You are priceless to God

Our church has just concluded Vacation Bible School or VBS. Our theme at Bethany this year was, "Treasured: Discovering that you're priceless to God." Children from our church and local community participated with around 50 children registered and 30 volunteers who served. We believe that this is a worthwhile endeavor as it is God's command the train up children in the way they should go so that when they are old, they will not depart from the faith (Proverbs 22:6). Our hope is that more people will turn to the faith once for all delivered to the saints (Jude 3).

Parents drop off their children and the return to pick them up at the closing of each session. We used to offer five sessions running Monday through Friday, but we found that a large percentage of people did not return for a Friday evening VBS, so we end on Thursday. Each night, there is a subtheme and a lesson that supports the overall theme for the week.

Monday night, the lesson was, "God knows you!" The animal mascot for this lesson was Poco the frog. The Bible verse the students learned was Psalm 139:1, "O Lord, you have examined my heart and know everything about me."

Tuesday's lesson was, "God comforts you!" The animal mascot was Wilder the monkey, but he was not the only animal who taught the children. There were a couple of service dogs who visited them. The students learned that emotional support animals can bring people comfort. The Bible verse was 2 Corinthians 1:4, "He comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any kind of affliction, through the comfort we ourselves receive from God."

On Wednesday, the children learned, "God forgives you!" Grace the Butterfly was the mascot. The Bible verse was Nehemiah 9:17, "But you are a God of forgiveness, gracious and merciful, slow to become angry, and rich in unfailing love." We have all made mistakes, and it is good to know that God will forgive us when we admit that we have sinned.

The final night, Thursday, the children learned, "God chooses you!" Raymond the alligator was the animal for the night. The Scripture was Isaiah 43:1, "I have called you by name, you are mine." We know that God is the creator of all things, but through a personal relationship with Jesus, we can have confidence that God chooses to save us and adopt us as his own sons and daughters.

Children attend VBS from many different churches, and some go to more than one church for VBS over the summer. This provides a break for the parents, and other than the cost of a t-shirt, is free of charge with refreshments, crafts, and prizes included. I think most parents want core values instilled in their children and they believe church is a good place to learn.

For the lessons learned in VBS to stick in the hearts and minds of the children, they must be taught at home. Children need parents to bring them to church with them to worship God. We as parents need to lead by example. Who knows, maybe the children will lead their parents to faith as a result of learning Bible lessons in VBS? Did you know you are priceless to God?