Awana

Matthew 19:13-14  Then little children were brought to Him, that He should put His hands on them and pray. And the disciples rebuked them. But Jesus said, Allow the little children to come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of Heaven.

Mark 10:14  But when Jesus saw, He was much displeased and said to them, Allow the little children to come to Me and do not hinder them. For of such is the kingdom of God.

Luke 18:16  But Jesus called them and said, Allow the little children to come to Me, and forbid them not. For of such is the kingdom of God.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Awana is an international evangelical Christian nonprofit organization in child and youth discipleship. The headquarters is in Streamwood, Illinois, United States.

History

In 1941, the children's program at the North Side Gospel Center in Chicago laid the foundation for the principles of Awana.^[1] Lance Latham, North Side's senior pastor, collaborated with the church's youth director, Art Rorheim, to develop weekly clubs that they believed would appeal to all children. Rorheim served as the CoFounder/President Emeritus until he died on January 5th, 2018. ^[2]

Other churches became interested in the program and inquired about its availability. In 1950, Latham and Rorheim founded Awana as a parachurch organization.^[3] The name is derived from the first letters of "Approved Workmen Are Not Ashamed" as taken from 2 Timothy 2:15.^[3] In 2022, Awana claims to work with over 66,000 churches in 133 countries.^[4]

Programs

Awana offers resources and Bible-based training programs for children ages 2 to 18 in churches. ^[