Why I Love VBS

“But honor the Messiah as Lord in your hearts.  Always be ready to give a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you.” – 1 Peter 3:15

VBS is one of my favorite times of the year…I kind of like it even better than Christmas!  There’s just something about a massive amount of kids coming together to learn and sing about Jesus that makes my heart just burst with happiness and excitement.  I must admit the trazillion hugs and gigantic smiles make it that much sweeter, too. :)

Of course the fact that I get to teach kids about missions and missionaries is an added bonus to this special week.  It’s so cool to watch the kids’ interest peak day-by-day as they are connecting to the missionaries and what they are doing.  I also love that we participate in a mission project.  I never want kids to just learn about missions, I want them to DO missions too.  Our mission project this year is to help a church plant in Denver, Colorado.  Today we got to Skype the missionary we are helping and the kids were glued to the screens as he spoke and brought to life the mission project through the words he said.  

Teaching in my "Map Room"

I also love that this year the missions curriculum has stressed having the kids do a secret service mission project.  Many kids have really gotten into this and it has been so neat to hear their secret service mission stories and also to see that they are really listening and applying what we talk about in missions.  One of my favorite secret service mission stories from this week (and if you’re my friend on Facebook, you probably know about this) is about a little girl who did the secret service mission of writing “Jesus Loves You” notes to someone.  She not only wrote these notes, but she also made cupcakes (she said from “scrap”…she meant scratch) and handed them out to people in her neighborhood.  She also made some cupcakes and a note for me…LOVE.IT. :)

My cupcakes made from "scrap"

My church is using Lifeway’s Agency D3 theme this year.  It has been awesome as kids are discovering Jesus, deciding to follow Him, and learning how to better defend their faith in Him.  1 Peter 3:15 has been the theme verse for the week.  “But honor the Messiah as Lord in your hearts.  Always be ready to give a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you.”  It’s a crazy world that kids today are growing up in and these are lessons that they NEED to know.  There is about a 99.95% chance that they will be faced with an issue in their life that they will need to draw on something they have learned this week in order to help them solve it.  That’s not to be taken lightly.  VBS is impacting kids…for the better.  It’s also impacting kids eternally.  A representative from the TN Baptist Convention spoke at our church this past Sunday and said that 25% of children’s baptisms are a result of a decision made at VBS.  That is a major percentage.

But the kids aren’t the only ones who can take away lessons from this year’s VBS, us older ones can too!  (Am I really included in the word “older?”  I guess I am…).  Let’s break apart the theme scripture: 

• “But honor the Messiah as Lord in your hearts.”  What does this mean?  I think this is two-fold.  First of all I believe it means to make sure that Jesus is the Lord and Savior of your life.  Do you have a personal relationship with Him?  I also believe that this part of the scripture stresses to keep honoring Jesus.  He is our King, but do we really worship Him every moment?  Are the things we say or our actions a reflection of Christ?  Do we live with an attitude that reflects Him?  In order to be ambassadors for Him and be on guard to give a defense for Him, we need to live a life like Christ.  1 John 2:6 says, “Whoever says he abides in Him ought to walk in the same way in which He walked.”  Obviously we can’t live His life…it was perfect…but we can strive to live like Him.
  
• “Always be ready to give a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you.”  As Christians living in today’s world, we look pretty unusual to unbelievers.  Where they see hurt, we see forgiveness.  Where they see hate, we see love.  Where they see death, we see eternal life.  The things we see are complete opposite of what they see and they’re going to want to know why.  Be ready for that!  Know what you believe and why you believe it!  The world wants evidence and there’s no greater place to find that evidence than the Word of God.  Hebrews 4:12 says, “For the Word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and spirit, of joints and marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.”  Study the Bible so you know how to answer the questions that the world will throw at you…notice that I didn’t use the word “might” in the place of “will.” 

There’s so much to be grateful for with Vacation Bible School.  It’s a timeless tradition that has been a part of many churches for years and years.  I can’t even count on two hands the number of VBS’ I have been involved in or a part of since I was born.  While I loved VBS as a child, I have an even greater love for VBS as an adult because of what it does for kids and how, no matter what the theme, can apply it to my life and my situations.  Stop for a moment and think about your church’s VBS theme.  Think about how you can apply it to your life and use the applications that the kids are/will be learning and be encouraged by them along with the kids. 

