‘Magnified!’: Churches prepare at State VBS Clinic

At this year’s State VBS Conference, about 200 people from 30 churches were equipped and encouraged as they get set to host summer Vacation Bible Schools at their churches. The conference was held on Saturday, April 5, at First Southern Baptist Church of Scottsdale.

So why did so many churches and teams attend the conference? Because VBS makes a difference.

“VBS is the number one outreach tool according to a Barna Group study,” said Kelcey Fry, state VBS director. “We see churches who intentionally go after children, and those churches have the fastest growth rates in the country.”

At the conference, there was a store offering VBS curriculum, materials and resources, and a lot of information and inspiration was offered in just a few hours.

All attendees started at an opening rally where a group of teens and young adults performed the moves from one of this year’s songs, a few teams participated in a game and then Fry opened the conference. He introduced Lifeway’s 2025 VBS theme, “Magnified!” which comes from Psalm 34:3: “Proclaim the Lord’s greatness with me; let us exalt His name together.”

From there, attendees went to one of 12 core classes with subjects focused on age groups, music, crafts, missions, recreation and even snacks. VBS directors could specifically learn how to recruit, advertise, manage and follow up on VBS. These core classes covered the “essential” parts of any VBS.

Then, attendees could choose two of nine breakout classes. Breakouts provided more of a strategic and specific approach to VBS. Topics included being a VBS helper, the why of VBS, teaching strategies, how to share the gospel, and working with kids with special needs.

The day ended with a closing rally, which featured another VBS song and some great raffle prizes.

Eddy Pearson, evangelism/discipleship facilitator for Arizona Mission Network, stressed the importance of VBS and children’s ministry in his own life.

“I was reached through children’s ministry,” he said. “I’m not from a Christian family, and the local church had great kids events and that’s how I had my first experience in church.”

The goal of the State VBS Conference “is to help train VBS leaders so they can better reach their community,” Fry said. He noted a Lifeway statistic that for every one adult who was trained at a VBS conference they saw one child get saved.

Fry encourages churches to attend the State VBS Conference because it “helps VBS teams learn new skills, how to teach, how to share the gospel, understand the curriculum and get ahead on their VBS prep.”

The best way for churches to be equipped for VBS is to attend the conference, Fry said, because aside from the training and encouragement, the Arizona Mission Network offers AZMN churches that register and attend $250 of free VBS materials at the conference store.

“$250 would pay for your full curriculum outright and also cover some extra fun stuff,” he said. “So your church could run a free VBS just for attending.”

Pearson is excited for how God is going to move through the summer VBS events across the state. He credits Fry and Barb Tingle, who organizes a smaller VBS conference in southern Arizona, for helping teams be equipped to host the most impactful VBS possible. The Arizona Mission Network also hosts two similar events for Spanish-speakers in Yuma and Phoenix.

Next year’s State VBS Conference will be held on April 11, 2026.

Tony Young, a freelance writer living in Phoenix, is executive pastor at Cityview Church in Phoenix.