My reflections today is a little
different. Rather than reflecting on a scripture that I read I am reflecting on
a week of Vacation Bible School (VBS). I was blessed to be able to spend last
week with a group of Pre K/Kindergarten children. The ages ranged from 3 (not
quite Pre K) to 6 years of age. While the 3 year olds were a bit young, we
felt it was so important to include them in order to help them grow in the
Lord. It was a lot of work, but such a blessing.
It is definitely true that when God calls you to
do something He surely provides. After all of the planning He really brought
everything together and blessed us with a wonderful week in the Lord. It was so
amazing to watch these little children, God's children, learn more about Jesus and grow in their
understanding and love for Him.
Our VBS was the Game
On sports
theme. The scripture that was the driving force behind the week was 2
Peter 1:3. There
were really two great messages behind this scripture and theme. One is that God
truly provides us with everything that we need. The other is that in the big game of
life we need Jesus. The bible is the rule/play book that helps us know how to live in Christ.
His divine power has given us
everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who
called us by his own glory and goodness.
(2 Peter 1:3 NIV)
Planning for VBS was fun, but it did take
some time. I'm sharing some of the ideas I used in case
anyone is still in the planning stages of their VBS or maybe just looking for
some sport decoration ideas. I purchased some supplies from Party City, some
from Walmart, some from the Dollar
Store, and I made a lot of the other stuff.
We used this area for pictures. It made a great backdrop. Ms Rose (my co-teacher) was wonderful enough to have a t-shirt made into a football jersey with Team Jesus written on it. She also made a Tutu for a cheerleader skirt, which with the pom poms was perfect.
The tables we used had a football table clothe on it, which was very nice.
Our soccer wall was a fun area. The soccer balls were plates with a soccer ball picture glued onto it. We had extra plates that the kids could throw like a Frisbee at the net. We later added labels with scriptures on them. Everyone got to take one home at the end of VBS.
I made football jerseys for an extra football wall. I also made some little football cutouts. Everyday we chose a few scripture labels to read, attach to the footballs, and then tape to the wall.
We used this baseball area to explain the Salvation Plan. Ms Rose got together with Ms Koko, the Sunday School teacher, and put this together in a very age appropriate way.
1st Base - Black Heart - is our heart full of sin.
2nd Base - Red Heart - is for the blood that Jesus shed for the forgiveness of our sins.
3rd Base - Green Heart - is for the new life we receive when we trust in Jesus as our savior.
4th Base - Gold Heart - is the prize we receive when we go to heaven. HOME RUN!
I know that all of the children that attended VBS were greatly blessed, but I think that all of the music, craft, kitchen, recreation, youth helpers and teachers were blessed even more. It was a very heart warming and super great experience!
