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Volunteering to serve at VBS has been a privilege and an honor.

As I’ve served snacks, encouraged participants and volunteers, and prayed over kiddos I’ve seen the Lord at work in and through this outreach ministry again and again.

People often ask me how we feed so many kids when we don’t actually know how many kids we will serve. That question has been a sweet catalyst for reflecting on the “signs” that the Lord gives in the process of this ministry.

When VBS prep time comes, I often find myself struggling with the planning & preparation phases because they are time consuming and complicated. My initial calculations are often marred by doubt & fear.  Will there be enough cucumbers on Tuesday? Will we have enough graham crackers on Friday?

Year after year, the Lord has shown me that not only does He provide enough. He provides MORE than enough.

In John 6, Jesus gives us a beautiful sign of His provision for His people.  After crossing the Sea of Galilee, Jesus communes with his disciples and knows that He is being followed by a mass of people. It was Passover time and the feast was at hand.  His disciples were gathering together what denarii and food was available only to seemingly come up short.  Short of what?  Short of what their own expectations were for what they needed to provide for the large number of people that had followed them. After the Lord tested his disciples, He took the loaves and fish, gave thanks and distributed it to all 5,000. Not only was there enough, there were plenty of leftovers after everyone was full. 

What does this “sign” have to do with VBS?  Everything!

I have seen firsthand that the Lord is more than enough.

Not just in the tangible amount of cucumbers or graham crackers He provides. There has never been a day at VBS where there hasn’t been enough food.  He is more than enough in the process of week-long service. Caring for, teaching, guiding and supporting 100 + kids is exhausting and after Day One of VBS most volunteers will admit, it’s tiring!

Is Christ more than enough in our tiredness & weakness?  Absolutely! 

Is He more than enough in our times of doubt or unbelief? Unquestioningly, yes!

In our weakness, He is made strong.  The “signs” of His deep and abiding love for us shine through the ministry of VBS.

Are you holding back on jumping into the VBS ministry because of doubt or unbelief? Are you scared that you are ill-equipped to serve around kids? Have you thought, “I can’t do that because I’m not good with kids?”  I have.  It’s only by His strength and power that we are enabled and empowered to do anything.  He is Jehovah.  He provides everything that we will need. 

Will you join me and all of the many volunteers on this “sign” journey?  You won’t be disappointed.

Click here to learn about MCC's 2018 AMPED VBS!

I won’t lie…it’s a tough week.

When the relief of summer rolls around, I get lazy and selfish and protective of my “me” time.

And let’s be honest, VBS flies in the face of “me” time.

For weeks leading up to it, there are cut-outs to create, crafts to prepare, ridiculously large decorations to make, volunteers to recruit, supplies to gather, food to organize…

And then…

It arrives…and I can’t imagine how anyone ever thought we could fit all these kids into this small church.  Oh - and they’re absolutely wired.  Or scared to tears.  Or too cool to care about anything.  Or selectively deaf. Or all of the above.

Yeah…and every group leader looks like a deer in headlights…including me.

But we jump in.  We get rolling.  We dance and sing, we pull kids off railings, we laugh and play games, we tell silly jokes.  We pray, we eat, we talk about Jesus, we talk about keeping our hands to ourselves.  We get headaches, we eat cereal for dinner, we faceplant into our pillows at 8pm and get up to do it all again.

Why?  What on earth is this even accomplishing?  Is this just free half-day daycare at a church?  

For many kids in our community, this is the one time a year that they hear about Jesus and his great love for them.  

For others, it will be the first time they consider the truth that they need a savior and realize that Jesus wants a relationship with them. For others still, it will be what leads them to decide to give their lives to Him.

For me, 20 years ago, VBS was the first time I realized that I could read and memorize Scripture, and that God would use it in my life.  I’ll never forget it.

When we think on these things and remember their worth?  Well, we can’t help but show up year after year.

We can’t help but joyfully say “yes” to being a part of God’s pursuit of our kids.  We can’t help but jump at the chance to communicate God’s great love to these young ones.  As the week goes on and they begin to consider the words from our songs, the teachings connected to the crafts, and the truths contained in their memory verses, the kids begin to ask the most fascinating and challenging questions.  They start to consider the truth as it pertains to them.  They start to think about their own sin and see what God has done to wash it away and bring them near.

At the risk of sounding like a Macy’s sale commercial…

We’ve just got to be there.

I’d be remiss if I didn’t tell you that VBS transforms us too.  Those conversations, those times of worship, those moments of full-on, doubled-over laughter, those earnest prayers from little mouths…

They change us.

You can’t be around that much gospel joy and walk away unchanged.  

There is not a single volunteer who leaves VBS without considering God’s pursuit of him, his own weakness, and God’s unlimited strength.

I encourage you to send your kids to VBS and/or consider being a part of it in some way.  Everyone is taxed, and everyone is blessed.

No amount of “me” time accomplishes the spiritual growth that God does through that week.  

I do not remember even the best “me” times I’ve had.

But I remember my one VBS as a kid.

And I remember every single one I’ve participated in as an adult.

And my kids remember every single one in which they’ve taken part.

Yes, it’s a tough week.  But at the end of it?

None of us will be the same.

To find out more about MCC's Vacation Bible School and how you can give up some of your "me time" this summer while serving some East Mountain and Albuquerque kids visit our VBS page!

