4 minute read
FINDING A PLACE OF BELONGING
NEVILLE BARTLEY | Youth Team Leader, SUNZ Finding a Place of Belonging
We were created to belong. We were created to belong to the creator and with the creator of all things. We were also created to belong with one another. The need to belong is part of the God-given fabric of our make-up. This world tells us that to truly belong we need to look like this, act like this, own these things and be successful. Yet, at the same time, we are told that we can be whoever we want to be, no matter what other people think. These conflicting messages combined with the physical, emotional and spiritual changes going on in a young person’s life, mean many young people are left feeling confused about their identity and feeling like they do not belong. Many even struggle to feel as though they belong in their own home, with their own family. They may lack confidence, feel unloved and, in fact, often feel unlovable. Belonging gives us a sense of identity and confidence and helps us to feel loved. It is a vital part of the growth and development of young people. As the NZ Child and Youth Wellbeing website puts it:
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Developing a sense of belonging is important for children and young people to develop self-confidence and a sense of identity and tūrangawaewae. They need safe spaces and time to explore and establish their identities. It’s important that they’re accepted for who they are without having to fit into narrow and limiting norms. Knowing that they belong and being secure in their identity helps young people relate to others, as well as to the world around them. A strong sense of belonging and identity also helps children to develop respect for others and exercise manaakitanga. When children and young people feel connected, for example to their whakapapa and tūrangawaewae, they are likely to have a stronger sense of identity and confidence. As Christians, our place in God’s story is a big part of our whakapapa (or lineage) and tūrangawaewae (or place where we have the right to stand). That is one reason why our SUNZ camps are designed as a community that allows young people to belong, to connect with God’s story and to discover who God created them to be. The structures of our spiritual times, our mealtimes and even our activity times at camp are designed to help young people feel safe and know that they belong here. Even though the camp is a short temporary community, we work hard to make it a place that is loving, caring and supportive.
From the welcome campers receive when they arrive at camp to the farewell at the end, SUNZ camp leaders work hard to help campers find a sense of belonging. Our engagement with God through prayer, scripture and community is all designed to help the young people know God as well as know about God and to know for certain that they personally belong to God and belong in a relationship with Him. Even the activities we do are designed to help campers to connect with the God who loves them and who has a place for them to belong.
A young person who attended our Exodus Prime young leaders’ camp told me: ‘I have discovered who I am coming to these camps, and that God loves me and that I have people who love me and accept me as I am. I wish I could always come to this camp.’ Many of our current and past campers would agree with that statement—and return year after year to the same camp. Partly because they enjoy what they do when they are there, partly because they make friendships that will last a lifetime and, importantly, because they have discovered a place where they belong. Camp is a place that young people do not want to leave and a place they look forward to returning to. We try to create opportunities for them to build on friendships from previous camps and build new friendship throughout the camp. Finding a place to truly belong, to connect with God and to discover who God created us to be brings transformation into our lives and helps us to grow and help us have more confidence in who we are. One young person shared with me that coming to camp helps him to feel normal and know that there is a place for him in this world. It encourages him to continue to connect with the rest of his family, and especially his siblings and help them to experience what it means to belong. In a world where many people do not know what tomorrow will bring, young people are struggling to find a place and a future where they belong. So please continue to pray for and support our camps as they create and provide communities where these young people can find a sense of belonging and, most of all, where they can find God. The God to whom they belong. The God with whom they belong.
