Dear Youth Pastors, I’ve got a bone to pick with you about summer camp. Isn’t that an awesome and encouraging way to start a blog post?
But seriously, there something I see a lot in relation to summer camps and retreats. It’s the problem of being sold out. Some youth pastors wear that as a badge of honor year after year. Please stop doing that! Sold out summer camp means students are getting left out. Sure it could happen by accident one year. If that problem becomes an annual tradition, it means you’re not taking steps to fix the problem.
3 Top Excuses Why You’re Not Solving The “Sold Out” Summer Camp Situation
Excuse #1: The Sacred Cow
Here’s the great news! Some of you have to use the same summer camp year after year because the pastor’s cousin’s sister-in-law is married to the person who runs the camp. We’ve always gone there and we always will! Sold out camps are your leverage for killing that sacred cow.
The Fix: Leverage the cow over a cliff
If your pastor is nursing a sacred cow and won’t consider other options for camp, it’s time to come at it from a different angle. Don’t ask to move the camp to a new location. In your next meeting, share the amazing successes that came from summer camp. Get him all fired up about the decisions made. Tell him how it’s impacted your youth ministry for the better. Then lay it on him. Show him your waiting list of students who didn’t get to go because that camp can’t accommodate your ministry. Be ready with a list of camps where you can get more bang for your buck and have room for more students.
That’s a long shot. However, the approach of asking to change camps up front has never worked, so taking a different angle might.
Excuse #2: There Are No Other Options
The only camp within 200 miles of our church is the one we go to. There literally are no other options.
The Fix: The fix for Excuse #2 is the same as Excuse #3…stay tuned
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Excuse #3: Because of family/church schedules, this is the only week we can go on a weeklong camp
The Fix: Offer more options
