Celebration of VBS – Psalm 23: The Lord Is My Shepherd

I really like Solomon’s prayer. Solomon could have asked God for anything, but he asked for wisdom. We know through time that Solomon became one of the wisest people on the face of the planet.

But wisdom — wisdom in knowing how to navigate life, and wisdom in knowing good from evil — that wisdom comes from God. God shows us that, and he gives us opportunities to learn wisdom through his word, through gathering together in church, and through fellowship. He grows that wisdom in us through his good word and through our interactions with others, and that’s a good thing.

This past week, we did everything we could to share bits of wisdom with the kids and adults who came for Vacation Bible School — wisdom of the Lord’s love for them, the Lord’s provision for them, and the Lord’s walking through life with them.

So today, instead of listening to me go on and on, I thought it would be a great day to celebrate and thank God for what he has done in our midst, because he truly moved among us this past week. I’ve invited our Bible School Director and Assistant Director to share the good news of VBS and what God has done with all of you.

Christina Yount, VBS Director

It’s always hard to put into words how amazing Bible School is. We plan and plan and plan for a whole year — we’re already getting ready for next year. You prepare, you pray, you ask for help, and then it happens, because God makes it happen the way he wants it to happen. We have ideas, and God just makes it work. We are forever grateful for that. What a wonderful week we had.

If you don’t already know — and hopefully you do — we learned Psalm 23 this week, verses 1 through 6 (there are only six verses in Psalm 23). It was outstanding. We decided not to buy a pre-packaged Bible School curriculum this year. Instead, we opened God’s Word, chose Psalm 23, and broke it down so we could teach it to the kids. This morning, we’re going to walk through it with you.

We thank everyone who prayed us through Bible School — prayer is amazing, and without it we are simply empty and void. We’re very thankful for those prayers as we came to know the Shepherd.

This is what we started with on Sunday. Let’s all say it together:

“The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters.”

Throughout the week we taught it fill-in-the-blank style, giving the kids hints and a few words to help them along. From this passage, we learned:

• We have a relationship with him — he isn’t just a shepherd, he is my shepherd, he is your
• He is our provider, and he faithfully supplies our needs.
• When we lie down in green pastures, we discover the rest that only Jesus can give.
• When he leads us beside still waters, he reminds us, refreshes us, and renews our lives.

On Monday night we moved into verse 3. Let’s read it together:

“He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.”

We talked about God’s healing and restoration, about God lovingly guiding us every day, and we discovered that our lives have purpose because we belong to him.

The next day we learned verse 4. As I was making the slides for this one, I made them really dark on purpose, because sometimes the valleys in life really are dark, and I wanted the kids to visualize standing between the mountains, down in that valley. Let’s read it together:

“Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.”

From this we learned that every person will face difficult seasons in life, but we are reminded that God’s presence gives us courage because he never leaves his children. Our Shepherd faithfully protects, guides, and comforts us — can I get an amen?

This was one of the most meaningful parts of the week for me: knowing that you never have to go through life alone. If you have Jesus, you have it all. I tell the kids all the time — if you don’t know what prayer to pray, just say the name “Jesus.” That alone can be the most powerful prayer you speak.

We also talked about heading back to school soon, and about praying for teachers, administrators, and classmates — being a light and shining Jesus everywhere you go.

As for the rod and the staff: the staff is what pulls you back in when you wander, keeping you in line. The rod clears the way — because going through a valley might knock something down, and God uses it to move obstacles out of your path. You never know what God is doing to prepare the way ahead of you. And we are thankful for that staff, which curves us back around whenever we decide to take our own way instead of God’s way.

Verse 5. Let’s read it together:

“You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.”

Through this verse we learned that God gives us hope when life is difficult. We talked about God’s blessing and his loving care for his people, and we were reminded that God doesn’t simply meet our needs — he blesses us abundantly, and for that we are ever grateful.

We closed out the week on Thursday with verse 6. Let’s say it together:

“Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”

That night we talked about the importance of following Jesus, of asking Jesus to be your Savior and Lord, and about the power of prayer in being able to dwell in the house of the Lord forever. We talked about what “forever” really means — how long is forever? It has no ending. I want everyone in this room to live with us forever and dwell in the house of the Lord, and to do that, you have to have a relationship with Jesus.

We celebrated God’s faithfulness and his love for his children who follow Jesus every single day, and we ended the week with the greatest promise of all: through Jesus Christ, we have the hope of eternal life with our Shepherd.

One of the things that encouraged me most throughout the week wasn’t simply hearing everyone recite Scripture — it was watching them begin to understand it. If you have a relationship with Jesus, you can confidently say, “I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.” Seeing the kids answer questions and participate — even the adults and grandparents who came and stayed with the kids — was such a tremendous blessing.

None of this would have been possible without our volunteers, who came together to make it all work (more on that in the upcoming newsletter). Even if you weren’t at Bible School this week, we know you were praying us through it — that’s what our church does, and we are so grateful.

Each night, I taught the Bible lesson — opening God’s Word, showing the kids exactly where each passage came from, and having them come up and read the Scripture themselves, since none of it was made up. Meanwhile, Michelle set up five rooms downstairs in the fellowship hall where the kids actually got to experience each Scripture passage as we read it, bringing it to life. It was so much fun.

Shelby Harmon, Assistant Director

In my room, we approached it a little differently:

• Night 1: It’s easier to listen to God when he makes you lie down and be quiet.
• Night 2: When you lie down, be quiet, and listen to him, he will lead you down paths of righteousness.
• Night 3: He will guide you with his light through valleys of the shadow of death.
• Night 4: He will overflow your cup with joy, happiness, and goodness.
• Night 5: Your focus should always be on God first, and everything else in the world second.

I am so, so thankful for everyone who came and helped us. Jennifer and the ladies in the kitchen did an amazing job with the food. Dad, thank you for helping with the skit — you did an amazing job, and thank you to everyone else who helped with that too. Thank you, Christina. We had a wonderful year, and we can’t wait to do it again next year.

We also had bookmarks made with Psalm 23 printed on them — Patrick designed and printed them for us. I have plenty here if anyone wants one; come find me at my pew after the service. All the volunteers already have theirs, but I have extras for anyone else who would like one.

And here’s a hint for next year’s theme: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control — we’ll be studying the Fruits of the Spirit. We’re already excited, and the planning has begun.

To show just how many people helped make this week possible, I’d like to ask a few groups to stand — and please remain standing until we’ve gone through the whole list:

• If you helped design the decorations on the walls and in the rooms — please stand.
• If you led children between the different rooms — please stand. (True leaders!)
• If you fixed, prepared, or served the food, or gave a monetary donation toward the food — please stand.
• If you helped with the skit — please stand.
• If you welcomed people at the back door as they came in — please stand.
• If you served as a teacher — please stand.
• If you helped with games — please stand.
• If you prayed for this Bible School effort — please stand.

Look at how many people were engaged in this effort. I am so thankful for a church that is willing to go the extra mile for others.

Amen. Thank you to our Director and Assistant Director for all their hard work, and to everyone who participated. We are so thankful, and we thank God for what he has done in our midst.