Posts Tagged ‘vbs’

May 19, 2013 – National Day of Prayer for VBS

 

Rhonda small Have you ever flipped the switch on a lamp several times and nothing happened? Do you remember the frustration of, “Why isn’t this thing coming on?” during your fruitless flips up and down. What about that sheepish, “oh,” realization when you see the disconnected plug?

This is a pretty good picture of our efforts to spread the gospel without prayer. Prayer is the power source that enlightens and charges our efforts. We are less than a month away from what are typically the two biggest weeks of VBS. Even if your VBS is later in the summer, the time to begin praying is NOW!

The VBS 2013 Administrative Guide has great prayer resources from prayer calendars to prayer walk brochures. And, this Sunday, May 19, 2013, is the National Day of Prayer for VBS.

I started thinking about praying for VBS and it occurred to me that V. B. S. is a great acronym for praying for VBS everywhere.

V – Volunteers! Recently on our Facebook we asked people to share their prayer requests. (Our team prays for you!) One of the most requested prayer concerns was for volunteers to help. Jesus told His disciples to pray for workers (Matthew 9:36-38). It is still an urgent prayer. The harvest is ready!

B – Bible! God’s Word changes lives. God promised that His Spirit would be our Teacher (John 14:25-26). We need His power and guidance as we teach Bible truths to others.

S – Salvations! VBS is still one of the strongest evangelistic efforts made by many churches. Prayer, concentrated Bible teaching, and the forging of relationships set the stage to share the gospel in a powerful way. Pray that hearts are prepared to respond to the gospel of Jesus.

I hope you’ll join me this Sunday, as we pray together for VBS!

 

 

Kid Quotes

melitaIf you’ve taught in VBS even once you probably have several funny stories about things kids did or said. My friend, Scott Wiley, over at “Brick by Brick” often shares funny things he overhears in his Sunday School class and inspired me to do the same. So to kick off the new year, here are my top 10 all-time favorite kid quotes from kindergartners at church…

 

 

10. “I am going to rinse this off with my tongue.”

 

9. “Why do people use blue and yellow [paint] to make green? Why don’t they just use green paint?”

 

8. “If I was a shepherd I would use a sheep as a pillow.”

 

7. “We’re having a wedding. Sam, you can be the ring master.”

 

6. “Thank You, God, for polar bears. The Coca-Cola kind.”

 

5. “He’s my best friend. I’ve known him for years.” (5-year-old speaking)

 

4. “I’m going to be a rock star astronaut when I grow up!”

 

3. “Don’t press down the [paint] brush too hard or you’ll give it a bad hair day.”

 

2. Teacher: “Is it hard to get along and be kind to your brother and sisters all the time?”
Kid: “Yeah, because sometimes my brother is evil.”

 

1. “Dear God, thank You for all the animals that are boys, have horns, and that are dangerous! Amen.”

 

These are 100% true… and completely hilarious. What’s the funniest thing you’ve overheard a child say at church?

VBS 2013 on Pinterest!

It’s never too early to start planning, right? If you’re itching to get a jump on VBS 2013, check out our Colossal Coaster World board on the LifeWay Kids Pinterest site. There are already lots of great ideas. Here are some of my favorites…

What a cute hot dog cart! I wish I’d had this for Big Apple Advenure!Source: goscoutcreative.com via LifeWayKids on Pinterest

This is the same technique we used to create an “Enter” sign for Coaster Alley (Bible study) in our decorations. Fun!

Source: ohhappyday.com via LifeWayKids on Pinterest

A perfect roller coaster experience for younger preschoolers!

Source: ikea.com via LifeWayKids on Pinterest

What ideas have you come up with?  If you’re on Pinterest, leave us a link to your VBS 2013 board in the comment section!

VBS at My Church

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What an exciting week we had experiencing Amazing Wonders Aviation at my church— Brentwood Baptist Church in Brentwood, TN! When we entered the sanctuary, it looked like an airplane had come straight through the ceiling and was just hanging there! Great way to kick off the aviation feel each day. Our average daily attendance was 1,846 (1,380 kids plus 466 volunteers)!

I taught in one of nine kindergarten classes. We usually had 22 kids and six workers in our “Kindergarten G” group! (“Go G-fliers!”) Three of our helpers were teenagers who did not take on leadership roles, but assisted the three adult teachers. That was a great help! For many of the senior high students this VBS is “training” for those who will travel to Chicago to conduct VBS there.

Our church provided a training event called “VBS University” where all volunteers had an opportunity to receive age-group or rotation group training prior to VBS. Our leadership also provided enrichment sessions such as “Leading a Child to Christ,” “Using Teens Effectively as Volunteers” or “Guiding Behavior.”  It was a great time to get folks excited and prepared for VBS.

This is not the only VBS that happens—it’s just the first. The materials are reused to conduct six other VBS events in downtown Nashville, Chicago, Georgia, Hong Kong, South Africa, and Israel.  The missions offering taken during VBS goes to help support the ministry of these other mission VBS events.

Most importantly, 52 children made professions of faith this week. We expect that many other lives were influenced and changed, and that we will continue to see children ADMIT, BELIEVE, and CONFESS.

Foto Friday!

Last week, I asked you to send in pictures to be featured on our blog, and boy did you ever!  Thanks so much for sharing, and please continue to share all your creative and wonderful VBS decorations with me!  As your church completes VBS, won’t you continue to share your stories and photos?  I love seeing all the different takes on VBS sets!

Great Barrier Reef at Eternal Faith Baptist Church in Manor, TX.  Shared by Kathy Hitzfelder who made the whole thing!

Worship Rally Hangar at FBC Selma, Selma, AL. The propeller of their plane is an old wooden one that a church member saved because it belonged to his grandfather who flew planes. It’s worth upwards of $10,000 today! AMAZING!

Worship Rally at Wilkies Grove Baptist Church in Hickory, NC

Worship Rally Hangar- Gapway Baptist Church, Mullins SC

Great Barrier Reef shared by Laura Mullins!

Great Barrier Reef shared by Laura Garvin!

Worship Rally Hangar shared by Stephanie Lane Abernathy. “We used foam gliders from the Dollar Tree to hang from the ceiling, we painted them all with different designs and hung about 30 or so!”

To share your VBS photos, email them to katie.decillo@lifeway.com or post them to our Facebook page! Make sure to include the name of your church with your post!

VBS Preparation– How's it Going?

Hey there, VBS friends!

I want to hear what you’re working on for 2012 VBS!  Maybe some of you are still looking for ideas, and could gain some inspiration from hearing what others are doing.  Whether you’re preparing for Amazing Wonders Aviation or Space Quest, maybe you had a great idea for decorating…please share!  We’re all friends here, and sharing your ideas may just inspire someone else!

What are you working on right now?

What has been the biggest challenge in preparing for VBS?

What is your favorite decoration for VBS 2012?

How can we help you?

Don’t be shy! Share some ideas!