk to Emmaus program.
Camp Meetings and the Homosexual Agenda
Posted by admin in Legal Issues on October 28th, 2008
Last year at the camp meeting presidents conference I referenced a case out of Ocean Grove New Jersey where a camp meeting lost their not for profit status for refusing to allow a homosexual union to be held on their property. This recent article from the 10/27/2008 Los Angeles Times references the case and puts it into a greater context of religious freedom and organizational autonomy.
Gay rights and the 1st Amendment on a collision coursePoint: Dean R. BroylesDoes same-sex marriage threaten your freedoms of speech and religion? Put slightly differently, does the coordinated legal agenda of those who oppose Proposition 8 have the potential to undermine core 1st Amendment rights? Today in California and across our nation, the homosexual legal agenda and 1st Amendment rights are on a violent collision course. Religious freedom is your right to believe, profess and practice your faith without government interference. Freedom of speech is your right as a citizen to express yourself without government interference, no matter how unpopular your views. Freedom of speech includes religious speech.
In a Proposition 8 debate panel I was a part of a few weeks ago, an ACLU attorney kept repeating the mantra that same-sex marriage poses no threat to religious freedom. However, a broad range of constitutional attorneys and scholars disagree and affirm that this “rights” clash is real. Marc Stern of the American Jewish Congress calls it a pending “train wreck” or “Armageddon.” In a chilling statement, Chai Feldblum, a Georgetown University law professor and thoughtful gay activist who helps draft federal legislation related to sexual orientation, said that when push comes to shove and religious- and sexual-liberty conflict, “I’m having a hard time coming up with any case in which religious liberty should win.”
The actual evidence is overwhelming that this conflict is not imagined but very real. Unfortunately, religious freedom and free speech are increasingly on the losing end of the equation. In 2005, Swedish minister Ake Green was sentenced to jail for preaching about homosexuality from the New Testament book of Romans (the conviction was eventually overturned). New Jersey’s Ocean Grove Campground, a religious nonprofit, lost its tax-exempt status in 2007 because the organization refused to rent its facility to a lesbian couple for a civil commitment ceremony. In 2006, Catholic Charities of Boston stopped doing adoption work rather than be coerced by the Massachusetts to place children with same-sex couples. A Massachusetts father was arrested in 2007 when he would not leave the school because the administration stubbornly refused to acknowledge his legal right to opt his child out of ongoing homosexual indoctrination occurring in a kindergarten class.
Increasing Bed Capacity on a Budget
Posted by admin in Start a Campmeeting on September 27th, 2008
PART FOUR: Where will they stay?
Walking along the path to the Tabernacle, waiting in line at the dining hall or sitting by your bed at camp, have you ever wondered what it was like to start a camp meeting?
What were the conversations which took place around campfires and after church services? Who were these people and why would they make such sacrifices?
Would you and I stumble into a holler in Ohio, along a farm road in North Carolina or down a long sugar sand path in New Jersey and say, “Hey, this looks like a great place to build a camp meeting?”
I have been thinking a lot about the boldness and faith of those who began the work that we have been blessed to join. I wonder if someone were to start a camp meeting today, 2008, what would it look like?
Rather than pull punches, here it is. The lodging facilities at most camp meetings are substandard. I wish it were different but that does not change the reality.
Some lodging facilities on our camps are excellent. In fact people want to stay in them throughout the summer. These are usually owned and lived in by people who have been part of the camp for a long time, even having these cabins or rooms handed down from parents or grandparents. But what about the new family who wants to get in on the experience?
We tend to look at our facilities through 50 year-old lenses. If it were good enough for us when we were younger… If it were good enough in years gone by…
Well its not good enough for a young mother who works hard to keep her mobile home or small apartment clean to come and cram her family into a small room or cottage for a week. The bugs, the leaks, the dirt and dingy curtains, she works hard to make sure the house is nice 51 weeks a year and when she goes on “vacation” it will take a lot to overcome that initial deflating reality that where they are staying is what she works so hard to protect her family from.
We need to have fresh, unbiased eyes evaluate the lodging we offer people. I have been to camps that remind me of colonial England. Some live like Lords in well appointed air-conditioned rooms and cottages while the youth live like peasants, cleaning bathrooms, serving in the cafeteria and sleep each night packed in double bunked Spartan shacks. The colonists were smart enough to flee this type of system and yet we scratch our heads when our youth drop out of the program. (Trust me, this is descriptive of numerous camps so I am not picking on you if this rings a bell)
Of course youth are going to wreck their dorms so they need not be cover material for a decorating magazine but a walk through with a parent who is not affiliated with your camp might open your eyes. Listen to the youth program directors as well.
I realize that upgrading the facilities, especially lodging is hard to do and expensive for a camp that runs 2 weeks per year. One might consider renting out or running additional programs to increase revenue which could be used for renovations or to pay a professonal cleaning crew to come in right before camp.
Another wise investment is for the camp to create a place for Recreational Vehicles to park. I have seen this work in numerous camps and retreat facilities. You might not be able to bring the existing lodging facilities up to the level where young families are comfortable but many have their own RV’s and are more than comfortable in their “own space”. Though the cost of fuel has curtailed some of the long cross-country excursions, people are looking for opportunities to drive a couple hours and camp a week somewhere where they and their children will be safe.
Several camps are currently in the planning and execution phases of adding new or additional RV space and hook ups for families. While a cottage might be out of reach financially for these people or the waiting list years long at some camps, they can pull up and try the campmeeting experience right away.
If you are interested in adding RV space or any lodging issues, lets talk about this at the Summit. There are some really good ideas out there and people who come are committed to seeing your ministry succeed and learning from you so they might be the best stewards of their God-appointed ministry.
