VBS - Voyage (day) Five

Well, that's it. VBS is over until next year. So sadful...

But, I know I had a fantastic time, and I'm sure that everyone else did too. My prayer is that the Christian kids, parents, and workers walked away from this week being closer to God, having learned more about Him; and that those that are not believers may question salvation and come to saving faith in Jesus Christ. Please be praying with me for these people.

Last night went absolutely fantastically! So many strange and funny things happened last night I'm not even sure I can remember them all.

While out with the 5-6 graders, we played touch ball, or something like that, basically ultimate football just with a round ball about the size of a volleyball or basketball. That was fun, but the really fun part was when we just gave the kids water balloons and let them have at it! A few minutes into it, after most everyone was wet, some of the kids thought it would be fun to gang up on me and soak me all at once. I wasn't planning on getting wet...but it sure felt good!!! I was so wet that I wasn't even completely dry three hours later when I got home. But it felt awesome! It wasn't as hot yesterday as it was Thursday, but pretty close.

When the 5-kind class came out, we let them run like mad for a little while then organized a game of switch bases. I still can't figure out what the difference is between switch bases and sharks and minnows. I think they're the same thing. That class and the 1-2 grade class are the hardest to control. They're all crazy maniacs after they've been sitting still for a while, but then you add water balloons to that...phew. YIKES.

Unfortunately, we had one accident. My friend...let's just call him Bob....got hit in the face with the football. Really hard too. Knocked his glasses off his face and left a huge red mark on his cheek. On the way home his one of the nose pieces of his glasses fell off. He's going to have to get completely new glasses today, I think. But, he was alright after a minute. Getting hit in the face with a football can't be fun.

Mom let Poppy and I ride home with Bob (that sounds really strange lol) because she had to take the little ones home to go to bed and we wanted to stay to help clean up. So, we cleaned up the church, probably close to record time too! And then we drove home. Thankfully, Bob felt like chatting the whole way so we had a ton of fun on the way back too just talking about random things.

But, now it's over.

We have our VBS review meeting after the church service tomorrow, but besides that we've gotta wait until next year. If I have the option, I think that next year I'd like to do the same thing I did this year - memory verse coordinator and game worker. For I really loved doing both of those jobs this year!

Thank you guys for your prayers! They were so very appreciated!

Please pray for Chelsea as she is going to be helping in her church's VBS soon!!!

And lastly, "Keep your eyes on the lighthouse, it will always guide you in!"

In Christ alone,
Buttercup

VBS - Voyage (day) Four

Hey Y'all!

Oh man, I'm just now getting my act together at...almost noon. haha.

Ok, well, last night went amazingly! It was SOOOO hot outside, and we had gnats like you would not believe, but God is good and we didn't have anyone get hurt or get too hot!!

Our poor skit team forgot their lines - like, all of them - but they pulled it back together and the show went on! If I wasn't around them a ton and didn't know how they usually acted, I probably wouldn't have really noticed - these guys on the skit team are doing a great job!

Oh gosh, we had a scare last night! While outside with the youngest group (5-kind) I counted the kids a few times to see if we had all of them. We were supposed to have thirteen, and I counted to twelve probably a dozen times. Finally, I ran inside and asked their leader exactly how many of them they were - 13. I asked if any had come into the bathroom - no. Oh man. Not good! I ran back outside and had the other leaders count too. Soon, their leader lined them all up to go to snack time, and I didn't hear any more of it. Apparently they either had 13 and I had missed one every time I counted, or one of the kids had taken their name tag home the previous night; but all turned out good. Still scary though!!!

Well, that's all I've got for last night. Tonight is our last night of VBS...and I've got mixed feelings. I LOVE VBS, but I'm exhausted! haha. Oh well.

Please be praying for us (workers, kids, parents, and guests from another church) today as we wrap up our 2011 Vacation Bible School. Thanks so much for your prayers! They are appreciated!

In Christ alone,

Buttercup

VBS - Voyage (day) Three

Howdy y'all!

Wow! I slept in until 9:30! I NEVER do that! Guess that tells you how exhausted I was. But compared to the leaders of the 5-kind class and the leaders of the 1-2 grade class, I was full of energy!

