CHECK Home > News and Events > World training for young people
By David Barfield
from the January 2004 CHECK News
One aspect of training high schoolers for life is to prepare them for the ideas they will encounter at college and in the working world. Often these ideas will be packaged in a manner that seems reasonable. While we have provided some of this training at home, we have found two excellent ministries whose focus is to take teens for a weekend, a week, or two week period and intensely train them in understanding both the Christian's view of the world and those who oppose it. These ministries are Summit Ministries and Worldview Academy. My daughter Betsy attended a one-week Worldview Academy and this past summer, both Betsy and her sister Amy attended the two week Summit camp in Colorado Springs. Below is information on both ministries and their camps for this coming summer. See their website for more details.
I would note that I have heard that the Summit Ministry camps will again be featured on the Focus on the Family radio program. When this occurs, it tends to fill up more quickly.
Summit Ministries: http://www.summit.org/
Mission Statement: Summit Ministries mission includes training servant leaders in worldview analysis, equipping them to champion the Christian faith, and inspiring them to love God with their hearts and minds.
Their challenging two-week sessions combine intense classroom training in worldview analysis and apologetics with a youth camp atmosphere, peppered with time for sports and relaxation, informal discussions, small groups, local tours and worship. Students are equipped with a deep understanding of the Christian worldview and an insightful grasp of the key issues of our day. Most Summit sessions are located in Manitou Springs, CO, with a few sessions at Bryan College in Tennessee. The typical day includes morning classes and an afternoon filled with sports, free time, community service projects or tours. Evening sessions include music and sharing, specially selected videos, and in-depth worldview teaching.
Each Summit student is part of a closely knit small group led by the Summit staff, providing opportunity for personal reflection and interaction. Iron sharpens iron as Christians challenge Christians to new heights of service and devotion.
These seminars may be taken for college credit, affording students a unique incentive to attend.
The cost for the Summit's two-week program, including housing, meals, tuition, lectures, guest speakers, insurance, most outings, and class picture is $650. Send a completed application and a non-refundable $75 deposit to begin the application process. (Scholarship applications are available on request.)
Worldview Academy: http://www.worldview.org/index.html
Worldview Academy is a non-denominational ministry committed to training students to think and live in accord with the Christian worldview. WVA trains students and adults in worldviews, servant leadership, and apologetics. WVA Leadership Camps train students, ages 13 and up, in worldviews, servant leadership, apologetics, and evangelism.
These camps are designed to assist students in meeting the challenges students face in our world today: a popular culture that encourages selfishness and mediocrity, an education system based on atheistic or New Age assumptions, and leaders driven by the desire for power and personal gain. Who can stand firm at such a time? Only the Christian who courageously pursues a deeper relationship with Christ, learning to think His thoughts and follow Him. WAL Camps challenge Christian students to "prepare [their] minds for action" so that they can lead by serving with integrity.
Students at WVA Leadership Camps spend about 26 hours in class, learning to "take every thought captive to make it obedient to Christ" (2 Corinthians 10:5). They graduate with a basic understanding of non-Christian worldviews like the New Age movement and Islam, and the ability to apply the Christian worldview to fundamental questions about origins, aesthetics, and human nature.
The session fee of $545 for first-year students includes: tuition, room and board, tour expenses, an 8x10 camp photo, a T-shirt, and the Worldview Student Handbook. The closest camp to Kansas is at Warrensburg, MO, on Jun. 13-18, 2004.
Online Worldview Test:
http://www.worldviewweekend.com/test/register.php
This online test takes approximately 45-60 minutes. After taking the test, you will get an instant score as well as a report on how your worldview compares with others in your age category and those who have a similar background. Your worldview will be tested in the areas of law, economics, civil government, religion, social issues, sociology, education, and science. Your worldview will be rated for these eight areas as either: Christian Theism, Moderate Christian, Secular Humanist, or Socialist. You will also receive an overall worldview score and rating.