SHOULD WE KEEP HAVING CAMP?

I have always loved Family Camp! I’ve attended regularly since BEFORE I was born!

There’s a picture taken in July, 1951, hanging in the hallway at camp that included my mom and dad. Whether she knew it yet or not, she was pregnant with me since I was born in late January, 1952.  😊

Debbie and I have moved to camp even during the thirteen years that we lived in East Liverpool! We knew how important it was to be immersed in camp, so we hauled all our stuff to camp – even though we only lived a mile away!  I directed the Family Camp for quite a few of our ‘Oakland years’ [1982-1995].

Our kids loved camp! Troy and Missy still attend. Troy is a trustee – following in the footsteps of his Grandpap Whippo and Grandpap Haire! Scott Iachetta is my nephew and he also has supported camp strongly through the years [including serving on the Camp Council] – even though he lives in Holly, NY. His contributions of service over the years have been a huge blessing to Tri-State Camp!

The benefits of Family Camp are:

o   Ten+ days of fellowship.

o   Family fun with age-appropriate classes for our kids and youth!

o   Valuable worship experiences every evening in the tabernacle!

o   A morning class for adults that is stimulating and Bible-centered!

o   Three delightful meals are prepared for us every day for ten days!

o   We connect with friends that we may only see at camp.

o   We make new friends.

o   Children have a lot of freedom and fun!

o   There were 10-20 individuals who visibly sought spiritual help during this year’s camp.

o   this list could go on….

THERE ARE LOTS OF POSITIVES…

BUT THERE ARE ALSO NEGATIVES!

• Our financial goal has been relatively frozen around $30,000 for a number of years – in spite of significant inflation!  We have not reached our goal several times in recent years.  [This year’s goal is $32,000].
• Attendance is down significantly! Not too long ago, we would see evening attendances of 200-250. This year’s average was less than 150 [not counting the last Sunday morning the average attendance was 125].  The high was recorded Monday evening – 165].
• It has been increasingly difficult for the Camp Council to find willing workers to staff the necessary jobs to make camp work!
• Our camp is aging seriously! Keeping the Dining Hall Dorm, the Youth Dorm, and the tabernacle painted is becoming increasingly challenging. Other issues like rotting windows are rarely even addressed! Many cabins are in very poor condition, making our camp an eye-sore to the community!
• Clearly, the camp roads need major attention, but the funds to address this issue are VERY SIGNIFICANT, and currently beyond our reach.
• Our camp base of support is aging! No one wants to admit this, but the younger generation has already voted to close the camp by virtue of their non-attendance.

This year’s survey asked if we would consider changing from 10 days [which is actually 11 days – counting the first Thursday evening] to a week-long camp. I assume that will fuel some discussion for our Camp Council this year.

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FOOD FOR THOUGHT

Churches ultimately close due to a lack of finances! When they can no longer pay the pastor or the electric bill or the pension fund – they close the doors!

The signs indicate that our camp is dying a slow death. Is it best to maintain it until the inevitable occurs?

The following is valuable history to consider that is very relevant to the development of ‘camp associations’:

“It should be noted that the establishment of one conference superintendent [in 1976] signaled massive change for the Pittsburgh Conference district camps!  The districts were inadvertantly dissolved. Churches were no longer aligned with the ‘camp meetings’ since we no longer had districts; all churches belonged to the Pittsburgh Conference. Where district assessments, assignments and mandatory attendance and support by pastors had formerly prevailed – these were subtly but persistently ignored!  This was the beginning of a major period of change and struggle for the Rochester District Camp [East Liverpool, OH], the Kiski Area Camp [Apollo, PA] and the Fairmont District Camp [Fairchance, PA]”  [Quote from Hal’s blog: Hal-lelujah!: PITTSBURGH CONFERENCE HISTORY: A Personal Perspective]

Today, some of the churches that were formerly part of the Rochester District, no longer support – or even advertise Tri-State Family Camp!

Each church that withdraws support from the camp makes it increasingly difficult for the camp to survive!

Consequently, our operating base has diminished SIGNIFICANTLY in recent years! The adjustments to this reality are challenging us in MAJOR WAYS – financially and in terms of willing workers!

We cannot afford to simply give an emotional response!  Yes, many of us are the loyalists who love the camp and have sacrificed time and money to keep it operating; but can we keep this up? When do enough of the older supporters pass on, and then we simply can't pay the bills?

It seems to me - as one of the camp's strongest supporters - that the time has come to at least begin this discussion!

HOW TO GROW A PASTOR

 As a young, novice pastor I faced lots of challenges without the benefit of a mentor.  In 1976, the use of mentors for pastors was a rarity - unfortunately.  I was leading a church in Jeannette, PA.  A nearby, experienced pastor - J. D. States - did reach out to me and we met a time or two.  He even suggested a pulpit exchange between his church [Penn Hills FMC] and mine [Penn Hills - at that time, was a thriving, growing church!].

