Campout and Articles

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These last two weeks have found our family in Ferndale, Washington, for a baseball trip with a 14U Babe Ruth team and at our church campout at Bastendorff on the Oregon Coast. It was a full two weeks with tons of memories made. It was nice to get away, and it was needed.

Over these two weeks, I have accumulated a few articles I will post here for your reading pleasure. But first, let me comment on our church campout.

Church Campout

This event has become a highlight in the York family. Our kids would rather us do the church campout than miss it for a family vacation. I know because I tried one year to plan our family vacation during the campout, and I almost had a mutiny on my hands:).

In years past, our church campout has been at Lone Pine near Mill Pond. We were there for several years until the fires of 2020 burned Mill Pond and Lone Pine. With Lone Pine closed, we tried a spot last year near Medford, but the temps were near 120 degrees, it was just too uncomfortable, and the camping was too spread out. But this year, Helen Buechley, our Event Coordinator, found us Bastendorff Beach Park. It was amazing. The temps were excellent, the spots were close together, and there were regular showers!

What makes the campout such a sweet time is that there is nothing organized, no schedules, and we’re not rushed. We get a chance to be together. There is no agenda, and there is plenty of time. It does make me long for ways to fit more times like this into my life. To ‘be’ together rather than have to ‘do’ something is refreshing.

I have asked Helen to book Bastendorff again, and my thinking is to book it for the next 20 years. If you haven’t gone to the campout because you’re not a camper, try to come for a day trip and hang out. If you are a camper and haven’t gone, put this on your calendar for next year. You won’t regret it.

Articles of Interest

We often talk about using your gifts, talents, and interests for the sake of the gospel. Genell Tuter is one of the wonderful Christian ladies in our church. She’s also an award-winning artist. Here’s an article about what she’s doing, and the opening picture has Amy Mann alongside her daughter, Emma, who is also a member of CLF: https://www.nrtoday.com/news/local/award-winning-artist-mentors-young-painters/article_3980db96-2104-11ee-864e-abafcf4056a6.html
I have talked periodically about paying attention to the Artificial Intelligence news. Here’s an article that parents should pay close attention to, especially if they like to post pictures of their kids on social media: https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/family/story/sharing-photos-kids-after-watch-deepfake-ad-101730561. Just a quick highlight…AI can take those pictures and potentially use them to accuse your kids of stuff they didn’t do. Worth a read.
I have been reading about people leaving the church for quite a while. This article I read in Apple News (from The Atlantic) is very insightful. Give this paragraph some thought: “The book suggests that the defining problem driving out most people who leave is … just how American life works in the 21st century. Contemporary America simply isn’t set up to promote mutuality, care, or common life. Rather, it is designed to maximize individual accomplishment as defined by professional and financial success. Such a system leaves precious little time or energy for forms of community that don’t contribute to one’s own professional life or, as one ages, the professional prospects of one’s children. Workism reigns in America, and because of it, community in America, religious community included, is a math problem that doesn’t add up.” This long-form article will take a few minutes, but it’ll be worth your time. It will help you understand the current trends of church attendance and help you see why some folks may not come to church when you invite them. Here’s the article: The Misunderstood Reason Millions of Americans Stopped Going to Church — The Atlantic