On Friday, 14th of September 2018, a group of NSW youth headed down to Lake Wallace Campground near Lithgow for the annual NSW Field Camping Trip. Leading up to the weekend, we had been praying for good weather as it had been raining. God answered our prayers with a sunny Friday and a foreast of sun for the entire weekend!
The campsite was a beautiful place close to the lake which some took advantage of by waking up early to watch the sun rise over the water. We secured a spot close to some sheltered picnic tables and BBQ facilities.
The theme for the camp was “Sacrifice”. The PIE (Praise. Inspire. Engage.) team came up with topics and asked a number of young people to prepare and deliver the worships and studies. For some of them, it was their first time preparing a study, but they all did a fantastic job and I’m sure all were blessed by the messages we heard.
We were able to use our fire pit until midnight on the Friday before a fire ban became effective for the next 24hrs – a development we were made aware of that afternoon. It was a chilly night, but beside the fire and with the company of everyone who was there, it was barely felt.
Ivan Ah-Ching and Hayden Araya took us through morning worship on Sabbath, discussing how we can sacrifice our time for God. The drive to the Glow Worm Tunnel took about an hour and involved dirt roads most of the way. Another group from Sydney had organised to meet us at the tunnel so we had to make sure we were on time. We spent the morning exploring the tunnel and were able to catch glimpses of the glow worms on the walls and ceiling in the pitch-black darkness with our torches off.
Everyone contributed to a delicious pot-luck lunch and we even had some guests join us – a family who had gotten stuck and to whom we offered a drive back to their car. We were also treated to a cake for dessert to celebrate a 13th birthday in our group.
Elisabeth Balarezo presented the Sabbath afternoon study which involved some interactive components that got us up on our feet and working in teams.
After the study, we headed back towards the campsite, with a plan to close Sabbath at Hassan’s Wall lookout. The view overlooking the surrounding area was stunning, but our visit was cut short when we heard that a rough wind had blown through our campsite, forcing us to head back to try to restore some of the tents before it got dark. Unfortunately, we did have one tent casualty, but it was still usable for the night.
We are extremely thankful to Tanya Ah-Ching for staying back at the campsite to keep an eye on all our stuff and for doing her best to rescue the tents that were blown over!
We had planned to roast potatoes in the fire for Saturday night dinner, but the fire-ban made that impossible. God was looking out for us and, in securing a spot by the BBQs, we easily made an adjustment in our plans and cooked up a BBQ dinner instead. Everyone contributed ingredients and helped to prepare and cook – it was a great team effort!
Sunday morning greeted us with warm sunshine and Lana Gordon took the morning worship, speaking about Jesus’ sacrifice for us.
PIE Youth prepared a few activities for Sunday, all at the campsite. While some engaged in the activities, others relaxed by the fire pit, which we were then allowed to use since the fire-ban was lifted. Having the fire also meant we could now use the potatoes intended for dinner the night before and roast them for lunch instead. Overall, Sunday was a peaceful day where we could socialise and fellowship with each other. Not wanting to get home too late, we packed up and left the campsite by late afternoon.
Chris Cosson created a great little video of the weekend. If you haven’t seen it yet, it can be found on YouTube, on the Schofields Church page, called “PIE Youth Camp” or direct link at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MZH89marqV4.
The PIE Youth Team would like to say a huge thank you to everyone who came, everyone that prayed and for everyone’s help and contribution in making the camp a success.
~ Reported by Vivian Cosson
