Daily Devotional

For anyone that has ever been in AWANA this verse should sound very familiar. This is AWANA’s theme verse and where it derives its name, which is an acronym for: Approved Workers Are Not Ashamed.

Growing up in the church, I was an AWANA kid, I’m not sure if I attended as early as Cubbies, which is for pre-kindergarten, but I know I was there for all of elementary school. Every wednesday night was AWANA night, which meant games, bible study, and scripture memorization. That last point is the foundation of AWANA, memorizing scripture, or hiding God’s word in our hearts.

Proverbs 22:6 says “Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.” This has been the mission of AWANA to train up children, and teach them scripture so that they will know it when they need it. I cannot think of a time in my life when I have needed that scripture to be in my heart ready to be recalled than right now. In a time of uncertainty, doubt, and division the only thing we should be leaning on is the Word of God. How are we to do that if we don’t know it!

It is incredible to me that in different situations God’s Spirit will call to mind different verses that I memorized and recited all those years ago, that now have so much more meaning than just lines to recite in order to earn AWANA shares. Without having God’s Word in our heart we will be blown and tossed around by the wind of whatever is going on in our world, but knowing those truths, not some cultural cliche version of them but the actual words, we can stand.

I encourage you to be in the Word of God, now more than ever so that you will be able to face the day with courage and peace knowing that God is with you and he will never leave you or forsake you. In these recent days when people have begun to grumble that the church is closed, I am reminded that the Church is not a building but it’s people and therefore it is NOT closed, it will NEVER be closed. Jesus said in Matthew 16:18, “And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.”

New King James Version (NKJV)
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.