Easter Camp

When I think of Easter,  there are a lot of thoughts that come to mind...easter eggs, chocolates, new dresses, old hymns, snow, and family. This year gave us a whole new picture of Easter that included baked beans on toast for breakfast (more on this later), sleeping in tents, 200 plus high school students, hydro-slides, 80 degree weather, and no candy or eggs! 

Easter is a time in New Zealand that I would say is similar to Labour Day weekend in the States. It is the last long weekend of Summer to get away. Everything shuts down for Friday, Sunday, and Monday, and some places are even closed Tuesday. So of course, people take advantage of the beautiful weather and time off work by going away to bach's (summer houses) and to the beach. 

The Easter holidays are known among the high school age crowd for Easter Camps. There are Easter Camps in a couple locations across New Zealand. The camp we went to was about two hours outside of Auckland in Matamata, or a place that some of you Lord of the Rings fans may better know as "Hobbiton." 

Easter Camp was an amazing weekend for the students. We were the largest group there with just over thirty teens. The power of God was definitely at work in the lives of the students. There were some powerful speakers and workshops that really spoke truth into the lives of the students. Our group became such a community over the weekend. We had some students accept Christ for the very first time. We had other students who are dealing with deep pain and depression admit that they were ready to be done and hand over their problems to God. 

This weekend was great, but it reminded us about how spiritually dark New Zealand is. On Monday, many of the students were crying and upset because of the many struggles they will face when they get back home. Students shared with us the pain of rejection and misunderstanding from family and friends who are atheist or who make fun of them for being Christian. There is such deep pain in some of the students because of the ridicule they face, but the depth and intensity of their faith is incredible. They have given their lives to Christ and realize that no matter what they face, they have made the right decision. What an encouragement to see. Would you pray with us for the many students at ShoreCCC who are pressing on to live a life that shines for Christ, no matter what the cost?

Check in for another post about camp differences in New Zealand and the States in a few days.