BaptistLIFE Online

Vacation Bible School (VBS) songwriter Jeff Slaughter jumped on the stage at The Church at Severn Run and taught the songs from LifeWay’s Saddle Ridge Ranch at a recent VBS training event.

By Shannon Baker, BCM/D National Correspondent

SEVERN, Md.—Dressed in a cowboy shirt and his characteristic high energy, Vacation Bible School (VBS) songwriter Jeff Slaughter jumped on the stage at The Church at Severn Run and began singing the songs from LifeWay’s Saddle Ridge Ranch.

Beginning with a vibrant “Yes to VBS” song, complete with hand motions, sounds of joy resounded through the packed auditorium on Feb. 27 as VBS directors, pastors and church volunteers all gathered to learn about the latest VBS offerings.

With the motto, “Need Answers? Ask God!” this year’s western-themed VBS was based out of a Coloradan dude ranch where kids will be “ridin’ the range and roundin’ up questions” like, “What is God’s plan for me?” and “How can I be like Jesus?”

The key verse is James 1:5, “Now if any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives to all generously and without criticizing, and it will be given to him.” (HCSB)

Throughout the day, VBS directors and others participated in breakout sessions that familiarized everyone with the Bible study, music, missions, crafts, and recreation for this year’s VBS.

The Severn, Md., church also presented the Saddle Ridge Ranch musical, complete with The Church at Severn Run’s 40-member children’s choir and Children’s Pastor Donnie Hatcher leading the drama.

It had been a great day of teaching and inspiration for over 300 volunteers and leaders from 63 churches who would soon be leading their own VBS events.

But for Jeff Slaughter, who has written the music for VBS the past 14 years and has performed in each of the music videos, it was also a day marked with sweet significance.

Because, in January, Slaughter felt he wasn’t in the place to dance and sing at the scheduled VBS rallies, like the one held at The Church at Severn Run.

Just a few weeks before, on Christmas Day, his mother passed away after a very difficult bout with pancreatic cancer. But as he pressed on, he heard God tell him, “Take off the garments of sadness and put on the garments of praise. Let Me be your strength today.”

In God’s strength, Slaughter soon figured out that the songs he was leading others to learn were songs that were actually leading him. Looking back, he now understands why this year’s songs are so meaningful to him.

Like the song, “God Cares.”

A few months earlier, providentially on the day Slaughter’s mom was having exploratory surgery, Tim Cox was editing the VBS music videos. The video editor felt moved to send Slaughter a text message with the words to the song’s chorus, which say, “I will cast my care upon the Lord, because He cares for me. I will trust in God no matter what because I know He will never stop caring for me.”

Cox shared, “You’ve got to know that the Lord gave you the words to this song. You gotta do what it says!”

Even before, Slaughter kept crying through the production of the video for “God Cares,” a ballad that reinforces that God sees, knows and cares about each person.

“I didn’t know why I was so weepy,” he related, noting that the music videos were filmed on C Lazy U Guest Ranch, a dude ranch where the Colorado River runs off the Continental Divide. The videos featured snowcapped mountains, lakes, and wide-open fields.
It was about this ethereal place that Slaughter’s mother made an unusual comment.

Two weeks before her death, in “one of the last sweet moments” that he shared with her, Slaughter and his mom watched the final Saddle Ridge Ranch music videos together.

“Who are all those beautiful girls around you worshipping and singing?” she asked, intensely watching the “God Cares” video. Slaughter was baffled, because he was alone—on a mountaintop—in the film.

And in another music video, “Like Jesus,” his mom asked where the producers got such a beautiful table of food.  Again, Slaughter was alone—in an open field—with no food.

It wasn’t until later that the Lord revealed to Slaughter that the beautiful girls that his mother saw were angels. And the beautiful table that she saw in the “Like Jesus” video?

“She was seeing My table,” the Lord told him. “The table of the Lamb. That is the place that you will finally, completely be like me.”

And then it dawned on him.

“That’s why you were crying…” Slaughter felt the Lord explain. “Your spirit was witness to what your mind didn’t yet understand.”

The song “Like Jesus” had even more significance for Slaughter. As he prayed for God to direct his writing, he felt God urging him to help children learn to be more like Him.

“For generations, My sons and daughters have offered to lay down their lives for me. Though many have to do so in other parts of this world, we’ve never had to give everything,” Slaughter related God’s words to him. “But I’ve felt the Lord say that this generation will.”

He added, “We don’t know what is coming. I’m not speaking gloom and doom, because nothing happens outside of God’s control. But I feel an urgency to impart these things to these kids—to teach them to be passionate followers of Christ.”

