After your rising fourth and fifth graders returned home from camp last weekend, you are possibly asking yourself “now what?” I feel confident you have heard all about camp - zip-line, swing, and big group games. Besides these things, I hope you have heard from your child about the real relationships and real life they learned about at camp this past weekend. The theme of camp was “Are you 4 real?- Real Faith, Real Family, Real Friends, Real Life.” I feel a recap and overview of what your child was taught at camp will be beneficial for you as a family. By understanding what was taught at camp, you can reflect on these issues and apply them, based on the needs of your family.
On Friday night, Ed Sweeny talked about what it means to have real faith. He introduced the idea on\f how God created us for relationships, but the most important relationship we can have is a relationship with God Himself. Our other relationships mean nothing without this relationship. The truth about our hearts is that we naturally and normally want what we want, and not what God wants. Once we acknowledge our sin, we see our need for a relationship with God.
On Saturday, we talked about one of God’s greatest inventions- family. God has placed your family together for many good reasons. Your family is designed to complement each other for a purpose, and to help each other through hard times. Ed talked about three things your children will learn from you, the parent. First of all, it is the first example they see of authority. This authority provides security, as well as preparation for the rest of their lives. Second of all, they can see God’s love for them through the blessing of parents. Not only that, but they learn how to love by the way you love them! Lastly, they learn responsibility through the role each member of the family plays. Whether it’s feeding the dog, taking out trash, or helping with cleaning, your child will understand what it feels like to be relied on and liable for something getting done. Siblings teach each other way more than you see on the surface! Siblings are normally the first friends your child will have. From this relationship, they learn how to share, how to forgive, and how to love. A family shows each member who they really are.
By tying all of this together on Sunday, we saw how to live a ‘Real Life’ can be achieved. Through a relationship with our Creator, we can achieve real friendships with family, friends, and siblings!
-Caleb Phillips, Children's Ministry Kairos Intern
Can you provide the scriptural basis for the teaching so we can reinforce it in our home studies?
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