Students Start Training for a Lifetime as VBS Kicks Off!
State College, PA – Holy Trinity’s Vacation Bible School (VBS) is up and running again and this year, that is especially true.
Since kids generally like to play sports and games, the theme for this year’s VBS is “Running the Race. Going the Distance.” The focus of the week is to help guide students in dealing with the choices they have to make every day–to point them in the direction of their eternal destiny. One of the best descriptions about our Christian walk is one that Paul wrote about running the race (1 Cor. 9:24-27).
As background to Paul’s reference to “running the race,” one of the most famous of the Greek athletic festivals–the Isthmian games–was held near Corinth. In ancient times they were held every other year and created a sense of brotherhood. Games like these were the greatest gatherings of people in the Greek culture. Wars were temporarily stopped in order to participate in the games.
Only pure-blooded Greeks who had done nothing to forfeit their citizenship were allowed to participate in the games. For ten months competitors trained and avoided things that might hurt their chances for victory. The prize was a pine wreath from a sacred grove nearby, and although the prize didn’t last very long, victory was also one of the greatest honors a Greek could receive. The victor was often welcomed home with the same honor as a victorious general, the wall of his town being thrown down that he might pass inside as a conqueror. His statue was often set up by his fellow citizens. Yet in time he was forgotten and his glory, like the twisted pine branch, faded away. Winning was everything and losers in the games received no mercy. “The Wreath or Death!” was the motto of the participants and in many events, the loser actually did die.
Characteristics of Good Athletes
Students today discussed what it takes to be a good athlete and those same characteristics also build good Christians including strength, confidence, self-discipline, and a desire to win.
FPO – For Parents Only
- VBS will conclude each day with fun activities at Holmes-Foster Park (unless it is raining).
- On Wednesday and Friday, VBS will begin immediately following Vespers, which begins at 5:00 p.m. Bring your kids early so that we worship together.
“Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.” – 1 Cor. 9:24-27
