For the past several months, I’ve become increasingly aware of what a privilege and blessing it is to own as many Bibles as I do. I have four paper Bibles, all in different translations. I bought my ESV travel Bible a few months ago specifically to take with me on the Race. I also have the YouVersion Bible App downloaded on my phone which gives me access to any English translation of the Bible as well as translations in over a thousand different languages. I am so blessed to have so many versions of God’s Word right at my fingertips.
Unfortunately, this isn’t a reality for many other people. In 2019, owning a Bible was illegal in 28 countries around the world. 24 other countries made the Bible difficult or dangerous to obtain. (Check out this article to learn more). Thankfully, countless Bible smuggling networks work around the clock to get Bibles to the underground church. You’d be surprised to learn how inexpensive it can be to help support these teams. Open Doors brings attention to countries on the World Watch List, which keeps track of the most dangerous places to be a Christian. They also have a program that distributes Bibles and discipleship materials to believers in the most dangerous places as well as a prayer app that keeps you updated about prayer requests from around the world. The Voice of the Martyrs (VOM) was founded by Richard and Sabina Wurmbrand after the couple faced over a decade of persecution and imprisonment in communist Romania. Today, VOM focuses on supporting Christians in the underground church by spreading awareness of their persecution, supporting them with much needed resources, and smuggling them Bibles.
Some people groups, however, face a completely different challenge when it comes to obtaining God’s Word. According to IllumiNations, 3,732 languages still don’t have a fully translated Bible. How heartbreaking is it to think that we have countless different English translations in our laps while hundreds of thousands of people don’t even have the ability to read God’s Word in a language they understand. IllumiNations’ 12 Verse Challenge Campaign is seeking to put an end to Bible poverty once and for all. Imagine a world where every single person had access to a Bible they could read and understand!
Since being on the World Race, God has been putting this on my heart a lot. My family has always had a Bible in the house, and I’ve totally taken it for granted my whole life. It wasn’t until recently that I actually took reading my Bible seriously. I can’t count the years where my Bibles just sat on the shelf, unopened for months at a time. There are people laying down their lives just to get a taste of Scripture; why isn’t God’s Word equally precious to us?
Please join me in praying for the Bible poverty across the globe. I’ll be lifting up those working to get God’s Word to everyone who needs it, specifically the three organizations I mentioned in this blog.
They are such an incredible organization! It’s so easy to take Scripture for granted in the Western church and following VOM’s stories has really helped me remember what a blessing it is.
So true! This is definitely a situation that needs lots of prayer!
Dang, this is so good. I’ve been following VOM for years and love their stories and reminders of how precious the Word of God is. Thanks for giving us this sweet perspective!
thank you so much for bringing awareness of the dire situation of many Christians in the world, the dangerousness of being a believer in so many countries, and the dearth of bibles in ALMOST 4,000 languages! mind boggling….AND God’s hand is NOT short that He cannot save Isa. 59:1