Ah…Vacation Bible School, there is nothing like it. Screaming kids, water games, snacks with gummy worms hidden in them. What kid wouldn’t be up for a week of summer fun? (I was always ready for some gummies and water balloons!) Hopefully, we adults are also getting bit with the VBS excitement bug! Sure we have to manage all those sugar filled, crazy kids. But hosting a great VBS is worth the cost! Here are my top five reason VBS is a big deal!
1. VBS Connects Us To Our Community!
Yes, some kids spend their entire summer hoping from one VBS to the next. When they drop into our VBS, we should be thankful! Each time we connect with a new family, we develop a better picture of what our community is really like. VBS will help us to better understand how to ministry to our neighborhoods.
2. VBS Demonstrates The Love Of Christ!
Bible believing Christianity is increasingly unpopular in our culture. If we affirm biblical marriage and label sin as sin, we w
ill be unpopular and perhaps even labeled as bigots.
One of the best means for fighting against the angry Christian stereotype is to love our neighbors. VBS gives us the chance us to do just that! As we serve our neighbors’ and co-workers’ kids, we can dispel many of the myths that surround our church. Remember the words of Paul: “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good” (Rom. 12:21).
VBS provides our church a premium stage for wowing the world with the love of Christ! Remember the words of our savior, “By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13:35). Let’s highlight God’s love this summer by loving kids via VBS!
3. VBS Fulfills The Great Commission!
Evangelism is not just something missionaries do. Nor is it something we do “out there.” Jesus said all of us are to be making disciples (Math 28:18-20)! We need to be sharing the gospel in Asia. But, we also must talk about the good news of Jesus in our towns, homes, and ballparks! VBS gives us an amazing venue for reaching and discipling the kids in our community! By participating in VBS, we get to experience the joy of obeying Jesus’ mission call!
4. VBS Connects Us To The Unchurched!
Many kids only come to church during VBS. By breaking out the wacky games, we can reach the usually unreachable. VBS expands the reach of the gospel into our community introducing Christ to kids who have never sat in a pew before.
5. VBS Can Lead To Redemption!
This is the big one. We have VBS every year because God saves. We welcome kids to church this summer because God uses VBS leaders to open the eyes of the blind. And I’m not talking about just the back kids. I’ve heard many reports of “good” church kids getting saved during VBS. Anytime the gospel is present, the Holy Spirit can move in powerful ways! He often works through VBS. Let’s hope and pray that God uses our VBS to bring many to salvation!
And now it’s your turn! Why is VBS a big deal to you and your church family?
Witkowski Blog 
Great summary Peter
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Peter, I was googling something else for VBS (I have to give a report on ours tomorrow night and I wanted the Jack Sparrow “Be a VBS Leader” meme) and found the graphic you have here so I’m just now reading this and it’s fantastic. Some of the feedback I got indicated that VBS was too fun – we don’t need to decorate, we don’t need to ‘compete’ with other churches, we need more teaching time (our schedule was 30 minutes in each ‘station’). One person – a preference issue – but you nailed the response to that with #4. VBS being “fun” is a way to pull in kids from the community who wouldn’t necessarily come, otherwise. FUN isn’t necessarily bad! AND, I will tell you – the VBS curriculum we used this year…those kids **heard the gospel**!! (we used PROOF Pirates from NewGrowth Press, if you’re interested in looking at it for future VBS)
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No, fun is not bad! When we send missionaries overseas they embrace the culture to share the gospel! Kids’ Ministry should embrace the elements of our kids’ culture where it can seeking to boldly share the gospel! I.e, play have fun. I don’t think kids can ever have too much fun or hear too much gospel! Thanks for the feedback! I’ll be sure to checkout NewGrowth Press!
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