We had asked all of you to pray that the church would be filled Sunday with parents. I am sad to report that we had no parents come. We managed to have a handful of adults, and about 35 children there. We went on with the program that we had planned. The children sang, they also recited the verses they had learned and explained the lessons that had been studied during the week. It is exciting to know that all of these children learned lots of Bible truth this week. We know God can use that as a foundation for their spiritual life.
We asked the kids to run home and get their parents. The answers we heard were sad. One little boy who is four years old said: "My dad is drunk and doesn't want to be bothered." Others told us their parents were working. One 8 year old informed us that he had been left at home alone for the weekend while his parents traveled out of town. Most of the parents were a few blocks away at the closing games of the big soccer tournament.
We did our best to encourage the kids. We praised them for their hard work and good learning. Each child received a small packet of school supplies. We recognized those who had excelled with a special certificate. Most stopped to give us a hug as they went on their way home. We felt successful when several came running back and said, "Does it all start again tomorrow at 2 o'clock?" They seem to have forgotten that school would be back in session for the year.
VBS Day Five: We Survived!
What a wonderful week we have had with the neighborhood children. Today our attendance was down just a little with about 30 kids present. The children were also a bit energetic today, so perhaps it was good that we didn't plan to continue on Saturday. We were happy to see that no television commercials were being filmed in the neighborhood!
It was a real blessing today to see the children review and explain the wordless book and the key points of the Gospel message. They did a wonderful job of memorizing a key verse everyday. They have taken home worksheets each day. We trust that this will be a good way to introduce the truths of Scripture into their homes. The kids wanted to learn something in English, so we taught them "Jesus Loves Me." It was neat to enter the church today and hear a group of children singing Jesus Loves Me in their broken English.
Sunday we will have our closing service. We have invited all the parents. Each child will receive a little package of school supplies. We will also present certificates to several of the best students. Pray that the parents will be interested enough to come see the program with their children.
It was a real blessing today to see the children review and explain the wordless book and the key points of the Gospel message. They did a wonderful job of memorizing a key verse everyday. They have taken home worksheets each day. We trust that this will be a good way to introduce the truths of Scripture into their homes. The kids wanted to learn something in English, so we taught them "Jesus Loves Me." It was neat to enter the church today and hear a group of children singing Jesus Loves Me in their broken English.
Sunday we will have our closing service. We have invited all the parents. Each child will receive a little package of school supplies. We will also present certificates to several of the best students. Pray that the parents will be interested enough to come see the program with their children.
VBS Day Four: Still Filming!
We arrived at church today to find that they were still there filming television commercials. The worst part is, they are beer commercials. Not exactly the environment we had dreamed of when planning our VBS! It is fun to arrive and see a group of children running and surrounding the car. They are really enjoying their two hours each day at the church.
Almost all of the children have memorized the daily verses. They are also quick to explain what each color in the "wordless book" represents. It is a blessing to picture these children explaining all of these Bible truths to their parents as they return home.
We had 37 children today. The bus came by to pick up kids for the swimming pool again. This time we only lost two! Tomorrow is our last day of Vacation Bible School. We'll miss seeing the kids everyday, but it will be nice to take a break on Saturday. Sunday we look forward to our closing service. We appreciate all of you that our praying.
Almost all of the children have memorized the daily verses. They are also quick to explain what each color in the "wordless book" represents. It is a blessing to picture these children explaining all of these Bible truths to their parents as they return home.
We had 37 children today. The bus came by to pick up kids for the swimming pool again. This time we only lost two! Tomorrow is our last day of Vacation Bible School. We'll miss seeing the kids everyday, but it will be nice to take a break on Saturday. Sunday we look forward to our closing service. We appreciate all of you that our praying.
