Daily Devotion

Camp Luther                                                             Lutheridge Camp & Conference Center
66 wooded acres along the shores of Lake Erie  160 acres in Arden, NC
Stunning view with sensational sunsets               Scenic, mountain setting    
Hiking trails, sport fields                                         Hiking trails, canoeing, rock climbing

Tuesday, July 21, 2020

The Five Sense of Camp – Touch

Being at camp grounds me. It centers me. It allows me space to reflect. It is a place a part from the rest of my life. It is holy ground.

Lutheridge has a prayer labyrinth, tucked into a little paved nook of camp behind the Administrative building. You might miss it if you aren’t looking for it. One of the reasons that I really enjoy walking this labyrinth is that I really do feel like it a sacred time between God and I, almost like it’s a secret. I try to pick one morning during the week and go early to the labyrinth, before the rest of camp wakes up. I always walk with my shoes off (I know – a big camp taboo). Taking off my shoes, stepping into the sacred space that the labyrinth holds and feeling that paved path on my bare feet is spiritually renewing. It is all of me being fully present to God.

“Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian; he led his flock beyond the wilderness, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God.²There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of a bush; he looked, and the bush was blazing, yet it was not consumed. ³Then Moses said, ‘I must turn aside and look at this great sight, and see why the bush is not burned up.’⁴When the Lord saw that he had turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, ‘Moses, Moses!’ And he said, ‘Here I am.’ ⁵Then he said, ‘Come no closer! Remove the sandals from your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.” (Exodus 3: 1-5)

During my first summer at Camp Luther (2017), I snuck away from our cabin after putting my kids to bed for the night to catch a glimpse of the sunset over the bluff that I had heard so much about. This particular week at Lake Erie happened to be fairly cool overall and this particular night was bringing that cool front with it. The bluff was particularly windy that night and the sky was a glorious rainbow of purple and pinks. The only thing that I could hear was the wind in my ears and I just remember the force of the wind against my face as I stood looking out over the water. I remember thinking “This is what that rushing wind at Pentecost must have felt like”.

“When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. ²And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting.” (Acts 2:1-2) 

At both of these camps, these sacred spaces, I have felt the presence of God. I consider these experiences to be very personal, almost intimate moments with God and I know that being in a place set apart allowed me the time and space to be present with God.

While I deeply miss not going to camp this summer for SO MANY REASONS, I have reflected on several occasions during these last few months that we are currently living through a sacred time. My husband referred to the Stay At Home Orders as a “forced decluttering” – a time to evaluate what activities do you engage in that are really meaningful for you versus what activities just make you busy? Being at home more often than naught these past few months has allowed me time to re-center myself, to reflect on how, where and with whom I spend my time. As I walk barefoot around my house, I am reminded that I am on holy ground.

How did Stay At Home Orders help you declutter?

What are beneficial daily habits/routines that you want to continue into the future post COVID?

Where is your Holy Ground?