P4C20: No Such Thing As Bad Luck

 In P4C Updates

Thirteen: for some it conjures up thoughts of broken mirrors, black cats, and bad luck. To some, 2020 has been a string of bad luck.

But for the Cavanaugh family and the Passion4Christ staff, it brought anticipation of the thirteenth annual Passion4Christ Summit. 2020 has been filled with many less than desirable circumstances. It has not been a year any of us anticipated or would have hoped for. But, it has certainly been much more than bad luck. It has been a year for the people of God to see the will of our great God unfold. As Christians, luck does not hold a place in our vocabulary, except perhaps as a figure of speech. Instead, we trust in the providence and sovereignty of our great and gracious God.

From our perspective, P4C number 13 was by no means certain, as we began the year and COVID-19 appeared on the horizon. But, we were hopeful and prayerful. Conversation with the leadership at Pleasant Hill Outdoor Camp (our regular venue) were not encouraging at first. COVID-19 loomed as an immovable mountain.

But, persistent prayer and ongoing discussions were profitable, and our Lord made it possible, through the flexibility of our brothers at PHOC, to go through with our plans for this year’s Summit.

All of this meant that our volunteer staff would have to follow some new but necessary procedures, which they successfully and graciously did. The meals were a bit of an extra challenge but were as scrumptious as ever. Our theme dinner incorporated a roaring twenties atmosphere and came off as a “roaring” success. All of the extracurricular activities are designed to provide an opportunity to relax and to get to know new brothers and sisters in Christ. New Christian friendships are formed and old ones renewed. It’s an effective backdrop for the preaching sessions and the spiritual renewal they bring. Coupled with the fervent corporate worship, the Word of God brings conviction, encouragement, and obvious joy. The messages defined and expounded upon the theme ‘Discipleship: Learning to Grow in Grace’ . Many thanks to our key-note speaker and dear brother, Pastor Matt Watson from Mt.Vernon, IN for his investment in the next generation. He has an obvious love for Christian young adults, and his exhortations from God’s Word were pointed, practical, and personal. This was his second consecutive year at P4C, and we were the better for it. 

Daniel and I added messages. Micah challenged the men in a break out to be faithful disciples in the public square, and Pam encouraged the women to be “Extraordinarily Ordinary” women.

While it is necessary to get back to normal life at home (not to mention my own bed), all of us begin to have a sense of the Summit’s brevity and specialness as Saturday evening approached.We had an excellent Q&A, a group picture, a bond fire (with Micah reading from Patrick McMannus, a real knee- slapper), then the annual volleyball championship. Most of the young people stayed up too late and are worn out for the morning session, but it is worth every bit of it – so they tell me.

I always close with the Sunday morning message and then comes the send off and goodbyes.

In spite of COVID-19, our numbers were up 16%. For the first time, male and female attendees were nearly equal (an answer to prayer). We saw several new faces, and there was a sense of engagement and strength throughout the conference. The attendees were confronted with the challenge to be genuine disciples of Christ in a world that needs the Savior and their response was encouraging and hopeful. One new Christian from our church was especially grateful and happy the Lord made it possible for her to come. She said that as a new Christian, it was just what she needed. Praise the Lord!

We are grateful that the Lord made it possible for P4C20 to happen. Thank you for your prayerful support. Continue to pray that the Lord will bring forth much fruit from the labors of P4C20. After all, it is He who gives the increase! 

Charles Cavanaugh

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