Vacation Bible School Goes Tropical
By Amanda Thompson
Say “aloha” to Vacation Bible School for 2008!
Colorful shirts, flowers, flip flops and ukuleles will abound in many churches this summer as VBS is landing on the beach with the tropical theme Outrigger Island: Living God’s Unshakeable Truth™. The material, published by LifeWay, draws influence from the outrigger of a canoe which provides stability in rough waters.
Representatives from 30 Baptist Associations gathered Feb. 16 at White Oak Conference Center to become familiar with the new theme and to prepare to teach the material at their associational VBS clinics around the state. “The purpose of this event is to prepare you to go into your clinic and your association,” Sue Harmon, SC Baptist Convention Childhood Ministry Group associate director, told the representatives. “We want you to be excited and think ‘I can do that.’”
Participants could pick from a number of core conferences and skill workshops to attend, ranging from age group specific areas to crafts, music and missions. Conferences were also offered in promoting VBS to the community, enlisting volunteers and preparing youth to be workers, among others. In addition, participants could also sample theme-appropriate snacks such as “tropical trail mix” or “sea turtle snacks” and see examples of crafts and decorations.
The theme verse for this year’s LifeWay VBS is Psalm 86:11, Teach me Your way, LORD, and I will live by Your truth. (HCSV) “Each day in VBS, we will focus on one of God’s unshakable truths,” said Harmon. The Bible studies will focus on who God is, who Jesus is, the importance of scripture, and how actions show what Christians believe.
Last year eighty-five percent of Baptist churches in South Carolina held Vacation Bible Schools, with approximately 7,100 people accepting Christ as Savior. “It is not just fun, it is ministry,” Harmon reminded clinic participants. “The effectiveness of VBS is the Holy Spirit’s work. But [God] uses well-prepared people to do His work.”
And as a result, thousands of South Carolinians will learn to live the 2008 VBS motto: “Know the truth. Speak the truth. Live the truth!”
