Share YOUR Story!
Over the course of this month, our VBS team will be sharing stories from their personal experience with Vacation Bible School this summer. We want to invite you to do the same!
It is so exciting and encouraging to hear stories of kids learning about Jesus and coming to know Him as Lord and Savior.
Won’t you share your story with us?
In the comments section below, give us the name of your church, size of your VBS, and tell us how your week went! It’s also great for us to know how you are using VBS– traditionally, in a Bible club setting, or some completely different way! What are the challenges of VBS at your church? What are some AMAZING things that happened this year?
I’ll be checking back soon– can’t wait to read all the great stories!
FBC, Aransas Pass, TX. We topped out at 103 kids on Thursday. It was a great week. Had some powerful prayer warriors praying and it diffinitely showed. We did the traditional VBS, but had the family night at noon Friday and that worked out great, except next year will have assembly and then eat. Seems some parents only had an hour for lunch and missed their kids performing. We emphasized learning the Bible verses. The kids loved getting their passports stamped for each verse they memorized, and they earned their wings for learning the week’s verse. Most of the kids got wings. It was great! We didn’t draw names this year and give out prizes and the kids didn’t mention it at all. Super God filled week!!!! Jo Shedd
Our VBS is next week but we are preparing so much already. Tonight I was practicing the motions to the DVD for the theme song and my 5 month old was just laughing away. What a joy! Then I practiced “If God” and it just hit me. I have been singing the words for weeks, and now it hits “If God is for me, then WHO can be against me?” So simple yet so profound. I was in tears at this amazing truth. I can’t wait to share with the kids this love!!
FBC-Canton, TX: Our VBS was last week, June 11-15. We had 215 children registered for our “Amazing Wonders Aviation”. The children loved Worship Rally time. We averaged 182 children. Our high attendance was on Wednesday with 195! We had 23 professions of faith! What a wonderful week we experienced. This was the largest attendance for VBS in about 5 years!!
Not really a story, but i have a request for 2013– could you please include envelopes with the leader appreciation/picture frame cards? (10 for $4.99) Would be willing to pay a little extra! I sat down with my stack of cards, 70+ pictures, stamps, and return address labels that I had printed, only to realize that there are no envelopes! Have to try to find some at an office supply store that will fit so I can get these in the mail! Thanks!
After night one, 57 kids and about 50 adult workers. Good night! Looking forward to the rest of the week!
well….katie decillo. i’m amber sugg from first baptist murray. this week we had 170 at vbs.
thanks for all the awesome work lifeway vbs does. tonight a little boy who is currently under foster care with a couple in our church prayed to become a christian. it was a game changer for his very hard life.
Katie- I’ll pass along that feedback! Thanks to everyone else for sharing your stories! I love hearing them and sharing them with our team!
This was absolutely one of the best themes I have seen. God showed up and showed out at our VBS in Chester SC at New Life Baptist Church Chester SC. We are a very small church but averaged 30 a night. Awesome God! Amazing power! We have gotten one family that has been to our Sunday service for the past two weeks since VBS. Praise God! If only one it is worth it all. God is so Good and I love Lifeway material. Thanks for being obedient to God’s calling and for listening when He speaks. Praise God form Whom ALL blessings flow!
Thanks again
Peggy Banks
Chester SC
Our VBS was last week. I helped my mom teach the 10-11’s and I taught Missions. We had an awesome week with an average 107 attendance. On Wednesday night, we had one girl get saved! That same girl brought her friend with her Thursday and Friday. Her friend got saved Friday night! God is so good!! We could tell a big difference in the two boys that got saved last year. God is really working. Thank you for all you do!
VBS was beyond AMAZING!!! We averaged between 100-115 each night and had tons of workers helping. We did ours at night from 5:30-8:30 and started it with a Family Fun Night on Saturday. This helped with getting kids registered early. We had VBS for the kids who finished Kinder-3rd grade and we did VBX for the kids who finished 4th-6th. THAT WAS AWESOME!! The VBX kids loved owning their own area, playing different games, and doing different crafts that were more age appropriate for them. In fact, we tied Missions into Crafts for VBX. They painted canvases that were put into a silent auction on the Sunday following VBS. It raised over $1000 for our missionary in Africa!!! I couldn’t believe it! God is so good!
But the best part was night 4- The salvation message where we had over 20 kids either check on their Response Card that they had questions or were ready to ask Jesus into their heart. We put a counseling team together and talked to those kids throughout the last evening and I was able to see 14 kids accept Jesus into their hearts!!!! Awesome!!!!!! God is so good!!!!
The kids performed for the church with the Drama play and all the songs they learned this past Sunday and it was a huge hit!!
I just wanted to say THANK YOU for writing such a wonderful curriculum. I am already looking forward to Coaster World. I hope that you continue to write for VBX— that was such a blessing to reach those kids who constantly get left in the middle. THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!
