Kids Sunday School Lessons, VBS 2008, church nursery - Children’s Ministry

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Steve and Doug both posted about this video from Maria Chapman’s memorial service

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Stephanie wrote a positive book review of Do Hard Things

Patricia Meyers wrote some last minute tips for VBS

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Glen Woods posted his review as well, and he didn’t like it so much.

Dr. Russell Moore writes a commentary critical of a “Veggie Tales” approach to the Gospel

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It’s that time of year and everyone is working on planning VBS. In this article, I’ll give you a simple 9 step process for organizing vacation Bible school. Then I’ll share some of my best practical tips about vacation Bible school. As always, you can leave a comment and help me make this resource better.

Make prayer a part of your planning. I didn’t include praying as one of the steps below because it should be a part of every step. You’ll need God’s help at every point to make this year’s vacation Bible school an eternal success.

1. Determine your support level
It takes more than money to put together a great Bible school week. You’ll also need volunteers, donations, pastoral backing, facilities, and prayer partners. Before your launch into planning, take time to consider how much support is available. The approach you take will depend on how much backing is available. If you find low support, you might need to opt for a shortened schedule (3-days) or find another church to work with. If support level is high, you might be able to do something extra like an extended schedule (all-day or 2-weeks) or host a community wide VBS for several smaller churches to join.

2. Choose dates for your VBS
Several factors affect scheduling. In our town, we work around several major summer events like the county fair, the boat races and Relay for Life. It is also smart to check with other churches in town to see which weeks they have planned for VBS. Work together with church leaders to pick the best available week. (But there will always be someone on vacation.)

3. Choose & order curriculum for your VBS
I’ve written a whole article on How To Choose A Vacation Bible School Curriculum. This is an important step, because not all VBS themes will fit every church situation. Like everything, it’s better to start early and get the materials in hand ASAP. Most publishers include a very helpful guide to planning Bible school at your church. If you need more help finding the right curriculum, you can read my Vacation Bible School Curriculum Reviews.

4. Create a rotation schedule and room assignment chart
There are many right ways to do this. I tend to be as simple as possible. Your plan will be determined by your support level and facility setup. We have several large meeting rooms, so I prefer large group stations for crafts, music, learning and snack. You can download an example of my rotation schedule here.

5. Recruit volunteers for Vacation Bible School
The next step is to create your roster. To keep things simple, I put mine on the same document as the rotation schedule. The key to finding volunteers is relationships and helping volunteers find the right spot. Our church has many volunteers who work VBS every summer. I’ve written an article on this topic too: You can read more about finding volunteers for vacation Bible school.

6. Publicize and pre-register children for Bible school
Once all the pieces are in place (or at least you’re trying), it’s time to start promotion. Most churches will ask members to speak with their neighbors about coming to Bible school. I prefer a half-sheer registration flyer that also works for a promotion piece. Depending on your budget, advertising can be a major expense. We use a large sign on the road in front of our church to increase awareness. Some publishers offer online registration tools that can simplify the process.

7. Communicate the plan
Make sure all your volunteers know their roles before VBS starts. Some churches have multiple meetings to walk through the plan. For our church, I typically spare them the meeting but call everyone to make sure they are on the same page. If you do have a meeting, use it to encourage the workers and pray for God’s help.

6. Adjust as needed during VBS week
Even the best plans will need adjustments during Bible school week. For this reason, I try to delegate all the teaching responsibilities so I am free to make decisions during the week. If you’ve communicated your plan well, then adjustments should be minimal.

7. Follow up any new contacts made during Bible school
The missing step for most churches is to follow up after VBS. I suggest a letter from the pastor for all un-churched guests and possibly home visitations. If you have children who come to Christ, make these priorities. The most effective form of follow-up is to get prospects enrolled in Sunday school. If you struggle to make that happen, I recommend you read this article by Darryl Wilson: Grow Your Sunday School by Following Up Vacation Bible School. Tip: Write a follow-up letter for the children who attended VBS. You can send it home with them on the last day or mail it to them a week later. You can seem my sample VBS letter to children here.

8. Evaluate and make detailed notes
I keep a notebook open all week to record my observations from VBS. This has been my best teacher. During Bible school, you can see first hand things you may wish to do differently next year. So, write it down and file it away. If you’re brave, ask several key leaders to keep their own list. Have lunch together the week after Bible school and compare notes.

9. Say thank you to every volunteer
I’ve saved this one for last, but it is very important. We try to recognize volunteers at VBS graduation, in church the following Sunday, with personal thank you notes. Go the extra mile for key leaders and phone them to say thanks. Practically, you can’t do Bible school without the workers. Pray that God will bless them for all their hard work.

Need more ideas? Then here are six more ideas for how to plan VBS . . .

