Vacation vs. Bible School

Made from cardboard...

Some of the nautical decor.

     Today was our first day of VBS!  This past week we have been working hard to prepare for the many children that are going to come to Valencia Evangelical Church for a week of fun.  The theme is 'High Seas Expedition', so all of our decorations and crafts are sea-related.

     I have been put in charge of teaching the 7-8 year-olds.  I was somewhat nervous, but it turned out that I have been given great help for the class.  God's placed wonderful volunteers to help me out and even one guy to almost help co-lead with me! What a blessing to have such substantial help!  All in all, today went very well :)

     You know, up until a short while ago today, I've had a despondent attitude toward this upcoming week.  VBS I know is fun and exciting for the kids...I also know it's a lot of hard work for everyone involved.  It's even more work when you feel as though you are 10 people short of help.  In my mind, for some reason, I had trouble seeing VBS as an actual outreach and tool for helping children to come to know Jesus.  

      I remember asking my dad one day in church about VBS this year and what he thought of it.  I asked him if he really thought it was effective for bringing the Gospel to kids.  I was remembering our past VBS's.  I remembered seeing a lot of the same kids that I saw every week in church.  I remembered seeing those same kids be the ones who felt that, because their parents weren't around, they had free reign. Why would we put on a hard, wearying VBS for kids who already know the Gospel?

     See, I just couldn't get past the judgment in my head that VBS doesn't do much for actually leading children to the Lord.  Crazy, I know...but to me it felt like an extremely exhausting daycare that we, the church members, hosted for a week.  It seemed like just a place where the kids to go to screw around and make crafts and eat snacks and watch movies all expense-free.  I wasn't sure that it was at all effective for delivering the plain Truth with all the clutter and the rushing from crafts to games to snacks to movies to lessons...

    Well that Sunday in church, my dad's answer to my question was, "yes, I think that VBS allows kids learn about Jesus who would have never had the chance to hear it otherwise." Now, that is how I am choosing to view VBS.  Even further, what would be the attraction for kids to come if we didn't go to the effort of making it fun and exciting?  

      So for this summer's VBS, I'm hoping and praying that we get a huge turnout of those kids who wouldn't have any other way of hearing the Gospel.  I hope that this week I can encourage at least one kid whose parents fail in encouraging them and loving on them.  I'm also praying that God will give me the stamina and strength to finish everyday with a smile.