It was an amazing week at Vacation Bible School. It was so wonderful to have kids running around getting messy, wet and exhausted.  We had a total of 54 kids enrolled with 49 volunteers. What those numbers mean is that we could easily take care of 300 kids at Bible School. We were able to touch base with a few families who are looking for a church, and confirm to others that we love children and want to help them raise them for the kingdom.

VBS Trivia: As near as we can tell the last VBS Calvary Church did was back in 1997 or 1998. Nikki Paxton was a kid back then who attended and this year she was one of the VBS Crew!

I want to personally and publically thank all the volunteers. Many of those who came to make it a successful week have jobs. This means they would work eight or more hours in the day and then rush over to VBS and volunteer another five hours. Some of the VBS Crew worked 12 to 15 hour days, which amounts to around a 60 or 70-hour workweek! Now aren’t you glad you don’t have to do that every week? A special thank you goes out to Donna Paxton and Lucretia Ridings. They were our VBS directors who put all the pieces of the puzzle together. I believe God will (and has) richly blessed all because they “suffered the little children to go to Jesus.”

Overall VBS was a hit with kids and a win for Calvary Church! We will make a couple of adjustments for next year, but rest assured that Vacation Bible School is here to stay. If you didn’t make it out this year here’s what you do: stop kicking yourself because you missed such a fun week and then plan on being a part of a fantastically fruitful children’s week next year.

Grace & Peace,

I want to welcome aboard Ben Linnerud as our Summer Intern! His main focus will be working with the youth, but his duties will also include planning a couple of activities for the children. Yes, I’m pretty excited about working with Ben for the next several weeks. It will be good for son and dad to spend time together in this particular setting. It is a joy to be able to offer him his “first” job as a pastor, and it is an honor to sharpen iron together with him. Do your best to make him feel at home. If you need him for anything don’t hesitate to call (237-4870); he is here to serve you.

Vacation Bible School begins Monday! Beat the bushes and get as many kiddos as you can out to Calvary Church each night. Every night we will be offering a free snack supper at 5:30 with Bible school starting at 6:15. The kids will enjoy relevant Bible teaching, nail biting games, funtastic crafts, and scrumptious snacks. On Friday night we are going to have a family fun carnival! The kids will sing some of the songs they learned, parents will get to meet and mingle with the VBS CREW, and then we will play on the inflatable rides, eat popcorn and devour shaved ice! How awesome is that?! I can’t imagine a kid (or adult) that wouldn’t want to be a part of VBS week. However, due to space limitations we can only offer VBS to the kids, but everyone can come on Friday!

I am starting a new series this week on The Lazy Man from Proverbs 26:13-16. I want to challenge you to memorize those four verses by the end of the series. This will be a refreshingly short four-week series that I believe has the potential to transform our lives in a powerful way as we seek to obey Christ.

Grace & Peace,

What will we do to alleviate the physical suffering of those in need? What comfort are we willing to sacrifice to take care of somebody in dire straights? Imagine a widow who cannot afford a necessity while we enjoy the convenience of going to the MacDonald’s drive-thru because we want a Coke. In my opinion it is one thing to go through that fast food restaurant without knowing of a need, but it is quite another to know someone we claim to love is going through a financial crisis and do nothing about it.

We have these kinds of needs at Calvary Church. On Sunday morning I made us aware of a specific need. We now have the knowledge. What will we do about it? Remember, our generosity is not predicated on our ability, our generosity is predicated on God’s generosity in Christ and His ability to meet the need of those who are suffering. Listen to Paul on this:

…In a severe test of affliction, their abundance of joy and their extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part. For they gave according to their means, as I can testify, and beyond their means, of their own free will, begging us earnestly for the favor of taking part in the relief of the saints. (2 Corinthians 8:2-4)

On to something else…

This Sunday evening we will be hosting our Vacation Bible School Open House and Preregistration. It is not mandatory that all the kids coming to VBS preregister, but coming by and signing them up will be a huge help. The doors will open at 5:30 p.m., and I want to encourage you to bring your kids by and get them registered. And while you’re at it why not grab some of your neighborhood kids and get them here as well. If you would like to help out with teaching or assisting at VBS please let Lucretia Ridings or Donna Paxton know. June 25 – 29 is going to be a great week here at Calvary!

Grace & Peace,