Early in his music career, Slaughter had followed God’s call “to train up [His] end-time warriors.” He didn’t want to write “babyish” songs for today’s kids. He wanted to write songs that would have deep meaning for them when they grew up—songs that would remind them to be “Like Jesus.”

Slaughter, who said that he writes music for a typical fifth or sixth grade boy (so that all the kids will get it), shared that “he was a different drummer growing up.”

Originally from Greenwood, Miss., Slaughter said his dad wanted him to be a “huntin’, fishin’, tobacco-spittin’ football player.” But Slaughter kept finding himself drawn to music.

His dad would have to yell at him to go outside and play.

“I would hit the piano – ‘bing’ – and then run out the door,” he laughed, sharing that as a teenager, he was overweight. He spoke with a lisp. He played the tuba in the band.

In fact, he hated going to VBS and church camps, because he got picked on all the time.

But one day, he read the words of Habakkuk 2:2-3, which encouraged him that the vision for his life was for “an appointed time,” and it would “surely come.”

He remembered thinking, “Oh Lord! That’s my life! That’s my testimony.”

And the vision indeed surely came, just like the song, “Who He Says” promises: “I am who the Great I Am says I am. I am one of His greatest creations. He says I am remarkably, wonderfully made.”

“I grew up and the Lord brought me back to VBS and camp and made it the sweetest blessing in my life,” he cheered.

For additional information about other VBS clinics being offered this spring, contact June Holland at (443) 463-3495, email jholland@bcmd.org or Donna Shiflett at (410) 290-5290 ext. 226, email dshiflett@bcmd.org, or visit online at www.bcmd.org.

By Diana Davis, author of Deacon Wives (B&H Publishing) and wife of Indiana Baptists’ Executive Director

Every year, children meet Jesus for the first time at Vacation Bible School (VBS). Imagine what could happen if every member invited an un-churched child to VBS. Need fresh ideas?

Form a creative publicity team to strategize and disseminate assignments to help every individual impact VBS attendance.

Single adults coordinate an outdoor registration event for the community. The church softball team delivers door hangers to homes within a mile of the church. Senior adults and homebound members pre-register members’ children by phone.

Middle schoolers prepare a VBS puppet show, performing in the local mall and church foyer. Young adult classes decorate hallways a week ahead of VBS to create anticipation. The praise team and choir hang posters strategically around town.

Teens plan a Celly Party, recruiting dozens of adults to join them for a sixty minute phone blitz. Callers use their own cell phone, a script and simple registration form to invite and register kids who visited church last year. When a child is registered the caller rings a bell and adds the name to a whiteboard. After a fast-paced hour, they pray for the children, enjoy snacks and celebrate.

Individuals help. A techie member designs an outdoor banner invitation. Garage salers share invitations as they shop. Sunday School teachers wear bandanas, and connect with VBS workers for prayer partners and follow-up visits. The women’s ministry rents an air dancing guy or a huge advertising balloon. A theatrical member wears a VBS mascot costume to visit Sunday School classes or events.

Provide yard sign invitations. Give everyone invitations. Create e-invitations they can email friends. A week before VBS, deacons give every worshipper a helium balloon invitation to deliver to a neighbor.

Cast a large vision for every church member to invite children to VBS.

©Diana Davis, author of Deacon Wives (B&H Publishing) and wife of Indiana Baptists’ executive director. www.keeponshining.com.

By Sharon Mager, BCM/D Correspondent

HAGERSTOWN, Md.—Thirteen-year-old Estefany Zambrano led a successful two-church bilingual VBS where eight children made confessions of faith and countless spiritual seeds were planted. Estefany is the daughter of Ender Zambrano, a church planter who started Iglesia Bautista Hispania de Hagerstown. Members partnered with their host church, Virginia Avenue Church, to minister to the 50 children who attended.

This is the second VBS the young leader has directed. Last year Estefany led VBS for Primera Iglesia Church and conducted it exclusively in Spanish. Over 40 kids attended and five made confessions of faith. She asked children to bring friends but many of those friends only spoke English. The young girl began envisioning the possibility of a bilingual VBS.

After the successful first VBS that Estefany planned, Aaron Miller, pastor of Virginia Avenue Church, asked her to be in charge of VBS this year. It was Estefany’s opportunity to direct the bilingual, bicultural VBS she had hoped for. She set meeting dates and the prospective leaders came together to make plans.

Estefany is soft spoken and articulate. Describing her duties, she said she recruited teachers and assistants, introduced them to the VBS curriculum, distributed material, planned the rotation schedule and helped decorate.

