Summer Seeds

Hello VBS folks,

I dont know about you but it sure feels like VBS weather to me! I got to thinking the other day that after 7 years I had never written down a vision statement for Community VBS. Vision statements can be kind of cut-and-dry so I decided to do a vision poem instead. So here it is - the Community VBS vision poem that I have entitled "Summer Seeds":

Imagine a park full of wonderful shade trees. Kids are playing, laughing and running about like the warm breeze. New kids in the community are welcomed in, and everyone finds it easy to make a new friend.

Adults are smiling, laughing and back slappin’. They greet the swarm of children with hugs and expectation of all that will soon happen.

From a small stage in the middle of the park music begins to play. The motions that accompany the songs make for a delightful display. With great energy they all sing loud songs of worship to God. The songs are so awesome everyone downloads them to their IPod.

After the songs of praise the kids disperse. They rush about to do crafts, play games, have snacks and learn a sacred verse.

The shadows grow long at the end of the day. Everyone gathers back at the small stage for an invitation to pray. Some invite Jesus into their heart. Everyone gives thanks for being in a family that will never break apart.

Seeds are planted about the great gift God has given. The kids now have hope for the world they live in.

Rome Has Arrived!

Hello VBS folks,

I wanted to let you know that Laura has done another great job of ordering our VBS starter kit and putting it in my little paws. I will try to hook up with you leaders this weekend and give you your manuals.

I would encourage you all to visit Group's "Rome" VBS website to help you get a feel for this years theme.

See ya soon!

“I must go on to Rome!” - Acts 19:21

What Exactly is a Successful VBS? Ingredient #10

Hello again VBS folks! This is the final installment of what makes a successful VBS. This weeks ingredient is a United Body:

Community VBS is just that, it involves the church community of College Corner. Here is what Jesus said about unity and outreach:

34 So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. 35 Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.” – John 13

Now I am departing from the world; they are staying in this world, but I am coming to you. Holy Father, you have given me your name; now protect them by the power of your name so that they will be united just as we are. – John 17

5 so it is with Christ’s body. We are many parts of one body, and we all belong to each other. – Romans 12

12 The human body has many parts, but the many parts make up one whole body. So it is with the body of Christ. – 1 Corinthians 12

4 For there is one body and one Spirit, just as you have been called to one glorious hope for the future. – Ephesians 4

One of the most exciting things is we are answering Jesus’ prayer that He prayed in John 17. That is exciting! What a change, instead of God answering our prayer we our answering His with our unity! I thank God for the pastors and members who join us to reach out to the children for the kingdom!

Well there you have it, 10 ingredients for a successful VBS; a united body, follow-up, water baptism, repentance, praise & thanksgiving, preaching & teaching, children, the great outdoors, Christian guidance and prayer.

I would ask you to pray and ask God to mix all of this together and stir in His Holy Spirit and pour it into all of our hearts. Then, let us take Jesus, our Lord and savior, to these kids for a successful VBS in 2009!

Meeting #2

Hello folks,
Meeting # 2 is in the books and here is what went down:

• Laura is ordering the starter kit which will include all the leaders books for each station


• VBS is four nights and we will be dropping lesson #3


• We need a youth leader to oversee all the teen helpers


• We are praying for God to raise up a craft person to be mentored by Laura


• We are thinking about giving away snow cones at the Junction on the 4th of July for publicity


• We need a church to sponsor the t-shirts for all the kids and teens


• Next meeting is at Dave's house, May 11th @ 5:45pm-6:30pm

keep praying for God to radically change all of us this summer by the power of His Spirit!

What Exactly is a Successful VBS? Ingredient #9

Hello again VBS folks! This is the ninth installment of 10 on what makes a successful VBS. This weeks ingredient is Follow-up:

One of our desires is that the church kids would become an Andrew or Andrea inviting the un-churched children to join them at their local church and follow Christ with them:

40 Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was one of these men who heard what John said and then followed Jesus. 41 Andrew went to find his brother, Simon, and told him, “We have found the Messiah” (which means “Christ”. 42 Then Andrew brought Simon to meet Jesus. - John 1

23 Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep his promise. 24 Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works. 25 And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.
- Hebrews 10

The verse in Hebrews 10 is for adults as well. We need to work together with the children’s ministries in our local churches to assimilate new kids. How can we make this happen? We must find a way to get everyone to sit down and share what each church has to offer. I hope some type of meeting would birth a committee to oversee the follow-up because the VBS committee already has their hands full.

