THERE ARE NO SILLY QUESTIONS Camping Sunday Service Preparations: 1. Make sure you know the first two hymns, or select camp songs to sing in their place. 2. Put crayons and/or pencils in the pews 3. Have a piece of blank paper in the bulletin. 4. Select a slideshow or video of a local United Church camp (see links provided). Gathering Hymn: Lord, Prepare Me to Be a Sanctuary, More Voices #18 Call to Worship One: We are here, we bring courage. We are here, we bring compassion. All: We are here, we bring joy. We are here, we bring faith. One: Together we bring all that we are to the service of God s dominion. All: Together we are one, and we are called and blessed by God s love. Opening Prayer One: God, you are one who calls us to faith. All: Not blind faith, not a faith that doesn t think and explore. One: You ask us to be like children. You want us to look under rocks and high in trees. All: Trees teach us faith. They grow from tiny seeds, just a little bit at a time. They never stop growing. God wants us to grow too. One: If we stop growing, we stop coming closer to God and closer to each other. The more questions we ask, the more we grow. All: Together we pray in the name of Jesus who loves everyone young and old alike. Amen. Lighting of the Christ Candle: We light this candle to remind us that we are here in Jesus name, and that our faith is like this flame. It flickers and changes, and sometimes needs to be relit, but it can light a dark place. Camp song: Fire s Burning (if unknown, see http://campsongs.wordpress.com/2012/05/04/fires-burning) The United Church of Canada Written by Alex McGilvery for Camping Sunday, April 27, 2014 L Église Unie du Canada
We Listen for God s Word Learning Together in Children s Time 2 Options Option One: See video instructions at www.wikihow.com/pass-your-body-through-a-sheet-of-paper Hold up a piece of paper. Do you think I can cut a hole in this paper big enough for (the minister or another adult) to step through? Unless they ve see this before, they will say no. Pull a pair of scissors out of your pocket and cut the paper in the following pattern after folding the paper in half. When all the cuts are made carefully untangle the paper and you will have a thin paper circle that is at least a metre and a half across. The more cuts you make the bigger the circle. Just be sure to finish on a cut down from the fold on each end. I tell the story of Thomas while I cut the paper. Depending on your comfort level you can tell the story during the cutting or after. The circle is delicate, but you should have no problem letting an adult step through, and any of the children that want to. If you haven t done this before, I highly recommend you do a practice run. The United Church of Canada, 2014 2 L Église Unie du Canada, 2014
Option Two: You will need a flashlight and a plastic milk jug full of water. Have the lights turned down for effect. Then tell this story (or your own version): The disciples were afraid and they were in a dark room, hiding. They were hiding from the people who had killed Jesus. They were hiding because they didn t know what to do next. They were sitting in the dark because they felt like it. The dark was safe. It hid them. No one knew they were there. All the doors and windows were closed and locked. Then Jesus came into the room (turn on the flashlight and hold it to the bottom of the jug) and suddenly they weren t quite so afraid. His light made them feel safe. It was funny how much better they felt when Jesus was there. Only Thomas wasn t there (turn off the flashlight). He d gone out to buy bread. When the disciples told him about Jesus, he wasn t sure. I want to see this for myself, he said. The next week they were there in that dark room again. Jesus came (turn on the flashlight). He wasn t mad at Thomas. He told Thomas to come and see. Thomas did and he believed. Whether you use Option One or Two, talk a little about what faith is, and isn t. Finish with a prayer suitable for the ages of the children. Hymn: This Little Light of Mine Other options include A Light Is Gleaming, Voices United #82; It Only Take a Spark, Voices United #28; or Let There Be Light, Voices United #679 Video or slideshow of camp: see www.youtube.com/playlist?list=plqdu-sgfb3ri1rif6tneknu66iigninfb for a playlist of United Church camp videos Scriptures: Numbers 22:21 39 John 20:19 31 The Wonder of Questioning You can expand on this outline for a message to fit the time you have available. During today s Camping Sunday we re going to focus on how we can change our lives and lives around us as we embrace the wonder of questioning. In the first scripture reading this morning we heard part of the story of Balaam. Balaam heard a message from a very unlikely source. His donkey that he was being very cruel toward actually spoke to him and helped him realize he was on the wrong path. Even though Balaam didn t know it at the time, the donkey was saving his life. To paraphrase the words of the donkey: Stop and think about this, master. How long have I been your donkey? A long time, right? Have I ever acted this way before? You know I haven t. Doesn t this tell you something? Doesn t it suggest that maybe something out of the ordinary is The United Church of Canada, 2014 3 L Église Unie du Canada, 2014
