Jail Break - NavTeens Annual Training camp

Posted on June 15, 2007 | Filed Under Ministries, News, Training 

11th to 15th June
by Suyintha Supra

This year’s Navteens camp was truly different. When you think of a Nav camp, a few things usually come to mind: scripture memory quiz, captain’s ball, special night, and morning devotions.

However, we only had very few of those. During this camp, learning about God was not through messages only. I learnt through games, people in my team, and skits – primarily through experiential learning.

Day one:

Patrick, the camp director gave a brief welcome speech and told us the camp’s strict rules and regulations. He ended with this retort: “If you came to this camp to have fun, you’re in the wrong place.” The whole room was quiet; I’m talking pin drop silence. Coming from a somewhat strict household, the rules were nothing new to me; however, I was quite taken aback by how serious Patrick was.

After the whole afternoon of games, everyone assembled in the parade square and Chris Tan declared that Patrick was stepping down as the camp director. Most of us were getting pretty confused. Chris boasted of how this camp was going to be fun with him as the new camp director. He provided us a sumptuous dinner of pizza, fried chicken, and ice cream. The next two hours were wild; we enjoyed bubble tea, movie screenings, manicures, and x-box. You get the picture? It was almost every teen’s idea of heaven, but we were wrong, it was the very opposite.

After all the fun, the labourers made us clean up the school facilities till about 1 am. Someone commented, “This is like National Service!” We were even made to go into ‘pumping’ position while being called slaves. Almost every camper was almost in a rage! Later we discovered it was all an act - an experiential stimulus. The whole scheme behind this was to let us experience how Satan could entice us with his promises (like what Chris gave us - all the goodies) and then make us his slaves. How the evil one can have hold of our lives as we give in to his schemes and promises! Patrick returned back as the camp director.

The day after, we had war! Through war games I realized how we are in a battle - the soul and body against my spirit-man. The reality of the spiritual warfare was portrayed through this war game.

Cleansing Streams, an external ministry team, came and taught us on the spirit of rejection, guilt, shame, and condemnation. It was quite hard to fall asleep as we were made to stand and pray aloud- repent, renounce, and break.

That same day, there was a skit on Joseph and how he became a slave in Egypt. It was fun as we watched video clips and musical scenes. For the first time Joseph was not just a boy in the Bible to me. I put myself in Joseph’s shoes and felt his ups and downs in life.

The trip we made to Sentosa the next day was enjoyable but really sunny. I went back drenched head to toe with sea water. We then had barbeque and a long worship session. Camp ended on Friday, I prayed my fellow campers went back home as impacted and convicted as I was to not end up in ‘jail’…not to be under the hold and influence of the evil one.

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