Upon my appointment, the Pittsburgh Conference simultaneously went from three superintendents to one.  He was obviously overwhelmed as a result of this significant change.  Consequently, he never checked in with me during that first traumatic year.  

In spite of my struggling, the church began to grow and ultimately nearly doubled in size within two years.  [I had inherited a brand new building with a deeply split congregation of around forty mostly older people.]  However, the power structures within the church were overbearing.  They refused to allow me to bring these new converts in as members.  A key leaders' wife suffered from a self-declared, mental condition.  Sometimes she would greet me joyfully and praise my work; the next time she would be dark and threatening.  

I did reach out to a fellow pastor who was a bit older than me.  We met a few times and exchanged ministry ideas and prayed for one another, but it did not attain the level of support and help that I needed.

Sadly, the result of this dilemma caused me to ask for a move after only two years.  I have longed many times for a different ending to that story!  New believers were abandoned.  The church immediately plummeted back to forty people.  A few years ago, the Pittsburgh Conference sold that building with its ten acres of land in the middle of a developing community.  I mourn that fateful decision I made forty-eight years ago.

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Young or new pastors need support, encouragement and equipping!

Despite their giftedness, creativity and resourcefulness, they need coaching and an experienced guide to walk with them!  Leading a church is HARD WORK!  Opposition abounds!  We hear little about this, but the church is one of the largest operations in the world to utilize almost exclusively volunteer labor!  

I had a highly successful businessman in one of my congregations at a time when the church I was leading had doubled in size.  During one of our occasional lunches I told him that I envied him.  He had a perplexed look on his face, so I explained.  

You own your business and hire your employees.  When you tell them what to do, they do it, or you fire them.  In my work, I have to recruit, train and deploy people to do the work of the church without the incentive of a paycheck and without any direct line of authority.

 As (if) a church grows, a pastor does gain respect and an increase in influence.  However, a congregation's resistance to change is persistent and highly frustrating to a determined leader!  

• Fast-adaptors are few - probably less than ten percent of a congregation.
• Convincible adaptors will support new ideas with a measure of interest and a hopeful attitude.  They are not quick, but they are willing to see the benefits that can come through change.  They probably make up about thirty percent of the congregation.
• Late adaptors may eventually come along after much evidence is presented and deeper trust in the leadership is developed.  Until they are thoroughly convinced, however, they are oppositional!  They likely make up another thirty percent of a congregation.
• Resisters rarely adapt and remain oppositional and negative even when the changes have proven effective!  They typically get left behind and resent the new people who are becoming significant to the growth of the church!  

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Are you seeing the struggle that pastors deal with regularly?

Although the church did not provide me with mentors and coaches, or even attentive leaders, I did have a few consistent and dedicated prayer warriors who stood faithfully behind me!

The value gained from this kind of persistence cannot be fully appreciated!  This is why I survived!

First, there was my mother.  I rarely write about her, but she was THE MAJOR FORCE IN MY LIFE!  She taught me to pray.  She cultivated in me a love for the Lord.  She modeled leadership consistently through the years through her impact in the Women's Missionary Society, Coffee-Cup Evangelism, Christian Business Women's Association [although she wasn't a business woman] and a dedicated prayer life that impacted the lives of hundreds of people!  She eventually re-covered her Bible with pockets that she packed with prayer lists!  I knew that every Sunday morning, she was interceding for me!  

Second, there was my Uncle James Archer [actually, my great uncle who was more like a grandpap].  Officially known as JO, he was the only other pastor in my family.  He received his first appointment without being consulted while he was a layman in the New Brighton, PA Free Methodist Church.  I remember my pride when he was recognized for sixty years of service while I was an emerging pastor in the conference!  Everyone loved to hear Uncle James pray in his deep bass voice and great intimacy with God.  Uncle James always assured me that he was praying for me EVERY SUNDAY MORNING!  This was a great comfort to me!

My sister, Beverly, developed into a replication of our mom!  Over the years, she was my first resource for prayer after my mom and Uncle James had passed away.  Through the years, I always knew - every Sunday morning - she was praying for me!  She maintained a deep and intimate prayer relationship with God that could be relied on.  Those who know her will concur that on Facebook, she was constantly assuring people that she would be praying for them!  And I can assure you that when she made these commitments - she followed through!  In recent years she has been deeply impacted by dimentia.  I miss her dearly.  She still sparks with enthusiasm at times when she speaks of the Lord and her dedication to prayer, but her memory only lasts for a few moments now and she needs constant direction and support.  I'm grateful for the love and dedication of my brother-in-law, Dick, for being at her side twenty-four/seven!  

