Get Real!

For the past 23 years, Christian Assemblies' Camping has been hosting Singles Camp - a retreat targeting persons 18 years and over, aimed at engaging participants in practical and biblical discussions on issues which are relevant to them as single young people. This year 27 young people gathered at Victory Heights campsite to be challenged and equipped with the tools needed to live a victorious single life.

Getting up close and personal during ice breakers

The theme chosen this year was "Get Real 2", following up from last year where we dealt with real issues that affect participants with open and honest discussions. One of the topics selected for this year was depression, as we recognised that there are many young people, even in the church, who struggle with this issue. Psychologist Marcia Tappin-Boxill covered the causes and results of depression, pointed out persons who are vulnerable, and gave practical, biblical advice to help persons overcome this battle.

Engaging the audience with her unique style of delivery

We recognised that Christians can become depressed if we do not deal with traumatic situations properly. We cannot just ignore the enemy - that just gives him a stronger hold on our minds, making us powerless to accomplish our Christian work. Some of the guidelines shared for helping overcome it were:

• Stop making everything a catastrophe - think positive. Philippians 4:8
• Stop living in the past, obsessing about what might have been. Philippians 3:13
• Live in the present. Matthew 6:34
• Reach out to others. 1 Corinthians 12:13-22
• Check your thoughts against God's Word, and hold on to the truth of God's Word instead of believing the enemy's lies

Nurse Tricia Small sharing

Another topic which was covered was the issue of abortion, which, although it is illegal in Trinidad and Tobago, is practised by many women for a variety of reasons including shame and desperation. Tricia shared about the devastating effects of this practice, not just on the mothers, but on the fathers of the children as well. She encouraged participants to remember that 1 John 1:9 promises that God is faithful to cleanse us from ALL unrighteousness, and that, like the widow in 2 Kings 4:1-7 who felt desperate, alone and hopeless, we can cry out for help - there are persons around who would be willing to help in even the most difficult of situations.

Sunday morning worship

The Sunday morning session challenged participants to examine their relationship with God. Elder Dr. Ancil Kirk encouraged us to communicate regularly with God, respect the boundaries God has established, and be committed to God in love, obedience and submission to His will. Using the parable of the Prodigal son, he illustrated the downward path to self indulgence which led to spiritual destitution, but also pointed out the steps to restoration which results in the prodigal returning to the loving embrace of the Father.

The final session dealt with expectations in marriage, and after drawing out from the participants both their positive and negative expectations, Deacon Rodney Brown showed how oftentimes these expectations are unrealistic, and we should instead place our focus, not on our prospective partner, but on ensuring that we work on the areas in our lives where we are lacking in preparation for marriage.

Fun photo shoot

We had time for some fun activities over the weekend as well. There were games on the Friday night, aerobics burn out on the Saturday morning, pool in the afternoon, and a hilarious time of spontaneous performances on Saturday night. The food was excellent - whoever heard of geera provision?! The feedback from participants indicated that they were enlightened by all the information which was shared, and were challenged to take steps to improve their relationship with God and get deeper in the Word. 

We thank God for how He orchestrated the program, including testimonies of persons which were extremely relevant to the topics which were covered, and gave participants a glimpse into how some people dealt with the real challenges they faced, recognising that being a Christian does not make us immune to struggles, but we have the Word, the Holy Spirit and the support of other believers to help us overcome. We pray for those who made commitments to change that they would be surrounded by a supportive network which would hold them accountable and encourage them to live fully surrendered to God.