Leslie Johnstone
Holly Springs Baptist Church- Garrison TX
As I’ve told my church and team, this year was the best assembled team of volunteers I’ve ever worked with! We had about 140 kids and 60 adults with students helping that were truly unbelieveable. Everything went so smoothly and the stories and songs really helped the kids understand and stick to AWA’s message. Thanks as always for a wonderful job from Lifeway! One question, though, has Lifeway ever considered breaking down or separating the toddler and preschool ages more than they do now? It seems the activities are a broad sweep to all ages and not individualized? Just curious. Our preschoolers had the best time this year they’ve ever had. My son still sings the songs and he’s only 3!!!
Sam Fowler, Children’s Pastor at FBC Port St. Lucie, FL
We decided to pass out flyers around the neighborhood this year, in spite of some excuses why we shouldnt or why it wouyldnt work. We had a lightening storm right when we were to go. We regrouped the next morning (in the Florida heat) & made some good contacts anyway. One COLD contact we made had 3 boys who ended up coming & the oldest boy accepted the LORD during VBS!!!
We had our Kickoff the Sat. before VBS….Hot dog supper with ice cream sundaes, Pep Rally & ending with OMC Game(Oraganized Mass Chaos Game). It started pouring during the pep rally,(again the devil tried to rain on our parade) but cleared up in time to play OMC! Everyone had a blast! The wet seamed to just add to the fun!
We had 61 registered-the most we had since 2006. We have VBS from 6:00-9:00PM and serve supper each night. Friday is a split night ending with our program and “souvenir shop”.
We always have a contest between the boys & girls and collected almost $600.00 for Operation Christmas Child Shoeboxes!
On Thursday, the devil fought us at every angle, thru sound problems, a bad injury, lost items, etc, etc. BUT we had 5 kids go forward that night!!!! God is POWERRFUL & AMAZING!!!
We ended up with 10 decisions to accept the Lord for the week!!! AWESOME GOD! AMAZING POWER!
I forgot to share that we really streesed the power of prayer more than ever, and got our seniors to support us thru prayer. We had better behavior than years past & the kids seemed to have a hunger to learn more than normal. Prayer is the best VBS tool there is!
Cathy- Enterprise Al. Our church did things a little different this year. We chose to use club VBS and held our Bible School for 5 Wednesdays. Wow!! It was wonderful. We had a very good turn out. The Bible stories and songs were great. The teachers loved the material and the schedule! Of all the years of directing Bible School, I do not think I ever experienced as many positive comments.
Our church has an AMAZINGly WONDERful time exploring different places in the world and sharing with the kids how people in these areas need Jesus. I had an idea that I would like to share. I have done this for SEVERAL YEARS…and it may answer the age old question: What can we do with our VBS shirts now that VBS is over? Those that arae not passed along to other churches can be used as keepsakes in ifferent ways…a T-shirt quilt is only one idea. I prefer to have my students sign my shirt in permanent “laundry marker” ink. I wear it shopping afterwards and when I run into one of “my kids”, they remember and tell whomever is with them what they did in VBS. It also encourages questions from people around me and gives me an opportunity to witness my faith.
We just came back form doing VBS for the Yomba Baptist Church in Nevada. It’s on a small Indian Reservation. This was our 4th year going and doing VBS for the Tribe. This year we had four that prayed to receive Christ as their Lord and Savior. Two of them decided to follow in believers baptism long with an adult that prayed to receive Christ in December. It was awesome to watch God move among the families that were connected to the VBS.
We didn’t use Lifeway this year.The songs was to contemporary for our church.We went with Sonlight Express,and sung the praise songs.Our preacher said that it was the most Bible base lesson for Bible school that he has seen in a long time.
On the Thursday before out VBS my granddaugther was dianosed with T cell Leukemia. She was to be my best helper at 14 years of age. . We made a great team. This was very unexpected. My director said they would find someone to do my job as crafts leader for the 1 and 2 grade, 75 kids. How could I not teach what I believed about God being Awesome and stay home . I was totoally prepare because I ‘m the comsumate VBS teacher of twenty plus years. So I went ahead with my heart breaking every day seeing so many children having such a good time with my Holly being on a respirator and taking chemo and having bone marrow tests with spinal taps. I made it through but it was hard. I’m so glad I did but never want to go through that again. Holly is responding to the chemo and steroids and although losing her hair , has a great attitude. She will miss a year of school, I plan to take her on short trips that her classmates will not be allowed to go on. Field trips, Guitar lessons Knittting and crochet lessons. We should have a great year. Please pray for us as we go through chemo every Thursday . Donna Grisham South Tulsa Baptist Church Tulsa Okla.
We had our VBS early in June – Amazing Wonders Aviation and what a week. I have several blessings to brag about. We had 60 boys and girls enrolled and an “Amazing” bunch of volunteers, actually more than we could use, but what a blessing! Also, 6 children made professions of faith and we have followed up with the “I’m a Christian Now” materials which we are just finishing today. Also, we are so glad we scheduled it before the weather became so unbearably hot. It was a great week – couldn’t hardly wait until we heard what the 2013 theme would be. Now we know! The Lifeway writers are the best and the children always love the music! Keep up the good work!
