Belief Maintenance

Hello! I hope you are all as joyful as I am that we are on the cusp of spring, which means summer, which means closer to camp. Yay! Let me tell you about a few things I’ve been pondering this year. To begin, you need to know that I am an extremely goal-oriented person. Every year I write a list of things I wish to accomplish in the coming year. Usually this spans 20-40 goals. This year however, with a quality over quantity approach, I chose to mentally note only 3 goals. One of these goals was to write a sermon. Fear not, I’m not going to put a whole sermon up here, just a brief summary.
First, let me tell you a little about myself. I’m a 3rd year Psychology student (I also reserve a large place in my heart for Biology). In my social psychology class we learned about something called belief maintenance. This was the grounds for my sermon.
The majority of psychologists agree that the best way to predict one’s attitudes and beliefs is through one’s behaviour. A small example from my own life was when I made the choice to sign up for a half marathon last year. I had always enjoyed running, but I must admit that in the first few weeks I wasn’t always excited to jog. Sometimes I just wanted to curl up with a good book, or head to the park instead of pushing through 10 or 15 gruelling kilometres. But, I set a goal for myself and I forced myself to hit the pavement five times a week. Since then, I’ve slowly come to love running, and I feel antsy when I go too long without lacing up. The more I run, the more I love it. Simply put; how you act strengthens what you believe. Now let’s connect this to faith…
This means that one of the best ways to strengthen your belief, and ultimately relationship with God is to work for God. The Bible, especially the New Testament emphasizes how important service is. Jesus and his disciples went out into the world to teach others about God. What better way to do that than to work at camp? Camp has allowed me many opportunities to teach others about God, through PEG, bible, fireside, and many other times. When I serve God at camp, I strengthen my own beliefs and faith. When you serve God, you not only help somebody else out, but you remind yourself of your own beliefs, and that makes them stronger!

“As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace.” -1 Peter 4:10

- Erin Braun-Janzen
Windsurfing instructor and counsellor 2010