Yes to Va va va Bbbe SSS!

This week has been a doosy in my personal life, BUT it's the best week of the summer at our church! It is Vacation Bible School!! This is one of the most stressful, crazy, busy, LOUD, frustrating, time taking up rewarding weeks of the year. Oh how my heart swells in me to see little kids loving learning about Jesus. The questions they ask are always bigger than you expect and their smiles are as bright as the moon. This year we did a Rock Star theme- and it has been really awesome. At first I was really hesitant, but thankfully God is bigger than my scoffs and questioning mind.

Here are a few of my personal highlights so far: (I hope you smile wide and laugh hard at these like I did)

 Getting to dress up every night with one of my best friends has been SO FUN! Granted, I could never be a rockstar because I would have some terrible breakage from the amount of teasing of hair that has taken place in my bathroom each night. We plan our rockstar outfits and try and wrangle these kiddies to do some service projects for other people. My teacher voice or (insert choice word) voice has come up a few times, but other than that, it has been AWESOME driving the Tour Bus with Andrea! She is a TRUE true friend, who I have been blessed to share life with.





These sweet 5 and 6 year olds were the quietest class on Monday night. They truly loved making stained glass pieces for the Nursing Home guests. They made beautiful artwork, and learned that they are like this stained glass- when light shines in it, color radiates around, shining in at all angles. When we have Jesus in our hearts, he overflows into our lives and shines in at all angles to make life have color bounce around and over us. Melts my heart.


Other highlights include:
• Seeing these kids get EXCITED about coming to church- there was 105 KIDS at our church last night- don't tell me that doesn't give you chills, because I have them now just typing this. They were at a rock concert singing My Redeemer lives- on these sweet innocent lips- praising the same God I praise. My cup runeth over.
• Getting the kids to have a theme night- and not having to send home papers with them. I said wear crazy hair tomorrow and THEY DID! It was awesome. Last night was star night- and EVERY single kid came in with a star. Even the ones who hadn't been the night before- because their friends told them about it. They had so much excitement to show off their stars. I hope they know they have lit up my life this week.
• In class talking about "Leaning on God" when things don't go our way or we are hurting, I asked the older class if they knew what it was like to get picked on and some raised their hands and without missing a beat- a kid that could pass as Snoop Dogg's son said "somebody pick on me- they gon get tha taste slapped out they mouth", BAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAH!!! Did that really just happen?!? Every adult in the room was dying- and I had to keep a straight face and say- yes that is a great example of that sin word I was just talking about. Oh man, I couldnt help but laugh my head off after he left.
• Same kid, same night: We made salvation bracelets for them to have an easy way to share Jesus with their friends and strangers. Im going through all the colors and their answers for the colors are hiliarious. They have black red and white down pat. But blue, green and yellow, oh we gotta do some work on that part! As I am explaining yellow represents heaven, where we will get to go when we die if we have Jesus in our hearts, kid raises his hand and asks a beautiful question. "Someone told me the skreets is gold in heaven, dat true?" Be still my heart. Oh someone has been trying to teach this cute hoodrat :) about Jesus and he listened. I said "yes, and they told you right. the STREETS are gold in heaven. God made it very beautiful up there for us" Kid's reply "I can have the gold- like I can take it?" BAHAHAH. Well, the seed might have just not been planted all the way in the soil ;) I said "no baby, you cant take the gold. When we get to heaven all we are going to be worried about it worshipping God and singing to him"..quietly I hear him say to his buddy- "Imma still try and get dat gold."
• Talking to another class about the color beads- white wasnt clicking for this sweet loud bushy haired girl. I tried to teach them that Jesus makes our hearts pure again- and that is called purity. But in her ears, she heard puuuurty. Yes baby girl, Jesus makes us purty too.
• Same kid- next night: Recapping on the color beads, we get to blue (baptism, publicly proclaiming Jesus) and she raised her ever cautious hand and said "Miss Rachel, can you- can you tell me what happens when you get baptised...?" Did you hear that?!? I know there has to be a big ol bell in heaven- because when this happens, some angel has to go ring that thing and rejoice! How sweet to talk to these kids about baptism. And the cool part: they all said but baptising doesnt save you, having Jesus in your heart does. Again, remind me why I get to share this joy God?
• Having kids jump up and down to tell you the day after making salvation bracelets what the colors mean, and helping their friends when they lost the words, blessed. my. soul. God is at work. Even at a poorly decorated craft station table with a teacher who has to yell "Keep your hands to yourself in my class". 
• Seeing 20 OR MORE adults who don't go to our church- stick around and go to the adult class. Oh chills again. And the really cool part? The same Jesus who died for my white church- died for these precious African Americans from a neighborhood down the road that our youth invited to church. If that doesnt let you know God is real, I am so sorry friend, but you are missing out.
• Seeing kids ROCK out. With their songs, their hands, and I pray their hearts. It is truly special to watch music time- even the fast fun parts- these kids are dancing before the Lord, and I know he is well pleased.
• Finally, having a sweet kid in my class give me the biggest kid sized hug imaginable. Just because I loved on him and told him he was doing a great job. That. That is what it is about. Sharing Jesus with these sweet cheekies.

God had to really remind me of something as I was RUSHING around yesterday, trying to get ready in 5 minutes with the coolest hair and star painted on. It takes a lot of time to get into skinny jeans, but I am pretty sure I set the world record yesterday. I was so consumed with what I was going to wear- that I had forgotten to pray for these babies hearts- that God would send a flood over this VBS- and kids would hear the Word of God and want that inside of them. How selfish Rachel. It is not about you. Or the clothes I wear. Or the amount of hairspray I think I can use. Or the coolest rocker jewelry. Hold on, it isn't even about making sure they use up all their craft time to make these things for other people. It is COMPLETELY about giving these kids more than a week of fun, but the words to have an ETERNITY with Christ. Lord, forgive my ungrateful heart. Put in me the words to say that these kids need to hear to know you love them. 2 more nights of VBS- and I know God truly has rocked our world this week. I pray these kids do the same for God.