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In Europe, there are great cathedrals that once housed thousands of fervent Christ-worshippers every week. Some were even the sites of revivals and mighty works of God just a century or two ago.  Now, many are closed. One, in the Netherlands, is even used as a skate park.

Some have said that Christianity is always one generation away from extinction. These empty cathedrals are a stark reminder of that.

So, every generation of believers must take up the task of passing on their faith to the next generation, because no one is born a Christian. One of the ways that we do this is to train our children in knowing the Lord. We are charged to guide them in how to be His disciples.  

Scripture tells us to disciple our children throughout our days, not just by taking them to church once a week (Dt. 6:1-9). It also tells us that parents have a distinct and God-given role in nurturing faith in their children (Eph. 6:4, Col. 3:21, Ps. 78:4).

Now who doesn't hear this, and immediately feel the weight of it?!  None of us is perfect; and all of us could certainly learn in this area!

Here at MCC, we'd like to take this opportunity to share some encouragement and some ideas with one another.  Over the next few days, we will be posting blogs from several different families - each in different places in life - that discuss how they help encourage their children to be disciples of Christ.  

We're in this together. We want every family to be faithful in making disciples. Be assured that even through our shortcomings and our imperfect efforts, the Lord is glorified.

May you be encouraged, challenged, and helped, brothers and sisters.  I know that I will be!

With you for passing on the life-changing gospel in every home,

Pastor Frank

Andy, Levi, and Ajay have attended Mountain Christian Church with their parents for their entire lives (9 years, 6 years, and 5 years, respectively) and have been to about as many Vacation Bible School’s as there are candles on their birthday cakes! Here are their candid views about this year’s VBS.

Q: Guys, what was your favorite part of VBS this year?

Ajay (5): “I LOVED the singing.  It was really cool that all the kids and adults were worshiping God together.  And I liked the hand motions and dancing.”

Levi(6): “Face painting and games.” (Levi is a man of few words)

Andy(9): “I liked the market, because we actually got to use the economy.  I liked how everyone working in the market found a way to ask us about the future.  I also liked how you could see Brutus (the Roman centurion guarding Paul) changing, and reflect his change back on yourself.  Some people looked like they were not really interested or didn’t think it was cool, but I think they learned.  They’re still able to see the truth in themselves, that they need Jesus and that He changes them.  They might not say it out loud, but they know it in their hearts. I also liked the decorations. “ (Andy is a man of MANY words)

Q: What was one thing you learned this week at VBS?

Ajay: “God’s love sticks with us.  A lot of people don’t know that, so we have to teach them.”

Levi: “God’s love is a gift worth sharing.  I believe, and some people don’t.  So maybe they’ll believe if I talk to them.”

Andy: “Things were really hard for Christians in Rome when Paul lived. Paul was chained to his guard when he was under house arrest.  Paul was in Rome, but he wrote to the church, to believers, everywhere.  Paul was very talkative about Christ.  It seems like he would talk about Him any opportunity he got.”

Q: Would you recommend VBS to your friends?

Ajay: “Yes.  God is there and it’s really fun and it’s honoring and praising Him.”

Levi: “Yes, because God loves them and doesn’t want them to miss it!”

Andy: “Well…it depends on who I’m talking to.”

….Uh….What do you mean?

Andy: “Well, if they would be reckless, then I would first suggest a private school that would help them understand who God is and how they should act.”

…..Hmmm….er….uh….Well Andy, don’t you think that even a kid who has a hard time behaving well should be able to come and have fun praising and learning about God?  Don’t you think they need Him just as much as we do?  What if, because we are willing to extend grace to them, they become more willing to listen to the gospel that saves them?

Andy: “Well….I see your point (this was a small miracle, and I’m glad it’s recorded).  They should be with a group leader that can handle them and extend grace like you say.  That’s kind of hard.  But they do need to hear about Jesus.  And I think when they do, it starts to sink in, little by little.  I think kids who are having trouble believing in Jesus should come too.  VBS helps you understand more about who God is, make new friends, and maybe your family even learns more about Christ.”

