Casa Isonzo: MK Camp

One of the great benefits of attending the SHARE family conference every year is the networking and sharing of resources that inevitably occurs. It doesn't take long for other parents to ask if your kids attend this or that camp or conference during the year as a means of staying connected with their SHARE friends. Several years ago when we had our first teen, we kept hearing about "MK Camp." Of course, with our schedule of furloughing in the US every other summer, this opportunity is restricted to a select couple of years for our kids. We had heard nothing but good things about this camp in Croatia that is dedicated to ministering to MKs in English for two weeks each summer.

Last November we registered Samuel and Emma for the one-week high school camp. There are a limited number of spots with the maximum being 20 campers: 10 girls, 10 boys. We were thankful they got in before the waitlist started within 24 hours. Even though there is a junior high camp, we decided that we would make this an experience for when our kids are in high school. You might be thinking, wow those are really small numbers for a summer camp. Indeed they are, but we are after all in Europe, and Christian camps in English are much more rare to find.

After THE toughest year yet for both Samuel and Emma, as parents, we had been praying for months and months that this camp experience would be just what they both needed emotionally and spiritually. Of course, we did not expect a quick fix to issues, but they so need that outside voice speaking into their lives with truth other than from their parents. No Christian friends, no youth group, it can get pretty lonely and so this was a priority for our kids to attend.

When we would ask them if they were looking forward to it, their response was always reserved and hesitant, okay zero excitement or some form of negativity--just being honest here. In my mind, I was thinking maybe it was due to the fact that they had never had a camp experience and just didn't know what to expect. They did know maybe half the kids from SHARE, so that was a blessing as they ventured into this new experience.

On June 25, we headed off to Zagreb, Croatia for a one night stay followed by dental appointments for all of us the next morning. Yes, it was so worth the 7-hour drive for dental care, the low prices and free accommodations offered by the dental office!! A win-win for our family since the camp was just an hour away from Zagreb.

DPB House Training Center

When we arrived mid-afternoon for check-in we got a tour of the camp, met the counselors, got the kids moved into their rooms and then we headed on our way to begin our Croatian vacation with Luca.

Samuel's room of 8 guys

Emma's room of 5 girls

Ready for our longest family separation

Thankful they have each other

I can't say much more about the week at this point so I am passing the keyboard off to Samuel to share some of his thoughts...

— As my mom has said thus far, I wasn't all too thrilled about MK camp just as we were about to leave. I always felt this extreme tension anticipating it, wondering what it would be like or if it was just going to be a repeat of SHARE 2019. Granted, it was a monumental stepping stone in my life, but I don't think I ever felt more scared or miserable than that week of February. By the time MK camp rolled around, I was simply an emotional and spiritual wreck that could not sink any lower, wrought with a steadily worsening depression, loneliness, and despair. I had one thing to look forward to: I would be seeing my best friend Sydney soon, but that may have been the reason why I was feeling so scared again. My mom kept telling me to see it as a blessing, but, for whatever reason, I didn't want to. Once we actually arrived there, you could say I had an out-of-body experience, as if somebody else took control of my body while I gave her the hug I promised her not a month prior. But from then on it seemed like these moments were dispelling my anxiety. I didn't sleep that first night, however, as if some other part of me wanted to stay miserable for the rest of the week. But for the first time, I found the strength to follow my dad's advice, "Talk to yourself, don't listen to yourself."
More accurately, God gave me that strength. And that's how my healing began. I could go on and on about all the crazy shenanigans we did at camp, but then this "brief" blurb would come out far longer than I intended. Instead of resisting the stupidity and trying to be the adult in the room as I usually do, I embraced the immaturity and let myself go for once. I began talking with other people, willfully engaging in small talk. As far as the sports went, I wasn't that bad at them, not even rock climbing, despite my fear of heights, which shocked even me. So a lot of things happened to me that week that I simply couldn't believe half the time. As far as the counselors went and the talks that they gave every night, they were phenomenal and incredibly helpful when breaking down the passages of Exodus. The theme of the week for the devotions was breaking free from the shackles of sin. Fittingly enough, after that week of MK camp, I finally felt free — from fear in particular. So if SHARE 2019 marked the beginning of my healing, MK camp would be the fruition of that emotional and spiritual revival for me.

It has been well over a month since the kids have returned from camp and we can verify that we do see positive changes in them both, glory to God! I asked Emma if she would like to share a few thoughts too but she said there is too much to try to put it in words. And I didn't push for her to write here as she has an incredible mound of summer homework she is still working on. She does admit that this week was a turning point for her as well and the start of a climb up out of the pit for her too.

Continue to pray for the hearts of our children, for their walk with God and that as they traverse through the fires of life that they will see more and more clearly who they are in Christ and that they would know Him and His great love for them. Nothing can separate them from God's love (Romans 8:38-39)

We are so thankful for the photographer that captured the week in pictures for the parents and campers. Credit to DPB House for the pictures that follow.