Last night went great!!! The skit was SO funny! And they got their point across with flying colors - we can't save ourselves, only through Jesus Christ can we be saved. Four of my best friends are in the skit, and man, they are doing a FANTASTIC job!!!

Outside, we did water balloons during game time! Oh, it felt SO good!!! We played a the game where you have two rows of kids facing each other about four feet apart, and they have to toss the water balloon to their partner without breaking it, take a step back, and do it again. The last team to still be going wins the game. Because we had an uneven number of kids, I (in all my wisdom) offered to be the last kid's partner. Let's just say, I was the one to get soaked from the knees down. The bottom few inches of my shorts, and my shoes and socks were soaked, but man did it feel great in that hot weather! My partner and I, I must say, did pretty good; I think we got probably 20 feet apart, still throwing a 5in diameter water balloon!

Again, your prayers are so very appreciated as we try to teach these kids this week and as we shine as lights for our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Thanks, y'all!

In Christ alone,

Buttercup

Vacation Bible School!

Hey guys!

I am SO excited! This week is my church's Vacation Bible School! I LOVE VBS!!!

I originally wanted to post every day about VBS like I did last year, but I have failed so far...so, I guess I'll just catch up in one post. :)

For VBS this year, we are doing a sailor theme. It's called Summer Seaquest, and it's from VBS Reachout Adventures. This being at least our fifth year of using this company, most of the workers know the basic setup, and this makes it SO much easier!

This year, I am the "Lighthouse Drill Commander", in other words, Memory Verse coordinator. At the end of every night, I quiz the kids in their age groups on that night's memory verse(s). Also, since that only takes up 5-10 minutes at the end, I am helping out of doors doing the games. And guys, it's hot! But praise God, both nights so far there has been a breeze, and it hasn't been quite as hot as we anticipated, and most important of all, we haven't had any heat injuries! Workers or kids! Water, water, water, and God's grace!

Oh! Also, we've got these awesome hats this year! They're little, white sailor caps, and I love them. :P All the workers (minus those adults that don't like them...) have hats, and all the kiddos will get hats on Friday right before we do our Super Summer Seaquest Sundae!

Ok, well, let's get on with this...

Saturday

On Saturday morning, some people from our church got together and put door hangers promoting our VBS on the doors of the houses and duplexes surrounding our church. Our church building it situated right in the middle of a large housing area, so from the church we can literally walk across the street and put up a door hanger. So, I'm not sure exactly how many door hangers we put up, but I'm nearly certain that it was around a thousand.

We were blessed on Saturday morning with high spirits and great weather, so even though we had less people than usual, we got out probably the same number of door hangers! It was awesome!

Sunday

On Sunday we had our All Workers Meeting, that's when we went over all the main and last minute stuff that every VBS worker needed to know. It went on great.

Monday

VBS started Monday night! Because our church is so small, to have enough workers to put it on, we have to wait until most of them get off of work, so our VBS is from 6:30-9:00. That means, that all of us workers have to be there from 6:00-9:30, so it's a long night! But SO worth it!

Monday night is usually the day with the most issues that must be resolved. But surprisingly, this Monday night went on very smoothly! We were all very, very thankful! Also on Monday night, because it is the first night, we have to register all the kids that do not normally come to our church. The kids that normally come to our church registered on Sunday after the service. But all in all, Monday night was awesome!

Tuesday

The second night of VBS went even more smoothly, praise God! We had two more kids than the night before, so that was a blessing! Lord willing, they will, and maybe more, all come tonight!

------------------

All of the workers did their jobs with flying colors! The group leaders and assistant group leaders (Captains and 1st Mates) did great with their kids. Although the leaders of the 5-kindergarten group are utterly exhausted by the end of night (four of them for 15 little kids that all have WAY too much energy!). The sound booth people did great with the sound (obviously lol) and the slides. The music group, especially since we have live music this year, did fantastic! I love the live music idea over just the VBS CD! The people in the kitchen making dinner for the workers and snack (later in the evening) for the kids are also doing an amazing job. The game workers are doing awesome. Our director is also doing great! I think that's everyone...but if not, EVERYONE has been doing an awesome job so far! All the workers are so committed to this!

