Chapter Camp: Powerful Moments of Clarity on Character of God

gordon.govier@intervarsity.org — Mon, 01 Jul 2019 14:38:29 +0000

Gordon Govier

Chapter Camp: Powerful Moments of Clarity on Character of God

Deep in the Adirondack Mountains, on the shore of a scenic lake, about 100 ��ñ�� students from New York and New Jersey campuses spent a week in May in the gym at Young Life’s Saranac Village camp. They divided into 12 tribes, “stoned” prophets with paper wads, and engaged in other experiential activities to help them better understand the Old Testament.

They were attending Origins, a survey class of the Old Testament offered during two separate weeks of Basileia, the region’s Chapter Camp. (Basileia means kingdom in Ancient Greek, i.e., God’s kingdom, and Chapter Camp is a week of leadership training and Scripture engagement held during spring break or after the end of the school year.) Jason Gaboury, ��ñ��’s New York/New Jersey Regional Director, shared teaching duties with Lindsay Olesberg, ��ñ��’s Scripture Engagement Director, who developed the Origins class.

“What was really beautiful from my perspective is that students began to see the same character of God in the Old Testament that they see in Jesus,” Jason said. “When students begin to see that, it is really powerful. I think that happened when they began to see that the loving kindness, faithfulness, longsuffering, and generosity of God isn’t a New Testament idea. It goes all the way back to Genesis.”

��ñ��’s Chapter Camps are famous for immersing college students in a week-long, in-depth Bible study of the Gospel of Mark, but other portions of Scripture are also studied. Often students have the misunderstanding that the God of the Old Testament is different than the God of the New Testament. The Origins class shows that God’s character is consistent throughout the Bible.

During Basilea, Jason shared comments on Facebook from students about how their week away from campus was changing their lives, including one from Rutgers student Chenghui: “I learned from Basilea this week that God is gracious and holy, to be revered and feared. But I learned from Origins track that he is not just a God of judgment but also a God of mercy and grace. His love is actually far greater than I could have ever imagined.”

Jason described another student who made the connection at the beginning of the last day of the class. “He had one of these powerful moments of clarity,” Jason recalled. “He said, ‘I never really understood the New Testament before; now I get it. I’m so excited to go back and lead my fellow students in studying the Old Testament and understanding who God is from that perspective.’”

Seventy colleges in New York and New Jersey have an ��ñ�� presence. Most sent representatives to one of the three weeks of Basileia. This was Jason’s first chance to teach Origins. “Having seen how transformative it was for the students, we will absolutely teach it again,” he said.

After all, how often do you get a chance to stone prophets?

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Acceptable Notes

AD-16225 — Tue, 14 Sep 2010 16:50:52 +0000

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Abi Christian

Acceptable Notes

Solitude can be a way of life for many student musicians. They spend long hours alone in a practice room and sometimes compete with peers for practice space, performances, and uncertain careers. When ��ñ�� student Alex Cap left the College of New Jersey for a summer music program in North Carolina, he expected to put in the long hours and hard work at the piano. He didn’t expect to find a thriving Christian community—or that God would use him to encourage others spiritually, as well as musically.

A Timely Connection

During his first few days on the program’s campus at Brevard College, Alex found himself sitting in a crowded cafeteria next to two students discussing Basileia, an ��ñ�� leadership training conference that Alex also had attended. He introduced himself and met Esther Shin, who had organized the summer’s Christian fellowship.

Esther had attended Brevard’s music program the year before; and knowing few people, she put up a flyer advertising a time for Christian fellowship on Sunday nights. Seventeen students showed up. The community named themselves Soli Deo Gloria (Glory to God Alone), and this past summer grew to almost 50 students. As Alex learned about this group, he thanked God for connecting him with these students and prayed that God would use him over the summer.

Working as for the Lord

Soli Deo Gloriawas looking for leaders to start six small group Bible studies. During the school year in New Jersey, Alex led an ��ñ�� Bible study for other musicians. The experience prepared him to lead in Soli Deo Gloria. His small group began studying Colossians 3 and talked about how people's hearts and actions change because of Christ. When several non-Christians joined the fellowship, Alex realized the need for a seeker-friendly discussion on Christian faith.

“I wanted to give seekers the opportunity to ask whatever questions they had on their mind without the fear of being judged, feeling singled-out, or being overwhelmed with Christians giving them answers,” said Alex. Alex and a Christian friend met with a student who recently became a believer and a young woman interested in learning more about Christianity.

They discussed how the Christian faith does more than produce “good” people—choosing to follow Christ is about being in a right relationship with God, which sometimes requires a shift in perspective. In the music world, the emphasis on perfection can be oppressive. But as Christians, musicians can acknowledge their humanness. Their fingers may stumble, but they remain loved by God and their offering of music is still beautiful and acceptable.

“In the practice room and in the concert hall, I try to remind myself to focus on why I make music,” said Alex. He doesn’t play for improvement or fame, but refers to the passage the small group studied in Colossians. “I want to practice as if working for the Lord, using this gift that He has given me and sharpening my skill so that I can more effectively use it for His glory,” said Alex.

No Matter the Place

At the end of the summer, Alex gave the young woman a Bible and encouraged her to read the Gospel of John. He plans to stay connected and be available for more questions. As he reflected later, Alex said, “God was able to use what little I thought we had for a lot of good.”

Students like Alex who were willing to serve made a positive impression in the program. As an outreach event, Soli Deo Gloria organized a concert, and students shared stories of their own faith or how the faith of composers inspired the pieces the audience heard. As a result, many non-Christians were invited into spiritual conversations about God and music, 25 Bibles were given away by a local church, and two students made decisions to follow Christ.

As another school year begins at the College of New Jersey, Alex hopes his experience at Brevard will help him as he mentors new Christians in the ��ñ�� chapter. ��ñ�� students may have taken an academic break over the summer, but they continue to ask God to use them wherever they are.

You can make a direct financial donation to support ��ñ��’s work at The College of New Jersey by following this link.

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College of New Jersey

Brevard College

Basileia

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