Hey hey, Goliath...

So surreal to be back to Richland- in my first several summers working with MUMMs I went to Peg's house in Richland to prepare for VBS, and now here I am doing Bible school here. 

I've really enjoyed playing Two Truths and a Lie as an icebreaker during Bible time on the first day (Armor Up with Truth!) It can get pretty philosophical when you reflect on it (How can we tell what is true? Is it easy to know when someone is telling the truth? Is it always best to tell the truth? Should we always believe what we see on the internet?) I think I've used the same example two truths and a lie all summer, and I was super impressed with a girl here who answered as confidently as if she'd known me all her life. I asked her how she knew, and she explained very patiently- "You just look like someone who would play the ukulele." Goals. :-D 

We had great volunteers, but the science station was a standout. A retired principal dressed in cardboard armor as Goliath and let the kids shoot paper at him with slingshots. They won't forget that lesson anytime soon. 

As always, the preK group brought us lots of smiles. One girl raised her hand at three separate times on Tuesday night to tell me she hadn't been here before. The next day she came with a big smile- "I came here again!" Yes you did, little one. Keep on coming. I also had to stifle a giggle during the puppet time as I heard one girl very firmly correcting a little boy on my dragon friend's name:"It's SPARKY not SHARKY!" 

One of my favorite activities during Bible time was about making the best of a bad situation. Paul and Silas were unjustly thrown in jail, and they used their time to sing songs to God and witness to their jailer. This activity had kids use the power of the pen to turn the negative into something better- and we talked about how yes, you've always got the power of the pen. 

"Like, times a million."

 

Bonnie and I had a great week in New London. Around 26 kids came for their evening Bible school, a joint effort between the Presbyterians and the United Methodists, and 8-10 helpers made sure things went smoothly. These volunteers were fantastic- they had decorated a castle wall to go around the fellowship hall as well as snowflakes for the frozen side of Knights of North Castle. Our color-coordinated age groups were each guided by a fearless leader. I loved that the older group did not consider themselves "too cool for school"- we were able to have great conversations during Scripture time, and Bonnie reported that they were anxious to do whatever game they saw the younger kids playing during recreation time. :) Our younger groups had good discussion too, as we practiced locating the stories in the Bible. "I really love God," one boy announced, "I love God, like, times a million." I wonder if he would be willing to do some guest preaching somewhere- what more do you need than that? 

One of my favorite kid quotes from the week came at suppertime. This preschooler had decided he wanted just a hot dog and a drink. Coaxing him toward the fruits and veggies also on the table, I asked him how he was going to get his vitamins from just a hot dog, and didn't he want to get vitamins so he could grow big and strong? He considered this for just a moment, then went back to a song we'd been singing about David and Goliath. "That song says the bigger they are the harder they fall," he pointed out. How do you argue with that? Kids listen and pick up on things, even (especially?) when you think they don't. And often our most energetic young friends were the ones who were able to remember the details from the stories the best. Of course sometimes you can help yourself remember things, too- I got a big kick out of the older kids. When I was preparing them for the program on the last night, where I planned to have each class help teach us about one of the Bible stories, most of the kids in the older group voluntarily decided to take notes. Love it. 

These notes came in "hand"y during the program.

Often we stay with a host family when we're on the road like this, but given the odd year and Covid uncertainties, the churches offered to put us up in a hotel. They were incredibly generous and hospitable, and we were so grateful to work with them! It was so great to see so many community members come out for the program on the last night to hear our songs, be reminded of stories that point to God's love, and eat some ice cream!