Well, I have to leave in a hour for VBS tonight. Please be praying for all the workers, the kiddos that will be coming tonight, and the parents that are dropping their kids off. Thanks, y'all!

In Christ alone,

Buttercup

VBS - Days 4 and 5, garage sale fundraiser, and more!

Hey Y'all! Sorry I didn't post the other days of VBS but I was so tired! Those kids just wore all of us leaders out. But that's good. :) I think they learned a lot and had fun, I know I did!

VBS went well, we had an average of sixty kids per night, and the last night I think we had about a hundred and thirty people total at VBS! That includes kids, workers, and parents. The last night we did our "Super Spacey Sundae" and that was fun! But sticky! So, after the kids and parents and most of the workers left, some of us stayed to help get the church back to it's normal look, I got to help with that, and it was a blast! I can't wait till VBS next year!

________________

The garage sale fundraiser went okay, we raised over $300 dollars so that was good. :) Some friends from Co-op came over to help part of the day both Saturday and Friday, so it's not like we were alone the whole time. lol. We are hopefully going to do another one in September or so. So, please be praying that we can raise more money for the well next time. :)

________________

I figured out how to crochet around a hair rubber band! They are so cute! If anyone wants me to put a tutorial about it on here, let me know! :) They're super duper easy!

________________

Don't forget about my giveaway! I thought I made it fun, but I guess y'all don't think so. lol. Even if you just get my blog emails, you can enter! And don't forget to tell your friends! No one has entered for the "digital giveaway" part, but I don't really blame you, there are a lot of other bloggers who are a lot better at that than me! lol.

_______________

I am almost done with the July issue of Go Ye Therefore! So, just as a reminder, if you want to subscribe email me! (helpnm@embarqmail.com)

_______________

Well, I think that's all for now. If I think of something else I'll be sure to post! :D

Until then my blogger friends!

Buttercup

VBS - Day 3 and a garage sale fundraiser

Thank you all for your prayers! Last night went quite well! Praise God we had 59 kids last night! And a bunch of parents came a bit early and got to see the ending activities, which was great! Also, I think that our visitors from the other church really enjoyed being there, and got a lot out of it.

I am so tired, but I love VBS so much I wouldn't miss it! It's hard to believe though, that the week is almost over. We only have two days left. Two days... wow. It seems like forever but then again it seems like not long at all. When you think about it, life isn't really that long. It's goes by in the blink of an eye. Or, as Casting Crowns put it: "I am a flower quickly fading. Here today and gone tomorrow. A wave tossed in the ocean. A vapor in the wind..." Life is precious and we need to use the time we have to the best of our ability. And we need to use that time, that precious time, to proclaim HIS glory!

Please keep praying for VBS, I'm just going to copy and paste what I wrote yesterday:

The workers. That the kids would see Christ's light though our words and actions.

The kids. That they would understand what we are trying to teach them, and that they would come to know Christ as their Lord and Savior.

The parents. That when they pick up their kids that they would see Christ's light through us in the was we speak and act, and that they also would come to know Christ.

VBS as a whole. That it runs smoothly, and that we would be able to lead some kids (and maybe some adults too) to Christ.

Thank you so much!

________________________

This weekend we are having another garage sale fundraiser! The last time we did this was 2008, so we are super excited to be doing it yet again! To see those posts please click here or in my labels click on "Family Project".

Please be praying that we would be shining lights to those that come, and that we would raise enough money to build yet another well for those who desperately need the clean water that is right below their feet out of reach.

I'm not sure of the all the details yet, so you'll probably get those tomorrow. :) We are doing the garage sale on Friday and Saturday.

In Christ alone,

Buttercup

P.S. I'll probably be started the James Study up again soon. Sorry I dropped it.

Vacation Bible School - Day Two

Hi Everyone!

Thank you all for your prayers! Last night went pretty good. Besides a few minor things, that always have to pop up. lol. :) I wasn't so scared to go on stage, thank God! Of course, I was still pretty scared, but God helped me. I had "Philippians 4:13" (I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me) written on my hand, and thought of it often during the night. Guess what? We got more kids last night! Up from 59 on Stardate One, we had 62 on Stardate Two! I've never seen more kids at VBS! It was incredible!

