VBS Salvation Day

It seems really early to be talking about VBS but I've got been in VBS mode for a few months now. I thought I'd talk a little about Salvation day.

The good news is Lifeway gives us an outline for Salvation Day. The ABC's give us a great opportunity to share Christ by using Admit, Believe, and Confess. Please don't forget to involve scripture as you share your ABC's.

"If you haven't committed your life to Jesus, you are lost. You need to be saved. If you would like to give your heart to Jesus then come forward and make a profession of faith."

Many of us have heard an invitation similar to the one above. Let me translate what a child hears. "Wait, what does commit mean? Oh yeah, I got lost in Walmart last year. It was scary. Wait, I thought he said I was lost, what's this talk about being saved? My daddy saved me when I climbed up in the tree last year and couldn't get down. Give my heart to Jesus, do I need surgery? Why does Jesus need my heart? Oh cool, I get to move now! We've been sitting a long time! Profession, I'm too young to work. My dad is a doctor.......

What we are communicating is not necessarily what we mean to communicate. I'm going to talk about some ways to make the invitation at VBS a little more understandable.

First, of all, involve your pastor in salvation day. If you have children's church your kids probably rarely get to see your pastor. Pastors are also the "hero" of the church in a child's mind. This is a great opportunity for him to really connect with the kids. Having said that, your pastor may need children and salvation training before presenting the message of salvation.

Secondly, watch your language. Instead of the invitation given earlier, I could have said something like: "We just talked about the ABC's, Admit, Believe, and Confess. If you have never trusted Jesus to forgive you and help you every day, then you can make that choice today. We talked about how everyone has sinned, and that the penalty for sin is death. God sent his Son Jesus to die so that we wouldn't have to be punished for our sins, but we have to make a choice to accept the gift God gave. When we trust Jesus to forgive us for the things we do that displease him, we can be saved when we commit to live for Jesus for the rest of our lives. If you want to talk to someone about trusting Jesus, you can _______________ (whatever your plan is to talk to children individually).

Avoid situations where children feel pressured to come forward (or not to come forward). Commitment cards are great ways for kids to express a desire for talking to someone about the salvation. Each child who makes a decision deserves to be talked to one on one. In a group setting you will always have a more outgoing kid dominate while you have no idea what the other child is thinking.

A few years ago I was helping out at a sports camp here in Reno. On salvation day I was counseling two girls, one who really was interested in salvation, another who really wanted to be near Miss. Jenn. It was really hard to share with the girl who was interested. Make sure you have enough volunteers ready to talk to kids who want to make a decision!

I hope this helps you as you think about salvation day this summer.