Afterward Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and said, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘Let my people go, so that they may hold a festival to me in the wilderness.’” – Exodus 5:1 NIV
Fourteen miles from here, on the grounds of Newport United Methodist Church, there sits a boulder with red stripes. It is the Red Rock, sacred to the Dakota and significant to Methodist history in Minnesota. In 1869, Methodists began to hold yearly “camp meetings” near this rock. Settlers from across the region would come to sing and pray and listen to preachers. They would share picnics and fellowship and get to know their neighbors. Eventually, as many as 20,000 persons a day would come to the Red Rock camp meetings. Many years later, the site of the camp meeting was moved to Camp Koronis in Paynesville, where it continues today. In fact, just this past June our rezYouth attended Red Rock camp.
On September 14, Resurrection Church will hold our own version of a camp meeting. We may not have 20,000 in attendance, but we will sing and pray and preach in the open air, then enjoy a free picnic with our neighbors and friends just like they did 150 years ago. We’ll also have a bouncy house for the kids, which they didn’t have back then. Of course, we could do all this inside (and we will if it rains), but there is something special about gathering to worship outdoors. So invite your friends, grab a lawn chair, and come join us!
Pastor Mark
Remember, there will be no 8:30a service that day, but the message will be available online online at that time.