Winter VBS

Yeah, you read that right

Tonight was the first night of our Winter Wake-Up VBS. I am totally stoked.

It’s not just that we are inching closer to my dream of permanent VBS.

It’s not just that so many people volunteered to make it happen

It’s not that it’s the first winter VBS in history (ok, so I am not sure about that…)

It’s that this was a huge step forward in the dream of church multiplication. Multiplication is not just an outcome. It is a set of practices, driven by a mindset where the staff does not lead or run programs, but rather encourages and provides support for church members to lead the ministries God has called them to. Multiplication is an outcome when a member leading a ministry equips another member to launch out with their own vision. You might end up with a huge “staff” of members running all kinds of ministries, using their gifts. If you didn’t know better, you’d think the Holy Spirit was behind it all.

We are working hard on being permission-giving with a bias to “yes.” We have had to overcome any sense of “turf,” staff working collaboratively with members in all areas to get stuff done. PJ, our children’s pastor is doing a great job being a hero-maker, giving away authority and knowledge to build people up in their ministries. So when Sarah Terry came to us with an idea for a short winter VBS, our response was, “Yes, please!”

And a whole crew jumped in. The usual suspects serving the meals, leading games, music, and crafts, telling the Bible story, running sound, providing security, registration.

I will never be able to thank them for not just doing a winter VBS, but for being fellow travellers on this journey of multiplying disciples, leaders, and churches.