We held Amazing Wonders June 11-15 from 6:30 pm – 9:00 each night and it was truly amazing for our small church. We planned for 40 and God sent 70! Had to scramble to purchase extras of everything which was a nice problem to have. God bless the 39 youth and adult volunteers who worked tirelessly each night with our unexpected but welcomed turnout. 17 Passengers accepted Jesus as their Lord and Savior and we continue to minister to them and their families. At our church, we truly believe that VBS is a spiritual foundation builder in a child’s life.
One request: Is it possible to put the Mission stories onto the Worship DVD which would make it easier to have one disk to work from rather than two during Worship Rally?
Thank you Lifeway for all that you do in making VBS exciting and meaningful for everyone involved. We can’t wait for Colossal Coaster World!
Faye Amat, VBS Director
Gateway Baptist Church, Miami, FL
Our VBS was the last week of June. We had a wonderful VBS, over 130 kids and adults attended,we had 5 professions of faith. We are a small country church with average Sunday attendance of 100. Regardless of our church size we have one of the biggest VBS in the area, we are blessed beyond compare. We have so many kids we usually have to have some classes outside. We did Amazing Wonders Aviation, and it was truely amazing. One of our largest classes was our high school class, these were kids from age 15-18. My husband, Eric Ford was the teahcer, he had just been recently diagnosed with a brain tumor and began radiation and chemotherapy that week. He first said he didnt think he could teach the class but later said he felt that was what God wanted him to do. It was an amazing week, the lessons were very touching to both of us and we really felt that God was using him to reach those teenagers. My husband died suddently on July 13, one of the last memories I will have of him is him teaching those teenagers, and them sitting there outside under a tree listening to him praise God even thought he had just been diagnosed with a brain tumor. I do not understand why God had to take Eric so soon, but I do know that Eric is with God now and that I will see him soon. Please pray for our church, the kids in our church, my family, my children and myself. When somethnig so tragic happens and you do not understand, satan is ready to pounce on you. Help us to continue to have the faith that Eric had and to make a difference in others lives as he did.
So sorry to learn of your loss. I too had a terrible health problem to deal with during VBS. My precious granddaugther was diagnosed with Leukemia on Friday before the week.. I got through it with God’s grace . I will pray for your family. Donna Grisham, Tulsa okla SouthTulsa Basptist Church
Our VBS had a total of 50 kids with 22 salvations…….praise the Lord!!!!
We are a small church in Warsaw, MO. We have to rely on grandparents for most of our attendance at VBS, and when they are on vacation attendance goes way down. This was one of those years. We only had 11 kids enrolled, but God was at work because 5 of those children received Christ as their Savior. So never give up, even if you only have a few kids. You never know what God has in store for those who attend.
Louise Haas – director
Lakeside Chapel, SBC
We had our VBS July 9th – 13th, 6 pm to 8:30 pm, and had the best one in the last few years. We averaged 126 for the week with a high on Wednesday of 138. We had 2 decisions and 8 asking questions. What a marvelous result. Amazing Wonders was a terrific theme that we had lots of fun with. Everyone loved the music and are still singing those catchy songs. We did a couple things differently that I think had a positive impact. First, our adult VBS class took a listing on Monday night of the names of every child enrolled and divided it among themselves. They prayed for each child all week long. You can imagine the great impact, not only for the kids that they prayed for, but for the adults as well as they connected with the children. We also had our Family Day on Sunday morning at our normal SS and worship times. The kids went to a VBS/SS class we hoped to act as a transition to get the kids interested in returning. During this time, the parents had a time with the pastor as he reviewed what the kids learned throughout the week and shared pics via powerpoint. The kids performed the music during what would be the worship hour, listened to the final video and generally had a good wrap up. To encouage the kids to return on a Sunday am, we had a VBS store. Kids earned bucks all week and spent it that morning. They had to attend to spend. This is similar to Awana store if you are familiar with that. We had over 90% come! We are seeing some coming back. Thank you so much for the great material that allowed our leaders to do super things for the kids. God is so good and He blessed us so much! Nearly all my leaders this year have already said they are looking forward to next year. Awesome!
Dee Winters – 1st year director
Walter Hill First Baptist Church
In all the years that I’ve been involved in VBS, I’ve taught music, and I’ve always wanted to meet Jeff Slaughter. Well, that finally happened THIS year! I told him that I kinda felt like we were related, and he got a funny look on his face, like “Huh??” Then I told him that the Editor in Chief at LifeWay VBS is my cousin, and he hugged me so hard, and said, “Oh I just love her, don’t you?” I have enjoyed his music all these years, and I look forward to what the future holds for VBS music!
What a wonderful way to start the week- thank you all for sharing your stories. Know that you’re being lifted up in prayer by the VBS team. Thank you for your commitment to the ministry of VBS, even through difficult times. God is so big and SO good.
la gracia de nuestro padre esta en nuestra iglesia, mas de 100 niños que no conocían a Dios, y por primera vez escucharon su voz en sus vidas, a Dios sea la Gloria!. amen
I love going to bible school. i just loved the theme for this year Amazing Wonders Aviation!
when will it start?