I’m currently sitting alone in the church, soaking up the silence after a phenomenal night of ministry.

If you don’t know, VBS is my jam. I’ve been doing it for, well, what seems like forever. At least 15 years. Probably more but who’s counting?

I love VBS. It’s the highlight of my summer. My year, actually. I am in my element there. I get to teach kids (and honestly, teens and grown folks, too) about Jesus. We sing, dance, and act silly. We pray, learn and sometimes cry. It’s hard work but totally worth it.

And then, two years ago, Vance died five days before VBS. We had his funeral in a safari decorated church and for the first time in over a decade, our family missed a night of VBS.

This year I have struggled to find the passion and excitement that normally comes with this time of year. There are other reasons, like parenting and trying to get my classroom ready for the fall, but mostly, I think my heart has been associating VBS with death. With Vance being gone. And, that my friends has made things hard.

Tonight our Bible point was “Jesus’ power helps us do hard things.” Moving forward with VBS this year, and well, with life after loss, that was hard. Really hard. On the daily.

Hard.

But not impossible.

We’re here. We’re surviving. And after a VERY successful first night of VBS, where I got my groove back, I can say with certainty that in at least some areas, we are thriving.

To my RLC family of VBSers, you guys are the best. Thanks for working along side me in this. Thanks for leading. Thanks for your flexibility, your dedication and your love. I have no doubt that God uses weeks like this to shape us, to heal us, to break us so he can remake us more in his image.

VBS is my jam. Let’s dance!