Indiana Camp Meeting Draws Over 2,700 for Week of Worship, Family, and Mission

More than 2,700 church members, families, and guests attended the 2026 Indiana Conference Camp Meeting, held June 1–6 at Indiana Academy under the theme “Threads of Grace: The Fabric of Family.” The attendance total included participants at the main camp meeting as well as the conference’s Hispanic and Haitian gatherings. The Hispanic fellowship weekend was held on May 30 before camp meeting began, while the Haitian gathering took place on Sabbath, June 6, at the Cicero Seventh-day Adventist Church. 

According to reports published in the conference’s Hoosier Happenings newsletter, the week focused on strengthening families, growing disciples, and encouraging members to live out their faith through service and mission. Worship services, seminars, youth programs, health presentations, recreation, and fellowship activities brought together members and visitors from across Indiana. 

Indiana Conference President Vic Van Schaik opened the camp meeting by addressing the realities facing many families today including busy schedules, workplace pressures, and increasing stress. He encouraged attendees to rediscover the Sabbath as God’s gift of rest, renewal, and connection with family and God. Pointing to the biblical gift of the Sabbath, he described it as “rest for the rushed,” stressing its role in helping families reconnect with God and one another. 

“The Sabbath helps us step away from the urgent and reconnect with what is truly important,” Van Schaik said during the opening evening meeting. 

Evening speaker Pavel Goia, associate director of Adventist World Radio, delivered a series of messages focused on prayer, spiritual growth, and gratitude. Speaking each evening, Goia encouraged the audience to strengthen their relationship with God through consistent prayer and daily time with Jesus. He also shared portions of his personal testimony, recounting how God had guided and sustained him through difficult circumstances and taught him to trust in divine leading. Throughout the week, he challenged listeners to become a blessing to others through acts of service. One illustration highlighted a church member in Cuba who used her limited resources to introduce children in her community to Jesus. In his closing message, Goia stressed the importance of gratitude, urging the audience to focus on God’s faithfulness and blessings rather than their challenges. 

He encouraged families and church members to prioritize united prayer, noting that the disciples experienced spiritual transformation only after gathering in prayer before Pentecost. 

Throughout the week, attendees participated in a series of seminars covering family life, discipleship, health, stewardship, prophecy, evangelism, religious liberty, and children’s ministry. 

Among the featured presenters was Philip Samaan, professor in the School of Religion at Southern Adventist University, who through the sermon hour of section each day throughout the week reminded attendees that Christianity is not merely about information but transformation. He stressed the importance of mentoring new believers and helping them become integrated into church life. 

“Every believer needs a mentor, and every believer should be mentoring someone else,” Samaan said. 

Tim Madding, director of the North American Division Evangelism Institute, challenged churches to become more welcoming to visitors. He described hospitality as a biblical expression of “love for strangers” and an essential part of fulfilling the church’s mission. 

“Hospitality isn’t just another program,” Madding said. It’s the reason the church exists: to connect with people so we can help them take their next steps toward Jesus. 

Religious liberty issues were also featured prominently. Jennifer Woods, Public Affairs and Religious Liberty director of the Lake Union Conference, reminded her seminar audience that religious freedom is rooted in God’s character and His respect for human choice. 

She explained the church’s role and long-standing commitment to defending religious liberty for people of all faiths. Woods also discussed contemporary challenges and court cases affecting freedom of conscience in America and globally. 

Meanwhile, Mark Eaton, Indiana Conference treasurer, guided his audience through the prophetic themes of Daniel 11, noting that prophecy points to real end-time powers in conflict with God’s kingdom and cautioned believers against becoming consumed by political and ideological struggles. Instead, he encouraged members to remain focused on the church’s mission and the message of hope found in Christ’s soon return. 

Children’s and youth ministries remained a major focus throughout the week. 

Sherri Uhrig, North American Division Children’s Ministries director, encouraged parents, teachers, and ministry leaders to recognize that God is already working in the hearts of children. Her presentations explored different spiritual learning styles and practical ways to nurture children’s faith. 

Gerry Lopez, associate director of Children’s Ministries for the North American Division, challenged participants to move beyond simply teaching Bible stories and instead help children encounter Jesus personally. 

“We’re not raising listeners,” Lopez said. “We’re raising disciple-makers.” 

The Primary Division program, themed “Made by God, Made for Family,” combined worship, science demonstrations, outdoor activities, and music. Guest presenter Ben Roy, scientist, and nature lover, captivated children with nature presentations and hands-on learning experiences. 

The Youth Division, themed “Finding Family,” provided teenagers opportunities for Bible study, small-group discussions, and spiritual mentorship. Speaker Sari Butler encouraged young people to choose friendships that strengthen their faith and help them follow Christ. 

Health education remained a strong feature of camp meeting. April Weigum, a licensed massage therapist and former NEWSTART educator, presented practical seminars on hydrotherapy, natural remedies, and lifestyle medicine rooted in the Adventist health message. 

Financial stewardship seminars by Jerryn Schmidt, pastor at the Carmel Adventist Church in Indiana, addressed biblical principles of saving, investing, budgeting, and generosity, while other presenters explored parenting, family worship, Adventist education, and community outreach. 

Beyond the scheduled meetings, camp meeting offered numerous opportunities for fellowship and recreation. Families participated in softball, volleyball, soccer, scavenger hunts, yard games, a family photo booth, and the annual Fun Run. 

