This weekend our church is having a camp in Foxton.
Whilst I am not a great fan of camps and the concept is not generally as popular as it once was, I consider them quite valuable for a couple of reasons.
1) It gives me the opportunity to get to know people in the congregation that I don't often mix with.
Like most social groups, people tend to stay within groups that they feel most comfortable in. It is often hard for people (including myself) to break out and befriend others that are not well-known to you, despite the best of intentions to do this time and time again.
It can only be a good thing to use the camp as an opportunity to break down some of these social cliques that develop in churches (often unintentionally).
2) Develop friendships that will encourage my faith.
I often get frustrated with the light-weight and passing chit-chat that so often ensues a Sunday morning service. Often people are in a hurry to get around others and do the obligatory meet-and-greet before they depart for the afternoon. They are not normally interested in discussing to any depth such things as what they are reading at the moment, what struggles they faced during the week, or to even discuss the sermon heard just moments earlier.
In other words, outside the home group, it can be very hard to get to know others more intimately for the purpose of encouraging them in their faith (and me in mine).
The camp gives me the perfect opportunity (and the time) to strike up another friendship or two that could be built upon over the next year or so for this purpose.
Who knows, this weekend, I might be able to generate enough interest to start up another home group for next year, and the camp has been worthwhile for me.
That can only be a good thing.
