Excited campers, energetic cheerful staff, and the United Youth Corps team assembled as camp began on Sunday, August 19, hearts full of expectation on what's going to be achieved by the end of camp and thereafter. We had a beautiful start, full of energy and a positive spirit from all.

The theme for this year's camp was powerful, "building a relationship with God;" which is an on going process for every true disciple of Christ. We can't grow to honor or serve God without having a relationship with Him or not knowing how to build one with Him. As God calls us individually to the body of Christ, each one of us has to respond to His calling in order to start that relationship with God, our time being now that the invitation has been extended to us.

Each day's sub-theme helped explain how best we can build our relationship with God. As God is calling, we need to respond to His calling, repent and be baptized so we can receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. And this calling isn't only for adults! We have examples in the Bible of a range of ages younger and older who responded to God's calling. It was nice to see campers participate in naming some of the younger people that God worked with. Ecclesiastes 12:1 stuck into my head, "remember your creator while you are young" (God's Word Translation).

As each day went by, we participated in a number of activities, always with the thought of building a relationship with God being our daily motivation and main focus. You could see the joy and contentment in everyone's faces. We had to show in our mannerisms that we are willing to do things differently from the way the world does. The games played involved working together and helping to build each other up, stirring up the spirit of not giving up. The activities included, speedway, basketball, team-challenge, cycling, volleyball, and swimming, just to mention a few. It was encouraging to see the progress each day; it was a picture of how God expects us to keep progressing.

Each day's themes were as follows:

1. God is calling

2. Building with faith (it's impossible to please God without faith.)

3. Pray with purpose (the lifeline of every relationship is communication, God expects us to communicate with Him cause He communicates with us through His word.

4. Learn from God

5. Respond to God.

Everything was perfectly fitted together. Everyone with a willingness to learn, surely did. There was plenty of spiritual food, an ideal environment, peaceful atmosphere, and the privilege of humble leaders and teachers. It was a wonderful experience having a group of people working together as one family, showing love and kindness towards each other with so much humility; having a spirit to serve God in whatever way He leads. As we build a relationship with God, let it show in how we treat each other as God's family.