Lost Canyon 2012: 10

Day Nineteen

July 26th, 2012

If you've never experienced Young Life club at Young Life camp... there are few words that can actually capture what happens.  The energy, the atmosphere, the spiritual encounter that happens - all of it is too difficult to capture with audible language.

This is a holy time.  It is a place where teenagers, many who have never entered a church, get to explore intricate theological truths through a week at camp.  

They get to sing, laugh, dance, play, watch, engage and finally listen to the Gospel!  

I did the math and all together, I've helped lead over 315 hours worth of Young Life clubs at camp over my lifetime.  It is amazing to watch as we take all that energy and harness it to create a magical place for the Gospel to be shared.  

We start with high energy, jump around, go nuts popular (not secular) music.  This is designed to engage kids on their level, on their terms and do with such style that "GLEE" would be proud! 

Next, we stop and have some random characters (like people dressed as ANGRY BIRDS) come out and make them laugh.  We do funny things, do a little dance and play a game that makes them say "Seriously? Did that just happen?!?"  For example, we've had kids shave a 5' balloon with shaving cream on it and it exploded over the first 4 rows (picture Splash Zone at Seaworld)

Then we come back out and sing a few more songs.  This time, the songs are meant to have a lower tempo, a softer melody and are selected because their lyrics have deeper meaning.  We are beginning to really set the table for what is to come when we sing these songs.  These songs are meant to slow the feel of club and use up almost every ounce of energy level.

Finally, the songs and goofiness step aside and one privileged person walks on stage.  This is the mouthpiece who will reveal with language what every teenager has felt through the night.  Something is different.  This place is different.  This place is HOLY.  


The camp speaker gets to share the Truth of the Gospel.  In 7 days, he/she shares that God loves us... we sin... God loves us.  It's that simple.  It truly is.  God is good and I am so blessed to be apart of this crazy, Holy, wonderful mission called Young Life.

Here I am dressed as "RED COO" my character for one month at Lost Canyon 2012.

"Red Coo and Mellow Yellow" come down and rap every night before dancing and playing a game.

All 3 characters who come into club every night... Deadmau5 (in the middle) is a popular DJ and wears a helmet just like this one... and literally, every kid in the building ERUPTS when he comes out.