Fun, faith, friends...and voices being HEARD

Let no one despise your youth, but set the believers an example in speech and conduct, in love, in faith, in purity. 1 Timothy 4:12

Bishop Elizabeth Eaton recently spoke at an ELCA Church-wide assembly about the importance of young people in our church. She said they are not only the church of tomorrow, but also the church of today. Our young people’s voices matter and need to be heard. It was a great theme and created some really in depth conversations among our kids. They discussed things like old and new traditions in the church - what should change, what should stay the same, how people can be misheard/misunderstood, and even voices that are not taken seriously or silenced. The entire weekend focused on the topic of using their voices and being heard. 

The speaker for the gathering was Stephanie Anderson, Director of Hospitality and Faith Engagement, at St. Andrew’s Lutheran Church in Mahtomedi, MN. She is a graduate of Concordia College and served in South Africa with young adults in Global Mission. She was very interesting to listen to and shared a wealth of experiences with our kids.

The worship music was led by members of Red River Worship. They played such great music and had everyone on their feet! Our 11 kids from Grygla were all standing, clapping, singing along, smiling and making it impossible not to join in. 

The chaperones for the gathering were Jamie Aune and myself. We all get so much out of these gatherings, the young and old, alike. Personally, I wish I could chaperone these all the time. They have a way of filling your tank right back up to “full.” I know the kids felt that way, too.

When we arrived on Friday, we got settled into our beautiful cabins that sit right on the shore of Lake Carlos. I used to go Luther Crest when I was in high school, but the place looks a bit different since undergoing a huge (and really fancy) renovation. The kids were all really excited to be there. After getting settled in and eating supper, the night consisted of some youth mixers, adult leader meetings, a worship service in the chapel and some night life activities for the kids: movies, open gym, crafts, etc. At the end of the night, devotions are held. It’s such a special, intimate time amongst the kids because it allows them to really open up and share their feelings. We all gathered on the bunks in our cabin at 11pm. Jamie and I led the kids in devotions until almost midnight and the kids shared so much with us. We discussed things like: what keeps us up at night, what gets us out of bed in the morning, who do we admire and why, what it feels like to not be taken seriously or heard, and a variety of other things. Each kid shared so freely – we were really proud of them and it was a great way to unwind before bed. 

Saturday’s activities included two more worship services and different stations for the kids to visit. At one of them, they made homemade Christmas cards and filled stockings that would be delivered to local children in need; these children were victims of abuse, which started up conversations about our theme and how some voices are silenced or not heard at all. Everything tied together so nicely. It’s really impressive how much work goes into these behind the scenes. They kept giving our kids credit for attending, which is awesome…and they’d give us adult leaders credit for chaperoning, which is great, yes…but they really deserve some recognition, too. The LYO Board/Director and all the “WHEATYS” who are high school teens that come from all over NW MN and serve as peer mentors/leaders/role models at the camp. There’s just so many people involved and they all deserve recognition and thanks. 

In closing, I had written down some of the lyrics to one of the songs the Red River Worship Band sang. Hearing these words echo through the wooden chapel – and all those voices singing in unison – it was so moving. 

“When I have wandered, Lord, your cross is the open door. There are no outsiders to your love. We are all welcome. There’s grace enough.”