Potomac Conference | Seventh-day Adventist Church

Family Takes Vacation Bible School Beyond the Walls

Story by Debra Anderson

Some might say Vacation Bible School (VBS) is synonymous with summertime, and this summer was no exception. William Ovalle, pastor of the Manassas (Va.) Central Spanish, the Manassas (Va.) Battlefield Spanish and the Centreville (Va.) Spanish churches, along with his wife, Tetiana, and their sons, Vitaly and Matthias, decided to take a step of faith and expand the concept of VBS.

The family organized a VBS event for their entire district, instead of hosting an event solely for their church members. It was the first VBS for the area since the pandemic hit in March 2020. William led the program, Tetiana organized the event and Vitaly and Matthias, along with other volunteer children, participated in song service.

August 9, 2021: The Power of Worry

“But my God shall supply all your needs according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus” (Phil. 4:19, KJV).

I find myself worrying about the future, like, “Will I get accepted into the college I want?” In my worries, this verse reminds me that “God supplies all my needs.” He knew our future even before we were born. He has a plan and purpose for everything.

In December 2019, I was diagnosed with scoliosis. I had been getting severe back pain since April of that year, but now things started to get real, and I was scared. The doctors ordered X-rays, and they looked dissatisfactory. Then they ordered an MRI to rule out brain tumors, since the X-rays and the curve numbers were unexplainable.

August 6, 2021: The Mountain That Moved

“He replied, ‘Because you have so little faith. Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, “Move from here to there,” and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you’” (Matt. 17:20, NIV).

Six years ago, when I was preparing to graduate with a master’s degree in Children and Family Ministry at Bethel University (Minn.), I noticed that graduation would be held on a Saturday—my Sabbath. I spoke to one of my classmates about whether the administration would ever consider switching it to a different day. My classmate doubted they’d change the day for just one person.

August 5, 2021: Blessings Upon Blessings

“The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. ... I will fear no evil; for You are with me; ... Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life” (Ps. 23:1, 4, 6, NKJV).

These verses mean a lot to me because I know God is always with me and looking out for me.

When one of our teachers resigned in August 2019, we all thought that the school was going to close. So we prayed and prayed, and then Mrs. Smith offered to come out of retirement to teach us. I feel God has really blessed me by having her as my teacher.

August 4, 2021: Speak Life

“In the beginning, God” (Gen. 1:1, ESV).

It was a rainy Monday morning. I stood in front of my seventh-grade class ready to teach Bible. My head cloudy, my heart in pieces from trials in my personal life, I struggled to hold back the tears.

“Good morning, class! Let’s pray! There will be no singing today for Bible class,” I said as quickly as I could. “We will go right into our lesson. It will be a review because you all know the creation story!” I allowed a student to pray because I knew the darkness I felt would cause me to cry.