“It was a very good experience,” Aidsa Zambrano, Estafany’s mother said, referring to her daughter’s leadership and to the VBS program itself.

“A lot of kids speak very broken English, some don’t speak Spanish and it’s the same with the adults,” Lisa Molner, Virginia Avenue Church clerk said.  But the language difference was not a barrier. “The kids were interacting and the two cultures were interacting. It went off very well,” Molner said.

Church members worked together decorating the building to prepare for the week. They used LifeWay’s English version of the Boomerang Express curriculum and adapted it as needed. Take home papers for parents were available in both English and Spanish. As the week went on, many of the children, teen helpers and adults were picking up a little of each language.

“The smaller kids pick it up more informally by osmosis,” Molner said.

Throughout the week the kids worked together on crafts, sang, ate and heard Bible stories. Children and adults built and strengthened relationships.

The church sent invitations throughout the community for a block party as a festive end to the week’s events.

Estefany accepted Christ during an altar call when she was five-years-old.  She’s young but has worked in ministry through her young life, helping with Sunday school, and other ministries alongside her mother. She currently helps manage the church sound and video system

“I’m amazed how Estefany has given all her abilities and leadership in God’s hands and He is using her for His Kingdom,” Ender Zambrano said.

“I’m very proud of my children who are serving God in their young ages. My son, Gabriel, who is nine-years-old, enjoys giving away invitations to every Hispanic he encounters. He also requests prayers for his classmates so they can know Christ. And he loves to praise the Lord.

Something we try to do as a family is said in Joshua 24:15: “…but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”

By Sharon Mager, BCM/D Correspondent

COLUMBIA, Md.—Recently at Severn Run Church folks were using words like G’day mate, Aussie and Dingo. There were rumors of a kangaroo hopping around, though some whispered it was actually someone with a costume.Severn hosted a BCM/D annual regional VBS training expo. Visitors even got to watch Severn Run kids sing the music and do the motions for this year’s LifeWay VBS “Boomerang Express—It all comes back to Jesus,” set in the land down under—Australia.

Teachers become “outback guides” and students “kidaroos.” Their rotation sites include worship rally central, Bible study outback, music opera house, crafts crossing, missions harbor, recreation rock and G’Day café.

This year’s program follows the life of Peter, from his first encounter with Jesus, through his denying Christ, Jesus’ forgiveness of him and Peter then going into all the world to share the gospel.

“This is an especially good one,” June Holland, BCM/D’s children’s ministry missionary, said of  ‘Boomerang….’ “It’s set in a place most people will never go to and they get to say fun things like ‘G’day mate’ to each other.” Holland said the themes work together beautifully and having the music scenes filmed in Israel help drive home the salvation message.

The ABC song, which teaches kids how to admit they’re sinners, believe Jesus is God’s son and confess Him as their Lord and Savior, was filmed with Jerusalem in the background. Jeff Slaughter, LifeWay’s VBS music man, who writes the lyrics and music and performs them on video, sings the annual ballad in front of Jesus’ tomb.

“To shoot a video there with a song I wrote about salvation is so amazing,” Slaughter said in a previous interview by BaptistLIFE.

According to LifeWay’s website, “Vacation Bible School is the premiere outreach event of the year for many churches.” In addition to providing age appropriate ministry, VBS gives all church members a chance to be involved either in classes or helping. Teachers and assistants get valuable reusable training and opportunities for growth.

Holland said churches are learning from VBS. They’ve found that using a rotation system with kids moving from one area to another works best. Also, Holland said churches are growing and not just in numbers. They’re learning from year to year what to do to prepare for the next year. They’re getting wiser and planning earlier, networking with other churches and finding ways to promote and follow up.

She urges churches to come to the training sessions to prepare early. The conferences are held throughout the BCM/D area. They offer VBS workers hands-on training, tips and networking ideas for setting goals, establishing a VBS prayer ministry, all aspects of promoting, kick offs, administration, teaching and everything else VBS-related. Churches also get tried and true strategies for follow-up. And follow-up isn’t just about making phone calls and visits.

“Keep it going,” she encourages churches. “Have thrilling Tuesdays or wacky Wednesdays.

“Don’t let VBS end on Friday,” Holland said, reading from a LifeWay article of the same name.

Holland also urges churches to observe safety policies.

“Church is still looked at as a safe haven,” she said.

Holland said VBS is fun, easy and effective. People are saved and lives are forever changed. With “Boomerang Express…,” she said, “It does all comes back to Jesus.”

For more information about VBS, including safety information, see www.bcmd.org.