We now have the Junction where we could have a follow-up party after the kids have returned to school. Follow-up must be a joint effort of the children’s ministries and our church kids. The “Go” and “Grow” message of the New Testament church must be imparted to our ministries and our future ministers; the kids!

Next week will be the last installment of this series and the final ingredient is one that is unique to the body at College Corner!

What Exactly is a Successful VBS? Ingredient #8

Hello again VBS folks! This is the eighth installment of a 10 part series on what makes a successful VBS. This weeks ingredient is Baptism:

The subject of baptizing children is approached with hesitation by some or complete rejection by others. I agree that for a person to partake in a sacrament such as baptism that they should realize the seriousness of the act. But I don’t think there is an age limit. If anyone feels the pull of the Spirit on their heart, realize they have trespassed against God and desire to receive Christ’s pardon then by all means let them be baptized! If we are doing our job of teaching the Gospel to kids then those who want to follow Christ will be in the same situation as the Ethiopian who heard the Gospel from Phillip:

36 As they rode along, they came to some water, and the eunuch said, “Look! There’s some water! Why can’t I be baptized?” 38 He ordered the carriage to stop, and they went down into the water, and Philip baptized him. – Acts 8

So here is a major part of an evangelistic endeavor that I think we should consider implementing. We ask for those to repent and follow Christ and then invite them to be baptized at the Unity Service. To reinforce new believers we capitalize on the timing of the event and seal their commitments through the waters of baptism. If the parents are okay with it, the committee agrees on the mode then I say lets baptize them! I envision getting a metal livestock watering troth and baptize kids during the Unity Service while we worship with the VBS Praise Team!
Next week we will turn to another ingredient for success that has been brought up every summer concerning VBS.

What Exactly is a Successful VBS? Ingredient #7

Hello again VBS folks! This is the seventh installment of a 10 part series on what makes a successful VBS. This weeks ingredient is a Call to Repentance:

Now I know we are dealing with kids but it is definitely Biblical to call people of all ages to repentance. In fact Jesus began His ministry with a call to repentance:
2 “Repent of your sins and turn to God, for the Kingdom of Heaven is near. – Matthew 3

12 So the disciples went out, telling everyone they met to repent of their sins and turn to God. – Mark 6

38 Peter replied, “Each of you must repent of your sins and turn to God, and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. – Acts 2

I (Paul) have had one message for Jews and Greeks alike—the necessity of repenting from sin and turning to God, and of having faith in our Lord Jesus. – Acts 20

The approach I have always taken with VBS is like the sower in the parable Jesus told. We share the Good News and let the Holy Spirit apply it to the hears:

“Listen! A farmer went out to plant some seeds. 4 As he scattered them across his field, some seeds fell on a footpath, and the birds came and ate them. 5 Other seeds fell on shallow soil with underlying rock. The seeds sprouted quickly because the soil was shallow. 6 But the plants soon wilted under the hot sun, and since they did’nt have deep roots, they died. 7 Other seeds fell among thorns that grew up and choked out the tender plants. 8 Still other seeds fell on fertile soil, and they produced a crop that was thirty, sixty, and even a hundred times as much as had been planted! 9 Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand.”
18 “Now listen to the explanation of the parable about the farmer planting seeds: 19 The seed that fell on the footpath represents those who hear the message about the Kingdom and don’t understand it. Then the evil one comes and snatches away the seed that was planted in their hearts.
20 The seed on the rocky soil represents those who hear the message and immediately receive it with joy. 21 But since they don’t have deep roots, they don’t last long. They fall away as soon as they have problems or are persecuted for believing God’s word. 22 The seed that fell among the thorns represents those who hear God’s word, but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the worries of this life and the lure of wealth, so no fruit is produced. 23 The seed that fell on good soil represents those who truly hear and understand God’s word and produce a harvest of thirty, sixty, or even a hundred times as much as had been planted!” – Matthew 13

I still believe in our "seed flinging"model but it is quite clear in the verses above on repentance that we are to make a serious call for kids to turn and follow Christ:

20 So we are Christ’s ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, “Come back to God!” – 2Corinthians 5

So here is a new aspect of our outreach we need to incorporate in our ministry. Of course we will do this without fear or guilt tactics but with a deep love and concern for the children. I look forward to hearing your thoughts on applying the repentance ingredient.

Next week we will look at the eighth ingredient that may have some serious theological implications for the parents and the churches .