West Cocoa Chat

First, let me apologized for the extended absence. This is the time of year that “we” ramp up for Bible Camp. By my count this is my 22nd summer directing a week of Bible Camp at the Central Florida Bible Camp and sadly (apologies for the melodrama) it may be my last.

Until this year, I’ve never as a “Coordinator” had to clear any special speakers or groups through the Camp Director or Board. A few weeks ago an email was sent out by the Camp Director requesting the names of “special speakers” or groups. Being the honest boy that I am, I answered honestly. We were inviting an inner-city minister from Cincinnati, Pat Pugh, to speak at our week. We had first come across Pat two years ago at the Mid-Ohio Valley Work Camp. Pat spoke powerfully and boldly to our teens. In the span of 3 days 33 precious teens were baptized into Christ and the teens, didn’t want worship to stop each night. I likened it to a “mini-Pentecost.”

As a little background, Pat spoke at SonQuest (a large youth gathering of about 5000 during Labor Day Weekend in Orlando) 2 years ago. He was scheduled to speak at Teen Week in the coming summer. Apparently he said some things that riled some of these “Assassins” up. They threatened the Camp with a mass boycott so the Camp Director was forced into telling Teen Week he couldn’t allow Pat to speak at Teen Week. Anybody ready to throw up yet?
By the way, not one person from the Camp or the Teen Week Staff bothered to call Pat to tell him he was uninvited. Don’t we just have a wonderful way of treating brothers and sisters in Christ?

So, yours truly decides to invite him to our week. Pat accepts. We announce it at our church and we have the largest number of kids (150) headed to our week. Our week of camp starts this coming (in 3 days) Sunday. Pat was scheduled to fly into Orlando tomorrow.

Long story short:
1. The Camp Director calls me yesterday as I’m driving up to church to inform me that 3 different coordinators are threatening to pull out of camp.
2. The Camp Director asks if Pat will sign a statement saying he will not mention “communion” or the “Holy Spirit.”
3. I call Pat with my tail between my legs, embarrassed that I’m a member of a movement that can be held hostage to these assassins.
4. Pat’s reaction is so much more like Jesus than mine, the camp’s, or these assassins.
5. Pat talks to the Camp Director.
6. The Camp Director tells me he is “impressed with Pat” but still has a hard decision to make.
7. Decision came down today, Pat can’t come to Camp.
8. I ask for the assassins names. I also asked why the assassins were not directed to me, Pat, or my fellow coordinator first before their complaints were heard.

I’m meeting with our 49 teens and their parents tomorrow. I will inform them of the decision the camp has made and all the details behind it. I will also plead for our teens to still come to our week of Camp and to be “Jesus” to a Camp that hasn’t acted in the same manner.

At the end of our week I have a decision to make. If I had to make that decision today it would be the end of my association with the Camp. I had always dreamed that my son would be a counselor for me one year. I thought that year would be next year. I guess I was wrong. Then again, I was wrong about a lot of things this week.

What a way to come back blogging. Sorry gang.