Last Sunday evening I attended a Vacation Bible School Rally. About ten people were asked to bring memories, songs or Bible verses from their Bible School days. We sang out of VBS songbooks, including a round song. There was time for volunteers to bring memories or thoughts. Some encouraged the ones who would be attending this year to give it their all and to take the time to memorize the verses. There were many different experiences, from three days to two weeks of Bible School. Some attended in the mornings, some in the evenings. There were small groups or all the way to 400. Some remembered elaborate object lessons (called the ‘magic show’ by some Mexican students). One said it was her first encounter with Bible stories and it made a lasting difference in her life. We ended the evening by standing and singing I’ve Got Peace Like a River along with clapping to the beat.
The more people talked, the more memories came to my mind.
I loved Vacation Bible School. I attended every evening for two weeks in June from ages 5 to 16. Our little white church on the South Dakota prairie was fenced in by old rows of lilacs, and their blooming coincided with Bible School. The scent of lilacs and Bible school go together in my memory. The evenings were often hot, and there was no air conditioner at our church. The teachers dressed in full Sunday best, but not the students.
Some children from Huron stayed at our house during the two weeks of Bible School, since their parents couldn’t bring them every evening. So they lived at our house during that time and mom just added three more to her six. Mom insisted on quiet time after lunch so we could study our verses. Maybe she took a nap during that time. I remember her teaching Bible School, too. She taught five times during the eleven years I went to Bible School. One year, dad was superintendent, and he also taught the 9th and 10th class. I never heard mom or dad say, “Somebody has to do it.” I never got the impression they were making a big sacrifice. We all just loved Bible School. The garden was producing peas and strawberries at the same time. One year, my mom remembers weeds about a foot tall in her garden when Bible School was over.
The Bible School I attended started with a couple songs and devotions. Then we cut out a colored picture depicting the lesson we were studying and glued it (with rubber cement) into our book. The teacher would read the Bible Story and we would answer the questions or have discussion. And take some time to say the verses we had memorized.
Midway through class we had recess and snack. When I was younger we played Drop the Hankie and Flying Dutchman. Later we played softball out by the cemetery.
We always had an art project to work on after recess. A very popular medium was popsicle sticks. Or mod podge. Or plaster of paris. Usually a Bible verse was included somewhere on the piece of art.
And every evening there was a missionary story. Sometimes we went outside to sit on the grass while the teacher read the story.
Next came singing, my favorite part. We learned every song by memory, but they were mostly short, with catchy tunes and plenty of repeat phrases. Some songs I recall were All that I Have, G Double O D Good, Sermon in Shoes, I Want More of Jesus, Carry Away a Song, It’s Best to Obey. The song leader wrote the words on white pull-down shades, but we had to catch the tune by listening to him sing. I remember my Uncle Conrad, Floyd and Dalin leading songs.
We closed each evening by softly singing a prayer song. This is one I remember:
Lord, teach a little child to pray
And oh, accept my prayer;
Thou hearest every word I say
For thou art everywhere.
Teach me to do whate'er is right
And when I sin, forgive,
And make it still my chief delight
To love thee while I live.
At the end of the two weeks’ study, we gave a program for the parents of the students and anyone else who wanted to come. When the program was over, we all filed past the song leader to get our songbook and a ribbon book mark to put in our Bible. The songbook included all the names of the teachers and students and the words to the songs we had learned that year. The ribbon often had our theme verse printed on it.
About five community children were regulars in my class, besides the friends I went to church with. A few of them continued to attend our youth activities after they graduated from VBS.
Many things have changed since I went to Bible School. The little white church is gone and replaced with a brick church. The once empty cemetery has many graves now. The children that attended with me have scattered to the four winds. They still have Bible School there, but don’t go a full two weeks. Now we take some protein for the children instead of just kool aid and cookies for snack.
But yet, it’s still mostly the same. The students books with pictures to glue in are still the very same, of all things. The old stories still inspire. The same verses still need to be memorized by children. The Bible doesn’t change.
Vacation Bible School is a summer rite of childhood that stays with us in the best of ways. If you are teaching this summer, I wish you joy as you put other stuff on hold and give yourself to this enduring work. It may make all the difference to someone.
How do you feel about the effort of Bible School? Is it worth it? Do you enjoy teaching? What tips would you have for someone who has a desire to teach but doesn’t see a way to fit it in?
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One response to “Come Go Along to Bible School”
I also loved vacation Bible school. And I had forgotten about the missionary stories, those were my highlight!