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What does the Holy Spirit, pizza, fireworks, and go-carts have in common? They were all part of the Word of Life Kids trip to Camp Victory in Mannford, Oklahoma on June 27 – 30. Children and counselors came from all over Oklahoma, Missouri, and Kansas to attend. In fact, there were 200 kids total who took part, and each one left the Camp Victory campus feeling more special than when they first came.
 “Jesus Generation” was the theme this year, with the week’s verse being II Timothy 4: 12 “Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith, and in purity.” The overriding question that each child was challenged with during the week was, “Who Are You?”
We took twenty-one precious 7 through 12 year olds and 3 brave adults. Mrs. Kayleen Smith, Mr. Kevin Battenfield, and myself had as much fun and enrichment as the kids did. On our very first night, Ms. Kayleen discovered that girls quiet down better after having to run around the bunkhouse at 11:30 at night. Then on the 2nd and 3rd nights, with so many activities going on each day, getting our kids to go to sleep quickly was not a problem. Some were even begging to go to sleep.
“Amazing” is a good word, but it would not adequately describe our time at Camp Victory this year. A few other words would be “Awesome,” “Electric,” and “Super-Charged.” Why? Well, in addition to archery, a 100 foot zip-line, BB gun shooting, go-carts, fishing, basketball, canoeing, ultimate dodge ball, and the nature trail; the Presence of God was very strong. There is a reason why the sign, as one enters, reads, “This is Holy Ground.”
 Director, Pastor Brian, had a daily chapel for all of the kids and counselors to attend. He used powerful object lessons to drive home the Camp’s theme, “Jesus Generation.” Pastor Brian also had a nightly skit that was even better than watching television, and was definitely more life-impacting. I’m quite sure that all of the children will remember that being a Christian is the coolest life they can possibly live.
A huge part of Chapel was the music. The live praise and worship was incredible!
Each night, the altar was jam-packed with kids jumping up and down and clapping their hands to the beat. Children were raising their hands in praise to God. They were hungry for Him. It was a beautiful sight to behold.
Pastor Brian and his staff put together a Camp Daily Devotional booklet that they provided each camper and counselor with. Mr. Kevin and Ms. Kayleen led our boys and girls in their daily devotionals, and encouraged them to continue this when they got home. We told our kids that if each of them would go home and spend 10 – 20 minutes with God everyday for 21 days straight; their daily time with God would then become a habit.
 Another highlight of our week was on the last night when Camp Victory had a big fireworks display. The sky was filled with bright, fast, and powerful colors for more than 30 minutes. Each child and camper enjoyed the scenery as they sat by the lake and rested from an action-packed week.
By the last day, the kids were reluctant to go home. They love their parents, but they also loved Pastor Brian and his beautiful family and staff. In fact, one of our girls was crying on the way home because she was going to miss all of them.
The kids all made commitments to be the “Jesus Generation” this world needs. They decided to not let their age hold them back from being used by God to show Himself strong to their friends, their school, and their world. Two of our boys drove their commitment home by being water baptized, and one of our little girls received the Baptism of the Holy Spirit.
Our Word of Life Kids love to read their Bibles, pray to our Almighty Father, and come to church. As Children’s Pastor I look forward to seeing even more of this desire and I owe it all to God for using Pastor Brian and his Camp Victory staff.
When you happen to see a Word of Life Kid in the hallway, stop them and ask, “Who are you?” They’ll tell you that they are the “Jesus Generation” to the world, and are being used by God to show Himself strong. |
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