My initial meeting with Sara didn’t go well. Instead it went something like this, “Hey there sleepyhead, I’m Joy. I’ll be your Camp Counselor for the week.” Quickly followed by 12-year-old Sara stomping off with an unpleasant look on her face and me thinking, “Oh great, what am I going to do now?”

Sometimes first meetings don’t go as smoothly as we hope! For a long time, it was my dream to become a camp counselor. Last summer, God made that dream a reality when I became a staff member at Fort Lone Tree, a Christian camp serving kids 8-12 years old.

Each week’s group of campers, and each camper, was unique. There were the “Pranksters,” the “Daredevils,” the “Shy” or the “Out-going.” I was never sure what to expect but one camper in particular had a lasting impact on me. Her name was Sara. 

Unfortunately, as you just read, my initial encounter with Sara had a bumpy start. Upon seeing her limp body complete with drowsy eyes and unkept hair emerge from the long bus ride to camp, my well-intentioned welcome, including playful teasing, was ill received. The days that followed left me playing “catch-up” with our relationship; trying to repair any damage my words had caused.  

Often, I found myself praying for Sara and seeking wisdom on how I could show God’s love to her.

One day, I felt the Lord tell me to speak words of encouragement.  Tell her, “I am proud of you, you are beautiful, I am here for you, and . . . I love you.”

“Love is patient, love is kind.” Corinthians 13:4

During those first few days of camp, home-sickness played a part in Sara’s negative behavior. She often displayed a lack of interest in participation as well as an unwillingness to comply with what was asked of her.

Daily, her attitude tried my patience, but God never let me lose hope.  

And just when I least expected it, a co-counselor approached me to say that Sara requested a photo of herself on the zipline and wanted me to see it. Sara was a fearful girl but she felt riding the zipline would be a way she could prove herself. She told the counselor, “I want to go on the zipline so that Joy will be proud of me.”

Those words surprised me as I realized my encouragement had reached Sara’s heart and she desired to show me, in her own way, that I could truly be proud of her. A few days later, I received the first hug from Sara since her arrival.  “You remind me of my mother,” she said. “She always tells me that she loves me and she’s proud of me.”

The remaining days with Sara were much different and on the last day at the Fort she snuck a note in my bed that left me in tears of joy. “Thank you for teaching me how to be brave and for always saying I am beautiful and for telling me that you are proud of me. I love you Joy. You are the best camp counselor ever!”

Then, before she boarded the bus for her journey home, she ran to give me a final hug and say how much she was going to miss me. I didn’t know how the week would go down with Sara. I questioned my abilities and was often at my last straw with her.

As I watched the bus pull away, I was overcome with thanksgiving to God for the work He accomplished in my heart and in Sara’s.

The many challenges I faced during my time at The Fort helped me reach the goals I initially set for myself: to deepen my relationship with God, seek His direction for my life, and learn to be His hands and feet as I shared His love and spread the Gospel.

Glory to God because these goals were fulfilled and prayers were answered, especially in regards to the precious young people I met.

As we start this summer I would encourage you to consider how God might use you to serve, how you can be his hands and feet and deepen your relationship with Him! There are opportunites to serve with MCC's Youth Groups, with Vacation Bible School and more!

Our God gives the good gift of summer -- so full of color and light, music and memories, streets of dust, and lizards squirming out of the grasp of the sweaty hand of a small person. We search for clouds that might bring moisture and collect it in special buckets to quench our thirsty soil. 

Summer automatically brings change, doesn’t it? Children are out of school and long-planned vacations are suddenly an “x” on the next week of the calendar.  Even the cadence of the church rushes toward VBS, drops off, before slowly sliding toward school. Sometimes, things can slip out of focus.

Summer is still a time to savor Scripture. It is so good to sit at our Savior’s nail-scarred feet and hear His heart for us through His Word as He reveals more … more holiness, more love, more faithfulness, more forgiveness, more passion for His people.

And our Bible is so near! On our phones, on our computers, on our bookshelves, oh please let it be in our hearts and read from our hands as well.

Do you have a bible reading plan for this summer?  I would like to invite you to join us in the Gospel of John.  Why the Gospel of John? Because this is the one who describes himself as “the disciple whom Jesus loved.” John, who writes poetic word pictures, patiently piecing the Old Testament with the Incarnation in the new. John, who labored for his beloved Master in this endeavor so that his readers would know, would learn, and would believe that the Son of God did indeed come to this planet! John got to walk with Him! John heard from His very lips, he was there the dreadful night of the crucifixion, and was amazed at the resurrection. He would never be the same for all eternity, and he invites his readers to examine the evidence that they may join him.

There are two different studies for women this summer.

• Wednesday evenings, starting June 6th at 5:30 p.m. we will begin a 12-week study by Justin Buzzard. This is part of the Knowing the Bible Series edited by J. I. Packer. The cost is $10, but scholarships are available.
• If you are looking for a morning study, we will begin discussion on the Gospel of John on Monday, June 11th at 10 a.m. No cost, just bring your bible and read with us.  

Let’s see what the Lord will teach us this summer! We encourage you, as you savor the sunny days of summer with it's changing schedule and more relaxed pace, to stay in the Word and let it fall afresh on you!

^“But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.”  John 4:23-24

Contact Elizabeth Allan or visit MCC's Women's Ministry page to learn more about either of these studies!