One down and one to go!
Preaching camps, I mean. As far as we know, these are the only camps in the country for preachers...of any age!
These are not conferences where preachers sit in an assembly and listen to somebody else preach; and they are not seminars where smaller groups of preachers sit around tables and talk about preaching. No: these are five day camps during which every Young Preacher preaches every day! I recall the comment one young seminary graduate made at the end of our first camp: "I have preached more this week than in my entire seminary career."
A week ago 14 aspiring young preachers gathered at the Flaget Conference Center in Louisville, and this week 10 more are cloistered at Simpsonwood Retreat Center in Atlanta. Some are novice preachers preparing a very first sermon; others are already ordained and regular in the pulpit. One formally assumed her first preaching post, at Faith Lutheran Church in Lancing, Michigan this past Sunday.
I am glad I had a week in between these camps; the first wore me out, and this second one promises more of the same. These Young Preachers, each with a coach, work under incredible pressure: wanting to please, wanting to perform, wanting to improve. They often stay up until the wee hours of the morning, and as often as not they are assisting one another in this powerful task of preaching the Word.
And through it all, they become friends, colleagues, partners in the gospel, workers, and preachers of the good news of Jesus. And through it all, we are inspired to keep on fulfilling our mission to "Identify, Network, Support, and Inspire young people in their call to gospel preaching."
Dwight A. Moody
Gospel Catalyst