When I was a youngster, and summer was in full swing, Mom and Dad always enrolled me in Vacation Bible School, better known as VBS. Oddly, even though we attended Trinity Methodist Church on the south side of Chicago we attended Salem Baptist Church, several blocks from our home, for the annual summer stint of VBS.
We learned great songs that I remember to this day, and it was in VBS that I learned some of my most memorable stuff about God. These days, churches always have some cool type of theme for the week, but back in the day, it was more like regular school. And although VBS usually runs for a week nowadays, back then we actually went for two full weeks. It was a morning only program and in addition to the Bible stories we learned, we developed friendships that we kept throughout grammar school and even into high school.
Yesterday, all four of our grandchildren started VBS at Zionsville Presbyterian Church where Kristin writes curriculum for the younger children of the church. Our other daughter, Jill, also came in from Oklahoma to help out and have her son, Drew, attend VBS with his three cousins. I am glad to see that churches still believe that teaching children during the summer months is something special.
There are now more games and lights and technology now than in the mid sixties, but that is to be expected. After all, very little has stayed the same for the last 50 years. The point of all this is that God wants the children to learn all about Him. Our verse for the evening is from Luke 18:16, “But Jesus called the children to him and said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.” The volunteers and church employees who spend time teaching these programs are fulfilling one of the commands of Christ.
My encouragement this evening is that God pays attention to all of us, but particularly to the children. They are innocent and have a wonderful faith that doesn’t question all the realities that we, as adults, bring to every circumstance we are presented with. My prayer is that you will consider helping with VBS or even children’s ministry when regular church reconvenes after the summer season is over. It’s a ministry that holds particular interest for Jesus who wants all the little children to come to Him. Have a great day in the Lord, grace and peace…