Covenant Point Bible Camp
Grace Covenant Church, Iron River, MI
A typical day for Erik may include studying financial reports, rolling out pizza dough, planning a retreat, supporting a staff member, or cleaning a bathroom. As camp director, “I get to be a pastor and continue my love of ministry—just on a different scale, but I also get to be an administrator, and help our staff think deeply about what we do here and how we can plan well with a sensitivity to the Spirit’s lead.” He is always trying to better understand and articulate the ministry’s identity and role in supporting the church, and to identify what they’re doing well and what they could do better.
He says on the whole, our culture isn’t very good at stillness anymore. “We’ve lost a sense of how to be quiet and listen, how to disconnect for more than a few minutes. Solitude and stillness are really great teachers. Wilderness is too. These are incredible gifts that our camps can provide our churches.”
Books on your nightstand/e-reader: The Ragamuffin Gospel, Brennan Manning; Incorporating Children in Worship, Michelle Clifton-Soderstrom and David Bjorlin; Lake Wobegon Summer 1956, Garrison Keillor
Favorite way to waste time: Cooking. I love to cook at home for friends and family. It’s like therapy for me to come home, see what I’ve got to work with, and just create something really good.
Favorite TV show: Survivor. My wife, Courtney, and I have seen about every season since the beginning. I think I come back to it each year because I’m fascinated by the social systems and interesting personalities that are put on display each time around.
Choose a superpower—fly or be invisible: Fly! I love an adventure.