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Day One ABCORI's first Global Mission Camp began as participants explored the weekend's theme by getting to know each another and what they share in common. The group also began to hear stories from the weekend's missionaries-in-residence: Mylinda Baits and Ray Schellinger. |
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Day Two The second day included experiences to help participants better understand challenges faced by people around the world; creating a labyrinth; learning about the work of American Baptist global servants and opportunities for short-term mission work; Bible studies; and assembling 150 hygiene kits for shelters in Rhode Island. (Thanks to Greenville Baptist Church's Missions Committee for providing the funds to purchase the items for the hygiene kits.) |
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Day Three The highlight of the final day was a closing worship service. Participants also spent time in conversation; enjoying a delicious brunch; finishing a puzzle that required many hands over the weekend; and spending time on Adams Lake and a temporary pickleball court. |
Encountering the Unexpected at Global Mission Camp
There is something about a camp or retreat experience that enables people to encounter the unexpected. Such was the case last weekend for the participants of ABCORI’s first Global Mission Camp.
Ranging in age from under 10 to over 80, participants discovered ways in which they were more alike one another than they might have first recognized. They also discovered that they shared many of the same needs as their neighbors around the world.
The group heard familiar passages of scripture in new ways as missionaries-in-residence Mylinda Baits and Ray Schellinger led studies of Isaiah 40:1-5 and Matthew 25:34-40. Some considered vocation afresh as they heard from Ketly Pierre, who Zoomed in from the Dominican Republic, how opportunities for ministry and service can arise at any age.
Prior to Global Mission Camp, some participants might not have known that walking is a form of prayer; that sticks, leaves, and rocks are art supplies; that in the hands of young people, a blow-up globe is a tool for intergenerational community building; or that mission can take so many forms, in so many places.
The full impact of Global Mission Camp likely will not be known for weeks or even years. But such is the case when one has encountered the unexpected.
A Notes of Thanks
Thank you to all those who made Global Mission Camp possible: American Baptist International Ministries global servants Mylinda Baits, Ray Schellinger, and Ketly Pierre; the planning team of Paula DiLuglio, Meredith Eckel, Elise Mancini, and Claire Walker; and the ABCORI staff who organized details behind the scenes, set up the facilities, cooked delicious meals, and staffed the waterfront.
Special thanks to the camp participants, who made Global Mission Camp the wonderful experience it was and who assembled 150 hygiene kits that will be distributed to three shelters around Rhode Island.
There is something about a camp or retreat experience that enables people to encounter the unexpected. Such was the case last weekend for the participants of ABCORI’s first Global Mission Camp.
Ranging in age from under 10 to over 80, participants discovered ways in which they were more alike one another than they might have first recognized. They also discovered that they shared many of the same needs as their neighbors around the world.
The group heard familiar passages of scripture in new ways as missionaries-in-residence Mylinda Baits and Ray Schellinger led studies of Isaiah 40:1-5 and Matthew 25:34-40. Some considered vocation afresh as they heard from Ketly Pierre, who Zoomed in from the Dominican Republic, how opportunities for ministry and service can arise at any age.
Prior to Global Mission Camp, some participants might not have known that walking is a form of prayer; that sticks, leaves, and rocks are art supplies; that in the hands of young people, a blow-up globe is a tool for intergenerational community building; or that mission can take so many forms, in so many places.
The full impact of Global Mission Camp likely will not be known for weeks or even years. But such is the case when one has encountered the unexpected.
A Notes of Thanks
Thank you to all those who made Global Mission Camp possible: American Baptist International Ministries global servants Mylinda Baits, Ray Schellinger, and Ketly Pierre; the planning team of Paula DiLuglio, Meredith Eckel, Elise Mancini, and Claire Walker; and the ABCORI staff who organized details behind the scenes, set up the facilities, cooked delicious meals, and staffed the waterfront.
Special thanks to the camp participants, who made Global Mission Camp the wonderful experience it was and who assembled 150 hygiene kits that will be distributed to three shelters around Rhode Island.
