Family Camp 2026 · Gulf Plains Churches

Sacred Rhythms

Finding a Godly pace in a hurried world. One weekend to slow down, look up, and reconnect as a family.

WhenOct 2 – 4, 2026
WhereLocation announced soon
WhoEvery family, every age
OptionalThursday Parents' Summit
The Heart of the Weekend

Rest. Reconnect. Refocus.

Our families are busier than they have ever been. Practices, screens, deadlines, and drive-throughs set the tempo of our weeks. Family Camp is a holy interruption: two nights in God's creation where the schedule serves your family instead of running it.

Rest

Unhurried time outdoors. No rushing, no screens required, room to breathe.

Reconnect

Play, eat, laugh, and worship side by side with your kids and your church family.

Refocus

Practical teaching on building rhythms of faith that survive the drive home.

“The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge.”

Psalm 19:1–2
The Weekend at a Glance

Three days, one pace: God's.

Come for the whole weekend or just for the day on Saturday. Everyone is welcome either way.

Thursday, Oct 1

Parents' Summit Optional

  • 3:00 pmEarly check-in opens
  • 6:00 pmDinner with the early crew
  • 7:00 pmParents' Summit session one; game and movie night for the kids
  • 9:00 pmFire, coffee, and honest conversation
Friday, Oct 2

Arrive & Unplug

  • 9:00 amSummit session two and expert Q&A (early arrivals)
  • 4:00 pmCheck-in, set up camp, tribe assignments
  • 6:30 pmCookout dinner together
  • 8:00 pmWelcome campfire, s'mores, and tribe flag making
  • 9:30 pmGlow Wars: the first tribal points of the weekend
Saturday, Oct 3

The Full Day

  • 8:00 amBreakfast
  • 9:30 amFamily session: Sacred Rhythms
  • 11:00 amBreakouts: kids classes by age, workshops for adults
  • 12:30 pmLunch
  • 2:00 pmTribal Games on the field
  • 4:00 pmExpert Q&A panel for parents; crafts and free play for kids
  • 5:30 pmCast-Iron Cook-Off dinner
  • 7:30 pmLegacy Campfire and blessing letters
  • 9:30 pmThe Heavens Declare stargazing
Sunday, Oct 4

Worship & Send-Off

  • 7:30 amSunrise worship and communion
  • 8:30 amPancake breakfast
  • 10:00 amFamily devotional, memory verse showcase, and the Cedar Cup awards
  • 12:00 pmLunch, pack up, head home renewed

Draft schedule. Times and sessions will be finalized closer to camp.

Tribes, Games & Wars

Four tribes. One epic weekend.

At check-in, every family is drafted into one of four creation tribes. Kids, parents, and grandparents compete on the same roster all weekend, and everything from the games to the verses you memorize banks points for your tribe.

Skies

"The heavens declare the glory of God."

Woods

"Then shall all the trees of the forest sing for joy."

Rivers

"Let the rivers clap their hands."

Stars

"He determines the number of the stars."

How your tribe scores

  • Tribal Games and Glow Wars victories
  • Memory verses recited, any age, any time
  • Cast-Iron Cook-Off entries and scavenger hunt finds
  • Spirit points, awarded loudly and a little arbitrarily

It all comes down to Sunday morning, when the winning tribe hoists the Cedar Cup at closing. Bragging rights last exactly one year.

Hide It in Your Heart

The camp memory challenge: Psalm 19:1–4. Kids take on verse one, adults take the whole passage.

Recite it to any leader before Sunday breakfast to earn your camp patch and bank serious points for your tribe. Every reciter gets celebrated at the closing showcase.

Classes & Training

Come for the rest. Leave with the tools.

Alongside the fun, the weekend carries real equipping: practical training for parents and classes built just for kids, so every member of the family goes home with something that sticks.

The Parents' Summit

Come a day early. Thursday evening and Friday morning are a deep-dive parenting intensive: focused sessions, honest discussion, and expert Q&A while the kids get a game and movie night.

Optional Thursday

Adult Workshops

Workshop-style and high-level, not lecture-style. Family devotionals that actually stick, screens and schedules, discipling teens. You leave with a plan you wrote, not notes you'll lose.

Parents

Kids Classes

While parents are in workshops, kids head to age-graded classes with screened teachers: Bible lessons, crafts, and a creation scavenger hunt for the littles.

