What every kid lies in bed dreaming about when school ends for the summer; where every parent can’t wait to drop their kids off so they can go golfing or to the spa; what every college graduate volunteers at in their spare time. Ok, maybe it’s only the graduates who work nights and have no lives during the day. Regardless, I get to lead thirty sugar-ridden 4 – 10 year olds in singing songs about Moses and Miriam during the campus chapel’s VBS this week. We’re using time machines to talk to ancient Hebrews, taking nature walks, making clay baskets for Baby Moses – the whole sha-bang. And after the first two days, I am invigorated.

A Nature Walk

I honestly can’t explain it. I have always thought little kids were fun for the first ten minutes and then hellish demons for the rest of your time with them, but the past two days have proven me quite wrong. Maybe it’s because I haven’t gotten out of my room much the past few weeks, or maybe it was just the fumes from the clay baskets, but I actually gained energy through interacting with these little endless sources of enthusiasm.

It makes me think about how different churches might deal with the youngest demographic and what I might learn about this next year. Whether they are invited to “big church” or if they have a separate Sunday School; How many resources are devoted to educating them in spiritual matters, as compared to teens and adults. I am looking for this week to lay some sort of groundwork for the next year, in terms of my expectations. After all, kids are important, and their role in churches will be a big question in the upcoming year.

Clay Baskets for Baby Moses

I have only just started to understand the amount of thought and preparation it requires to figure out how one’s religious community will handle its children. They are mental sponges with the attention spans of rodents, meaning it takes a special person and a special program to give them the kind of spiritual nourishment they need in a way they can adequately receive it.

Maybe I will have some more concrete observations after this week, but for now let this be a shout-out to all of those who devote their time to working with kids in church (and out of church). You are the hardest workers and the most crucial to forming a healthy, loving and passionate next generation.