VBS presented a lot of opportunities for us to encounter our sin and our Savior last week!  My kids were ministered to and challenged in so many ways.  It is easy, as a volunteer, to wonder if all we’ve done is exhaust ourselves and entertain the kids.  However, you can see how the truth came to bear on each one of my boys, often in different ways, last week.  While the kids may seem as though they’re just showing up for the fun and tolerating the teaching, the Holy Spirit uses our efforts to highlight our need for Jesus and His sufficiency to save us. 

Last week, the kids saw themselves in the lost centurion. They saw the joy in Paul and marveled at his transformation. They tasted the sweetness of worshiping with believers. They spoke as witnesses of Jesus to the Roman messenger, and were challenged to extend compassion to the senator.  They ran from soldiers as they headed toward the underground church, and found the fellowship and encouragement of fellow believers to be strengthening and life-giving. They were challenged to extend grace to one another. They talked with each other about how God’s love is a gift that changes us, never leaves us, and is worth sharing.

Each volunteer, each activity, every hour of work, was used by God for His eternal purposes in the hearts of precious children. I know of no other investment that returns such exponential gains.

If your kids attended VBS, ask them these questions!  If not, please consider joining us next year!

You know, VBS is complicated.

VBS takes months of planning, weeks of preparation, and days of setting up.  There are countless details to manage, donations to organize, songs to choreograph and memorize, costumes for each volunteer to sew, and multiple areas of the church to decorate.  Yet, year after year God provides for VBS in ways big and small. Somehow, we always have the right number of volunteers with just the right skills.

And God always brings the children!  From our church, other churches, and around the community, families bring their children to hear the word of God and have a load of fun!  When I heard that we had 146 kids registered this year, I confess that I feared it could be too crowded and too chaotic.  How in the world could we manage such a large number? My heart was convinced that God could pull it off, but my head wondered about the logistics of it all. There I was down in the details and God already had it all worked out!

“Praise be to the Lord God, the God of Israel, who alone does marvelous deeds.” – Psalm 72:18

Surrounded by precious children who are eager to listen to God’s word, bold in their singing and dancing, and fascinated by the Roman experience, I was swept away by their innocent need for love. To view the VBS experience from their eyes, when everything is fun and amazing!

The kids didn’t need perfectly organized activities that always went according to plan. They didn’t need perfectly hemmed costumes and the most elaborate decorations; they needed friends to laugh with, scripture-packed songs to sing, and VBS volunteers to shower them with a love that reflects God’s love made perfect by Jesus’ sacrifice. God already knew what they would need, he knew what I would need, and throughout this week he provided for all those needs and more!

You know, maybe VBS is simple after all.

The first words out of my 8 year old son’s mouth this morning were, “Mom, can we go to VBS right now? I LOVE it SO much!”  Did I mention that it was 6:30 am? I reminded him that it was actually still a little early. “Let’s eat breakfast and get dressed first.  We actually have a few hours before it starts,” I said.

You see, this is the first year my son has attended VBS.  And honestly, it’s been 30+ years since I last attended one.  While I grew up attending a Christian church and VBS, this has been the first year my family has been able to attend since settling into the East Mountain community.

And oh this VBS experience…it’s been such a fulfilling week!  As a first time volunteer here are the key takeaways I have witnessed so far:

• This week will make a significant impact on these children’s future. Memories will be made and believers will be strengthened or even created.  When you consider that 43% of Americans who commit to Christ do so before the age of 13 and 64% of born again Christians do so before their 18th birthday, you realize that MCC’s investment in VBS has a direct impact on children and our future.
• Volunteering for VBS has provided me with the opportunity to connect with others in the church. I have spent more time connecting with other Men and Women of Christ, building relationships and witnessing servant leadership this week than I have in years!
• Volunteering for VBS is good for the mind and body. Giving my time to these kids has been an incredibly rewarding experience and now that I’ve gotten a taste of it I want to do it even more.  The bible says that it is more blessed to give than to receive, and that principle is especially true as we volunteer for VBS.
• VBS impacts the community. MCC’s VBS has the opportunity to impact our community by setting an example of organized and safe fun for kids.  But much more than that, while we invite children to attend, the less visible impact is on families of these kids.  Some kids who attend VBS don’t belong to a church and this is an opportunity to expose these children and their families to the gospel. 