Vacation Bible School isn’t about the snacks…it’s not about recreation, missions, crafts, singing or even certain individual people.  VBS is about Jesus and growing ourselves, and most importantly kids, in the knowledge of the truths of the Bible and HIS sweet, sweet love.

Creating On-Mission Kids

Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.  Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you.” – Matthew 28:19-20

Recently I saw a poll on the International Mission Board’s Commission Stories website (www.commissionstories.com) that said “at what age were you first exposed to ‘missions’?”  As of this writing, 62 people had answered.  The age at which most people said they were first exposed to missions was preschool (0-5) age!  The next highest was children (6-12).  The lowest was college age.   Granted 99.9% of people who answered this poll were Southern Baptist (and probably exposed to missions at birth...ha ha) …but still, it was SO encouraging for me to see that most people were exposed to missions as a young child!

I was one of the responders to the preschool-age choice of this poll as I vividly remember going on mission trips and being in the preschool church program “Mission Friends” as a preschooler.  Before I started school, I went on so many mission trips with my parents and got to be a part telling others about Jesus – even as a little kid.  My parents had a background in missions so they believed strongly in making sure me and my sisters knew about and experienced missions as children.  Most of you know we were missionaries for two years in Hong Kong ('97-'99) as a result of their deep love for missions.  I’m so grateful for their passion in being on-mission for Christ and educating us as children because it has resonated so strongly in my heart as far as being on-mission and also helping children become educated in missions.  

My sweet on-mission family during our mission time in Hong Kong

Also while on the Commission Stories website, I found an article entitled “Families on Mission: A Guide for Every Stage of Parenting” which contained suggestions for families …and really anyone that works with children…to keep missions at the forefront of your family and children’s heart.  I absolutely loved the fact that the article was divided into the different stages of childhood because it allows parents and teachers to see what learning styles/activities work best for that age group. 

I did not come up with any of these ideas…they are solely the work of the author of the article and you can read this article in its entirety here…Families on Mission.  However, I wanted to share with you briefly, the different points the author brought up as well as some of my thoughts… ‘cause you know I can’t write a blog and not have any opinions… ha ha!

Preschool-Age

1. “Talk about missions.”  Preschoolers are such sponges for information.  This is the time of life where they are learning SO many new things…why not let missions/missionaries be one of those new things that they are learning?!  Adding to that…as you talk about missions, remember that a picture is worth a thousand words…especially to preschoolers.  They are observing the world around them, most especially visually, so show them pictures of missions and missionaries so they aren’t just hearing about missions, but they are seeing it too!
   
2. “Invite Internationals to family time.”  Church workers, you can also invite Internationals to your class time.  Preschoolers are very curious people and they LOVE to ask questions!  As preschoolers meet new people and learn about new cultures, they may be able to better understand what a missionary does and where they go.  Encourage your international friend to bring objects or food from their country/culture.  Visual/tangible items resonate strongly with kids…especially preschoolers.
   
3. “Collect money for missions.”  This is the #1 answer I get from kids when I ask “what can we do to help missionaries?”  Children know that money is needed to get something and so they have a frame of reference to understand that missionaries can’t get things or do things without having money to help them.  I love what the author said about setting a goal, keeping track of it, and celebrating when the goal is reached.  Allow your kids to see what the results of their collection efforts will be.  If you are collecting for a specific project, show them pictures or video of what their money has funded.  If you have collected money for a missionary, see if the missionary can write a letter, call, or Skype you.  Help children see that what they are doing is having an impact.

**One thing that the author didn’t mention, that I think is very important, is to make sure preschoolers understand that missions is something that Jesus has asked us to do.  Put the Great Commission and Acts 1:8 into language that preschoolers can understand and help them realize that we don’t do missions just because we want to…we do it because Jesus asks us to “love our neighbor” and tell our neighbors about Him.

School-Age

1. “Collect supplies.”  In the article, the author offered a specific project for which to collect supplies – the Baptist Global Response’s Bucket Project.  The Bucket Project is a great project to be a part of, but there are also many other great projects that children can collect supplies for, such as, Operation Christmas Child, your local food pantry, care packages for missionaries, etc.  Allow your child to have the opportunity to collect these supplies – let them make the decisions (with your guidance) on what kinds of items to collect for others around the world.  By allowing them to make part of the decision, they are able to see that they have made a personal investment in something/someone else.  Church leaders, maybe you can make your collection a competition.  At my church, we like to have collection competitions between the boys and the girls.  The kids get really into the competition and in turn we are able to help a lot more people because we have a lot more items.
   
