As I write this, it is late afternoon on the second day of Vacation Bible School here at our church. You would be within your right to think. “Well, big deal: it’s summer, and churches all over America are having Vacation Bible Schools.” But this one is different for us. This is the first Vacation Bible School we’ve had in over ten years.
That’s a rough figure; I haven’t looked it up. But it is definitely in the ballpark. It’s been a long time since we’ve had a Vacation Bible School here at First Baptist, Linton.
Now, we have done other wonderful things. Our Board of Christian Education, along with a lot of volunteers, have put on block parties, weenie roasts, hayrides, and events with bouncy houses. We have put on concerts, hosted free meals for the community, and even tried our hand at some, ahem, acting. (Understatement alert: Nobody was in danger of winning any Oscars.) We’ve put in lots of work, and had lots of fun together doing these things.
And we’ve had lots of people come, and even come back…to our outreach events. But very few of those who came to our outreach events ever attended one of our worship services. That part of all this was, well, kind of discouraging.
And so, as the years went by, we had fewer and fewer young families, and fewer and fewer children coming to Sunday School or church. Over and over again, I would walk our halls on Sunday mornings—the one for children was mostly empty on too many Sundays—and I would pray, “O Lord, revive us again! May these hallways resound once again with the sounds and voices of children and young families being taught the Gospel!” I know many of you prayed the same thing.
This week, to the glory of God alone, those prayers have been answered.
Last night, for the first time in over a decade, our church sanctuary echoed with the sounds of children singing songs about the Bible and God and Jesus. They were even dancing. (Yes, they were. Get over it.)
The main church building has been transformed into a reasonable facsimile of ancient Babylon (insofar as posters, banners, murals, tape, tents, and lots and lots of volunteer hours could cause that transformation). The kitchen has been humming with the preparation of lots of snacks for lots of kids and adult volunteers. The craft room is full to bursting with glue, tape, construction paper, blunt scissors, popsicle sticks, and yarn. The hallways are resounding with the talking, laughing, and occasional (joyful) shrieking of children, and the pitter-patter and/or tramping of feet of various sizes. Last night an adult had buckets of water dumped on him to celebrate the winning of a game. (He didn’t know that was going to happen. Sorry, Ryan!) And there were even a couple a characters in robes, sandals and long hair wandering around the building. (It looked like a scene from the Jesus Revolution movie. I’m talking to you, Ted!)
This is all a lot of work, and frankly, leaves big messes all over the building. (Apologies to our custodian, Nadine!) But it’s all for a reason. We want the kids to have fun. We want them to come back, and to bring their friends, too. But not just to sing songs, make crafts, play games, or eat snacks. What we really want, somewhere in all this, is to tell them some stories from the Bible, point them to Jesus, and explain how they can know Him.
Those of us who’ve been here for awhile choke back tears of joy at the sights and sounds of all this. Here’s what we pray (more or less): “Lord, let the building be messed up! Let there be crumbs on the carpet, spills on the floor, and marks on the walls. Let it be noisy, chaotic, and even confusing at times. Let us feel overwhelmed, and make us ‘fly by the seat of our pants.’ And let us go home exhausted, with aching feet and longing for our beds. But thank You, God, for all the children, and all their families! And we pray with all of our hearts that their young hearts would be open and receptive to the Good News of Jesus Christ! Change their lives, Lord, and change the direction of their lives! Let the ripples of what happens here this week go on and on. And may it all be to Your glory alone! Amen!”
Lots of people have put in lots of time and effort to make all this happen. If I tried to name them all, I’d leave someone out. But four names need to be mentioned: all this army of volunteers has been under the direction of “General” Bobby Ludlow, and his three “lieutenants”: his lovely wife Allison, their friend Clarissa Just, and Sharon Payne. These four, and their children, have practically lived at the church in the days leading up to this Vacation Bible School. And I am continually amazed at Bobby’s organizational skills and ability to motivate all of us to activity—even me! We are grateful, Bobby and Allison, Clarissa, and Sharon, to you, and to all the volunteers you have marshalled to put on the first Vacation Bible School we’ve had in over a decade.
And our hearts are filled with praise to God!
Soli Deo Gloria!
Pastor David