We’re holding Vacation Bible School at Shepherd of the Coast this week. It is a great deal of work for many people. Mrs. Janine Mallardi, in particular, has worked hard to get volunteers organized and materials in place for this week. She is a blessing to our ministry here.

I have to say that just the initials “VBS” bring back a lot of fond memories for me. Vacation Bible School was about the best week of my summer as a child. I had fun being with friends and it was good just to have something to do in the middle of the summer. I remember how the cookies and Kool-Aid tasted. I remember the crafts. Most of all, I remember the joy of the whole experience. Vacation Bible School was fun.

As I watch our VBS take shape, I’m struck by how Vacation Bible School has changed. Things were a lot different when I was a child. We held VBS for two weeks instead of one and our closing service was really a huge deal – no one missed it. The snacks have changed too; today, during snack time, I saw plates with celery and carrots on them! I remember store brand cookies which were rationed at two (and only two) per child. The crafts look like a lot more fun today than what I remember. The idea that there was a “set” in the front of church would have been completely foreign to a Vacation Bible School director in “the old days.” Our opening each morning consisted of a few songs, a little message from the Pastor, and an announcement, not the elaborate skits with costumes that I see each morning here. A lot has changed, but I pray that some things have stayed the same.

Of all the things I pray that children take from this week, I pray they take some of the Joy of Christ with them. I pray these children come into church and discover that they can have a fun. I don’t know what seeds are being planted this week, but I am pretty sure that God is at work. One of the things that we can do is to find joy in His work. Maybe if we do, that joy will be contagious.

If you are working at a VBS this week or recovering from one or getting ready for one, have some fun with it! Who knows, if you do, maybe the kids will too.