Submitted by Pastor Andrew Sanders, Fairfax United Methodist Church

Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert. – Isaiah 43

Over the last few weeks I have had this particular scripture in my mind because God really is creating a new thing in our midst. This is something that God is constantly doing, helping us to overcome obstacles, delivering us from worldly ways, opening up ministry opportunity, and forming our souls through the new heart that He puts within us as a desire to be His disciple, reaching out to all people in order that they too can have a new thing happen in their lives.

With all this in mind, the new thing that I am talking about is mobile camp. God put this vision in our minds two years ago and now we are excited to say that three churches are in partnership: Fairfax UMC, Tarkio UMC and Rock Port UMC. We are able to bring the Eagle Lake, a non-denominational mobile camp, to serve all of Atchison County. This is exciting for many reasons, the first one being that all of us know living in rural communities is rewarding but also challenging for any type of school, business or church. The challenge is the lack of numbers to compete with larger communities. This is why Fairfax and Tarkio schools teamed up a few years ago – so that the sports teams would have enough people to compete with other schools.

So what is mobile camp? A non-denominational camp that is focused on the message of Christ. This is an opportunity to bring an entire church camp experience to our own back yard, at the cost of $75 per child. There will be a huge water slide, rock wall, Ga-Ga-ball, Archery and many other activities, one-on-one counseling, learning times, trained camp counselors, lunch, and relationship building.

So why would we want to be a part of this new thing? The first of course is to introduce children from 6-12 years old to God, or if they already know God, strengthening their relationship with Him. The next is that through this encounter with Christ the kids will build character. It will bring the community together, strengthening bonds. Through learning about Christ’s love, team building exercises and gaining achievements throughout the week the kids will have their confidence boosted. They will make new friends since this is all of Atchison County, all denominations, and there will be kids that ours have not met yet. We will be building bonds between our towns through the collaboration of rural communities.

What is our part? To be in prayer for the camp staff, the kids and the volunteers who are dedicating their time and effort. Consider being a volunteer yourself. All you need to do is ensure that you are Safe Sanctuary trained. If you plan on attending the camp at any time during the week to bond with the kids and you are over 18 you also need to be Safe Sanctuary trained. If you are interested let me know and I will give you a link, asanders1016@yahoo.com. Lastly, INVITE, INVITE, INVITE. Our goal is to have 100 – 150 kids involved in the camp all week long to have the biggest spiritual impact on Atchison County that we can.

Lastly, how does it work when one church is hosting but there are three churches involved? In order to keep this fair we cast lots (like they do in the Bible when making a big decision) to determine who would host year one, then year two and then year three. The schedule is Tarkio UMC this year, Rock Port UMC year two and Fairfax UMC year three.

“So behold friends God is doing a new thing in our midst,” It is up to us to follow His lead so that He can show us just what this new thing can do, how lives will be shaped and bonds will be made. Save the date, June 3 – 7.

If you would like to register your child, grandchild, niece, nephew or a friend who is between the ages of 6 and 12, then please use this link: https://eaglelakecamps.com/camp/atchisoncounty/. They do not have to be Atchison County residents, just available for the week of June 3 – 7. Camp is filling up fast and we are limited in space so don’t delay, sign up now!

May God continue to guide His vision moving us to be a part of it.