Meet Idda

Rethinking What It Means to Provide for Children

As a devoted parent and educator, Idda had long thought, along with other adults in her community, that they were doing all they could for their children by providing a solid academic education in their government schools. But when she learned about child discipleship through Awana, she came to the startling realization that academic preparation isn’t enough for kids.

As she put it, they had been “focusing on material things that we provide, ignoring what matters most: Salvation in Jesus Christ! Without knowledge of God, regardless of any position or status the child may achieve later in life, all will be in vain. Fear of God is the beginning of wisdom.”

While Idda and the parents around her had long thought of school as a stepping stone to university or to a good career, her perspective has changed. She recognizes that because school is where children show up to learn daily, it is the ripest field there is for harvesting, an ideal place for children’s ministry. And while, in places like the U.S., we wait and pray for when God’s workers can freely share the good news in schools, we rejoice that we can currently reach students in 15 African countries in a way that will change their lives forever.

How do we know lives are being changed? Idda testifies own child, once strong-willed and prone to trouble with authority, “has been completely transformed. He now takes opportunities during family devotions to share God’s Word!” This is the power of teaching children who they are in Christ. The kids we reach with the message of hope and identity today will become tomorrow’s leaders, transforming communities in every corner of the world for the better.