Prayer Prompts For Summer Camp

As I write this, thousands of churches are preparing for one of the biggest weeks of their ministry year: summer camp. As you’ve probably heard and experienced, camp can have a huge impact on your ministry. One week can change the rest of the year. It’s incredible.

There’s something special about carving out a week, taking over schedules for the lives of middle and high schoolers, and intentionally putting them in daily rhythms to engage with their Creator.

Now, I know the hustle that takes place leading up to camp. Packing lists, parent meetings, permission slips, leader meetings, last-minute signups, the local school that moved their sports camp up a week that now interferes with your schedule, dietary concerns, and MORE!

But in the middle of all of those things, we can’t forget what matters most…

Camp is a place where students encounter Jesus. If that’s the case, let me remind you of two things:

1. If camp is a place where students encounter Jesus, your efforts to make camp happen are WORTH IT.
2. If camp is a place where students encounter Jesus, we must be prayer warriors in the middle of all that hustle before camp.

That’s why prayer must be our first work, not our last resort. And as youth pastors, we set the tone. So, as you are in the final days and weeks of getting your camp off the ground, I wanted to share some encouragement and prayer prompts that have guided me through the summer years as I prepared for camp. I’d encourage you to pray through these, share them with your team, and invite others to pray alongside you for your summer camp. To make it easy and memorable, the prayer prompts below are broken down using the acronym S.U.M.M.E.R. C.A.M.P.

SALVATION FOR STUDENTS

Pray for students who don’t know Jesus and that they will clearly hear the Gospel and respond with surrender and faith.

UNDISTRACTED HEARTS

Teenagers are busy and distracted people and carry a lot. Be praying that God would help them remove distractions so they can clearly hear Him and focus on Him.

MOMENTS THAT MATTER

Pray for powerful moments for everyone going that they would have fun and build friendships but encounter the Lord in ways they will never forget.

MAINTAIN UNITY IN CHRIST

As students are away from home for a week, pray that they will seek to build bonds that go beyond the week.

EXCITED VOLUNTEERS AND LEADERS

We couldn’t do weeks like this without our leaders. They are giving up time from work, families, and more. Pray that God would use them and fill them as they serve.

REAL LIFE CHANGE

Changing for a week or two is a good start, but we want to see students be transformed for an eternity.

CONFESSION AND REPENTANCE

Pray that students would confess sin to the Lord and even to each other. As they do, pray that they will flee from sin and turn to the Lord.

AUTHENTIC COMMUNITY

Pray that God would create spaces for students to build a community that lasts and promotes authentic identity, purpose, and belonging. 

MISSIONAL MINDSET AFTER CAMP

As students go home, pray that they will be ready to live out their faith and share Jesus boldly.

PROTECTION OVER THE WEEK

Ask God to guard the health and travel of your group and that God would protect them from any attack from the enemy.

Camp is a life-changing week. It’s a launching pad for so many incredible things in the life of a student. As you’re preparing to lead well at your camp, know that your work is making a difference and your prayers matter.

Consider using these prayer points for your own week of camp by sharing them with others involved in your camp planning or in your church to encourage them in some specific ways to pray for camp.

Share your thoughts with others in our YM360 community:

1. What is something you’re specifically praying about for your week of summer camp?
2. How can you rally your church behind your prayers for camp?