STORIES AND PICTURES TO WARM THE HEART FROM 2011 VBS

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Highlights from volunteers, parents, and staff involved in ministry: Stories and Highlights from those who worked at VBS or were touched by the experience

Families : 

From a parent:
"One of my daughter’s favorite parts about VBS was Larry Carmichael Pumpernickel aka Scott Feitl.  I walked down there on Thursday to see for myself and couldn’t stop laughing.  What a great way to reach the older kids." 

From another parent: 
"Just to be a part of  VBS was incredible.  The highlight for me was to bring my neighbors kids who have never been to church. The kids are seven and four. They enjoyed it so much.  Their mom told me that the two kids were arguing over a toy. She overheard one say to the other "“Stop arguing, Jesus says I have to be nice to you. So here, you can have the toy.”"  The mom said that was it, they were going to start attending on the weekends.  This whole family has been affected by VBS, not just the kids. And, they came and visited on Sunday, including the dad who said he would never go to a church."

Testimony of terrific teens: 
We also had some amazing teen volunteers.  One mom said that she twice walked in on a group of boys asking for help, her boys were the first to jump up and help. 
 
A person on the way to VBS on Friday told this story. He said that while his family is Catholic, he has been sending his two children to Trinity’s VBS for 3-4 years. This year his 5th grade daughter invited a neighbor girl to come too. The girl is from another country and her family has no belief system or religion. One day, someone at VBS gave the girl a Bible. That day on the way home she was excited about having a Bible and said, “I am going to pray to my friend, Jesus.”  He said to tell the VBS people what a great program they run. He gave it two thumbs up.

Here’s a story we heard from a volunteer on our praise team: 
A person on our praise team signed up her next door neighbor who is a teen.  They served together all week. This teenager was impacted by how kind and loving everyone was, and by how much fun everyone had together.  One afternoon after VBS was over, the two spent hours talking together and our volunteer shared the good news of Jesus.  The teen, from a non-Christian home, made a decision to follow Christ. And now this faithful volunteer will get the opportunity to disciple her next door neighbor who is now her sister in Christ.  God is at work all around!   

Children as light: 
VBS enables kids to be bold for Jesus. From the awesome guys on the music team who made it cool for the older boys to rock out in worship like they did, to the conversations that came up between my kids and neighborhood playmates after we came home.  VBS shows kids what it looks like to talk to friends – naturally, without formality or pressure – about God and their relationship with him. It was cool to see that even though we invited lots of friends and no one was able to join us at VBS this year, God still created opportunities for my kids to plant seeds in other little hearts after they got home from “The Big Apple.”

From a Parent: On the way home from VBS today, the following conversation took place between the two boys. I just wanted to say thanks for all the work you do to make this event happen. I know you know that kids are touched and lives are changed but I wanted to express my appreciation for the sacrifices you make.

Boy One: Jesus is God’s Son
Boy Two: Jesus IS God
Boy One: Yeah, and I believe in both of them.
Boy Two: Jesus’ real name is I Am but we can call him lots of names.
Boy One: Yeah, like Lord but mostly we just call him God.    (The fun part about that conversation is that God’s name being “I Am” is what Marvin preached the weekend elementary children were in the adult worship, so the boy seemed to be synthesizing his view of God from what He’s learning in different avenues.)

Volunteers as servants:
Whether it’s taking vacation time to volunteer (as many as 10 of our volunteers), completely rearranging their work day to make it happen, or sacrificing sleep because they work nights, they do whatever it takes to be there, and then pour all of themselves into the kids.

It’s thrilling to see how God provides exactly what we need.  Countless times as  volunteersare placed and speaking to them on the phone, I’ll have conversations like this: I receive a call on a Friday from a woman who just found her bulletin with my number on it.  She is a retired elementary teacher who would like to volunteer...would I have a spot for her?  Umm, yes.  How about the last 2nd grade room leader spot I needed to fill! :)  OR, I have one volunteer apologetically say she can only help Monday-Wednesday, and then the next phone call is someone who can only help on Thursday and Friday!  God is good, all the time.  All the time, God is good!

It’s fun to see God provide for volunteers in the moments they are needed. Each day I would walk by the kitchen and the ladies working on the snacks would have Barb, who is blind, sitting at a table bagging up snacks. One young elementary volunteer (maybe 7th grade but looks much younger) was sitting there one day talking with older volunteers, helping to bag up snacks. God’s people, of all ages and backgrounds, serving together.