Dear BPCWA worshipper, Tomorrow will be the start of another Holiday Bible Program (HBP). The aim of this pastoral is to help all – parents, grandparents, married, elderlies and singles alike, understand why we have this annual program and how to support and pray for it.

How it started. The idea for a vacation Bible school was mooted in 2015. The first Holiday Bible Program was conducted in July, after the family camp, for children aged 3 to 12. Over time, the age band was shifted upward. Today, our enrolments span children from Pre-Primary to Year 10, distributed over 3 classes. It now functions as a standalone event separate from the Sunday School ministry. Based on feedback from parents, the program was also moved to the summer holidays instead of the winter holidays.     

What are the key objectives of HBP?  Understanding why we have the HBP helps everyone in BPCWA to pray effectively. Most importantly, it helps parents see how important this program is for God’s church, not just your child. While bringing up godly seed is primarily the parents’ responsibility, HBP is the church’s targeted program to do our part in augmenting the building up of godly seed for the next generation. HBP has 3 key aims. 1) To set our children’s minds on spiritual things at the start of their holidays. HBP is a holiday Bible program, not a babysitting program. The Bible program conducted during the holidays allows our children to make good use of their holidays to learn God’s Word in a manner tailored for them. The hope is that they will be spiritually minded through the rest of the holidays. 2) With more families and children in church, HBP provides a means to help parents integrate their children into the church. The aim is to build up godly friendships within the church so they would not seek worldly friendships outside the church. With Sunday School classes limited to less than an hour on Sundays and the need to immediately disperse after that, HBP allows the children to spend more time together to learn and build rapport over the few hours that they would be together. 3) The most critical aim is to build up the future generations for God’s church. The programs are prayerfully chosen as we seek God’s wisdom and leading. God knows what these children need to be a future godly generation in His church.

Why should our children attend HBP? Because our children need to be godly generations for BPCWA. Parents must realise that what our children are will be what BPCWA will be like in the future. Godly seed must ultimately be for God’s kingdom. How serious you are about HBP shows them that you not only want them to be spiritually minded during the holidays, but that you want them to know how serious they must be to be a godly generation. If you are careless about a church program that they know is specifically for them, why would they be serious about their own walk, let alone their responsibility to God for the church as they grow up? The church will keep doing its part. But will you, especially when the key burden of bringing up godly seed lies on you? Every year they can attend must be precious to every parent. By the time the child reaches Year 10, the last year they are eligible for HBP, they would be close to adulthood and their own value system. By then, some may not have the same willingness to receive teaching and God’s truth as they did when they first started attending. It may be because the spiritual thirst is no longer there, having tasted more “interesting” things they can do during their holidays. Worse still, they may feel they know better, and there is no necessity to learn from the church. If so, is this child a godly seed? As we have often taught, when one does not feel like attending spiritual activities, spiritual activities are precisely what they need. For the rest of the church, if you love God’s kingdom and are seeking it first, this is where you can contribute to it significantly. Labour in praying in the background daily during HBP for these objectives to be met every year, while the people labour in the foreground. Remember Moses’ praying hands. Prayer is the spiritual power behind every one of the church’s physical programs.

Who else is HBP for? The focus of this program is primarily on the children in our church, not to reach out to those outside. More students mean more manpower is needed to support it. A while after its start, we opened this program to non-worshippers. We wanted this program to be useful in helping worshippers reach out to their children, grandchildren, or relatives by having the children join this program and perhaps eventually come to church. We also encouraged adults and children alike to invite children to this program. However, even with these latter invites, we were very mindful that the mix of attendees would not dilute the focus on teaching our children in church. Hence, in our bulletin announcements, we encouraged invitations only to friends who are unbelievers, Christians who are not currently attending a church, those considering changing to another church, or to children staying in the vicinity of our church who fit these criteria. Other than for the above, limiting attendees helps reduce distractions and better enables our children build bonds with each other over the 3 days of the program. 

What is taught? The heart of the program, as must be so for every church program, is a spiritual purpose. This is how parents must also view HBP when registrations for HBP are announced. We want to help parents bring up their children as godly seeds. With this goal in mind, I prayerfully determine the theme each year based upon the profile of our children and what they face or may face in the future. In fact, the choice of some of our themes may even make our program unattractive to an unbeliever receiving an invite. That is something I am willing to forgo because I feel strongly that HBP must first be for our children. It isn’t just a school holiday time filler if the child doesn’t have anything better to do.  Though we have crafts, the craft is but a prop. Many of the themes are intended to challenge the child at that point in their life to consider what they want to believe and be as they grow up. As the pastor, I get very personally involved and teach as well. Why? Because it is about building the next generation. We all have a duty for that in sending our children, and in praying earnestly for the program. HBP is not ‘just a children’s program’. It affects the church because we want our children to grow up to be committed Christians in God’s kingdom and not nonchalant pew warmers. And I cannot emphasise enough that a program by itself may not transform the child. But that’s why we must pray for the HBP. Will you even set apart time to fast and pray for the HBP children this week? Pray that the children attending each year will help BPCWA have godly adults when these young ones grow up. As a church, we have done what we feel is helpful for the children. I am thankful that some parents have understood and have adjusted their plans to ensure their children attend. We know that it is a spiritual battle against the world’s allurements, but prayerfully, every little bit will make some difference when parents endeavour to bring up their children to love God, His Word, and the church. 

“And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.” (2Ti 3:15)

Yours in our Lord’s service,
Pastor