[Miss TTU Runner-Up]

My daughter attended her first VBS this week at our church.  It took place in the mornings, but on Wednesday evening there was a family night, so people could see what the kids had been doing and learning about. Sitting there, watching my daughter sing upbeat songs about how God loves us and is on our side, I couldn't help comparing it to what I grew up with.

Songs:
We marched into the sanctuary to "Onward Christian Soldiers."  We sang a horrible song with lyrics that said' "One door and only one and yet its sides are two.  I'm on the inside, on which side are you?"
They sang positive songs about God's love and how He forgives us and is on our side. They also used modernized versions of, "Oh Happy Day" and "He's Got the Whole World in His Hands."

Offering:
Our offering went to a local "boys' home.  It was one of those awful places where unruly kids were sent to have God beaten into them.
Their offering is going to provide a similar VBS experience for kids in South Africa who come from abusive backgrounds.

Focus:
Our focus was always on evangelism.  Kids were told to bring their parents to the final evening where a "drag 'em down the aisle" sermon was preached.   I don't remember having an actual theme.  We did have some games and puppet shows.  We usually did a craft of some sort.  We memorized verses and won prizes for it.
Their theme was The Maker's Fun Factory.  Each day emphasized a simple truth like, "God made you," "God will always love you," and "God is for you."  Doctrinally, it was non-denominational.  The family night didn't include a sermon at all, just the kids singing the songs they were learning, a silly skit, and a brief explanation of what the kids did during the morning sessions.  A free dinner was served to everyone who came.

[leo the lamb]

Sounds pleasant and non-guilt-inducing. While I don't know that I could ever encourage kids to go to any Christian camp or what-have-you, it's nice to know that some of them are actually fun and positive.

[Dr. Jezebel]

This is refreshing. Thanks for sharing, Miss TTU.

[pastor's wife]

It sounds like one at an area church where I started sending my kids perhaps 10 years ago. At first, I was taken aback by the music (I was still in fundamentalism and I obeyed the music guidelines pretty strictly longer than movie-attending rules or clothing rules). The church gave the kids a free CD of the music they'd learned all week, and I was uncomfortable with some of the tracks because they were "too rocky." *shaking my head*

I grew to love that experience for my kids, and I love those CDs now.

[First Time Caller]

Years ago, churches often made up their own VBS programs. But VBS has become a big bu$ine$$ for Christian publishing companies in recent years. Because of that, most VBS curricula is designed to be more general in it's doctrine so that a variety of churches will buy it.  There are several major publishers but they are quite similar in their format. AIG's is a little more doctrinally specific than most of the others.  But I've found that just because a church uses a curriculum that seems "happier" doesn't mean that there isn't going to be a Parent Night where I'm going to hear a sermon about help before being handed a hot dog and expected to fellowship.

I'm glad you've found a good experience!!

[Miss TTU Runner-Up]

I think my old church used Regular Baptist Press for all of our stuff. Our current church is using a company called Group.

[pastor's wife]

That was us: our churches always used Regular Baptist Press. The new VBS we attended used Group. I liked it so much that when I was in charge of our church VBS (several years ago), I used the Group curriculum (although we just played the songs on the piano because certain members got all bent out of shape about the music).