It wasn’t until my first CCCA Michigan Sectional


that I discovered other Christian camps even existed in Michigan. I was introduced to Spring Hill Camp, a huge camp that had just brought in a plane to make a cabin out of it. I was furious. Our small camp would never have the money to pull off something so wild. So, every morning I did what any discerning Bair


Lake staffer would do. I faced northeast and angrily shook my fist in the general direction of Spring Hill. Tose great big losers with their dumb plane cabin! Eventually, I was hired by Trout Lake Camp (Pine


River, Minnesota) with its 225 beds and adventure program. I was getting out of my comfort zone. A blink later, I woke up running three sites at Trout, with over 500 beds. Simply shameful. I had gone to the dark side. I had become Spring Hill. (I should let you know here that I have nothing but respect for Spring Hill and the team there. My younger self didn’t know what to do with a camp that seemed ours could never compete with.) And as we grew, I sometimes questioned what we


had become. So, each morning, I looked into the mirror and shook my fist at myself. A camp with tree houses? Castles? How dare I? I felt that way until I had the opportunity to hear Karl


Vaters speak to pastors about big and small churches and how they relate. His words soſtened my soul. He was not talking about camps, but he shared how


every church must lean into its strengths in order to meet its calling. Most importantly, he reminded us that every ministry, big or small, has a place in God’s plan. I found parallels to camping ministry. And sud- denly, shaking my fist at anyone — myself included — seemed out of place.


Vaters shared that the early churches were almost


exclusively small, “simply because there were very few Christians around.” He pointed out that through- out history, there have been a handful of large churches with several smaller ones around them. “I don’t think that’s by mistake,” Vaters said. “I think it’s by God’s design, because both big and small bring something to the mix.” As Vaters pointed out, since big churches have more


resources and bigger staffs, they can meet larger needs. Many smaller churches “have advantages that can get overlooked,” Vaters shared. “Te pastor knows my name, and I can easily plug my skills into the church’s needs.” He explained that someone in a big church who plays some guitar will not get onto the worship team, but that same person in a church of 50 could be the one leading worship. As someone who attended a small family camp


growing up in Canada and engaged with larger camps in California as an adult, Vaters knows the formative power of camp. He has spoken at camps and confer- ences with audiences between 100 and 500. With his experience at camps of varying sizes, he shared, “Sometimes, for a youth at a small church, experienc- ing a large camp can be life changing. A teen may have had no idea there were that many fellow believers.” He noted that a large youth group attending a smaller camp can be life changing as campers “experience the intimacy of the community.” Vaters’ message to pastors is, “Don’t feel bad if you’re


leading a small or larger church.” He believes the paral- lels are the same for camps. No matter the size of your camp or conference center, Vaters suggests it needs to be about “building spiritual depth in people, not driving for numbers. Be relational in your ministry.” 


Every ministry, big or small, has a place in God’s plan.


40 www.ccca.org November/December 2025


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68