Question up for discussion......Is the church.....

[mark]

..............is the general church today ( not picking on any religion, just churches in general ) reaching kids about the teachings of Jesus effectively thru youth pastors, VBS's, & other assorted activities......or not??

It's the time of the year for VBS's to be in full swing, so, is the church reaching kids & influencing them about the love of Jesus.......or.......have the VBS programs just become a playtime, free babysitter service or some other form of entertainment ??

I'll jump in with my thoughts soon. I wish to hear other's thoughts 1st.

Surely there must be some church members here somewhere.

Fire away. What do you think?? ...........see ya mark

[littlelee]

My first thought about this is no. Why? Because most of the VBS programs I've been involved with in the past few years may have been wonderful programs, but most of the children in attendance are children already in church, whether it's the host church or another one. The few kids coming that aren't consistent church goers seem to only be there for the playing. I can't think of one non-church going child that's ended up in church after attending VBS. Of course, a child is dependent on an adult getting them there but I for one would be willing to pick them up & bring them if they truly wanted to come back for actual church services.

This was just my first thoughts on the matter. With more thought, I may have more to say later, but right now I'm tired & just blurting out my first thoughts....lol.

[Foxy]

Absolutely not...
It is more of a babysitting service for most. What happened to the fire and brimstone preachings? Seems today that all church's are about what the congregation wants/ pays to hear.... not necessarily the true teachings. Not saying there should be yelling and scaring children, but lets not just teach what happens when you follow Jesus, but what happens when you don't.

At least to those that believe.

Churches these days are exactly why I no longer attend a church.

[chevy]

I agree with littlelee and Foxy on the VBS part. Except for the kids who attend church on a normal basis, VBS seems to be more of a child care than a teaching. That is not to say that the VBS programs don't try to teach about Jesus, it just won't sink into children who only go for the VBS and attend no other service.

[Bengals_Mama]

I say yes & no. Our church is definitely Hellfire & Brimstone, and if you ever listen to C103 (103.1 fm) on Sundays mornings @ 8:30 you would understand..haha I love our little old fashioned church, but when it comes to some stuff I hope they will loosen up a little bit. It's good for kids to hear the truth, and to preach the old way, but when it comes to Youth Nights & things for the kids we need to let them express themselves a bit more. You have to compromise when it comes to kids, especially teens. I know this, because I was an Atheist teen myself. Now I am teaching Bible School.. go figure! If I could do things my way, I would have the old fashioned Hellfire & Brimstone preaching with traditional music on regular services, but let the kids have their Contemporary/Rock Gospel on Youth Nights. Southern Gospel does not bless everyone, no more than the the Christian Rock blesses the older folks. It's a generational issue, and when our churches wake up & realize that we will all get along better. You would be surprised at how much kids really do want to be involved in the church, but they feel like they are not important. If you raise them up the right way, but let them express themselves in their own way, they will never forget it. Even if they get off of the straight & narrow way, (like myself) they will eventually return when they mature. Like our preacher Jerry Boling always says "You have to get them lost to get them saved." They will eventually get sick of the sex, drugs, & rock n roll. When they experience their first Holy Ghost blessing they will never find another "high" that can compare! My Mom used to take me to Bible School for a babysitter, and people still do that. The way I look at it is that might be that child's only chance to learn about Jesus. Make the most of it, and make it something they will enjoy, and never forget. Pray for me, this is my first year teaching by myself..lol I will have the Tweens!

[mark]

I say yes & no. Our church ." They will eventually get sick of the sex, drugs, & rock n roll.
I agree, I seldom listen to rock anymore ( except a work where I cannot pick up the Christian stations ) & I'm a avid radio listener.



My Mom used to take me to Bible School for a babysitter, and people still do that. The way I look at it is that might be that child's only chance to learn about Jesus. Make the most of it, and make it something they will enjoy, and never forget.

I agree. I use to run a Tuesday evening kids fun time program at church which lot's of parents used us a babysitter service. That's OK, at least we had fun playing games with them while they were there. We had smallprayer time, hopefully introducing some children as to what Christianity is all about. It's very popular when the time changes so I plan on resuming that weekly fun night soon after Labor Day weekend 2007.

..........bengals mama, I must admit, that's a great testimony.

I agree with you pretty much on your post. One thing the church I attend tries to do is..........please everyone ( if that's possible--Nada ) with singing hymns from all back grounds. It's tough because all cannot be pleased. I totally agree with you about the preaching.

I would like to see more emphasis placed on 2 basic topics:

1. Salvation.....what it takes to be saved and consequences for those who choose to ignore the obvious.

2. Unpopular topics such as .....divorce, stealing, alcoholism & related issues, tithing( ut,oh, that's one the pastors hate to tackle, ) abortion, coveting, dealing with gossips, death penalties etc.

