Living and Powerful: The Blessed Success of a VBS

When your Vacation Bible School has a registration the size of a small nation, there’s only one thing to do: take them on a wilderness journey.

That’s what Village SDA Church did, with over 120 volunteers touring more than 300 kids through the Biblical Sinai desert to teach them about Jesus through the doctrine of the Sanctuary. Their largest VBS yet with their most ambitious theme yet, ‘VBS Sanctuary Quest’ determined to unveil the scriptures to the minds of 0–12-year-olds. Throughout the week, the children decoded the plan of salvation, using each article in the tabernacle to help them to see what Jesus was doing in and through them to get them to heaven. 

Each day began with prayer and lively songs, but this year there was a twist: young people were the ones teaching the church and community participants about the message of the sanctuary through daily skits. With the platform decorated with the scenery of a barren desert, each skit uncovered the message of a different piece of tabernacle furniture and the well-rehearsed young actors would bring to life the tales of wilderness wandering using simple, Bible-based language. It was clear that all the children watching were attentive and engaged too. The audience participated in quizzes comprised of tricky questions about the skits, and the kids called upon answered every question correctly. There was little surprise there; the performances were exciting, and one particular day addressing the sacrifice even featured a real-life lamb brought to the stage! Communicating the deep spiritual realities of the sanctuary through the prism of a child’s mentality, the bright and interactive dramatization made the word of God captivating, comprehensible, and come to life for even the youngest child. 

Following the skits, the children rotated around five different stations: the Special Feature, where a Levitical priest adorned in his garb talked and walked them through the sanctuary; the Bible story, where an Israelite woman relayed the story of the wilderness journey from the perspective of an Israelite mother; the Craft Station, where the daily lessons would be driven home by the creation of a tabernacle item (and all were excited to take home their hand-crafted lavers, box altars of incense, seven-branch candlesticks, and Arks of the Covenant, replete with the commandment tablets, Aaron’s budding rod, and the golden pot of manna); the Snack Station; and the Outdoor Activities. Everything was about reinforcement and even the outdoor games included a lesson about the children of Israel. One game, where the kids were instructed to gather as much ‘quail’ (brown crumpled up paper) as fast as they could, competing desperately to collect more than their peers, ended with a commentary on the selfishness of the Biblical nation and how they had been punished by God as a result of their greed! 

Of course, there was something for everyone. The Pre-K VBS was held in the fellowship hall for the 0-4 year olds, about 65 of them spending their evenings singing songs, learning about the walk around Mount Sinai and having the experience of touching manna. Parents and toddlers alike were enthused by the liveliness and excitement of the adapted Pre-K program!

In blessing others, all the volunteers were also blessed themselves. At the conclusion of the week, several of the teens expressed their desire to be baptized. Especially those involved as actors remarked how, in memorizing the words of God, they were bringing these concepts into their own hearts. “A lot of them were already things that I knew, but it was something about memorizing them that made me learn them all over again,” one actress commented. 

Everything was overseen by God, from the Registration Team building trust with parents and participants, to the volunteers who herded the children to the different stations and ensured timeliness among more than 40 group leaders. The connections built between children and volunteers, the meaningfulness behind everything that was done, and the ability to bond over a shared faith in Christ, were all demonstrative of the church body coming together to reach young people, those from church and from the wider community. 

The blessing of VBS lies not only in teaching kids intellectual truths but in appealing to their hearts to accept Jesus; the concluding Friday evening saw many participants both accept Him into their hearts and express a desire to be baptized. This was the truest success, that Christ’s redeeming love had been revealed through the sanctuary to the hearts of these children. One volunteer summed it up beautifully: “God put so much thought into the world when He made it, and every piece of furniture in the tabernacle demonstrates that thought.”

People often believe that the Sanctuary is too complex for children to understand, but one truth emerges from the spiritual success of Village SDA’s ‘VBS Sanctuary Quest’: The sanctuary is both understandable and enjoyable for kids when it’s broken down in simple ways. This is emblematic of the beauty of this doctrine. The fact is, the gospel is simple; and the ways we teach it should be too. 

If you are interested in accessing the ‘Sanctuary Quest VBS’ program materials for your local church, please email or contact the Village SDA Church office at villagesda.church@gmail.com.