Taking the lead from the International convention held in July in Australia, this year’s Summer Camp in Italy took the theme of Inspiration.
It brought together 40 people of similar mind from Poland, Germany, Switzerland, Australia, Italy and of course, the UK. For a week we walked through the spectacular Dolomites, partook of the amazing, but stodgy, local South Tyrolean fare and shared stories and songs from our individual corners of the globe. Always present are the stalwart Italians from Florence and Naples who have been coming to this camp for all 15 years of its existence and are nothing if not persistent in the things of the Lord.
We stayed in a bucolic little town called Natz perched on a mountain overlooking a small regional city called Bressanone, about an hour from the Austrian border. Most of us stayed, perhaps for the final time, in the guesthouse ‘Unterplatter’, and the overflow in other accommodation just up the road. Meals were all provided by the lady of the house, the elderly but still feisty Bertha who each night, together with her team, cooked us three epic but delicious courses. The camp is run by the inexhaustible local church member Sabine Plazter together with her husband (and Pastor) Helmuth and their three kids. Throughout the week they planned the daily activities which included football games, hefty mountain climbs and chairlift rides. In the evening, Pastor Konrad from Poland ran the proceedings.
This is the second time that I have attended this camp and once more the unity of the Lord’s Spirit was highlighted to me. All of these people come from different walks of life and, more divisively, speak different languages. My Polish is about as good as my Chinese but through common experience and with a lot of gesticulation, we understand each other. We came together nightly and we heard various speakers give testimony to how the Lord has worked in their lives. There are always a few brave people who put their hand up to translate. Also, most songs were sung in three languages (Italian, English and Polish). Good-natured chaos ensued. At the conclusion of every evening, the night owls among us headed up to the local ‘Hof’ for a slice of strudel, ein Kappucino mit Zahne (cream) and a relaxing chat about the day gone as well as the possibilities contained in the future.
Next year, it looks like we might all be making our way to Poland around the same time for a week of Baltic adventures, more inspiration and Beaver Soup. If the passion they put into their singing is anything to go by, it’s going to go off.
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To check out photos of the camp, check out our Flickr page
