Some Thoughts Regarding Youth Ministries

This month will be a very busy month around here at Fellowship Baptist Church, especially in the area of ministry to youth and children. While we do not have large numbers of young people at our church, we do believe that ministering to young people is very important.

Jesus said, "Suffer the little children to come unto me" (Mark 10:14) and warned in Matthew 18:6 "But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea."

In the next few weeks, please be in prayer for the following four major events will be occurring involving our church and young people:

1. Teen Week at The Wilds
The teens leave TOMORROW for a great week at The Wilds. Weeks at The Wilds have often proven to be weeks of great spiritual challenge and encouragement in addition to a great time of fun, excitement and memories. This year we have five young people going to camp and Mr. John Crowley will be taking them. This trip leaves tomorrow morning. Please be in prayer for this week.

In addition to praying for this week, we will have a special offering after the morning service to try to help with some of the cost of this week of camp. In addition to the cost of getting back and forth to camp, we would also like to provide assistance to some of the young people who need financial assistance to help cover the cost of camp. Please prayerfully consider what you can give for this offering.

2. Junior Week at Tri-State Bible Camp
Next week, the junior age young people are heading off to Tri-State Bible Camp in New Jersey. There are still openings for this week if anyone would like to attend.

3. Vacation Bible School
We will be hosting our annual VBS the week of July 26-30 from 9 am - 12 noon. In addition to helping out the days of VBS, we also could use help with snacks, prizes, inviting folks out and more.

4. Cola Clash Youth Rally
On Friday, July 30, we will have a Cola Clash Youth Rally here at the church for young people in grades 7-12. We look forward to an exciting time of outreach.

Some Thoughts on Christian Camping

This week the junior age young people from Fellowship Baptist Church of Salisbury are enjoying a week of camp at Tri-State Bible Camp in Montague, New Jersey. Tri-State is a smaller camp that is doing a good job of providing a quality Christian camping experience in a beautiful location on the Delaware River at the border of New Jersey, Pennsylvania and New York. We have enjoyed our visits to Tri-State as a family over the years, although this is the first year that our own children have went away for a week of camp without us being present with them.

I appreciate the work that Chris and Michelle Jenkins are doing up at Tri-State and the leadership they are providing at the camp. I can't wait until Josiah and Christina get home and we can talk about the things they learned this week at camp and I can hear about what God has done in their lives this week.

It was at Ironwood Christian Camp in California the summer between my Junior and Senior years of high school where the Lord called me to full-time ministry and the ministry of camping has always had a special place in my heart. I have enjoyed the opportunities over the years to work as a counselor at some quality Christian camps and to preach at a few different Christian camps.

One of the greatest benefits of Christian camping is the fact that it provides a great opportunity to get away from the distractions of this world and have an extended time of focus on God and God's Word.

One of the realities of life (like we discussed a few weeks ago in our Sunday afternoon Bible study) is that prolonged and involved exposure to the Son of God through the Word of God has an evident effect upon a believer - just as prolonged exposure to the sun has an evident effect upon a person.

Camp provides a great opportunity for that kind of prolonged exposure. However, as believers, while we can rejoice in the opportunities for prolonged exposure to God's Son that is provided at a Camp or Retreat, we should recognize that we need continued exposure to God's Son through God's Word if we are going to have change that is lasting and fruitful.

Thank you, Tri-State, for providing this ministry for the young people at our church and others. Thank you, FBC family, for allowing us the opportunity to take young people from here to camp each summer.

In Christ,

Pastor Frank Sansone