2. “Adopt a People Day.”  I know a lot of school-age kids that love to find out cool facts about people, places, and things.  Help your kids find interesting books or websites about different cultures or countries so that they can read about and see what is going on in different parts of the world.  The IMB has a couple of great missions websites for kids…visit “Kids on Mission” and “The Caravan.”  The Joshua Project website has information on how reached or unreached various countries are around the world.  I encourage you to visit these websites with your kids so that they can find out for themselves about different parts of the world and missions work there.  When I was 11, I made a scrapbook about Hong Kong…granted, I lived there…but still, it was an opportunity for me to discover more about this unfamiliar country as my family was living “on-mission” there.
   
3. “Take a family mission trip.”  This doesn’t have to be a 15 hour mission trip to another country…it can simply be taking a trip across town to the soup kitchen to help feed the hungry.  The important part is to let your kids EXPERIENCE missions!  I can’t put into words the value that experiencing missions has on a child.  All I know is that I wouldn’t be the person I am today without the experience of missions.  If you have the opportunity to take your family on a mission trip out of town or out of the country – DO IT!  Your kids will NEVER forget it and the things they see and do will make a lasting impact on them.  Experiencing missions is when it becomes REAL to them.

 **Something else to mention here…introduce school-age kids to not only historical missionaries, like Lottie Moon/Adoniram Judson, but also introduce this age group to missionaries in the Bible like Paul, Barnabas, John Mark, and others.  Help them realize that Jesus didn’t just ask today’s generation to be missionaries…His words were also meant for those that lived during the Bible times. 

Teens

1. “’Give it up’ for global hunger.”  Really what I think the author of the article is saying here is to help your teen realize that missions is a sacrifice.  Give up a night at the movies and spend that extra time doing something for missions or make a low-cost meal out of items that someone in a third world country might have and give that extra money you have to missions.  Teenagers are at a time in their life where they understand that it can be difficult to do without something.  Helping them realize that so many in the world don’t have the luxuries we do in America opens their eyes to appreciate the world and people around them.
   
   
2. “Be a World Changer.”  World Changers is a great organization that teens can be a part of as they aim to change the world for the sake of Christ.  It’s an opportunity for teens to experience missions in a peer-team setting.  Teens don’t just have to go through World Changers, though.  Encourage your teen to go on a mission trip with their youth group or your church.  The IMB Students website, theTask.org has great opportunities too.  Again, missions never becomes more real until you experience it!

 **If at all possible, allow your teen to get to know (Skype, Facebook messaging, personal visit) a current missionary and/or missionary kid.  Whether the missionary be on Stateside assignment or on the field, a personal interaction can help spur the interest of a teen to get involved in not only praying for this missionary, but desiring to help them and others as well.

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One thing that ALL age groups…preschoolers to adults…can do for missions is to PRAY.  Your prayers to the Father on behalf of missionaries and missions work mean more than you’ll ever know.  The hardest hearts and most impossible situations can change in an instant when ALL of God’s children come to Him in prayer.  Make sure your children always know that “where two or three are gathered in [His] name, [He] is there” (Matthew 18:20). 

Mission-minded children lead to mission-minded adults and in this world that is ever-so changing and where so many have never heard the name of Jesus, having mission-minded adults is something that is GREATLY important.  What better way to live with a servant heart than to be mission-minded?!  I pray that our future generation will live with a servant heart, be on fire for Jesus and have a desire to help others come to know Him either through missions involvement or as full-time missionaries themselves.

