“Youth camp veteran” fits a guy approaching fifty who’s spent part of every summer at camp for thirty years. I got saved at fifteen at a youth camp. A couple years later, at the same camp, I sensed my call to ministry. A few years after that, I met my wife there — and eventually brought her back for a “meeting” that turned out to be a candlelit dinner in the camp bowling alley. I walked her to the altar where I’d made so many life decisions, where I’d placed a red, yellow, and white rose, and got down on one knee.
(A friend later salvaged a piece of that bowling alley floor when the camp repurposed the building. He’s a master woodworker and turned it into a focal piece with our family name etched into the grain. It is prominently displayed at our house.)
So yes, I’m a camp veteran. I’ve spoken at camps across the country and internationally, served as camp pastor for local churches and denominational events ranging from a hundred kids to a couple thousand. I’ve seen camps I’d send my own kids to without hesitation — and some I’d warn parents away from.
Here are seven questions every parent should ask before signing up.
1. Is the camp pastor-led or counselor-led?
Who holds the room during Bible study matters more than almost anything else. Counselors are valuable — but they’re not pastors. Watch out for turnkey camps where youth leaders drop the kids off and take the week off themselves. Most good camps are hybrid models, with a pastor handling the bulk of teaching and young leaders running small groups. If that’s the model, ask: where do they find their small group leaders, and how are they trained?
2. Is it focused on evangelism or discipleship?
Both matter, but they serve different kids at different stages. Evangelism camps are high-energy, emotionally charged, aimed at students who don’t yet know Christ. If your teenager isn’t saved, this might be a good fit for them. Discipleship camps go deeper. They have Scripture-focused preaching, teaching, and small groups designed to grow faith, not just ignite it. My preference is a discipleship-oriented camp with a strong commitment to the gospel. Best of both worlds, in my humble but accurate opinion.
3. Who is the CEO?
The director sets the culture. Their theology, values, and priorities flow downstream into every hiring decision, every speaker invitation, every policy. Before you sign the registration form, look them up. Is the director a pastor? A businessman? A ministry professional? Each brings different instincts about what a camp should accomplish. You’re not being paranoid. You’re being a parent.
4. What churches return year after year?
Loyalty is evidence. Churches that keep coming back have seen fruit, trust the leadership, and feel good about what happens there. Call one. Ask the youth pastor: “What do your students come home with? What’s changed?” If a camp’s roster looks different every year with no long-term returning churches, that’s a flag. High turnover usually means something keeps getting discovered and walked away from.
5. Who are the camp pastors?
“Camp pastor” is a loose term. At some camps it means a seasoned minister with decades of experience. At others it means a worship leader who also speaks, or a social media personality with a following. Look for someone accountable to a local church, with a track record in student ministry, and known by name to other pastors in your network. Search for their teaching online. Ask your pastor what he thinks of them. His network is one of your best filters.
6. What does a service actually look like?
Ask for a schedule. Watch footage from a previous year if you can. How long is the worship set? How long is the message? What does the altar call look like? I wouldn’t send my kids to a camp that manufactures bulk emotional decisions. My preference is a camp like Crossings — where I’ve preached for over twenty years — that dismisses students after the message to respond in the context of their own youth group. That quiet walk from the service to the youth group checkpoint gives students time to count the cost, rather than just get swept up in the moment.
7. Is the camp intentional about protecting minors?
Don’t send your kids to a camp that doesn’t have a clear, stated strategy for protecting children from abuse. If you find the camp organization either (1) has a digital footprint about how they’ve handled previous situations poorly, and/or (2) is unable to share with you their child protection plan, then run like the wind. The optimal situation is for all adults working with students on the camp campus to be required to do training and have a backround check.
Right now, students are gathering at youth camps around the world. Pray for them. As one youth leader put it simply: “God goes to camp.” When students and leaders unplug from the world for a week and fix their attention on God’s Word, remarkable things happen. I should know, I’ve still got a piece of the bowling alley from my youth camp sitting on our dining room table.
