GETTING STARTED at AWANA

Wednesday night was the hot dog supper and registration for this year's Awana program at our church. It never dawned on me to take my camera! DUH!! Proof positive, I guess, that it's been a long, hot summer around here!

Race and Hallie weren't all that interested in the registration part - though they very patiently waited while Gran filled out the cards and they ably spelled their names for the teacher as she wrote them on their tote bags.

They weren't even interested in the hot dog supper. Amazing! The same two children who were "starving" in the car, suddenly lost all thought of food when they saw the activity in the church gym! They both ended up eating their hot dogs in the car on the way home!

The giant inflatable slide and girlfriends from SS captured Hallie's attention and she was off for an evening of what she does best - socializing and squealing - and all at the rate of a mile a minute! Our little social butterfly!

For Race, it was the older boys playing football that held the promise of the most fun. He climbed the inflatable a couple of times but it couldn't compare to the joy of running back and forth with a bunch of 4th & 5th grade boys chasing the elusive football. By the end of the evening he didn't have a dry thread on him!

This is Race and Hallie's first year to go to Awana and I'm kicking myself for not taking them sooner. They are second graders this year so they will be in Sparks for this year only. Some of their fellow Sparks are in book two and three. Race and Hallie will have to start in book one. We're going to work doubly hard to catch up and I'm praying we'll have lots of fun doing it.

I'm particularly excited about Awana for them because of the strong emphasis on memorizing scripture. We'll work on their scripture for the week every afternoon while they are at my house after school. I already have this week's scripture posted on the fridge, in their playroom and in the car so it's visible for them anywhere they are. I've promised them I'll learn the verses with them.

I'm more than a little excited about this shared adventure with my precious grandchildren and here's why - I know, from EXPERIENCE, what memorizing scriptures can mean in their lives both now and in the future.

We didn't have Awana when I was their age. But we had GA's and RA's. I didn't earn Awana dollars to spend in the Awana store at the end of the year for memorizing scriptures like Race and Hallie will. Instead, I earned sash, and scepter and crown toward that coveted G.A. Queen status that was so appealing to me.

Did I passionately study and strive to learn one verse after another because I was so in love with God's Word? Sadly, NO. I did it because I wanted to dress up in an evening gown and have some one place a crown on my head. This year, Race and Hallie's motivation to memorize might be geared solely toward the badges for their vests and dollars for the store they will earn. Does that matter? I don't think so. Because the bottom line is this: the Word of God still gets buried deep within their hearts and minds just like it did mine.

Let me tell you what difference that has made in my life. When I was a young bride in a new city and a new state with a new husband and no home church, I drifted away from the church and my personal relationship with God. Do you know what the Holy Spirit used to bring me back to Him? The very scriptures I had committed to memory as a G.A.! They were hidden deep in the recesses of my rebellious spirit and He was able to bring them to the front of my mind and use them to awaken a renewed hunger for God in my heart.

I can't even begin to list the times the Holy Spirit has brought a scripture to mind when I've been tempted and used it to help me avoid the mistake of sin. I can't even begin to list the times the Holy Spirit has brought a scripture to mind to help me know the right decision to make or direction to take.

Thank You, Father, for the wonderful volunteers who work with Awana (and especially Sparks) at Hope Church. Because of them Race and Hallie have an opportunity to learn and internalize Your Word in a joyful way. Bless them, Lord.

Thank You for Race and Hallie and what Your Word will mean to their lives. I pray that it will always be a lamp that lights their path of life. I pray that Your Spirit will use it to keep them from sin. Thank You, Holy Father, for the eternal power of Your Word!