Sick, Sick, SICK! It was when I was a teacher that I got real sick. I called for a substitute. I had left lesson plans but I just knew no one could teach the children like I could, no one could encourage them to their best performance like I could, oh, how I hated to stay home and let the children down.

Well, you know what? When I returned it was almost like being greeted with,” Oh, have you been gone?” I was happy that things were fine and some of the children said they missed me, but you know the worst part. I realized I wasn’t as necessary as I thought I was.

When I volunteered for my first VBS mission trip. I thought of that lesson, “what will they (family, friends, job, organizations, etc.) do without me if I’m gone? I wonder how many people just don’t take that first step because of the exact same concern.

Ponder these reasons to participate in a Vacation Bible School overseas.

1. to experience different culture, different environment different food etc.

2. to concentrate on serving God without the distractions of cell phones, TV. radio

3. to avoid distraction of being close to home, taking care of shopping, paying bills, visiting friends, etc.

4. to participate in a God centered activity that has no benefit to me

5. to be part of an activity solely to benefit other people. To get outside of myself and be in a situation where it is not “all about me.”

“To get outside of myself and be in a situation where it is not “all about me.”

Being part of a VBS team is a wholly unique experience. However, it is not without cost, not just monetarily but also in terms of being absent from family relationships and absence from work or usual daily routines – your “comfort zone.”

I’ll deal with the cost factors at another time but the absence factor is something else. Who doesn’t have concerns when going away from family or work situations, concerns about how things will be done, and concerns that everything will continue as it is supposed to (health, financial, safety concerns).

You name it and I’ve probably worried about it myself.

When I ask people to join my VBS team I often get the response, “I’d really like to but this isn’t a good time. I’ll go next year. But you know, none of us can guarantee that next year will ever come.

“None of us can guarantee that next year will ever come.”

Commit to either do it now, or put it in your life plan (bucket list). Get all the crap, and excuses out of the way and concentrate on the real things you see as hindering your participation. List them. Then eliminate them one by one with full participation in VBS as the ultimate goal.

Next week: What a wonderful dream!