Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these."   Matt. 19:14

             Odyssey in Outer Space - Games


    Game time is  a great way for the young people to have good clean fun while using up some energy.   We want VBS to be a fond memory for these children, so the Gospel is free to have it’s effect.  If the children feel that VBS is a place they enjoyed and felt loved and wanted, that will be one of the associations they make with the message of the Gospel that they are learning.
    The people in charge of our games have found different ideas in party and group game books, on the internet and from their own childhood memory banks.   Old standbys that all of us played as kids have often been the favorites.   When our game leaders have tried to get too creative, the children have not enjoyed it as much.   So often, our leaders have just tried to put a twinge of the theme into the old, tried and true games.   The youngest group often likes musical chairs and  “Duck, Duck, Goose” best of all, so the leader uses music to fit the theme and makes it “Cowboy, Cowboy, Outlaw” instead (or whatever fits the theme).   Our middle groups seem to like dodge ball; flag tag; “Steal the Bacon”; and “North, South, East and West”.   Our oldest group is outdoors and have enjoyed kickball, tug-of-war and flag tag.  All the groups seem to enjoy relay races and these are easy to fit to any theme. 
    We have found that teens make great game leaders for the younger groups. The children seem to enjoy having them as leaders and there can be a great connection.  Our K-1st grade group seems to do best with a woman or female leader, while the oldest group enjoys one of our young men as it’s leader.