Source: "Families on Mission" by Susie Rain, July 21, 2013, http://www.commissionstories.com/asia/interactives/view/families-on-mission-a-guide-for-every-stage-of-parenting#teens

2012 in Retrospect

2012.  When I sit here and look at this combination of numbers, my mind rolls through with countless memories and thoughts of the things I experienced and encountered throughout the year.  Each year, I like to take a little time to reflect on the year as I see what God did and how He brought me through.  These blog posts are probably some of the longest of the year…and I’m warning you about that now…but I’ll try not to make this one as long as last year. (Note the word try) :)

School
“Stick a fork in me, I’m done!”  This May, I graduated with my Master of Arts in Discipleship Ministries from Liberty University Baptist Theological Seminary.  What a fantastic program that I was privileged to be a part of!  The last semester of my program, I had some awesome classes with the children’s ministry professor, Dr. Michael Mitchell.  He was an excellent teacher!  He had such great advice and was one of the most helpful professors I have ever had.  I absolutely loved his book, Leading, Teaching, and Making Disciples…definitely a must-read for people who work with and teach kids – both spiritually and academically.  One of the funny things about the last semester was that I had some of the longest and most challenging projects that were like 20-25 pages each and I actually enjoyed doing them!

I decided to walk at graduation.  I knew from the get-go that there was going to be an insane amount of people and I wasn’t wrong.  Good thing I used to live in Hong Kong, ‘cause I would’ve been overwhelmed at the amount of graduates that there were.  We had quite an interesting commencement speaker for our graduation…Republican presidential nominee, Mitt Romney.  It was a bit controversial that he was speaking at a Baptist school’s graduation ceremony, but I thought he did a great job…spoke to duty to faith and career, but didn’t push his beliefs at all.  Not many people can say they heard a potential presidential candidate speak at their graduation, so that was neat to be able to say that (would’ve been neater to say the future president spoke at my graduation…but alas…).  I actually didn’t officially graduate from the program until later that afternoon when I had to attend another ceremony for the seminary.  It was a long day, but it was an awesome and unforgettable experience….AND I get to experience it from the other side in 2013 as I go back to Liberty to watch my sister graduate! :)

The graduate!  Not crazy about the long sleeves, but apparently, that's especially for Masters grads...

Our special commencement speaker - Mitt Romney.

The Liberty University & Seminary Class of 2012 plus the onlookers...I didn't take the picture, but I'm  in it!

I learned so much from seminary and I am SO thankful for the experience!  The knowledge and insight I gained about the Bible, ministry, and teaching children has been so helpful and useful and I am excited to see where all of my education will take me next!

Job
Work this year has been a whirlwind!  There has been so much go on in the form of design/screen stuff for the church as well as catering with Megan’s Corner.  I’m so blessed to have these jobs and use my gifts and talents for both.  Highlights of the year: running screens for the Annie Moses Band (one of my favorite music groups) and catering for an event featuring Elizabeth Smart.  God’s really blessing both places that I work and I am excited to see what He is going to do at First Baptist and Megan’s Corner in the coming year!

Church
This was my first full year as children’s missions leader at church.  I had lots of really cool experiences in this capacity this summer!  I got to be associational VBS leader as well as teach missions to children in AWANA, CiA (Children in Action), VBS, and help organize a fall children’s missions conference sponsored by the TN Baptist Convention.  It was so awesome to be able to interact with so many kids and open their eyes to the world of missions.  If you know me, you know that teaching kids missions is my love and passion AND seeing them have a love and passion for missions brings my heart so much happiness that it is literally smiling right now! :)

Teaching missions during VBS

Volunteering in the media department by overseeing the projection screens has also continued full force this year.  From special performances to regular Sunday services...there is never a dull moment!  Seven years ago, I would have never dreamed of myself in this capacity because I never had a background in media, but I am so thankful for two special ladies who saw potential in me and invited me into the ministry - since then, life has never been the same!  The only thing I wish is that I could wear tennis shoes every Sunday morning because it feels like most weeks I am a marathon runner trying to get last minute things done before we go live on air! Ha ha!

Unforgettable Summer
So much happened this summer and it’s really crazy to sit here and process it all, but I’ll try.

In May, my sister Meredith left for Thailand to be a summer missionary.  She got to use her gifts and talents in accounting to make a difference on the mission field!  So awesome!  Meredith got to experience many new and exciting things throughout the summer.  She even was gracious enough to Skype my VBS and CiA kids – they definitely thought that was cool!  God really used her and she has so many neat stories about her time there.  The experience in Thailand was definitely God-affirming that this is what He wants her to do for a career.