Just for Kids

Expert Q&A

Panels with seasoned parents, ministers, and counselors. Drop your questions in the box anonymously at check-in and hear real answers to the questions every parent is carrying.

Ask Anything
Signature Moments

The stuff your kids will still talk about at Thanksgiving.

Legacy Campfire

Parents and grandparents share three-minute faith stories around the fire. We record the audio so every family takes home a keepsake of their own generation's testimony.

Saturday Night

Blessing Letters

Moms and dads write a sealed letter of blessing to each child on Friday. They are read aloud by firelight on Saturday. Bring tissues, seriously.

Tissues Required

Tribal Games

Tug-of-war, egg toss, three-legged races, and events nobody trains for. Every win banks points for your tribe, and zero athletic ability is required to become a legend.

All Ages

The Heavens Declare

Blankets out, lights off, eyes up. A guided stargazing devotional straight out of Psalm 19, with a telescope for the curious.

Theme Night

Cast-Iron Cook-Off

Dutch ovens, secret recipes, and bragging rights. Teams cook, the whole camp judges, and everybody eats the entries for dinner.

Everyone Judges

Glow Wars

Capture the flag after dark with glow sticks on every kid. Ends with a full-camp glow parade back to the fire.

After Dark

Golden Hour Portraits

Free family mini-sessions at sunset. Come home with a real family photo where everyone is actually together and actually outside.

Free Keepsake

The Unplugged Challenge

Optional phone drop-off at check-in. Families who go screen-free all weekend get entered in a prize drawing, and get their weekend back.

Optional, Worth It
Your Weekend, Your Way

Stay the weekend or come for the day.

There is a lane for every family, from full-weekend campers to Saturday day-trippers. Pricing and lodging options will be announced with registration.

Tent & RV Camping

The full experience. Pitch your tent with your church family and fall asleep to crickets instead of notifications.

Cabins & Lodging

Indoor options for families with little ones, grandparents, or anyone whose back has opinions about sleeping on the ground.

Day Trippers

Can't stay the night? Come Saturday morning and stay through the campfire. You will not miss the good stuff.

Camp Forecast

What the sky usually does in early October.

Warm days, mild evenings, and skies made for stargazing. Here is the typical picture; this section flips to a live weekend forecast automatically about two weeks before camp.

Day High~84°Fwarm, made for the field games
Night Low~68°Fcampfire-perfect evenings
Rain Odds1 in 4days see rain; pack one just-in-case layer

Typical early October for the Gulf Plains region (NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals). A live Friday-to-Sunday forecast takes over here once camp is inside the forecast window.

Good to Know

Questions families actually ask.

Who is Family Camp for?
Everyone. Singles, couples, kids, teens, and grandparents. It is built around families doing the weekend together rather than splitting everyone into separate programs.
Do we have to stay overnight?
No. Overnight is the full experience, but day trippers are completely welcome. Saturday runs morning to campfire and is worth the drive on its own.
What about our little ones and nap time?
Families with small children can step away for naps and breaks whenever needed. The schedule leaves real margin on purpose.
Will our kids be supervised?
Family Camp is a together event at its core: you worship, eat, play, and camp as a family. During the breakout blocks, kids go to age-graded classes with screened teachers while parents are in workshops. Outside those blocks, children stay with their parents.
What is the Thursday Parents' Summit?
An optional day-early arrival for parents who want extra training. Thursday evening and Friday morning hold focused parenting sessions and expert Q&A while the kids get a game and movie night. It adds one night of lodging; you'll pick the option at registration.
Do we have to memorize the verses?
Nobody is quizzed at the gate. The Hide It in Your Heart challenge is exactly that, a challenge: take it on and you earn a patch, tribe points, and a moment at the Sunday showcase. Skip it and you are still fully part of everything.
What should we bring?
A packing list comes with registration. Plan on outdoor clothes, layers for the evening, camp chairs, flashlights, and a Bible. We will handle the rest.
How much does it cost?
Pricing is being finalized and will be announced when registration opens. There will be affordable options for every family size, and cost should never keep a family home. Talk to us.

“Night after night they reveal knowledge.”

Psalm 19:2
October 2 – 4, 2026

Give your family one slow weekend.

Registration opens soon. Tell us you're interested and you will be the first to know when it does.

Count Us In