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I've just completed an interim assignment at The Foundery Free Methodist Church in Wellsburg, West Virginia.  Finally, after over a year of waiting, the church has been assigned a pastor.  He will serve as an interim until he completes some necessary educational and denominational requirements.  Hopefully, by next summer he will be appointed as the Lead Pastor of the church!  

Bobby Westfall is an intelligent, creative, passionate leader who has placed his entire trust in the Lord to direct the affairs of his family.  His wife, Stacy, is a dedicated mother who is also a Local Ministerial Candidate with interest in working with youth!  Together, they are raising four beautiful children:  Arabella, Madison, Jackson and Charlotte.  

I cannot understate the potential of this emerging leader!  In his first week on the job [which is just ending], he mobilized the church to send much-needed-supplies to the hurricane victims in the south!  That's right, the first shipment has already been delivered, and more is being collected!  One week!  What's that tell you about the potential of this new pastor?  

Bobby has invited me to continue to meet with him as a mentor!  I am excited to have the opportunity to shape, encourage and prayerfully support this younger leader!  I make him a promise here-and-now:  Bobby, every Sunday morning - as long as I live - I'll be praying for you!  

May God bless and encourage you!  May He keep you clean and pure and dedicated to His work!  May He resource you with everything you will need to grow His Church and increase His Kingdom!  May He foster humility in you as you lead and see the accompanying growth as fruit for your labor.  May He keep you approachable and caring and with your family in the foreground [and not the background]! 

I'll be watching from a distance with expectation and joy!  God bless you man!  

COLORFUL CHARACTERS

Camp Meeting and the annual Pittsburgh Conference sessions all used to take place on the grounds of the Rochester District Campground [currently Tri State Family Camp]. The Annual Conference (WIWAK)* lasted for five days! I worked in the kitchen as the dish washer; we fed over three hundred pastors, spouses and delegates every meal! 

The long sessions of the conference were held in the tabernacle and were led by the bishop responsible for our area. One of the bishops began inviting the conference superintendent to sit beside him [now her] during the conference sessions. This then, became the standard – still practiced today. 

Two microphones were situated one on each side at the front of the tabernacle. Anyone addressing the conference [or giving a report] was to come forward and use them. Eventually time limits were set for reports and comments and a ‘time-keeper’ was designated to ring a bell when their time expired. But these guys were creative: I remember R. D. Merkle (Rochester District Superintendent) once beginning by saying: “I want to say something before my time begins!” That got a lot of laughter! Others just kept on going even though the timekeeper kept ringing the bell! 

Debates were common, frequent, fervent and animated! These debates involved lay people and ministers. Strong opinions were expressed, and convincing arguments presented. Then, when a motion [or the bishop] closed the discussion period, a vote would take place. Once the decision was made, everyone accepted it as the will of the conference! Humor often surfaced during these debates! I always felt that some of our pastors at that time could have made a good living as ‘stand-up comedians’. It was as though they were trying to ‘one-up’ each other. These sessions were NOT boring! I could name names, but not many would remember them. There were differing opinions and votes that had to be taken up to five times to get a majority, but unity always prevailed. I always felt proud to be a part of it! 

The worship times were rich and blessed and were frequently marked by periods of shouting and perhaps even a few walking the aisles and praising the Lord! As a young person I experienced a tangible presence of the Lord MANY TIMES! One song that almost always evoked a significant response was “It Is Well With My Soul”. 

A tradition that has passed was called ‘Complimentary Resolutions’. Everyone looked forward to it at the end of the conference – just before the reading of the pastoral appointments. [I had the privilege of doing these several times!]  A designated person was to put together – during the sessions – a synopsis of the events and actions of the conference. They were always poetic in form. They would recapture the humor, heat, blessings and high points of our time together. These rhyming reports evoked laughter, ‘Amens’ and tears! 

Then, the bishop would rise to read the pastoral appointments for the coming year. Things were extremely secretive in my earliest days – sometimes even pastors didn’t know if they were being moved or not. The crowd would swell to nearly 700 as the end of the conference drew near. Some called them the ‘disappointments’ because their pastors were moved. Pastoral families were thrown into chaos as they discovered – along with the crowd – that they were being moved to a new church! One pastor jumped out the door on the platform because he was so upset over the change that had been announced! 

The bishop would pray and the crowd would be dismissed! The excitement was over till the next year and it was time for everyone to go back to work and grow their church! 

*WIWAK = when I was a kid

Times They Are A Changing...

The annual session of the Pittsburgh Conference of the Free Methodist Church is set to meet at Kittanning FMC on June 3-4, 2016.  This year's event will not even last twenty-four hours.  That's quite a change from back in the 1960's, when it was a five-day event that was always held at the Tri State Free Methodist Camp in East Liverpool, Ohio.

