Yes. VBS is hard work. There must be times when every leader and volunteer ask themselves the same question: Is all of this work worth it? The answer must be yes. Most all of our workers come straight from a full-time job in which they have just completed 8-12 hour shifts, go home to change, round up all the kids, and then come for another 3 hours of VBS. Why is it worth it? The faces of those children. As the week progresses they know you. They trust you. They spend time with you. They give you high fives. They smile, laugh, and joke with you. They begin to see you as more than just a “worker” but as someone who genuinely cares. There are kids each year with parents so absent any form of encouragement or affection, and some are clearly starved for it. This shows up typically in seeking to gain attention. Again, however, as the week moves on the disruptive behavior calms a bit. Jesus begins to saturate their minds. They listen a little better. The impact goes a little deeper.
We will likely never see some of these kds again. The time when most any American parent brought their children up in church is gone for the majority. For those parents, VBS is a few hour escape from child-care, and a chance to do what you want. But the kids never forget it. Life long memories form of VBS, and I too am a product of those. My sincere desire is that the impact in these children’s lives will be felt long after this week is over. My prayer also is the same for the parents. As much as we are able to do, we can do only so much before we must say, “Without reinforcement at home this just might not stick.” I do not want to see the seed that has been planted in the kids’ lives to be choked out by the people who have the most influence; the parents.
In many ways, and for many children, and also for our church, VBS is only the beginning. What happens after VBS is the real and lasting indicator of how much they will actually come to practice what they’ve been taught. Some of the children know all the right answers already. Some know only a partial and incomplete set of answers. Some know nothing of answers and do not even know the questions. At the end of the day and week,it will be infinitely worth the small amount of time we invest, that may pay dividends into eternity. We had 62 children and 40 something volunteers tonight. If you ask me they know it must be worth it too. No one spends that much time on something that isn’t.
1 Comment
June 25, 2008 at 11:33 am
110% worth every minute. Even after a long hard day at work, one smile from a child takes it all away.
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