On the go with god!

HTLC VBS is a week-long experience for elementary aged children, and teen and adult volunteers. We meet in the evening, 5 to 7:30, because we heard from families that finding transportation for kids to get to VBS during the workday was a barrier to participation.

Vacation Bible School provides an opportunity for families to grow in faith and connect with church friends through the summer, a bridge between the Spring and Fall Church School. VBS is playful, fun, and engaging. 

Our theme for the week is, "The Lord your God is with you wherever you go." Joshua 1:9.

To begin each evening, we sing camp songs during opening, with skits to tell the story. Some songs we sing every year and know by heart. Some songs are new to the group this year, like "I Will Call Upon the Lord," a fun call and response song. Kids learn actions to the songs and there is dancing in the pews. 

As part of our evening programming, we serve a meal. We know finding time to feed kids between activities can be a challenge, so we are removing that hurdle by feeding all our VBS participants and volunteers a delicious and balanced meal as part of our schedule each evening. 

We use a rotation model for our VBS lessons. Each small group will rotate through Arts Crafts, Science, Mission, and Recreation rotations to learn about the theme verse and Bible Story for the day. Bible stories include Abraham and Sarah Follow God (Genesis 12:1-9) and On the Road with Paul (Acts 18:1-11). Science experiences included a bubble volcano, and in Arts and Crafts, kids made a thaumatrope! As a Mission project we will send travel postcards to the homebound. 

Volunteers are what make the week of VBS work. This and last summer we had a 1:1 ratio of teen and adult workers to kindergarten-fifth grade participants. This may seem like overkill, but it provides each child the opportunity to connect with an older member of the congregation. These volunteers lead rotations, shepherd small groups, help with the meal, decorate the buildin, lead music, run audio/visual, and much, much more. 

Vacation Bible School is a joy-filled week of growing in faith and community. A week of Holy chaos. Thank you for your prayers and support. 

Peace
Ellen Rothweiler
Minister for Learning