From 5-7 July, 19 youth members of our synod came together at a retreat centre that was named after this Fort for the Lutheran Winter Youth Camp (LWYC).
Fort Mistake might have been built due to the mistake of a British general (no one knows who he was), but it was no mistake for us. Here, they shared the opportunity to learn more about God’s Word, to better get to know fellow members of our Synod, and to have an invigorating weekend retreat.
This year our theme came from 2 Cor. 12:9: “My power is made perfect in weakness.” In various sessions, we talked about how humans usually misunderstand what real power is, how, in our striving for this “power,” we weaken ourselves, and how we desperately need God to come and let us share in the power that only He can give. We then moved on to learn that real power is the power of the cross. Real power is God becoming man and dying for us on the cross. If we are joined to this power, we will also rise with our Lord and live with Him eternally. That is power. Now that we are joined to God in our baptism, we still suffer affliction and persecution, but the power is guaranteed and our goal is certain. Our devotions throughout the weekend also meditated on this theme.
In addition to the sessions and devotions, we also had plenty of free time for activities, which were organised by Sbu and Lindi Dube from Newcastle. This was their first time leading the English camp, and they did a great job. Thank you to the both of you!
We concluded the weekend in Uelzen, coming together with the congregations of Uelzen and Newcastle to celebrate the Sunday Divine Service before we headed back to our various homes.
All in all, it was a wonderful weekend. I had a great time and I am looking forward to helping again next year. There is still space to join, so I hope to see all of you there next time. You will not regret it!
Vicar Christian Straeuli, Wittenberg
