Namibia National Baptist Youth Camp 2012 - Marinus de Bruijne

Marinus and lse de Bruijne  at the centre  of all mischief!

NAMIBIA NATIONAL BAPTIST YOUTH CAMP  2012

" SOLDIERS FOR CHRIST"

By Marinus de Bruijne

Again, we are so grateful that the Lord had made it possible for us to get Pastor Saidi Chishimba of the Faith Baptist Church in Kitwe, Zambia to be the preacher at this year’s Baptist Youth Camp Namibia (30 August – 2^nd September).  The Lord had truly gifted this man to work with our youth in a very special way.

When I think of this camp, two things stand out : firstly, the way that  local churches helped and supported each other to make it possible for young people to attend the camp.  It was so encouraging to hear how local churches paid the camp fees for young people from other churches who could not afford the camp fees. It was great to see a car load arrive with children from two or three local churches. It was great to see how church representatives had arranged transport amongst each other.  It was a testimony to the unity amongst believers in Christ. 

Pastor Saidi Chishimba - Camp Speaker  2012

Secondly, unity and love was experienced amongst teens at the camp on a level that I have never witnessed before.  It was heartwarming to see how children from different cultures cared for each other, without the racial and cultural tension of this world.  There were teens from most of our nation’s cultures, and even some from Angola who became friends and who experienced the unity and love amongst believers in Christ. 

We had set up a “Facebook group” for the camp (called Baptist Youth Camp Namibia) at the beginning of this year to facilitate information.  The day after the camp, I already had twelve invites to join this group (taking in consideration that there were only 32 young people at the camp, so 12 is a significant number). 

Soldiers for Christ

It is amazing to see how these young people post their testimonies and how they encourage each other as a direct result of this camp.

Once again, the preaching was of an outstanding quality.  The theme of the camp was “Soldiers for Christ”. Pastor Saidi aimed for their hearts.  As always, our main purpose is to preach the Gospel, whilst pleading with the Lord for the salvation of many souls.   Judging by the reaction and by the  personal feedback of the youth, God the Holy Spirit did speak to many hearts, and some repented and believed. 

There are not many youth camps where the sound preaching of God’s Word is listed as the item most enjoyed by the campers.  We praise God that it was the case with this camp.  The young people also enjoyed discussing the Word of God in small groups and we had a time of “questions and answers” around a bonfire during our final night at Rock Lodge. 

Unusual visitors  welcome -  A young Kudu at the camp !

One can never describe the spirit of such a camp in words.  Although there was much fun and games, the campers rated teaching, preaching and sermons as the most enjoyable.  It is possible to have a camp where there is a fair amount of fun for children and not to compromise Gospel preaching and true Christian fellowship. 

May our Lord give us the grace to make such a special camp possible in 2013.   Pray with us that the Gospel seed that was sown will grow into maturity.  

Leader of the Pack - Pastor Saidi and his troops!