If you live in the South as I do, it’s easy to drive down the road and pass all the churches hosting VBS this summer. It can be overwhelming. And honestly, disheartening when you see so many other churches doing the same theme as you. We never want to be in competition with other churches, but you do want to be different. You want to give a reason for that unchurched family to choose your VBS.

This was a regular occurrence for me, especially when I was at my church in Alabama. I set the goal of if someone asked a VBS hopper (a family that attends every VBS in town), if they only attend one VBS, which they should attend? Then the answer would be mine. I don’t know if I ever got there, but I think I was close.

I learned the key is to have a few things regardless of theme or curriculum that makes your VBS special. These things can be repeated year after year with slight modifications. They simply take your event to the next level. There are a ton of things you can do. Some of which I’m sharing in my VBS book coming out next year. (I’ll share more in the coming months) Regardless, here are three more things you can do to take your VBS to the next level.

1. Picture Collage Countdowns

Kids love to see their faces up on the screen. So, every VBS I recruit a photographer to take great pictures. I share those on social media, but I don’t keep them all there.

Every night before VBS starts, I run a 5-minute countdown. These can be really fun. I love to get mine from Worship House Kids. To make them extra special, I take my pictures and create a countdown video with the VBS’s theme music behind.

In years past, I would get fancy with the transitions, and if you have time, go for it. But I’ve also learned a simple cross-dissolve works just as well.

As the pictures flash across the stage, the kids will stop what they’re doing and sit and watch, hoping to see themselves. This helps the crew leaders gather all their kids before the start, which also lowers the chaos of drop-off.

In addition, it builds excitement before the actual start. Many times, I’ll stand on stage in the last few seconds and start to count down from 10. As everyone excitedly joins in, they watch you and the screen and are ready for the opening.

Starting your VBS off with lot of joy and excitement motivates kids to come back again and again. Especially if they think they’ll see their face on the screen!

2. Swag Store

I always made my VBS free. But if I gave kids everything that came in the VBS starter kits my budget would be astronomical. As a compromise, I started a Swag Store. When CDs were a thing, I’d sell the VBS music, a few themed trinkets from the publishing company and sometimes a t-shirt.

These sold ok, but what got kids really excited was selling cheap noisemakers and glow sticks. You can get these in bulk from the Oriental Trading or Amazon and sell them for a dollar or less. The profits can be significant and offset the cost of providing all those items to the kids.

After a few get theirs, the network effect kicks. Meaning the kid who doesn’t have one, all of sudden does. Those 50 cent glow glasses become the hottest item at your VBS. Some crew leaders bought enough for their entire crew to have something. I usually gave them a discount because they were buying so many.

Within the week, kids are decked out in t-shirts, glow sticks, and noisemakers. It’s a little loud, but again they’re excited about coming night after night. If a glow stick gets a kid to come back on the night I present the Gospel, then it’s worth the time, money, and volunteers.

3. After Party

One of my biggest goals of VBS is to get families to come back to church the following Sunday. I’ve always looked at VBS as an outreach. I’d love to share the Gospel of Jesus with them. But I also want an opportunity to disciple them regularly.

But getting families to come back on a Sunday can be a challenge. Many of your kids already attend your church or another one in your area. They’re not looking for another church. But there are some that don’t have a home church. Throughout the week of VBS, these kids become familiar with your campus and your leaders. They’ve made friends with other kids in your church.

Now you need to do that with the parents too. That’s what the After-Party is for. I try to go all out for this party. Sometimes it’s one of the largest line-items in my budget. I get inflatables, offer free food, and involve the parents as much as possible. Many times, we cap off the Missions fundraiser at this party with the challenge reward. I done things like a dunk-tank or silly string the leaders. Everyone loves to watch this even if the parents don’t know the people.

I tried to put the After Party at several different times and haven’t found which one works best. I encourage you to try to see which works best for your area. The two best times I’ve tried are Sunday after service immediately following the event. You can incorporate the kids in the service to get parents to show up or invite them to see everything you do in kids.

The other time is the last night of VBS. I make it a family service and require parents to attend. We recap the whole week and challenge parents to participate in games and object lessons. There’s something special about watching a 40-year-old woman ride a mini tricycle around the room racing other middle-aged adults just to get a piece of candy… and bragging rights.

Afterwards we throw the party. I encourage my volunteers to focus on building relationships. I challenge them to meet the parents of their kids and tell at least one funny or meaningful story about their kid. This shows we care and opens the door to the parents coming back.

I’d love to say this guarantees a return on Sunday, unfortunately it doesn’t. But If I had 1 to 5 families come back on Sunday, I count that as a win.

I’ve talked a lot about building excitement and making connections throughout this post, but it’s all in service to one thing: sharing the Gospel of Jesus. If kids come once and don’t return, I won’t be able to tell them about Jesus. If they accept Jesus, and don’t come back on a Sunday then I can’t help disciple them.

Doing these three things takes time, money and volunteers, but it’s worth it to reach more for Jesus.

What do you do to take your VBS to the next level?