It's hard to "hold your own" as a camp meeting anymore. From what I have observed, camp meetings are either flourishing or they are dying out. In some districts they have already disappeared completely. In other districts they are holding on by the skin of their teeth, and in a few they are flourishing and even growing. But even where they are growing they face increasing opposition and lack of support. Some churches become "client churches" while other churches completely ignore the camp, and even try to close it down.

Why are camps having trouble in some districts? I don't have the answers. But after 23 years straight, speaking at several camps per summer, I'll venture a few possibilities. Here are some of the factors influencing decline in the camp meeting in my opinion:

1. Economic upward drift.

Our people are better off than they used to be -- not just in the sense that we are all better off, but holiness churches have drifted up the economic ladder a few rungs. There are of course exceptions, but generally the higher up on this ladder your people get the less excited they'll be about camp meeting.

2. Third rate planning.

The camp meetings, which are declining, have no first rate planners ( who are usually running their own local church) and often, even few second tier planners/leaders. In the declining camp meetings, the program is run by third rate planners who couldn't get any other job. The first line leaders just do cameos for a few days or for the evening meetings.

3. Failure to keep up.

In their heyday in the nineteenth century camps had outdoor toilets but people had outdoor toilets at home too. Few people today at home share their bathroom with strangers or walk 100 yards to take a shower. In some areas where the camping/hunting culture prevails this is no problem. But where such a culture does not exist, and the campgrounds haven't kept up, they are often declining.

4. No "special" purpose.

The original purpose of the brush arbors was frontier evangelism. Then the holiness movement adopted the camp meeting as its "special" means of propagating a second work of grace. But few camp meetings do much serious evangelism anymore. And only a few still insist that every message be on holiness morning, afternoon and evening. Fellowship and unity-building/reunion are the only clear purposes for many camp meetings today, but even these purposes are not clearly articulated or promoted. Like the Sunday evening service, camp meetings are often a meeting without a clear purpose.

5. They are too long.

Fewer and fewer people will go away for an entire week or ten days for a camp meeting. Certainly not for two weeks. The best speakers in the nation won't come for 8 days, or even five days. So most camp meetings no longer get the best speakers. They are stuck with those willing to come for ten days or a week. Granted, some camps are now "splitting the camp" between speakers, getting one speaker for the first half of camp and a second one for the last 4 day