going on? Don t you think that maybe I m trying to tell you something important? If I turned off the path three times for what appeared to be no reason at all, doesn t that cause you to wonder if you are on the right path or not? In the second scripture story, we heard about how Thomas had a hard time believing his friends. So he asked questions and ended up seeing for himself. Jesus didn t mind that Thomas asked questions. He took the time to answer Thomas questions, and Thomas went on to start a church in India because of his faith. The stories we heard today do not tell us to stop questioning or doubting, but rather stress the importance of questioning in order to strengthen our faith like Thomas did the importance of stopping what we doing and asking questions about what is happening to help us know the path we must take like Balaam did not do. Faith formation at camp is the steady growth of building relationships with self, others, creation, and God in community. It is experienced as a powerful undercurrent in every camp program and activity. Faith formation also happens in structured ways through activities and programs like morning watch, vespers, and Christian education programs. One of the eight Guiding Principles for Faith Formation at Camp is Questioning. At camp we encourage campers to ask questions about anything and everything from the everyday to the mysterious. The ability to question and doubt is important for all of us to develop as we grow. As we exercise this ability, we learn that not all questions have an immediate answer, and that the answers to some questions change as our knowledge grows and as we grow in wisdom. Questioning is part of our journey of deepening our understanding of ourselves, God, faith, and life. If we make the effort of listening for God everywhere we go, and of asking questions and testing ideas, we may discover something new about ourselves, find a way to be an everyday hero, a prophetic voice, or a loving friend. God is around us all the time. What do we hear her saying to us through others? What does God want us to say to others? It only takes one kind word or a kind question and really listening to the answer to change someone s day or even their whole life. When we take the time to truly listen to what other people are saying to us to think about and ask questions about what they ve said, to challenge our own thinking with questions we understand more about God and his relationship to us. There are no silly questions, but sometimes we feel silly asking. That s OK. God would rather we ask like Thomas did than be uncomfortable. Take a few minutes and think about how you might do something kind for someone, or think of a difficult question you are struggling with. Write it down or draw a picture of it on the blank paper found in the bulletin. If you need more paper, just put up your hand. When you ve finished, crumple the paper into a ball and hold on to it. The United Church of Canada, 2014 4 L Église Unie du Canada, 2014
Hymn: Pick your favourite hymn Response to God s Grace Offering: What do you have to give? Many United Church camps rely on donations to keep the doors open. Consider sending this Sunday s offering (or a portion of it) to support a local United Church camp. You could also set aside the offering as a campership for children who could not otherwise afford to attend camp. Although money is always welcome, many times we overlook the importance and necessity of presence. Do you have time? Talent? Tools? All you need to do is offer and ask What can I do? There will surely be a grateful answer. Prayer of the People Pray for the camps and camping ministry. Camping is one of the biggest youth ministries we have across the church. Camps do everything from building campers confidence to growing leaders in our church. As part of the prayer ask the people to toss their crumpled balls of paper to someone else across the church. Be prepared for some chaos! When everyone has a ball of paper, ask them to take a moment to pray for the person who wrote or drew on the paper. Finish with the Lord s Prayer. Hymn: Draw the Circle Wide, More Voices #145; or Go, Make a Diff rence, More Voices #209 Benediction Go enjoy the world! Explore, laugh, share. Ask questions and be kind to one another. Listen for the words that God gives you to say, and for the words that God has given others to say to you. Go in joy and peace! Amen Written by Alex McGilvery Alex has been an advocate for church camps ever since he was given a home at a camp one summer 16 years ago. He has made a point of spending time at camp every summer since. Alex is chair of the Wellman Lake United Church Camp in the Duck Mountains in Manitoba. The United Church of Canada, 2014 5 L Église Unie du Canada, 2014