We've Got the Power!

                                      

Back in March and April of this year, people from several local churches gathered together to begin working on a common summer outreach mission. It's called Vacation Bible School.

I had not experienced Vacation Bible School as a child... I grew up Catholic. I don't know if other Catholics ever attended VBS, but I didn't know what it was until about thirteen or so years ago when I became a VBS adult volunteer. I was 42 years old. Kind of old to be starting Vacation Bible School for the first time, but it's never too late.

I fell in love with the concept from the start. It's a fun way to introduce kids to Jesus, and to tell the stories about God's love for them, about their relationship with Jesus, and about God's relationship with them. At VBS, kids generally sing lots of praise and worship songs, make crafts, play games, and eat snacks... all the while hearing the rich stories about Jesus and his disciples, stories about the faithful, the struggles, the miracles, the tragedies and the joys of living in Christ.

                             

I attended those first few workshops back in the spring, helping to draw, cut, and paint the props we wanted to use as a background to help us tell our stories. The program we used this year was PowerLab (by Group).

                           

I was inspired by the vision and dedication shown by the people I met last spring. They were excited about the mission of VBS, displaying enthusiasm and purpose in all that they did. I was thrilled to be part of the team.

In the above photos, you can see us painting the beakers (cut from thick sheets of styrofoam)... and in the photo below, you can see the results of those early spring preparation sessions. I included them to give you some idea of the size of this set. These eight feet tall, twenty feet wide styrofoam laboratory shelves sit in our Fellowship Hall this week. They serve as a backdrop to emphasize how Jesus gives us power to be thankful, helpful, and brave.... to live for eternity, and to tell the Good News.

                            

Each night this week the kids sat in the foreground, or stood and danced and sang the songs right in this very room... each night they tossed balloons into the giant beaker. They look like giant blue and white bubbles. The balloons represented not only their attendance each night, but their answer to a question our pastor asked of them.

Our PowerLab VBS began Sunday, the 10th... it's been a great week!

                             

If you've ever wanted to volunteer for VBS, but was afraid to because you had never done it before, let me encourage you to get involved. There's nothing more satisfying, nor more important, than teaching children about God.

Tags: Group PowerLab, VBS, Vacation Bible School, Christian Education