VBS Day Three: Better be flexible
We had another great day today with the kids. We ended up with 36 children. We have learned to use every available space in our rented location. We found it easier to split the kids into two groups during part of the day to make teaching a little easier. Today when we arrived we noticed a huge tent, and lots of items being setup in the nearby park. We later discovered that a television commercial was being filmed on location. We wouldn't be able to use the park for our game time. We quickly reworked our schedule and went on with the program. We have learned that being missionaries does require flexibility! The children never realized anything had changed.
We are happy to see that the children are behaving better everyday and learning so much. We look forward to working with these kids in the days ahead as we try to reach them and their family with the good news of the Gospel. We have two more days of VBS to go! Keep us in your prayers.
We are happy to see that the children are behaving better everyday and learning so much. We look forward to working with these kids in the days ahead as we try to reach them and their family with the good news of the Gospel. We have two more days of VBS to go! Keep us in your prayers.
VBS Day Two: Beating the Competition
I was unable to update the BLOG last night because our power was off. Thanks for checking back to hear about our Vacation Bible School.
Yesterday we arrived to find a good group of children waiting at the door. We begin to distribute their name tags and welcome them into the building. Then our competition arrived. A teacher from the nearby school came in a bus and offered to take the neighborhood children to a swimming pool. We suddenly wondered if all the children were going to leave. The kids started chatting and deciding which was the better option. We were happy to see that only four kids left to go swimming. God then provided four new visitors and we had the exact same number of kids as day one. We felt like we had beat the competition for once.
The children are doing well at memorizing verses. They have also learned well the first two colors in the "wordless book." We're leaving shortly for another exciting day at the church. Keep up your prayers!
Yesterday we arrived to find a good group of children waiting at the door. We begin to distribute their name tags and welcome them into the building. Then our competition arrived. A teacher from the nearby school came in a bus and offered to take the neighborhood children to a swimming pool. We suddenly wondered if all the children were going to leave. The kids started chatting and deciding which was the better option. We were happy to see that only four kids left to go swimming. God then provided four new visitors and we had the exact same number of kids as day one. We felt like we had beat the competition for once.
The children are doing well at memorizing verses. They have also learned well the first two colors in the "wordless book." We're leaving shortly for another exciting day at the church. Keep up your prayers!
Vacation Bible School
Next week children will finish summer break and return to school. Most are bored at home and ready to be back in their normal routine. We knew this would be a good week to conduct VBS in our church. We began to announce and promote the week long event among the children. Today we arrived to find a dozen children waiting out front, some with their parents. The only problem was we had arrived early to finish decorating and setting up inside. We quickly went in and finished our work leaving Debbie outside to guard the door.
Within a few minutes 29 children had arrived and began to enjoy the afternoon. We had puppets, songs, and games based on the lesson. We also had an activity sheet for them to do. Most importantly we had a Bible lesson based on the "Wordless Book." The children all received a gospel bracelet after memorizing the first day's verse.
The only problem we had today was that we just didn't have enough time. We had more planned than our schedule allowed. We met afterwards and reworked our schedule for the rest of the week. I guess its better to have too much prepared than not enough. We also realize how important it is for us to locate a bigger meeting place. If our attendance grows much more it will be "standing room only!" That's a problem we are actually thankful for. Please be praying this week as we conduct Vacation Bible School. Also begin to pray that we can fill the church with parents for Sunday's closing program.
Within a few minutes 29 children had arrived and began to enjoy the afternoon. We had puppets, songs, and games based on the lesson. We also had an activity sheet for them to do. Most importantly we had a Bible lesson based on the "Wordless Book." The children all received a gospel bracelet after memorizing the first day's verse.
The only problem we had today was that we just didn't have enough time. We had more planned than our schedule allowed. We met afterwards and reworked our schedule for the rest of the week. I guess its better to have too much prepared than not enough. We also realize how important it is for us to locate a bigger meeting place. If our attendance grows much more it will be "standing room only!" That's a problem we are actually thankful for. Please be praying this week as we conduct Vacation Bible School. Also begin to pray that we can fill the church with parents for Sunday's closing program.
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