Vacation Bible School for 2007
August 6th - 8th - "Sandals and Bibles for Sudan"
Vacation
Bible School (VBS) at Wiley Heights Covenant Church is a fantastic, fun-filled
experience for the children that attend, as the volunteers who direct
and teach the program make quite a production out of the week. In 2006,
the the theme for Vacation Bible School was a Knightly Bible School, In
2004, the theme about being a "secret agent" to discover God.
In 2003, we built a waterfall in the sanctuary – complete with flying
fish. to turn the entire church building into the Veggie Tales Adventures
of Jonah – complete with the experience of entering the belly of
the whale.
But VBS is more than transforming the church into another time and place. The program uses the fun and drama to invite people new to the community or new to the church, and to introduce them to the fun and chance to learn new things at Wiley Heights Covenant. Children come to experience the drama and invite their friends; together they learn who Jesus is and how to have a personal relationship with him. They learn how to share what they have learned and how to apply it in their everyday lives, both at home and at school.
VBS
is held from from 6:00 to 8:30 pm, because we find many of our volunteers
are working in the day and it is easier to staff the program in the evenings
and it is cooler for holding outdoor activities.
VBS is open to all children in the community from three years old through 6th grade. The children are divided into equal groups of mixed age children and the 6th graders help the preschoolers and serve as teaching assistants within the group.
We generally begin the evening with an opening session to introduce the teachers, make announcements and sing some great songs. Then it is time to divide into small groups and travel to the different activity stations – Stories, Crafts, Snacks, and Movie Theatre. We rotate every 20 minutes until all the groups have been to all the stations. Then it’s off to a group closing session with more great songs, prayer, announcements and the day’s memory verse.
Each
year we choose a special focus to raise money for. We have helped Brian
Arensen buy a new car for his missionary work in Africa. We helped one
of our youth raise money to travel to Haiti to work in an orphanage. And
we helped a new church in Wenatchee buy a sound system. Through this giving
the children see how God works through them to benefit others and how
we can assist various ministries across the ocean or in our own backyard.
VBS is directed each year by a representative of the Christian Education board and is staffed by adults and junior high school and high school youth of Wiley Heights Covenant Church.
If you’d like to find out more about Vacation Bible School at Wiley Heights Covenant, please call the church at 966-2383.
2004 VBS Report from Kelli Clasen