Book of Hope Marks Distribution Milestone
A ministry that distributes Scriptural storybooks for children will be hitting a milestone within the next week
An Assemblies of God ministry that distributes Scriptural storybooks for children will be hitting a milestone within the next week, 18 years after beginning the international venture to get the Word of God into the hands of children and youth around the world.
"The 300 millionth 'Book of Hope' will be distributed,” Book of Hope's Executive Director Rob Hoskins told Mission Network News in a recent interview. “This is a milestone for us.”
In 1987, Hoskin’s father – missionary and evangelist Bob Hoskins – was asked by the Minister of Education in El Salvador to provide bibles to the country's 986,000 school children.
Get Our Latest News for FREE
The result was the "Book of Hope," a Scripture book that combines the four gospels in the Bible and puts them in chronological order, making it easy for kids to read. Since then the "Book of Hope" has been distributed worldwide in more than 65 languages and dialects. It also comes in a variety of age-appropriate formats, which are culturally and emotionally relevant.
“We could have never foreseen this exciting milestone when we began distributing Scripture books to kids 18 years ago,” Hoskins told the Assemblies of God News Service. “But with new technologies and an established world-wide network of nationals who help us distribute these Book of Hope Scripture books, we can see our goal of giving God’s word to every child is attainable.”
While 300 million copies have been distributed, many more people have actually read a "Book of Hope," Hoskins told MNN.
"Obviously these children take these books home with them," Hoskins said. "About 90 percent of these books have been distributed in public school systems around the world in over 120 different countries. But, when the book is taken home, the parents read it, grandparents read it, (and) older brothers read it to little brothers and sisters. So, I think it's safe to say that probably nearly a billion people have become engaged in God's Word [through Book of Hope]."
To mark the distribution of the 300 millionth "Book of Hope" book, the ministry is organizing a weeklong fiesta in Sao Paulo, Brazil, next week. Events marking the week of celebration include additional book distributions in other local schools, a seminar on School Evangelism for the country’s top 300 evangelistic leaders, and a banquet in Sao Paulo honoring Book of Hope’s partners in Brazil.
