Worship Under the Stars
Before going to Hume, I didn’t think that anything crazy was going to happen because I thought that my relationship with God was already really good. When we first got up there, our cabin prayed that we would see God move and interact with us throughout the week, and God for sure did what we asked Him. I had seen Him already move and speak to other people in my cabin, so I knew He was with us, and I knew He was with me, but I didn’t all the way feel that He was with me. I think it was Wednesday when I felt God moving in me like never before. All the girls had a “worship under the stars” night, so every girl was outside laying on the grass and watching the stars while praising God. I was looking up at all the bright stars and my eyes were caught on just looking at this one really bright star in the center.
I started praying and asking God to let me know that He was with me, because I had never really felt God’s presence clearly. All the sudden, while I was still looking at that one star, every other star completely disappeared. I couldn’t see any other star but that one bright star. I kept looking around to make sure I was not going crazy, and I even closed my eyes and reopened them multiple times, and I still only saw that one star. I always thought that if God ever did speak to me in some way, that I wouldn’t know for sure if it was God, or if it was just a “coincidence” or I just wouldn’t fully know that it was Him, but as I experienced this, I was certain that it was God and I wasn’t just going crazy. I knew that God worked and moved in people in weird ways, but I had never experienced something like that until then. I knew that God was telling me that even though there are so many people in the world, He was there with me and watching over me along with everyone else.
By: Addison Reeve
The Flame of Faith
Hume Lake was a surreal experience for me. Prior to my week at camp, I had been battling with the lukewarmness of my faith. While I have given my life to Christ, and have been a Christian for the most part of my life, I often find myself just going through the motions of life and putting Jesus on the back burner. This lack of devotion gave birth to many sins in my life. Anger, idleness, lust, anxiety, and many others are all part of the list. I had subconsciously built a mountain on top of myself and I had no idea how to get out. I wanted to change but didn’t believe I could make up or change to reverse the damage I had done to my spirit – an idea that was completely wrong at the core. After reflecting on my dilemma I was continually reminded of my time as a middle schooler going to Hume SoCal. I figured the closeness I felt with God at that time would surely help me now. I would surely be able to change. After I had made my decision I immediately notified my parents and got in contact with my youth pastor to help with logistics because the deadline was approaching. After I had filled out the sign-up sheet and paid, the anticipation to ascend up the mountain set in. I remember being very excited because I hadn’t been to a camp in so long and I felt really convicted to focus on God with no distractions whatsoever. It was soon time to leave and I said goodbye to my parents and set off on my journey.
I had really been anticipating this trip for a long time. One might expect that this sets people up for disappointment, but no amount of preparation or anticipation would have prepared me for the first look of the lake. The view was spectacular – a testament to the power and creativity of the Lord. Tirst few days were very nice. Everyone had great energy and seemed eager to hear the Word. This atmosphere made it quite easy to settle in and learn. With a balanced amount of fun and recreation, I was able to really enjoy my time with my peers. The week was a combination of activities and teachings centered around the story of Joseph. Since Joseph is my middle name, I felt that God was really reaching out His hand to speak to me. One of my biggest takeaways from my week was from a class called, “10 Reasons to Study Your Bible,” led by the week’s lead speaker Nick Ely. He said that you should enjoy and cherish your time in the Word, and if you’re not, you must pray and study to get there. This spoke directly to me because I had been struggling with lukewarmness, and I came to the realization that to experience the flame of faith I must set the timber with study (an analogy used by Nick in his sermon). As I came down the mountain, I vowed to implement my learnings into my life and the upcoming school year. I did feel renewed. Camp was everything I had hoped for and more, but the real test comes when you are back around your distractions of everyday life. However, now I feel better equipped to wrestle with my issues while keeping Jesus at the center of my mind, in order to encourage others to do the same.
By: Chimdi Joseph Nnamonu
Accepting Christ at Camp
Hume Lake church camp changed my life. It was the first camp I’ve ever been to in general and I couldn’t have asked for anything else than what I experienced at camp for it being my first time. It was there that I had a powerful encounter with God that opened my heart in ways I never expected. One of the biggest lessons I learned was about forgiveness— how even when people turn away from God, if He says they’re forgiven, then we should forgive too. That truth hit me hard and helped me let go of past bitterness. Learning more about the story of Joseph was great, and the way Nick Ely explained it to us and how it connected to God was so eye-opening. During hard moments, my friends were right by my side, lifting me up and showing me what true love and support looked like.
One night, the speaker asked anyone who wanted to truly accept God into their life to take a bold step – to stand up in front of everyone as a public declaration of faith. My heart was pounding. I felt nervous and unsure, but deep down, I knew I didn’t want to hold back anymore. I wanted to show God – and myself – that I was all in. So I stood up, hesitantly at first, but with conviction. In that moment, surrounded by others doing the same, I felt a deep sense of peace and purpose. Through that act, my friends’ encouragement, and God’s overwhelming presence, I fully accepted Christ into my life and made my decision public at camp. After that, I felt so lifted and was on an all-time high the rest of camp. God really taught me that you always need friends by your side and that He’s always with you even if you don’t think He is. It’s also great to surround yourself with others with the same beliefs as you because I felt like I connected with almost everyone because I knew most of them all felt the same way towards God like I did. When you surround yourself with a community of people at a place just for God, it’s God giving you new people to meet that belong in your life, and it just uplifts everyone’s spirit while at camp. Overall, camp was so eye-opening for me and an experience that’s hard to relieve again. I don’t know what I’d be doing if I didn’t go to camp because it really changed my life and perspective about God.
By: Charlie Goff
A Message of Righteousness
My camp experience was great! I got to see God move in almost everyone’s life that week and we all encountered Him through worship and nature. I myself had a super cool experience with God. Going into camp, I was struggling with the weight of sin and disappointed with myself that I wasn’t able to give God a lot. One of the days, I was listening to a seminar and I heard the speaker say something about Psalm 51. I didn’t think much of it until I a picked up a random piece of bark around me where I was sitting and I noticed some writing on it.
As the speaker said Psalm 51, I read the piece of bark and it had that passage written on it. Out of all the thousands of pieces of bark that were around me and that’s the one I picked up. Obviously I knew I had to read it and the verse that stuck out to me was verse 17 which talks about how all you can offer God sometimes is a broken spirit, that God will not despise. This really helped me realize that just surrendering to God is enough and He will help you along the path of the righteous.
“My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise.” Psalm 51:17
By: Mack Kurth