Practical Tips For Planning Vacation Bible School

1. Begin early. Some people work best under pressure, but this is not true for team efforts such as vacation Bible school. Don’t wait until the last minute! If possible, have your volunteer roster filled several weeks early. Starting things late will cause stress and distract your focus from ministering to the children.
2. Talk about it. Start talking to people as soon as you can. Be vocal about the progress of your VBS plan all through the process. This will help people share your excitement and provide redundant channels of communication. I’ve discovered that talking about Bible school with our church volunteers is a great way get feedback and to refine my ideas.
3. Learn from last year. Even if this is your first year as VBS director, you can still get some great information by asking about what worked in the past. So, talk to volunteers from last year and see what they liked and what needs improvement.
4. Have fun. Doing God’s work should bring joy into your life. Don’t let all the details and worries rob you of that. Besides, if the leaders aren’t having fun, then the kids will suffer.
5. Find ideas online. Most major VBS publishers have forums on their website for churches to share ideas about the curriculum. This can be a great source of inspiration. Here are a few that I’ve checked out: LifeWay, Group, Gospel Light
6. Keep it simple. This was the biggest lesson I learned after my first year leading Bible school. All those bells and whistles were distracting our people from the real ministry with the children. So, whenever possible go simple. Spend your time and energy on what will make a lasting difference, like relationships, prayer and teaching.

I hope you’ve enjoyed this article. You can get all my practical tips for children’s ministry by signing up for my free email newsletter. If you have something to add, please leave a comment and share your thoughts.

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How Can I Find Volunteers For Vacation Bible School?

One constant struggle in children’s ministry is finding the right workers. Here are some tips for getting the right volunteers for your VBS program.

1. Start early
Most people are more willing to commit, and even work around their vacation schedule, if you ask early. I try to start recruiting in February. It’s never too late, but starting early will make the job much easier.

2. Call and recruit last year’s workers
A simple phone call will show that you really do value their service. Once they agree to help, ask them who else they know who would be good to ask.

3. Recruit new volunteers face-to-face
Whenever possible, ask people in person. Sometimes you will have to call, but looking someone in the eye is the best way to know if they really want to help. If someone shows any hesitation, ask questions to find out why. Sometimes, they are afraid to take on the job and simply need more training. Other times, they may be over-committed but hesitant to say no. It’s your job to know the difference and value them enough to not pressure them.

4. Put a worker sign-up form in the church worship bulletin
We put a volunteer registration form in the bulletin from Easter until one week before VBS. This gives less connected people a chance to get involved. Often people step up who I did not think to ask. Tip: This should be a secondary way to recruit. It shows much more respect to personally invite people to be involved.

5. Put a roster, with blanks in the bulletin
If your roster is not full and VBS is less than 4 weeks out, it’s time to get serious. Publish your roster-in-progress to show the church where you need help. Ask the pastor to make a special appeal for workers.

6. Combining positions as a last resort
If the VBS still doesn’t have enough volunteers, you may need to combine volunteer roles. Simplify the schedule and even consider cutting activities. Take care not to “throw your workers to the wolves” because a bad experience will keep them form helping next year.

If all these efforts fail you may have to re-think your church’s Bible school for next year. Here are some options for Vacation Bible school that will require less workers next year:

Consider Changes For Next Year’s VBS

1. Choose an evening VBS schedule. Normally, you can get more parents to help if you plan your program after they get off work.
   
2. Partner with other churches to plan a Community Bible School. There are downsides to this, but many churches have partner to provide the best ministry.
   
3. Plan a simplified vacation Bible school schedule. Having a weekend only program can also allow working parents to volunteer.
   
4. Limit the number of children that can register. This is a worst case scenario, but sometimes safety concerns will have to come first. Again, I don’t like this option, but it may be needed in some cases.
   
5. Find a larger church to send a mission team to help with your VBS. If your church is rural and needs outside support, this could be a good option. Contact the children’s minister at a large church within an hour drive.

I hope you found this article helpful. Please leave me a comment if you have more ideas to share.

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Here is the letter we sent out last summer to the children who attended our vacation Bible school. There was another mailing to their parents, but this one was targeted specifically to the children. We included a registration form for our Upward soccer league in the same mailing. Feel free to use this as a template for your VBS follow-up. You can download it as a word document here.

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Hey there! I just wanted to thank you for coming to VBS. We were so glad you were a part of “Who Will Be King?” We hope you had fun and made some new friends too. More than anything, we hoped you learned about Jesus.

I think it is very important for you to come to church. We would love to have you visit Sunday school. It’s at 9 AM on Sundays and then we have church at 10. Coming to church will help you to know and love Jesus. It will help you learn how to follow Jesus as your King.

Here are some other thing you might want to know about.

• You can sign-up to play Upward Soccer, before August 1^st.
• You can come to Bible Buddies every Wednesday from 6:30 - 7:30.
• Plus, Family Fun Day is on Saturday, August 11^th, from 11 - 2PM.

Have you had time to read the little book named Who Will Be King? It will help you learn more about Jesus. It is important to read it with your parents. They can help you understand. You can also pray and ask God to help you understand.

I really hope you’ll be able to join us for one or more of the events listed above. If you have any questions, you can e-mail me at TonyKummer@gmail.com or call me at the church 273-2289.

Hope to see you soon!

Serving The King!

Tony Kummer

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