Also, we are having some adult visitors from a Baptist church come to our VBS tonight to see how it's run, and how it works. Apparently, they are looking for a VBS curriculum to do at their church, and this one is one of their possibilities. So tonight will only be slightly different.

Well, since I posted a lot about VBS yesterday, I don't really have much to post today. But I would ask you to please keep our VBS in your prayers this whole week. Here are some prayer requests to add to the ones I posted yesterday...

• For the game workers, that they wouldn't get dehydrated and that they wouldn't get "eaten alive" if you get my meaning. There are *tons* of mosquitoes out at that time at night; and also behind the church we've got ants. I think they're fire ants...poor Jeremy got bit pretty bad last night.
• For the Capsule Commanders and Flight Attendants, that we would be able to get everything done during logbook time. The last two nights we haven't had enough time for everything that we needed to get done.
• For our visitors tonight, that they would see Christ through the workers and that we would set a good example.

Again please be praying for...

• The workers. That the kids would see Christ's light though our words and actions.
• The kids. That they would understand what we are trying to teach them, and that they would come to know Christ as their Lord and Savior.
• The parents. That when they pick up their kids that they would see Christ's light through us in the was we speak and act, and that they also would come to know Christ.
• VBS as a whole. That it runs smoothly, and that we would be able to lead some kids (and maybe some adults too) to Christ.

"What do I want to hear? Eyes up, heads down, fly straight!"*

In Christ alone,
Buttercup

*From our Vacation Bible School curriculum: Space Probe - from VBS Reachout Adventures.

Vacation Bible School - Day One

Hey Y'all, sorry I haven't posted in a whole week, but I've been pretty busy, and tired. lol. We had our first night of VBS at our church last night, and man, was it great! I love VBS! This is my third year to help, and Poppy's second. I think, now that I'm a teen, that I enjoy helping and teaching more than I do being one of the kids. haha.

Our church is doing Space Probe this year! This is our second time to do this theme, we did it four years ago. Space Probe is one of VBS Reachout Adventures' curriculum's, and it works great! One family in the church did the decorations, and it looks awesome! We've got this tunnel thing, and planets, stars, it's really spacey-looking!

But the most important activity of the night, above all the decorations and games and so forth, is the lessons. We are teaching the kids about Creation, the Fall, Cain and Abel, and the Flood. And thus, teaching them of God's plan for us, and the sending of His son to be our Ark of Salvation. I really hope the kids all understand, and that we can make an impact on their lives in such a way that they will not soon forget, and that they will be able to go home and tell their parents about what they learned about Christ. That is our pray for VBS, this year and every year.

Our church is pretty small, but we had a huge number of kids last night! It was incredible! Compared to our 38 kids on the first night of VBS last year, we had 59 last night! Going up by over twenty is huge! The sanctuary was quite full! And in the 1-2 grade group that I was in, we had 16 kids! It was awesome!

Besides being a "Flight Attendant" for the 1-2 grade group, I am also the photographer, which ended up not being so great because I couldn't leave my group to take pictures of the other groups, so I gave my camera to an adult in the church and let him take most of the pictures. :) Thanks! Also, I am in the skit. I am "Heartman" and I am the "good-guy". *YES!* I hate being the bad-guy. lol.

So anyways, we were about to go on stage last night I was just about to be sick. I promise you, I was scared to death! My poor friends were trying to make me feel more confident and they really helped, although I felt as if I was going to be sick, even once we got on stage...that wouldn't have been good...would it? lol. Thank you, "Shorty", for helping me!! I love you, girl! So, if y'all would pray that I would be more confident tonight, and that I don't freak again, that would be awesome! I just have to keep reminding myself of Philippians 4:13 - "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me."

And please be praying for...

• the workers. That the kids would see Christ's light through our words and actions.
• the kids. That they would understand what we are trying to teach them, and that they would accept Christ.
• the parents. That when they pick up their kids that they would see Christ's light through us in the way we speak and act, and that they also would come to know Christ.
• VBS as a whole. That it runs smoothly, and that we would be able to lead some kids (and maybe some adults too) to Christ.

In Christ alone,

Buttercup

P.S. I'll try to post every day this week, but don't count on it. lol.