VBS Final Day: The odds-on favorite activity of the day was making
your way through the maze of vines that mysteriously grew in the main room
while the kids were having a snack.
Lauren set up eight chairs in two rows and strung yarn back and forth
between them. The kids then had the
chance, one at a time, to make their way through the maze of string as if they
were deep in a jungle crawling and stepping through a mass of wild vines. They each had their own style for conquering
the maze. One or two of the littlest
ones got stuck, completely wrapped up in the vines to the extent that all they
could do was lift their up arms and be rescued by an adult. Reminded
me of the way we sometimes get so twisted up in our circumstances that we can’t
go forward and we can’t go back either.
We are totally frustrated. That’s
when we need to follow the example of those little guys. Lift up our arms to Jesus and trust him to
get us through. One girl said, “I
saw ‘Night at the Museum.’ I know how to
do this.” She stepped high, then crawled
low, over and under until she made her way through. Walking
through difficult days in life is made a lot easier when you have read the
instruction manual (The Bible) or when you have someone you can look to for
help who has already been there. The
boys tended to go the crawling route, like soldiers making their way through a
battlefield, keeping their heads down the whole way, sure of themselves and their
techniques. Proper training gives you confidence in accomplishing any task you take
on. That’s what Christian discipleship
is all about. My favorite approach,
and by far the most practical, was made by a little girl who couldn’t have been
more than three years old. She stepped
high all right – high enough to find the nearest vine so she could stomp it
into the ground. If it was too high to
step on, she grabbed it and pulled it over her head. Made it through in record time and in the
grand scheme of things, prepared the path for the person behind her, though I’m
not sure that’s what she was thinking about at the time. There’s
an obvious application to that one as well.
Every move we make as believers has an impact on those around us -
family, friends, even those we don’t know.
Are we going to blaze a trail for them - make it easier for them? Or will we think only of ourselves and
getting through life as quickly and as easily as we can?
It’s amazing what you can get out of the
goofy games and activities at Vacation Bible School, isn’t it? Here’s one final shout-out to Lauren and her
team from Round Rock. These guys took a
VBS music CD, a list of Bible stories, and two little girls who had attended
another VBS in their area, and they put together a week of fun and learning for
the kids in Jamaica Beach. Thank you,
many times over, for following God in your life. May he honor your commitment
and bless you in the future.
Psalms 37:39 says, “The salvation of the righteous comes from the Lord; he is their
stronghold in time of trouble.
Father, thank you for VBS this year. And thank you for being there to rescue us
from those annoying vines that keep growing up around us. Amen.
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