Help for Young Life Leaders NOW

So the results are in! YL camps are by far the nicest resort camps in the world. It really doesn’t matter what a camp has, if it is Christ-focused, a patch of dirt is all that is needed (I’ve run a few camps like that and can attest that the results do not rely on the camp itself). With that being said, if you are going to have a camp then it may as well be great. It was Jim Rayburn who said, “Who started the idea that Christians have to camp in tents? We talk about the King of kings; let’s act like He’s in charge! We’re going to have the classiest camps in the country " (It’s a Sin to Bore a Kid: The Story of Young Life, pg. 46). It is clear that we have the “classiest” camps! With my friends we don’t even call them camps, we call them resorts, and once they get there they agree.

So without further delay, here are the results:

If you don’t know what a flowrider is, you should check it out. They are sweet. I’ve seen them on the boardwalk in San Diego and I see them advertized on TV commercials on cruise ships. It definitely brings the “wow” factor! It is a great option for a summer-focused camp. I’ve seen little kids, maybe 6-7 years old have fun trying them over and over.

As for paintball, I’m sure there is a legal risk, but if you think about some of the other things we do (ropes course, zip line, blob, etc.), it normally is something we embrace rather then dismiss. It might be more of a draw for guys then girls, but I think a lot of girls would enjoy it.

Last, I don’t think that the skatepark got the respect it deserves. I spent over a month at Oakbridge last summer and kids love the skatepark there. One leader told me it is the only reason they came to camp. Between XGames, Dew Tour, Fuel TV, etc… there is so much draw in this.

One principle that should be applied to any options, and YL normally does a fantastic job at this, is whatever we do, go big. Don’t buy the affordable option, the value-priced one, or even the middle-of-the-road one. Lets have the classiest Flowrider in the country! Lets have the classiest paintball arena! Lets have the classiest skatepark anyone has ever seen.

Much respect to our property friends who are working every angle every single day to have the best camps in the world. They are way beyond this survey, they have thought through these ideas years ago. Lets just keep our eyes open to the best ways to keep our camps on the cutting edge.

One thing I didn’t do… I didn’t ask for other ideas, I only gave you three options. What would you add to YL camps?

My friend Brian sent me this great idea…

“At Club these past weeks, we have done a game called "What would you do for a buck?"  One kid is chosen by the crowd to do something crazy like drink a blended Happy Meal, and that kid invites all their friends to Club that night and encourages them to bring $1.  $30-$45 is the norm for one crazy stunt at our Club and the student is given the option to keep the cash or turn it in for camp.  If they use it for camp, we double it!

“A boy named Richard came this past week and gave us a $10 bill. We asked if he wanted change.  He confidently smiled and said, "No change.  Keep it all."  You see, Richard was the boy doing the crazy thing that night, and he really wanted to go to camp.  He took his last $10 and turned it in, knowing that money would be doubled for camp.  Richard doubled down.” 

Here is a simple club we did the week before weekend camp….

Camp Club

Again from video genius Ashley Maddox and friend Eric Scofield is this video that explains a day at camp. I will be showing this to parents, committee and donors a lot.

Lost Canyon: The Eric Scofield Tour from W. Ashley Maddox on Vimeo.

This is easily the best camp video I’ve ever seen. From Ashley Maddox, video genius and all around good guy.

Young Life Lost Canyon from W. Ashley Maddox on Vimeo.

On assignment for Wyldlife this summer we decided to do a guys hike and a girls talk. We split them up, I led the guys hike so I know a lot about that, but I can get info about the girls identity talk if you are interested.

The theme of the guy’s hike was "how to be a man". When we started the hike, which had five stations, I introduced this idea and, let me tell you, it got their attention. I will go on to explain the details, but beyond the details I learned that there is a deep hunger, especially among junior high guys, to find out what a man is supposed to be like. We need to leverage this more for the sake of the gospel. Help me think of ways to do this better and more often.

As I planned the stations I felt like I was pulling stuff out of the air for the topics. I knew I wanted to say something about how we treat women and a couple other things. But then 1 Tim 4:12 came to mind. It laid the perfect outline for a young man wanting to be a man. I repeatedly mentioned how they may have been looked at like children just a few years ago, but they have the opportunity to act like men. Also acting like a man has nothing to do with age, there are plenty older males out there that act like children. The kids I talked to knew that all too well.

So the stations were:

1. The power of our words
2. Our actions (especially in competition) - Joey Colletti did an incredible job with this station.
3. Selfless Love - Mike Mayfield from our summer staff shared about why he was serving them. They broke into groups and talked about men who had influenced them.
4. Faith - Walk what you talk. Don’t just "know" the right thing.
5. Purity - Especially how we treat women.

At each station we broke up into the cabin time groups and had a question for the leader to answer and a question for the kids in the cabin time.

• How do you think we can leverage the desire to for guys to want to be "men" for the sake of the gospel?
• What do you think they need to hear?

Clearly violating the 100 pound differential limit and the double (or triple blob) rule. OK, actually it doesn’t look like a YL camp.

This year I had the opportunity to speak at a snowboarding camp in Northern California. They were nice enough to take care of my arrangements, but I thought I’d push my luck and see if they had room for me to bring one of my club kids with me. And they said yes! (Thanks SVYL!)

It was an incredible move. First, because he felt really valued and special that I asked him. Second, we got to go to camp. Third, it gave him vision and a behind-the-scenes look into what we do. Also, the group of kids and leaders said it gave them a cool example that they want to do themselves.

I have no idea if I’ll be asked to speak somewhere like that again, but it could work in all kinds of situations. Think this way… If I am going out of town, can I bring a club kid with me? You might only do it once a year or every other year, but it is certainly worth it!

Every year when I get back from camp I have club kids who want to keep cabin time going. So I sit down and pull together the best follow-up camp and campaigner resources I can find. This year I put a considerable amount of work into developing the best 10 camp follow-up Bible studies I could come up with. I decided to call these “Cabin Time Continued”.

Here are the 10 topics included in the study:

First 5 Camp Review

1. Christ at Camp and at Home
2. Person of Christ
3. Sin
4. Cross
5. Resurrection

Second 5 Foundational Topics

6. Christ in You: Identity in Christ
7. Christ as Lord: Deity and Ruler of my life
8. Christ Forgives: When we go our own way
9. Christ Communicates: Word
10. Christ Communicates: Prayer

It is a 48 page booklet that has worked well with my club kids. I printed 100 copies and ran out within a week of being back from camp. I’m going to print more. If you are interested in getting some for your camp follow-up, email me at smcgever@yahoo.com.

It can be used in a group or individually. The format is centered on interacting with scripture through questions and creative learning.

In case you are interested, here is a sample… It is all set to print on both sides, fold and hand out.

Cabin Time Continued - Lesson 8 Christ Forgives: When we go our own way

Recently I have had some requests to order these, I’m trying this link to handle it, let me know if you have any trouble with it.

If you are heading off to camp one thing you absolutely must do is get in a one-on-one with each kid. This can be the most meaningful time not only for them, but for you.

It can be intimidating to sit down and have a conversation with them. So here is a tip sheet you can print out and stick in your Bible for camp.