To Start a Campmeeting: Public Relations
Posted by admin in General Camp Meeting Issues, Start a Campmeeting on September 27th, 2008
Random Suggestions for your Camp Meeting
Walking along the path to the Tabernacle, waiting in line at the dining hall or sitting by your bed at camp, have you ever wondered what it was like to start a camp meeting?
What were the conversations which took place around campfires and after church services? Who were these people and why would they make such sacrifices?
Would you and I stumble into a holler in Ohio, along a farm road in North Carolina or down a long sugar sand path in New Jersey and say, “Hey, this looks like a great place to build a camp meeting?”
I have been thinking a lot about the boldness and faith of those who began the work that we have been blessed to join. I wonder if someone were to start a camp meeting today, 2008, what would it look like?
If I were to start or restart a camp meeting program today there are some key elements and some style things I would include.
First – A Place Where One Could Hear and Experience the Holiness Message
Second – Missions at the Heart of It All
I Love To Tell the Story
There are some ideas I would implement in regard to marketing the ministry so the maximum number of people would see the camp meeting experience in the best possible light and give one week to see if it is a worthwhile investment:
• A Quarterly Newsletter that would be mailed to those who have not embraced email and internet technology. It will be another decade and likely more before a camp should consider doing away with paper communication of their message.
• A brochure mailed out at least 4 months in advance of the camp and including the dates for the next two years somewhere inside.
• A Website with information about giving to the camp via online bank bill pay and Paypal or another trusted vendor.
• Sunday night(s) the snack shack would be closed and people would be encouraged to bring goodies to the dining hall where there would be beverages and maybe some fun little presentations/program.
• Offer a giving plan where a person can give a dollar a month or $25 per year to get them started.
• Offer information about estate planning and remembering the ministry in one’s estate plan.
• A monthly ezine newsletter, a facebook page and during camp having a couple people blog (journaling online) about the experience.
NEXT:
Where will they stay?
RV Facilities a great way to welcome new people to hear the old, old story…
How Would One Start a Campmeeting?
Posted by admin in General Camp Meeting Issues, Start a Campmeeting on September 27th, 2008
Walking along the path to the Tabernacle, waiting in line at the dining hall or sitting by your bed at camp, have you ever wondered what it was like to start a camp meeting?
What were the conversations that took place around campfires and after church services? Who were these people and why would they make such sacrifices?
Would you and I stumble into a holler in Ohio, along a farm road in North Carolina or down a long sugar sand path in New Jersey and say, “Hey, this looks like a great place to build a camp meeting?”
I have been thinking a lot about the boldness and faith of those who began the work that we have been blessed to join. I wonder if someone were to start a camp meeting today, 2008, what would it look like?
If I were to start or restart a camp meeting program today there are some key elements and some style things I would include.
First I would emphasize unashamedly the holiness message and the God-given potential for a person to live a life pleasing to God. I would make this distinctive distinct and pronounced in everything we did. There is really no reason for a person to go to the great lengths of coming a camp meeting unless they receive something of value that is also unique. Holiness is valuable; I hope we can all agree on that. The preaching and living of holiness in a 7 day or 10 day laboratory is highly unique.
Back when many of our beloved camps were founded there were plenty of churches, but few that preached entire sanctification and holiness, even fewer who did it well. People passed by many churches to come to camp and live in rustic conditions for the opportunity to be challenged, inspired and offered the opportunity to live a holy life.
Today, from my desk I can download text and audio of some great holiness preaching. I have a library of Schmul books that was inaccessible to my pioneer brethren. I have access to the holiness message should I choose to invest in finding it. Certainly we need to make the message more accessible online and in every way but I think it a fair point to say the message is much more readily accessible to the average American than it was 100-150 years ago.
What is unique about a camp meeting or at least should be present in a new camp is the embodiment of the message. When I come to a camp meeting I am looking to see the message lived out daily in the lives of people who are there. You can have seven preaching services a day but the proof is in the cafeteria line and the porch swinging and the after-glowing. I want to see people who are aspiring to live a holy life deal with the deaths of loved ones, losing their jobs, obstinate children, wonderful promotions, financial windfalls, personal victories, all of the blessings and trials of life. I want to learn from how they handle these issues so I can follow their lead on the Highway of Holiness.
When I look back on my first days visiting the campmeeting grounds twenty years ago, there are many memories that I replay in my mind. One which is a sacred memory to me is a of a man named Gilbert Stillwagon staying up until 3 a.m. one night, drinking coffee, listening to me, asking me probing questions and explaining the holy life to this 17 year old boy.
He was a minister from Urichsville, Ohio and not a young man but he took the time to talk to me that night rather than sleep. Over the next few days and years I would watch him to see if the things he said were evident in his life. I was not disappointed – he was a real person, a real person who answered questions honestly even when it did not paint him in the best light but also always pointed me toward his passion for the holy life.
We talked many times after that but I will always remember walking away from the dining hall at Delanco Camp that night thinking, “Why would this distinguished gentleman invest four hours of his life talking to some kid?”
The purpose of the campmeeting is at the heart of the answer to this question I think. If I were to build a campmeeting I would find a way to facilitate these kinds of conversations.
This is what I would look for in a campmeeting were I to start a new one today, or if I were considering making somewhere my “home camp” where I would invest my family’s ministry and vacations over the next 20-40 years.
NEXT:
Missions
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2009 Conference Host
The Francis Asbury Society
October 7-9, 2009 Wilmore. Kentucky 2010 Conference World Gospel Mission International Headquarters Marion, IndianaSubscriptions
