originally published by Taido Chino on his personal blog…
Each summer, we take our middle school students for several days away from the comforts of home and civilization to something simply known as D-Camp. The vision is simple enough… spend several days challenging students in all sorts of ways. They are pushed to overcome certain fears… fear of heights, fear of not being in control, fear of bugs, fear of dirt, fear of water; and instead learn to trust… trust ropes, trust people holding ropes, trust people standing on ladders.
Of course, the same challenges are faced in relationships, as well. There is the fear of betrayal, fear of rejection, fear of not fitting in, fear of being made fun of. But slowly (sometimes, very slowly) that is transformed into trusting others… leaders, peers, work crew, camp speakers, worship leaders, etc…
But the ultimate hope is that in the challenge to face fears and embrace trust that the same thing might happen spiritually. That middle school students will push through the obstacles keeping them from living lives devoted to Christ (and they are many), and instead choose to trust in the One who is entirely trustworthy.
Here’s the week captured in photos and condensed into ten-minutes: