VBS 11

June 28, 2011

I got to help out with VBS last week :) I was in charge of preschool/kindergarten kids, and I had four co-teachers. The help was super needed. We had 18 pre-k kids and a total of 90+ kids at VBS! Definitely amazing and wonderful. It was such a joy serving with my fellow brothers and sisters at VBS. Their heart for the kids, dedication to the ministry, and love for each other and God was very encouraging and made the whole experience a fruitful and enjoyable one.

Three things really stuck out to me this year as I helped teach the pre-k kids: their honesty, the way they treat promises, and their love for their family.

The kids are pretty honest. When they don't like something, they make it known. When they're unhappy, they make it known. What really surprised me once was when I was talking to this one little girl, Ruei-chi, about Jesus and when I asked if she believed that Jesus died for her sins, she shook her head. I asked her why, and she promptly responded with 'because I've never seen him.' I was surprised by her honest response, but it reminds me that honesty is something God values. If/when we have our doubts and struggles with our own faith and walk with God, it's better to be honest and bring them before God. Of course, we shouldn't allow those doubts and struggles to draw us away from God, but I believe that being honest with God and ourselves about those things can actually help us to grow in our own walk. Had the little girl not been honest and just gone along with everything I said, I would've never known what it was she needed to hear and to believe. If we're not honest with God and ourselves, there is no way for us to even start getting the remedy we need to grow.

When I have the kids promise me something, they keep their promises. So many times when they were upset with something (like they missed their mommy or their siblings), I'd make a compromise with them, and ask them to promise me something, and they'd never fail to keep their end. On one of the days, one of the little boys, Timothy, was feeling sad because he missed his brother. He wouldn't come into the classroom and instead just wanted to sit on the chairs we had outside the classroom. I said I'd let him sit there since he said it'd make him feel better, but I said he had to promise to come in in 5 minutes. I showed him the clock, and showed him where the big hand (the minute hand) would point to in 5 minutes. I went back into the classroom, and a few minutes later, he promptly came into the classroom on his own and happily went to play with the rest of the kids. I feel that today, people who keep their promises/word are becoming more and more of a rarity. Even for myself, I know it is easy to say one thing and not do it, thinking other people wouldn't remember anyway. Seeing how the kids kept their word and their promises so well was a reminder for me that our words count. While we may sometimes forget our promises, other people will not, and whether or not we are true to our word will affect our witness to others. How can we expect others to believe or trust in our words when we give them no reason to? And so I am once again reminded to not only be careful with my words, but to be mindful of keeping my word and my promises and to not whimsically throw out promises to get to an end.

Pre-k kids seemed to be especially attached to their family this year. So many times throughout the week, we'd get kids randomly missing their moms or their brothers or their sisters. There was one little boy, Alden, who always seemed to start missing his brother right around lunch time. So I'd take him upstairs to where his older brother's VBS crew met, and allow him to give his older brother a hug. It was super cute and sweeet, especially when I saw how the older brother would respond with such love and tenderness to the younger brother. I hope they'll always be that close. Seeing how much value the pre-k kids put on their families and siblings reminds me of how precious our families are. God didn't just randomly pick a family for us to grow up in, but he placed us in each of our unique families for a special reason and we must remember to value and treasure them, because really, no one will ever be as unconditionally loving towards us as our family is. I'm super grateful for my family, and I thank God for placing me in this family specifically.

Anyway, below are a few pictures from this year's VBS :)

look at the cute backgroundd :D

sigh such cutiess :)

ohmygoshhh so many of us this year :)

Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it. (Proverbs 22:6)