Pastors, lay delegates, honored guests and others were lodged in dorm rooms and cottages.  There were always a few who preferred to pay their own way and stay at the nearby Best Western Hotel. There are legendary stories of snoring annoyances and allegations of making noise after curfew. Meals were served in the dining hall by the always-in-complete-control, Virginia!

The tabernacle was transformed into a place for the transacting of business under the leadership of the area bishop.  Reports were given, worship times were enjoyed, the bishop challenged the attenders, reports were given, special guests addressed the conference, the superintendent gave his 'state-of-the-work address', reports were given and the all-important appointments were read [some called them the 'disappointments']!

I grew up attending these events annually.  To a child, they were terribly boring.  However, as a youth it gave me another five days to be with my Rochester District friends.  For most of my youth years, I served as the dish-washer for the over three hundred attendees.  

My father was always one of the lay delegates from the New Brighton church.  He seemed to almost always share this role with Morrison Baker. Morrison was for many years the song leader at conference.  His skill and ability at leading worship was a spiritual gifting that blessed anyone who sat under his leadership!

I fondly remember coming home from Roberts Wesleyan College as a ministerial candidate in the conference.  For the first time, I was allowed to sit beside my father within the bar of the conference and actually participate in these deliberations.  In some sense, my father was my mentor in this process;  I was very proud of him!  He had come to be quite respected as a leader, having served on the Stationing Committee for over twenty-five years!  [This is the committee that appointed pastors.]

My mother was knee-deep in the simultaneous Women's Missionary Society (WMS) meetings.  For a long time, she was the president of the WMS and would go all out to challenge the conference leaders to prioritize missions in their local churches!

I was intrigued by the business sessions and often sat in on them even as a child between games of 'Careers' or 'Monopoly' with my friend, Denny Mitchell.  The thing that made conference special was the pastors!  They were as diverse as a box of chocolates, yet single-minded in their common love for God!

In many cases the pastors were the chairmen of the many conference committees.  Their reports were a continuous attempt to one-up the previous report!  I'm convinced that many of these men could have made a good living as a stand-up comedian.  Laughter - belly laughter - punctuated the sessions of the conference!  Some went to extremes to make their area seem like the most important thing to come before the conference that year! Names like R. S. McGrew, Paul Hazlett, R. D. Merkle, Harry Stevick, Paul Daniels, Ken Hilling, W. P. Jones, J. S. Mitchell, and so many more litter my memory! Pastors during this time period were highly respected and revered by the people.

Bishops were intimidating characters!  We were so rarely exposed to them that they seemed like authorities that were not to be questioned.  Most were quite serious, almost to the extent of seeming unfriendly.  Bishop Johns would instruct that no one was to leave the tabernacle while he was speaking!  Bishop Boyd was a tall man who spoke with a slight impediment - but with dynamic authority.  Bishop Ellis was passionate and a preacher who made you want to live better and work harder for God!  Bishop Kendall was a quiet man with an unimpressive manner but a deep, godly presence.  I was in awe of these men!

Conference also gave me an opportunity to see my great-uncle, J. O. Archer. His was always the first name called out with the conference roll call.  I was so proud of him!  Everyone loved to hear him pray!  He had a deep, resonant, bass voice that impacted everyone as well as his comfort in talking with God!  He was like a grandfather to me and I loved him dearly!

The annual sessions always ended with a  huge crowd present.  Two events marked the ending of these days of meetings:  the complimentary resolutions and the reading of the appointments.

The complimentary resolutions were customarily in poetic form  They were written by either a lay delegate or a pastor who had been elected to do so. The remarks were published and distributed after they were publicly read. [Later, I had the esteemed privilege of doing the complimentary resolutions myself on several occasions.]  The authors seemed adept at recapturing the greatest moments of the conference.  Any faux paux would certainly gain recognition!  Highlights of heated arguments would likely be mentioned. Humorous incidents would be reviewed.  Someone who grossly went over their allotted time to speak might be roasted.  Times when the Spirit moved would also be recounted.   The listener would literally be moved from laughter to tears and holy moments by these skilled writers!

Then came the moment we all waited for - the reading of the appointments. People crowded into the tabernacle with standing room only!  The bishop would always strictly admonish the crowd that there were to be no cheers, clapping or other outward expressions during the reading of the appointments. His admonishments were not always heeded!  This was the day when pastor's appointments were kept secret until this moment. Oftentimes even the pastor's children did not know they were moving until they heard it with the crowd!  Sobs and weeping often followed the appointments while other gatherings of joy took place in different corners of the tabernacle.

Even the best of bishops were challenged to hold the crowd in control until the final prayer had been prayed.  Pastors were surrounded by people who wanted to express their sorrow AND by people who wanted to greet them as their new leader!  It was a chaotic time fraught with deep emotions!

And then, cars were already packed and everyone headed home to get ready for the first Sunday of a new conference year.  New challenges had been laid out and there was work to be done!