GOD WITH US STILL AND ALWAYS
So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: “Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which is translated, “God with us.” –Matthew 1:22-23
Joseph and Mary knew and believed the words of the prophets proclaiming God’s plan for a coming Messiah. When each received a message from God through an angel, they responded immediately– Mary with great joy, and Joseph with instant obedience.
Looking over the past 62 years, we rejoice over details and answered prayers confirming God’s plan and direction for World Missionary Press. As WMP continues to share the full gospel story with the world, we trust His unfolding plan and humbly marvel at His grace.
God is with us still and always. He takes care of routine details that build into miraculous testimonies. Last year was a banner year for WMP in many ways. We thank the Lord for the staff and volunteers who help ensure Scripture booklets are available to people around the world, for those who finance the Scripture booklets, and for those who have the good will to witness to their fellow man using the Scripture booklets.
Joseph’s obedience involved him with the mission of the Lord. He became the earthly provider for the child Jesus. Following are seven opportunities to be involved with God’s mission and plan for World Missionary Press.
OPPORTUNITY #1: BOXES OF SCRIPTURE BOOKLETS EVERY MONTH
As trimmed 48-page Scripture booklets come off our binderies, volunteers pack 500 copies into a box, then weigh, stamp, and strap each box for shipping. These boxes serve as convenient carriers for Christian workers around the world, as they trek from village to village and door to door. A regular monthly donation of $100.00 for “WMP BOXES” provides four boxes (2,000 Scripture booklets) for a church planter in Congo, a river ministry along the Amazon in Brazil, and a village evangelist in South Asia–bringing glad tidings of great joy into the darkness and leaving a lasting message of hope and redemption.
OPPORTUNITY #2: A ROLL OF PAPER
By producing topical Scripture booklets in over 350 languages, WMP provides a unique ministry tool, free of charge, for multiplied nations of the world where materials are not readily available or affordable. The need for “paper missionaries” continues to grow, even in a digital age.
Rolls of paper keep the web press running! A gift of $1,357.00 provides a 1,500-pound 35-inch-wide roll of paper for printing the inside pages for 85,000 48-page Scripture booklets! A gift of $678.50 will provide half a roll.
OPPORTUNITY #3: PAPER FOR FULL-COLOR COVERS
WMP topical Scripture booklets and Bible study booklets now have full-color covers. Attractive colorful covers are appealing to the eye, sparking an interest in what might be inside. The contents are still the same precious Scriptures, sharing the “good tidings of great joy which shall be to all people.”
Our efficient 6-unit, sheet-fed Man Roland Press prints our full-color booklet covers. Each stack of 8,500 sheets costs $1,207.00 and provides colorful covers for 136,000 48-page Scripture booklets or 68,000 full-color covers for the variety of Bible studies that WMP produces. You can help keep color covers flowing!
OPPORTUNITY #4: INK TO PRINT GOD’S WORD
Ink is vital to the process of printing. Our King Web press uses barrels of black ink as it runs millions of impressions a day. On average, a barrel lasts 4 to 5 days. A 425-pound barrel of black ink costs $629.00. The Man Roland press uses 5-pound cans of four different colors of ink. A 5-pound can of ink costs $26.89. The press operators estimate using 12 cans of ink each week. A donation of $108.00 will provide one can each of cyan, magenta, yellow, and black ink for approximately 58,000 four-color Scripture booklet covers.
OPPORTUNITY #5: CONTRACT PRINTING OVERSEAS
God continues to lead World Missionary Press to provide booklets for nations restricting imports from the USA. Working through reliable in-country printing companies, we are able to provide Scripture booklets for Christians waiting to share the joy of giving God’s Word.
This past fiscal year WMP had contracts with publishers in South Asia, Indonesia, Myanmar, and Pakistan. The Indonesian publisher produced 2,485,000 Scripture booklets in Indonesian, and 40,000 Scripture booklets in Javanese at a cost of $173,287.95 ($0.07 per booklet). A donation of any amount will help support believers in these countries by printing God’s Word there.
OPPORTUNITY #6: NEW TESTAMENT PRINTING
Requests for New Testaments are included in many orders from national coordinators and major distributors. Currently, WMP offers New Testaments in relatively few languages, but each one is a vital part of building newfound faith in Africa, Europe, the Middle East, Latin America, and Haiti. The discipleship begun with the Scripture booklets and Bible studies continues when studying the entire New Testament. “To have one’s own copy to read at any time, to sense that God’s Word is personally speaking to me, can deepen the sense that God is with me.”
Meeting the need for Spanish New Testaments for the coming two years will require a printing of 200,000 copies. Believers in countries throughout Latin America are waiting. Arabic New Testaments are invaluable in African and other countries. There is curious interest in the New Testament and the story of Jesus. People receive the New Testaments joyfully and the Holy Spirit can present the truth of who Jesus is as the pages are read. A printing of 50,000 copies will reach into Senegal, Guinea, South Sudan, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Chad, and beyond. A donation of $150.00 will provide 163 Spanish New Testaments for brothers and sisters in Christ who long for His Word. A donation of $200.00 will help produce 235 Arabic New Testaments that can open seeking eyes and prepared hearts.
OPPORTUNITY #7: SHIPPING TO THE WORLD
Scripture booklets may travel by sea container, train, truck, bus, motorbike, or pack animal before arriving at their destination. To prepare shipments for transport, World Missionary Press uses sturdy cardboard boxes specially designed to hold certain weights. Boxes, strapped instead of taped, are loaded onto heat-treated pallets for transport. Loaded pallets are shrink-wrapped to secure them until the container is unloaded thousands of miles from our dock. These items add an estimated $1,570.00 in hidden costs to a shipping container.
Last fiscal year, 69 containers left the WMP dock, safe in God’s hands. Although containers sometimes encounter delays, all our shipments find their way to the prescribed destination, safe and undamaged. Surely, God’s angels travel with His Word!
Sending via ship container is the most economical way to send Scripture booklets, Bible studies, salvation coloring books, and New Testaments. For example, we paid $10,113.00 to ship a container with 4,215 boxes to Nigeria. We also sent 4,215 boxes to Brazil at a cost of $4,571.00. Sending those same boxes via the postal service to each country would have cost $217,915.50 each. The two containers together saved WMP $421,147.00. Such savings allow WMP to print more booklets for more countries, using every donated dollar to the fullest capacity. Your donation of any amount will help container shipments continue to flow out of the plant, over the seas, and safely into the harbors of the world.
Rejoice this holiday season that God is with all of us—always and forever. Thank you for being involved in our ministry. Celebrate with us the wonderful works of the Lord!