In June, I was asked for the fifth year to page for the Southern Baptist Convention in New Orleans, LA.  This year, my entire family went (minus Meredith who was in Thailand) and so my other sister, Lauren paged as well.  I know I say this every year, but this was my favorite year to page!  I had such an incredible experience working for the convention this year.  I was copier page and I also had the honor of working on the platform this year which was very cool.  Over the past few years, I have gotten to know some of the executive staff and so it has been neat in these last couple of years to see people who I recognize and vice-versa.  I have so much respect for the men and women who run the annual Southern Baptist Conventions as these events are intricately organized, staffed, and assembled – it is definitely a team effort.  Hands-down, my favorite part of this paging experience was meeting and being a part of the nomination/election of the new SBC president, Dr. Fred Luter.  He is the first African-American president to preside over the Southern Baptist Convention which made his nomination and subsequent election the most historic in SBC history AND I got to experience it all from the very stage where it was happening!  Talk about cool!  The day after his election, I got the opportunity to meet him and get my picture taken with him.  It was definitely an unforgettable experience!

View of the 2012 Southern Baptist Convention from my perch on the platform

Myself and Dr. Fred Luter, president of the Southern Baptist Convention

On the Fourth of July, the lives of two of my friends were turned completely upside down when they lost their boys in a lake accident.  It was a tragedy that rocked not only their lives, but the lives of our church and community.  I shared my feelings about this time on my blog (see A Prayer from My Heart and Flooded with Peace and A Calm After the Storm), but suffice it to say, it was a very difficult time.  This is a valley that these families are still walking through and I absolutely hate that for them.  I don't understand why this happened and we'll never understand why this happened this side of heaven - but I do know that God has been with us through every single moment and I can't imagine how this experience would have gone without that knowledge.  Through this, however, the boys have made a lasting impact on our community as many have come to Christ or have recommitted their lives to Christ through inspirational stories involving the boys.  I had the honor of knowing both of them and feel so blessed that I was able to interact with the two of them.  Not that I didn't before...but since July 4th when a kid runs up to me with huge, open arms...I hug a little tighter, listen a little closer, and love a lot deeper.

Nate & Noah - Two awesome young men of God who have made eternal impacts on the Kingdom!  Miss them, but rejoicing that I will see them again one day!

In the middle of July, I boarded and airplane and for the fourth time traveled to my heart city of Hong Kong to teach VBS to my heart church, Clearwater Bay International Baptist Church.  This year, I had the blessing of leading the music as well as the 4 yr-Kindergarten class.  It was such a joy to interact with the children through music this year; to watch how they responded to the songs and really took them to their heart warmed my heart deeply.  This year was the largest group of children and the smallest leadership team that CBIBC has ever had for VBS!  It was interesting to see how God worked everything out for His glory during this week as there was a low teacher to student ratio as well as unexpected things happen during the week!  I blogged all about my trip and you can find all those posts underneath August 2012.  During my time there, Meredith joined me and we got to spend some time together in "the" Hong Kong...it was definitely memorable!  I'm SO thankful I got the opportunity to go back to Hong Kong this year.  This place, through some extraordinary people who I am privileged to call dear friends, has made such an impact on my life and I feel so blessed that I have the opportunity to give back!!!

My adorably-cute 4 yr old/Kindergarten class!

Leading music

Favorite place in the entire world - hands-down

SO thankful to be able to serve in my heart city of Hong Kong

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Good news...I held to my word and this year's retrospective was MUCH shorter than last year!  Aren't you proud of me?  Ok, maybe not, but I'm proud of myself. :)

Through all of the experiences of 2012, God has shown me that He wants me to spend my life's career serving Him.  School is officially over and now it's time for life to begin.   I'll admit, I've been getting a little antsy as of late, waiting for God to show His plans for me....but you want to know what He's been teaching me?  Patience.  Wait upon Me.  I will not forsake you.  I have it all under control.  TRUST ME!

God knows the desires of my heart and I am following and trusting Him, day by day, knowing that in His perfect time He will provide.  Jeremiah 29:11 promises me that.  Psalm 37:4 promises me that.  And my favorite verse, Proverbs 3:5-6, promises that truth as well.  I appreciate and covet your prayers as I enter 2013 with a willing and ready heart - ready to go where God wants me to go and do what He wants me to do.

I encapsulated 2010 & 2011 with words, but this year, I’m encapsulating 2012 with a song.  This song is 2012 personified to me and I know this truth will hold true in 2013 as well.

Not for a moment will God forsake me.  He loves me...He's with me...He's got 2013 all under control.