Give Away the Word and Change Someone’s Life

Editors Note: Listen to the special bulletin Strang Report titled “Give Away the Word” on the charismapodcastnetwork.

When the Iron Curtain fell, the readers of Charisma helped raise tens of thousands of dollars in the early 1990s to deliver inexpensive Bibles in Russian through Terry Law Ministries. I visited Russia with Terry and stopped in Sweden to see the Russian Bibles literally coming off the press our readers helped pay for. How exciting!

A few years later, I went into communist China with missionary Dennis Balcomb. At the time, the official Chinese church rationed Bibles that were in much demand, so missionaries asked tourists to take Bibles across the border in their luggage.

It was the only time before or since that I actually smuggled something across an international border. I never expected to be caught, arrested and held for several hours before the Chinese authorities decided to release me after they confiscated the Bibles. (I was told the guards would sell those Bibles on the black market so the Word of God got through in spite of my arrest.)

That incident lit a fire under me to get Bibles into China. When I shared the story with the readers of Charisma, we raised $100,000 to buy 50,000 copies at only $2 each.

Two decades later, I have the privilege of publishing a brand-new translation called the Modern English Version. If you’ve read my e-newsletter, the Strang Report, or read articles and seen ads in Charisma, you know this translation is not only the biggest project we have ever undertaken but also the most important since it is God’s Word. Long after I’m gone and Charisma is no longer published, the Word of God will live on!

Charisma Media has embarked on a bold project to put God’s Word in the hands of hundreds of thousands—and perhaps millions—of people, free of charge through an initiative we call “Give Away the Word.” But we need your help and the help of other Charisma readers.

A Bible with approximately 1,000 pages is pricey. Quality Bible paper, gilding and leather covers are not cheap. Yet a quality Bible will last a lifetime. We have many attractive versions of the MEV. I’m thankful that, in only one year, the MEV is in the top 10 translations. I’m told that is a major achievement.

There are many who cannot afford a high-quality Bible. Or maybe Bible reading is not a priority, so they won’t invest the money. Maybe they are curious about Christianity or are new converts. Maybe they are prisoners with lots of time to read, but they don’t own a Bible.

To meet this need, we have published an inexpensive $3 version of the MEV. The idea is to make it available to anyone. We need your help to make it available for free.

We are partnering with Christian Life Missions (CLM), the 60-year-old nonprofit partner through whom we’ve raised millions of dollars for worthy causes over the course of several decades. Recently, Charisma readers raised $175,000 for J. Lee Grady’s The Mordecai Project to build an orphanage for girls in India.

A $10 donation will cover the cost of four copies of God’s Word. A donation of $100 will buy 40 Bibles and $1,000 buys 400 Bibles. As usual, every dollar you give will go to this project.

While we are starting small, we believe, based on our past experience with distributing Bibles, we can eventually raise at least $1 million. It’s an ambitious goal, but it’s doable over time—with your help.

Ministries that have heard of this project have assured us there is a huge need, especially for a translation in modern English that people can easily understand. Recently, Convoy of Hope—a faith-based nonprofit that distributes food, water and emergency supplies—agreed to be our primary partner in this venture. Convoy of Hope will give away the Bibles during inner-city outreaches in the United States. OneHope, an international ministry that shares the Scriptures with young people around the world, is partnering with CLM on international efforts to make sure the Bibles are distributed in regions of the world in need of the Scriptures.

We believe this is something the Lord has laid on our hearts to do. Our prayer is that through this small effort, we’re going to have countless stories of people’s lives being changed.

Through the years, we’ve learned that the readers of Charisma feel a call to missions, and this mission is to give away the Word to as many people as possible. Too many people are not literate in the Scriptures because they don’t understand the Bible, so they can’t apply the Scriptures to their lives. The transforming power of the gospel cannot really germinate within their spirit until they read the Word of God.

Through this massive Bible giveaway, we provide the opportunity to do that. For the cost of a fancy cup of coffee, you can supply a Bible to someone. Won’t you respond generously with a tax-deductible gift? Mail your check to Give Away the Word, 600 Rinehart Road, Lake Mary, FL 32746. To donate online at giveawaytheword.com. {eoa}