A Senior Citizens’ Banquet, musical performances by Matt and Josie Minikus, and various social activities further strengthened the sense of community throughout the week. 

The week concluded with a series of messages by Ty Gibson, Speaker/Director at Light Bearers Ministry, who anchored the Sabbath experience around the theme of God’s grace. Beginning Friday evening with a message titled “Saved by Grace,” Gibson told the audience that salvation is a gift from God that cannot be earned through human effort. Using the example of receiving a luxury haircut experience for free, he compared God’s grace to a gift that is received rather than purchased. Preaching from Ephesians 2:8-10, he emphasized that believers are saved by grace, not by their works, and said God’s love and acceptance come before anything people do for Him. Gibson also spoke about the need for healing from sin, guilt, and shame, explaining that the gospel brings freedom because God fully knows and still loves each person. “To be fully known and fully loved simultaneously is the essence of our healing,” he said, explaining that grace changes people from the inside out, restoring them through God’s love rather than through self-improvement. 

In his Sabbath morning message, “Theater of Grace,” Gibson focused on the cross as the clearest revelation of God’s love and character. He described Calvary as “the single most significant event in all of universal history,” arguing that the death of Jesus settled forever the question of whether God can be trusted. “God is love in the most beautiful sense imaginable,” he said. Gibson explained that sin separates people from God, not because God wants to push them away, but because guilt, shame, and selfishness make them uncomfortable in His presence. He warned against a religion focused on judging others, reminding listeners that “you are not fundamentally better than anybody on this planet” and that everyone stands in equal need of God’s grace. Pointing to Christ’s sacrifice, Gibson said Jesus chose to bear the full weight of humanity’s sin and separation from God because of His love for people. “For a sustained period of time, He could not see life for Himself beyond the grave, and He kept on choosing you, you, you and me over His own eternal life,” Gibson said.  

Gibson concluded camp meeting Sabbath evening with “Amazing Grace,” a message centered on the cross as the ultimate demonstration of God’s love. He described Calvary as “the single most significant event in all of universal history,” saying it forever answered the question of whether God can be trusted. “God is love in the most beautiful sense imaginable,” he said. Throughout the message, Gibson emphasized that Jesus willingly carried the full weight of humanity’s sin and experienced the separation from God that sin causes. He argued that Christ’s greatest suffering was not physical pain but the burden of sin and the fear of eternal separation from the Father. “For a sustained period of time, He could not see life for Himself beyond the grave, and He kept on choosing you, you, you and me over His own eternal life,” Gibson said. He told listeners that the cross reveals a God who “would rather die forever than to stop loving you,” and urged them to respond to that love by accepting God’s grace.  

One of the highlights of the week was the baptism of four individuals who publicly committed their lives to Christ. 

Three young people made decisions for baptism through the Junior and Early Teen Ministries programs, while another candidate shared how years of Bible study and a praying mother’s faithfulness had led him to this step. Leaders also introduced additional baptismal candidates who plan to continue Bible studies and be baptized in their local churches or at upcoming summer camps. 

Mission and evangelism remained central themes throughout the week. Camp meeting attendees heard from the Indiana-Michigan Youth Rush literature evangelism team, made up of 12 young people serving communities across Indiana this summer. Team members shared stories of meeting people searching for faith, offering Bible studies, praying with community members, and introducing others to the Adventist message through literature ministry. Robb Long, Indiana Conference executive secretary and evangelism director, also highlighted an upcoming public evangelistic series scheduled to begin in July near the Southside Church in Indianapolis. Youth Rush students will take part in the meetings through greeting, prayer, music, and other ministry roles, giving them additional experience in public evangelism while building on the relationships they have developed through their summer outreach work. Members were encouraged to pray for both the Youth Rush team and the upcoming evangelistic effort as they continue sharing the gospel across the community. 

The conference also highlighted its Johnny Appleseed Project, a four-year initiative focused on planting “seeds of love” in communities across the state. During the closing program, members heard from Indianapolis designer and marketing consultant Mark Patterson, who shared how the project inspired him to dedicate his professional skills to church mission. Patterson described plans for community-based “Go Groups” and “Grow Groups” that combine service, relationship-building, health outreach, gardening, and practical ministry as ways of connecting people with Christ. Long said the goal is to move beyond traditional evangelism methods and adopt what they described as Christ’s method of ministry—meeting people’s needs, earning their trust, and then inviting them to follow Jesus. The project will provide churches with community demographic data, outreach resources, training, and funding for local ministry initiatives, while also supporting the planting of new congregations. Long explained that the initiative has secured $400,000 in grant funding and raised an additional $400,000 that will be matched dollar for dollar by Lilly Endowment. Together with the matching funds, the conference hopes to generate $1.2 million to support outreach and church-planting efforts across Indiana over the next four years. 

As the camp meeting ended, Van Schaik thanked volunteers, ministry leaders, and support staff who helped make the event possible. He noted that the combined attendance of the camp meeting and the conference’s Hispanic and Haitian gatherings represented nearly half of the Indiana Conference’s active membership. 

Conference leaders also announced that the 2027 camp meeting will focus on the life and ministry of Jesus and will connect with the worldwide church’s One Voice 2027 evangelistic initiative. 

Stanton Witherspoon is a freelance multimedia journalist and communications professional based in Michigan. He has been covering the Indiana Conference Camp Meeting since 2023 and regularly reports on faith, mission, and church life within the Seventh-day Adventist Church.