Hope on Arrival

Some of my favorite days at Mount Hermon are arrival days. Whether that is a Friday evening for a weekend retreat, a Sunday afternoon for summer camp, or a Monday morning for our Outdoor Science School students, it is almost always accompanied by the feeling of Hope. Hope that the next few days will be special, unique, and filled with the presence of God. Hope that the Lord will answer the tough questions that our arriving guests maybe asking. Hope that the child or teen the parents just dropped off would have an amazing experience at camp and that the Lord would speak to them. Hope that relationships with the people they came to camp with will be repaired. Hope that God would meet them in a meaningful or even miraculous way, similar to how He has in the past. Hope that their time at Mount Hermon would be the best days of their year. And my guess is that by the fact that you are reading this article now, one (or many!) of the above “hopes” has been true for you on your past “arrival days” at Mount Hermon.

I’ve talked to many campers over the years for whom part of their arrival day tradition is to go into the auditorium and read the year’s theme verse on that old, cherished wooden plank that has been used for decades. This year, campers will be greeted by our theme verse from Psalm 71:5 which reads “Oh Lord, You alone are my hope.” As the psalmist declares the Lord alone is his hope, he is not only reminding
the nation of Israel, but us as well. He reminds us that our hope should be in God “alone” instead of the false hopes that the world so easily offers. A hope that is firm and everlasting. A renewed hope that many have found while at Mount Hermon. A hope that can only be found in God!

I hope you have your next Mount Hermon “arrival day” on the calendar for 2025 and we look forward to celebrating the hope we have in Jesus in this new year!