Ministry Ideas | Rethinking VBS - The Weekly Kids Bible Club

Rather than hosting a traditional five-day Vacation Bible School, we launched a Kids Bible Club that took place once a week during our Sunday evening service time, from 4 to 6 p.m. This simple shift allowed us to spread out the effort, involve more people, and reach families in a more consistent and manageable way.

Why It Worked for Us

1. Longer Impact with Decorations and Themes
   Instead of decorating our church for just one week, we kept the decorations up for over a month. This helped extend the atmosphere of excitement and allowed new families visiting later in the summer to still catch the spirit of the program.

2. Structured Classes Despite Space Constraints
   Since we don’t currently have a full Sunday school program for kids, we normally offer a children's class during the preaching time. During the Kids Bible Club season, we divided the kids into three age groups—something we can’t usually do due to space. This allowed for more age-specific teaching and engagement.

3. Friendship & Fellowship Opportunities
   Many kids who came just for the Bible Club ended up forming friendships with church kids. It gave us a great platform to connect with new families, and some of them even began attending regularly.

4. Stronger Volunteer Involvement
   Shifting our evening service to focus on the Kids Bible Club helped bring in more volunteers and increased attendance from members who wouldn’t normally come on Sunday nights. It was a huge encouragement to see the whole church involved in children’s ministry.

5. Simple and Effective Format
   We used the Answers in Genesis Sunday school material, adapting one lesson per week. Each session included games, crafts & snacks, and a Bible lesson—three focused segments that kept the kids engaged and learning.

An Outreach You Can Build On

If you haven’t yet planned a summer outreach for children, consider trying this weekly Bible Club format. It allows for flexibility, repeat engagement with families, and long-term impact without the exhaustion of a packed week.

We saw great success last year and are praying for even more fruit this summer. I hope this idea will be as much of a blessing to your ministry as it has been to ours.

Let’s keep finding creative ways to reach the next generation for Christ!