OK, time to get off the soapbox....back to VBS.

I think more emphasis in recent years has been to "entertain" children with these wild & wacky bible school themes. I've had parents & church members mention to me in the past statements such as "Why all this hype?? I'd like to see a VBS get back to the basics, teaching about the Bible without all these expensive programs."

I tend to agree with them.
Keep them simple.

Anyone else have some thoughts?? ............see ya mark

[Storm]

Okay, I am going to try this again! I just tried to leave a reply to this post and for some odd reason I got disconnected from the site. Makes you think does it!!!

The question is not about the VBS programs or even if the kids are being reached. The question should be is the person/people that are teaching the kids annointed/gifted to teach in this ministry? You see if the person/people that are teaching the kids are not annointed/gifted to do so then it is basicly free daycare. I know this sounds like a harsh statement but, would you allow your child to be taught by someone that is not experienced on the subject? Look at it this way. Would you send your child to school to have someone teach them Biology if the teacher was only skilled in Physical Education? I know I would not do so.

The kids that attend Victory Christian Center are taught by annointed/gifted teachers. Our kids are taught about God the Almighty Father, Jesus (what He done for us and his Love for us), and the Holy Spirit. They are also taught that if you accept Jesus into your heart and confess with your mouth that Jesus is your Lord and Savior. That Jesus died on the cross 2000 years ago for our sins and rose again. That you will be saved! Since January (of 2007) we have had 10 children (from ages 5 to 14) to be saved and baptised! Praise God forever! Yes our kids are taught the positive side but they are also taught about negative side as well. The reality of satan and the consquence of bad choices. No, we are not all about Fire and Brimstone but we do get the point across.

I can not speak for the other churches in our area but, at Victory Christian Center we are reaching the youth! I would like to extend an invitation to everyone at bbs, their families, and friends to join us at Victroy Christian Center for our worship services. Our services are at 10:30 a. m. and 6:00 p.m. on Sundays. We have a Wednesday night service at 7:00 p.m as well. Everyone is welcome and we will not turn anyone away! Hope to see you there. If you have any question feel free to ask or for more information you can find VCC's web page at http://www.victorychristianmaysville.org!
God Bless You!

[Bengals_Mama]

I have been to several churches that just let anyone who is willing teach the children, and in most cases it's probably not the right thing to do. I agree with ya there. Whoever is teaching needs to be saved, baptized, and have read their Bible. On the other hand, I know teachers who lived a party lifestyle, and had sexual relations with minors.. so there's a downside to both. I can honestly say that all of the regular teachers, and the Bible School teachers at Hickory Ridge live the lifestyle they teach. Of course, no one is perfect, but I know them all very well. We have been blessed with a preacher who actually practices what he preaches, and in todays church world that is a rarity. Anyone who knows Jerry Boling (from Flemingsburg)knows he is definitaly walking the straight & narrow. He keeps the rest of us in line, so I hope we have many more years together!

I agree with you Mark, hopefully there's more people out there who agree with us, and will set examples for the youth!

Our Bible School is July 30-August 3rd. 6:30-9 pm, if anyone wants to come! Everyone is welcome, even the sinners & lost. Parents are welcome to come with their children, or to drop them off. That's the whole point of church, to introduce people to Jesus. If you don't like it, you don't have to come back, but at least try it.

Services are:
Sunday School (for all ages, even adults) 9:30 am
Traditional Sunday Morning Service: 10:30 am
Sunday Night: 6:30
Wednesday Night: 7pm
Brother Jerry on the radio (C103 103.1) 8:30 am Sunday Mornings.

www.hickoryridgechurch.com

[lauralee]

When I was elected bible school director of my church, We went door to door leaving door knockers on all the houses in our churches area. We were prepared for the usually numbers about 50. The day the doors opened there were a little over 100 children showed up. We also ran a bus service. It was amazing. We had several saved but the main thing was the word was given in love and I believe seeds were planted. Weither baby-sitting or not, be prepared with loving knowledeable teachers and plant the seeds. Keep it simple.

[littlelee]

We had several saved but the main thing was the word was given in love and I believe seeds were planted.

This is wonderful and also what's missing in most VBS programs anymore. I'm not at all sure when was the last VBS I attended that even gave children the opportunity to be saved if there ever was one. I can't remember one anyway. That is definitely what is missing in most VBS programs today. Teaching the truth is a wonderful thing, but if we don't give the "unchurched" children the opportunity to act on it, we, as the church, are not doing our job. I have been put in charge of putting together a Bible School for the church I attend and this is one thing I plan on making sure gets included because I think it's the most important part of having anyone in church at any service....give them the opportunity to respond to any call God's putting on their life at the moment.