What did you do during the pandemic?
It took me an entire year to write my newest song “Just Pretend” (to be
released later this year). But I think sometimes there are pauses where we have to look at where we are and what power we are stepping forward in. It puts us in a ‘What do we do?’ mode. I believe God allows us to slow down to reassess what’s going on in our hearts. And it shows what He is actually trying to teach us. Within our family, we always like to ask ‘What’s going on in our heart?’ Tell God to search you. It’s such a key element to growth.
Take “My Life,” although it was written 19 years ago and is ‘old school,’ there is true angst in it when I sing, ‘God take all of me. My life is not my own,’ and I think that’s me when you hear ‘I’m coming to you like faith as a child, take all of me.’ That song was the cry of my heart.
What is your favorite song of all of those you have written?
“My Desire” … those cries-of-my-heart songs, which are like God is shaping my heart too. But worship songs are like that where there is a shift in your heart.”
“Give Me Jesus” was an old hymn I wanted to redo. It hit me so hard since it’s been a theme in my life, all that I went through, which brought me to a point where I wanted to absolutely surrender. I don’t want anything to be a distraction, but I get distracted and caught up. Still, I can truly say ‘God, this is my desire. Give me Jesus’ I don’t want anything to do with the world or things of the world. That’s a theme God continues to use to keep me focused on the fact that it’s absolute surrender.
Did you have a crisis of faith following your first wife’s death as depicted in the 2020 movie “I Still Believe?“
I truly felt as if God had promised me that He would heal my wife. The way my faith was depicted in the movie was real in that I was really rocked after her death. From that point on, I quit praying and reading my Bible, because I felt ‘What’s the point?’ About that time pastor Jon Courson pulled me aside and asked me if I’d prayed and followed everything the Bible tells us to do about healing. I told him I had.
He said, ‘Then you can rest at night because God, for some reason, did not allow her to be healed. Now, I want you to go out and play.’ But I didn’t want to play. Jon reminded me of Miriam, crossing the Red Sea, missing her home. Still, she banged that tambourine as worship to God, knowing that no matter what happened, they’d worship Him.
I went out on stage, and when I finished singing “I Still Believe,” there was not a dry eye. That taught me to say ‘No matter what happens, I know You, God, are still good. I know You are still faithful. I know Your Word is still true. I still believe Your Word.’ Once I proclaimed it and got back into his Word and promises, I realized that He never really said my wife would be healed. So I think I look at his promises, not as what I thought God should do, but I know what I thought and wanted what was best, so God was still faithful.
What advice would give the younger generation who have not turned their lives over to Christ?
One hard thing is we live in a fallen world, and we will all suffer in some way. Discipleship is so huge, so find those people in your life who you can pour into by sharing your experiences.
Tell them ‘This is what I did. This is what I walked through. Let me help you and guide you not to do those things.’ When people watch your life, you can disciple them. You can’t change someone’s heart, but you can be an example. You can’t force someone to change.
What does the future look like for the Camp family? I’m not going to be touring as often. My wife and I have a heart for missions. We have not figured out exactly where we are going yet.
We are praying about doing conferences and more things together. She’s writing a book, and God gave us many songs during our downtime. I like her singing with me. It’s like having the Holy Spirit beside me.