Need to start packing...

Two days to go...we're leaving Heathrow at 7.05 on Wednesday evening. Returning on the 29th at 5.50am!

Camp last week was absolutely fantastic. It was tiring and demanding, but I really enjoyed working with the kids and teaching them about the Lord Jesus. Some reflections on the week:

* The diversity of young people attending the camp seems to reflect ministry life in general, with some requiring lengthy sacrificial attention and others encouraging you by their growth and maturity.
* Personal work and discipleship on camp cannot just be done - it needs to be planned and prayed for. The resemblance to what we're trying to do in Oxford struck me several times - the need for times to review and plan strategy as a group as well as times of prayer.
* Bible teaching needs to be tailored to this age group. Obviously God's word is His word, but there is no need to explain absolutely everything in a passage. The youngsters need to be able to arrive at the key points and application themselves.

It really is such a joy seeing people see who Jesus is, but our prayer is that repentant lifestyles would accompany these professions of faith, and that those not yet there would have a desire to get involved with youth groups and read God's word for themselves.

Camp beckons

As I mentioned earlier, my mind hasn't switched into Malaysia mode yet, as I'm quite wrapped up in preparations for next week. I'm being a leader (for the first time) on Casterton 1, a CYFA venture in...Casterton! Which is in the Lake Distruct. The members are aged between 11 and 14, and the week presents a wonderful opportunity for the gospel, as they put it, "in the context of a cracking holiday".

I went last year as an Assistant leader which involved much dishwashing, practical help and organising games. We also had our own teaching programme which included a Bible overview, Bible skills session and an evening study in Colossians. It was an amazing week for several reasons. Firstly, the week was a significant milestone in my Christian life. I can't put my finger on why, undoubtably it had to do with our AL teaching stream. Secondly, I realised what a great joy gospel work is. Without a doubt, the highlight of the week was not the crazy games, Lake District scenery or even the AL team-bonding. It was simply being in the same room as young people hearing the good news. It was so exciting to witness a new generation being shown God's way both by the talks/bible studies and by the behaviour and testimonies of the Christians running the camp. We were told to see our work doing washing up and cleaning as part of the Kingdom work because it was giving the Dorm leaders time for personal work with their 'members'. And Thirdly it was just hoards of fun. I'd encourage any Christian student to get involved in one of these AL programmes - you won't regret it!

As I think about this year, being part of a dorm is quite scary. That said, my dorm has five leaders and eight members so please pray that we can work well together. And please pray for the kids we will be spending the week with, that some of them might come to know Jesus, and those who profess would grow and mature as we prepare to teach them the implications of the lordship of Christ in their lives. I'll be leading a Bible study on John 11, and would appreciate prayer as I prepare that, that I would be faithful to the passage and tailor the study appropriately at this age group. The personal work side of things will be new to me, and pray that the friendships would make conversations possible and natural.

What I know about the trip...so far

St Ebbe's have organised a summer team to Malaysia for the last three or four years, and this year, I'll be going with them. We're going for four weeks to Kuala Lumpur (hope I've spelled that right), staying in OMF hostels and feeding on-the-go. Ebbe's have strong ties with a church called SMACC (St Mary's Anglican Cathedral Contemporary Gathering - yes I know there's no 'G'), and we're going to be helping them in various capacities.

I quote Sam Allberry who is leading the team:

We'll be helping with a youth camp (teens) our first weekend; there will be 2 evangelistic dinners at a hotel (one near the begninning of our trip, the other near the end); a 2-night trip to see ministry among the indigenous people; dialogue suppers; possible kids holiday club; and helping with some events at the Cathedral.

I intend to keep this blog up-to-date with news, photos, prayer points etc. Please pray at this stage for the team to be keeping going with Christ and being ready to work together (there are eight of us going). I would value prayer for the camp I'm leading on in the meantime (see next post). And thank God for his provision financially too, it's not cheap!

Also, two Oxford lads who have just finished their degrees have started working as apprentices at SMACC. Their names are Mark Wilson and Chris Flint (Mark is on the left in the picture above). We'll be seeing a fair bit of them, and I'm sure they and the church in general would value your prayers.