Kids and parents today are so busy–there’s homework, piano lessons, soccer, ballet, baseball, swim team, youth group, Sunday school, church…and so much more! So why add Awana to all that busyness?
Here are some reasons:
1) Awana kids grow up to be Christ-centered adults.
Kids who just do sports, Sunday school, youth group and church will most likely be dropping out of following Christ when they reach college. The statistics are depressing–only 36% of young people who grew up in church (complete with Sunday School and youth group) will even be attending church as adults. But 93% of the kids who’ve been in Awana for at least 5 years will not just be showing up at church when they are adults–they will be serving in their church, witnessing for Christ, and studying the Bible.
2) Awana kids have access to college scholarships
Forty-two different colleges offer substantial scholarships to Awana students. What we often tell parents is, “Starting with T & T, every week when your child comes to Awana, they have just earned anywhere from $8 to $50 worth of college scholarships.” Sunday school and youth group cannot do this. And for a child to earn college scholarships from sports, they must be extraordinarily talented. But “Awana scholarships” can be earned by any student who is willing to faithfully study. Also, even “secular” colleges are impressed when they see high-level Awana awards listed on a student’s application.
3) Awana provides leadership training for kids
Once an Awana student reaches the Journey level (high school) and has demonstrated diligence and responsibility, he/she has the opportunity to become an Awana “LIT” (leader in training). This opportunity gives a wonderful chance for teens to take on real responsibility and to know that they are being used by God to genuinely help the younger children and make a difference in their lives. This is very different from the usual “let’s just have fun, fun, fun” mentality often found in church youth groups.
Awana also has programs for high school and college youth to be involved in missions outreaches overseas.
4) Awana develops a lifelong habit of personal Bible study
By the time a student has completed the Awana program, he will have read the entire Bible cover-to-cover and reported on every book of the Bible. He will have worked on memorizing hundreds of Bible verses. And he will have done all this on his own–working at home to prepare for Awana each week–thus developing the habit of studying God’s word for himself, rather than just hearing it talked about in church.
One of our Awana Journey girls came home from her first semester at a Christian college and said, “I couldn’t believe it! The only kids at the college who even knew how to find a book in the Bible without using the table of contents…were the Awana kids! And not only that, but they actually KNEW the Bible! The other kids don’t seem to know anything!”
5) What kids learn at Awana lasts for a lifetime
Our bodies age, our hair turns gray–we can no longer play basketball or do ballet. But what a child learns at Awana will be of value for the rest of his/her life–they have learned to love God and His word, and they have indeed become “Approved Workmen who Are Not Ashamed.”