So, as I anticipate my son waking tomorrow with the same request, I am thankful for the members of MCC and ‘I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.” – 3 John 1:4

“But Capri is so far away! I will be separated from my family….”  The dilemma that Severus Liberius of Rome was faced with today during the VBS drama was a hard one indeed. To obey the Emperor and leave to build a villa on the island of Capri as chief architect, or stay with his family and the home he knows so well.  Today’s lesson of “God’s love is always with us” was definitely prominent throughout the kids morning.

As the Roman messenger who brought the message to poor Severus, I was able to ‘rome’ the room (my apologies for that overly used pun!) and talk to the shop owners and the children at various booths. Of course, being Roman, they were a little fearful to know what I’d do about Christians if I ever caught one. I was so excited to see so many of these children get it. As I went into one booth to inquire about this ‘Jesus whom the Christians worship as a God’, I was surprised by some of the responses. Some quickly shook their head, knowing that as a Roman, I might just throw them in prison! Some would tell me I could get a copy of the bible in a place called America (which, unfortunately for me, was all the way across the world). And some were quick to jump at the opportunity to witness to this Roman messenger. The best part, though, is that they didn’t just tell me about Jesus. They asked me deep and thought provoking questions about my Roman gods that I worshipped or what I thought would happen when I die. It was amazing to see the excitement and joy on their faces as they agreed with me when I made the point that Jesus died but that they knew there was more to the story- how he rose again so he could save us from our sins. 

Who doesn’t love enthusiasm when it comes to talking about our precious savior? If you’ve ever spent much time around a kid, you’ll quickly discover something they’re enthusiastic about – be it sports, school, fun activities, etc.  But when you get a room full of kids, full of energy and excitement, and they begin hearing about God’s love for them, it’s something else entirely. Some of these kids have already come from homes where they’re learning, daily, about Christ’s sacrifice and love for us. The ones who don’t come from that background still get to hear the same message and all of them soak it in like little sponges. As they traversed through the marketplace, they were excited to participate in the various activities to choose from: leatherworking, metal working, wood working, learning to write with ink and quill from the scribe, wreath making, and building fun projects with the Architect Severus. 

Each child was given a few coins to spend at their shops, which helped to limit so that everyone will get a chance to do each activity throughout the week. The beautiful part was when they spent their money on snacks to try to give to the Roman soldiers to show them love; or when they gave their coins freely to me, the messenger, to give to the Emperor himself. Or, perhaps the best one yet, when they wrote a note simply reading ‘God loves you and his grace is free’ and handed it to me to give back to the Emperor.

They were even enthusiastic to tell me that they were visiting Paul during his house arrest and to talk about Jesus. These little guys had no doubts in their mind about the greatness of their God, the one true God, and the amazing love He has for them. It brings to mind Matthew 21:16
"Do you hear what these children are saying?" they asked him. "Yes," replied Jesus, "have you never read, "'From the lips of children and infants you, Lord, have called forth your praise'?".

The affirmation and biblical truths these kids get to learn while at VBS is tremendous. Every seed planted, every word spoken, and every sight seen leaves an impression on these beautiful children. May we continually shine a light for Him that they may see so that theirs will grow stronger each day! I pray for the remaining days of VBS that the children will continue to learn and that we will continue to be blessed by their wonderful enthusiasm and their boldness for Christ- and maybe we’ll learn something from them about that, too!