SANTA ANA,
Calif. – Aware of the huge need for children’s Bibles, last fall Open Doors
delivered 3,252 copies in a city in Ethiopia – much to the joy of church
leaders, Sunday school teachers and the young recipients themselves.
The
precious cargo was sent to Jimma, the largest city in southwestern Ethiopia.
Dominated by Islam, Jimma is well known for its pressure on Christians. Before
the set date for the distribution, churches listed their needs and a contact
person went over the lists with them.
Then Open
Doors workers visited the town to facilitate the distribution at the churches.
Open Doors worker Asfaw described the day:
“It was
extremely touching to see the children’s excitement and to see the joy written
all over their faces when they received their Bibles. They awaited our arrival
in their church compound play fields. Upon our arrival, they rushed into the
rooms to receive a copy of the children’s Bible. There they sat patiently and
listened to our instructions on how to use the Bible. It was so impressive to
see their eagerness.
“They also
listened to the instructions from their teachers telling them to come forward in
a line to receive their own copies. Their little faces were shining after the
books were handed out. Some of them rushed through the pages to see what they
contained. When they found a story they had been taught in Sunday school, they
showed it to their friends or to their teachers. They also read stories to each
other while some were still collecting their copies.”
Delivering
Bibles where Christians suffered oppression was the first step Brother Andrew
took in starting the ministry of Open Doors in 1955. Today – 56 years later –
Bible delivery is still a vital part of our ministry, which remains focused on
supporting and strengthening persecuted
Christians
in the most restrictive and dangerous countries in the world. Last year Open
Doors delivered 3.5 million Bibles, study Bibles, children’s Bibles, Sunday
school materials, and other scriptural books and literature to persecuted
believers worldwide.
(For
more information on Open Doors, go to www.OpenDoorsUSA.org or call
888-5-BIBLE-5. You can also call Media Relation Director Jerry Dykstra at
616-915-4117 or email at jerryd@odusa.org.)
