Almost thou persuadest me to be a Baptist....

When I first signed Penny up for VBS (Vacation Bobble School, as they say at the southern Baptist churches), I imagined a nice little day camp where the kids sing songs, make crafts, and play games, all the while learning about the Bible. When I turned in her application, though, I learned that "little" wasn't quite the word to describe it. With over 500 children and another 175 volunteers, this was QUITE the production!
I volunteered to work with the 2-year-olds (since that's what I'd be doing anyway), which did wonders in getting Penny off the waiting list. That meant the three of us were ready and out the door by 8:45 every morning this week, cruising against traffic to VBS. The girls really liked it, and I'd definitely do it again... though probably not signing up to work with 2-year-olds. It was a lot of work, and from what the other volunteers were saying, not quite as much fun as doing the activities with the older kids. You know, the ones who can talk and don't cry or lose their shoes.
Penny started her morning in the sanctuary for the worship rally. When I visualize a sanctuary, I see an old stone chapel with someone kneeling in silent prayer. Or maybe a high-ceilinged cathedral with sounds of the choir echoing in the rafters. But I don't usually see a drum set off to the side, a roller coaster and Ferris wheel backdrop, and 500 children cheering and singing. It was a happy, delightful crowd. It just wasn't the tranquility I usually imagine in a "sanctuary."
The theme this year is "Facing fear, trusting God," with the title, "Colossal Coaster World." Penny learned the theme song, which she sings, "Costco Ohhhhhh." But she does all the right hand motions and everything, so it's close enough, right? Penny learned a lot of great songs, made friends with some of the other 4-year-olds in her class, and had a lot to tell us about the crafts they made and the stories she learned about Paul.
The 2-year-olds had little roller coaster cars made from cardboard boxes.

Riding the roller coaster

A couple of our lessons had the children pushing the cars along the tracks towards the Bible at the end, and stuff like that. Then the rest of the time they could just play with them. On the final day, our focus was on the story of Paul getting shipwrecked. I was supposed to teach a little lesson where they matched patterned boats one by one, taking turns. But I'd tried earlier in the week to have my eleven 2-year-olds take turns, and we scrapped that idea. Instead, I brought some large boxes, told the story of Paul's divine Aid, and then told them, "These are your boats!" It was a hit.

Naomi and her buddies eating their lunches

The kids did music time, craft time, and playground time, which really reduced the time we spent playing in our classroom to a manageable hour or so. The we had snack time and lunch time, which filled up the rest of our mornings. Wow, though. I'm glad I don't have eleven 2-year-olds every day!

It was fun working in a different church environment. Besides a week-long mission trip to Mexico in high school with the United Church, I haven't spent much time in churches beside my own. It was cool to see what was different and what was the same.

First of all, Mormons don't do VBS. Most wards have several children's activities throughout the year, but there's no week-long shindig. I think it would be fun, but it would probably add a lot of pressure to keep doing it year after year, and we already have a lot going on, though on regular but smaller scales. 

The volunteers had a little snack room where we could go on a break. It was awesome to be able to take a break and just leave my kids behind for a few minutes. I usually only get that kind of alone time when I take showers, but let's face it, not even then. They had quite a spread of cookies, muffins, bagels, pizza bites, and whatever else people had signed up to bring that day. One day there was this chili-lime popcorn that was AMAZING. I'll have to try and make it someday, because it was that good. It was surprising to see a big cooler of iced tea and a little sign saying "Coffee in the kitchen," since that's something we never see at Mormon shindigs. 

So we have timpani in the sanctuary and coffee in the break room, but the rest of it was the same as anywhere else, I guess. The biggest difference was the overall feel of it. They have ministers, pastors, and other staff who work at the church full time. Then they have 175 volunteers to do their bidding. At Mormon functions, you have volunteers, more volunteers, and then people who just show up. So you know who's in charge (usually), and you know what you're supposed to be doing (hopefully), but it's your church as much as it is their church, and it just as easily could have been you put in charge of the whole shebang. 

My girls love the "dancing monsters" welcoming them to VBS

The girls had fun, I had a good experience, and would we do it again? Absolutely. I even attended their Sunday service the day before it started, and I found it very inspiring and thought-provoking. It made me want to study my Bible a little bit more. (Paul escaping from the city in a basket? I'd completely forgotten about that story! Paul and the Roman soldier? I still don't know that one!!) It was fun to reach out and be a part of the bigger Christian community. I hope people aren't shy to reach out and see what our church is about. We know Paul, but we also know Ammon, Captain Moroni, Nephi, and Joseph Smith. 

So, to misquote Agrippa in response to Paul's testimony, "Almost thou persuadest me to be a Baptist." And next time we're in Virginia, we'll be back for VBS.