ChristianWeek

A “desperate need for leaders” in churches across Canada has convinced Awana Canada to expand its focus from club ministry to an emphasis on training and equipping those who work with children and youth across the spectrum in churches.

“We’ve always looked at the immediate,” Awana Canada executive director Phil Whitehead says of the children’s club ministry. “Now we’re looking at investing in the future.”

“We want to be a servant of the local church,” he explains. “We’ve determined that one of the best ways is to come alongside the church and say, ‘how can we help?’”

Every fall Awana hosts conferences for its club leaders. This year the conferences will expand to include Sunday school teachers, youth workers and other club leaders. And that means partnering with other children’s ministries. This year, for the first time, Awana has a partnership with Child Evangelism Fellowship. As society and family life get more complicated, the need for committed, passionate, equipped leaders has never been greater. In the past, says Whitehead, “we’ve focused a lot on how to be an Awana leader; how to run an Awana club. One of the questions in my mind is how do we communicate with leaders the urgency of reaching children.”

Awana missionary John Froom, who with his wife Marion oversees the club ministry in southwestern Ontario, puts it this way: “Training is important to show them why they are Awana leaders, not just how to be Awana leaders.”

Scripture memorization and doing fun activities are key components of Awana, which has weekly club meetings for ages ranging from three and four to senior high school. That’s an important age range, says Froom. “Children,” he notes, “are the church’s most fruitful mission field.”

The bigger picture

And that’s why it’s important to look at the bigger picture, says Whitehood. “If you invest in that child, what could happen?” Working with other children and youth organizations will strengthen that investment, he believes. If another agency comes forward with a need, for example, “we can respond and say, ‘we can’t help, but let me put you in touch with someone who can.’”

Froom and the other area missionaries across the country see how investing in children really does make a difference. School teachers comment that students who were “swinging from the light fixtures” settle down, do better in school and are better disciplined after being part of an Awana club. One little girl, a member of the three- to four-year-old Cubbies, climbed up on her dad’s knee to recite her Bible verses. Her dad was convicted and accepted Christ.

Another girl trusted Christ at Awana and told her mom. Her mom didn’t know what she was talking about, so the girl explained the steps of salvation through her verses and led her mom to the Lord.