Awanas
Posted: Thu Feb 28, 2013 5:25 pm
So.... My wife and I are trying to determine if we are too uptight or not and would like to take into account some other opinions to balance out (or justify) our concerns with awanas. Our kids went once last week and I attended also. There were lots of things that gave me a red flag. Our kids would like to go back, and we like that they have fun and are around other kids of christian influence.(some kids questionable influence). However....
1. They get bribed for bringing other kids to Awanas. They get bribed for memorizing scripture etc... lots of bribery.
2. I sat in on a sermon where the guy coaxed them into saying the "sinners prayer" and included "It's between you and God. It doesn't matter what your parents or anyone else has to say about it". First of all, any kid that wants a candy bar will say the sinners prayer. Second, I don't like the idea being planted in my kids' mind that it "doesn't matter what your parents think".
It seems like the "once saved always saved" doctrine leads people to try tricky or dirty tactics to just get them to say the words and "lock em in"
3. They pledge allegiance to the flag. Mixing God with Country doesn't sit right with me. I personally don't pledge allegiance to the flag because I feel it fringes on idolatry not to mention our country is not "one nation under God". They also pledge allegiance to the awana flag which just strikes me as stupid.
So, are we being too uptight or should we turn a blind eye so the kids can go have fun?
1. They get bribed for bringing other kids to Awanas. They get bribed for memorizing scripture etc... lots of bribery.
2. I sat in on a sermon where the guy coaxed them into saying the "sinners prayer" and included "It's between you and God. It doesn't matter what your parents or anyone else has to say about it". First of all, any kid that wants a candy bar will say the sinners prayer. Second, I don't like the idea being planted in my kids' mind that it "doesn't matter what your parents think".
It seems like the "once saved always saved" doctrine leads people to try tricky or dirty tactics to just get them to say the words and "lock em in"
3. They pledge allegiance to the flag. Mixing God with Country doesn't sit right with me. I personally don't pledge allegiance to the flag because I feel it fringes on idolatry not to mention our country is not "one nation under God". They also pledge allegiance to the awana flag which just strikes me as stupid.
So, are we being too uptight or should we turn a blind eye so the kids can go have fun?