First Editions
GOD'S WORD. EVERY CHILD.
2023
WHAT IS A FIRST EDITION?
We admire early investors who buy stock or real estate before anyone else sees the potential. These pioneers enjoy the thrill of witnessing their investments grow over time. First Editions allow you to do something similar for God’s Word. You can invest in a new mission and watch your investment grow over the years.
Whether it’s a translation of an existing program to a new language or the research and development of an entirely new program, First Editions keep the global outreach of OneHope strategic and robust. The First Edition you sponsor will go on sharing God’s Word with children and youth for many years to come!
Our local church partners around the world have requested these programs to help them reach the young people in their communities and nations. First Editions are essential because friends like you step in to invest in each new program.
Please take a moment to explore the 2023 First Editions and pray about how you can help. You can select which Scripture engagement programs God leads you to sponsor by using the Navigation Bar on the right-hand side of the page. This selection can also be part of your 2023 Faith Promise and can be fulfilled monthly or through a one-time gift any time during the year.
With your love and support, OneHope Scripture engagement programs can share God’s life-transforming Word with 142 million children and youth in 2023!
Want to make a Faith Promise?
Testimonies
She saw Jesus in a whole new way….
Camila was a Christian. In her home nation of Chile, her mother had been taking her to church ever since she was a little girl. She heard about the crucifixion every Good Friday, the Resurrection every Easter, the baby in the manger at Christmas. She knew the whole story. But now, as a tween girl about to become a teenager, Camila had other things on her mind! She had a cell phone and an Instagram account; she had her favorite YouTube channels and loved texting her friends — In fact, now it felt like her mother was dragging her to church when she had better things to do! But then she saw The GodMan film. She was face-to-face with a Jesus she had never really known, a Friend and Savior who was willing to lay down His life so that she could live a full and happy life, with heaven in her future. After that, everything changed! Camila rededicated her life to Christ — and while she still has her phone and her friends and a busy social life, she’s also joyful in Jesus and happy to go to church with her mom and learn more about the Savior.
Meet Zar…
Zar, a young girl growing up in an Asian nation where to be Buddhist is regarded as one’s social heritage and natural state — and to leave Buddhism is seen as something akin to treason. Buddhists who choose instead to follow Jesus are ostracized and subject to persecution. Zar had never given religion much thought. Her family is extremely poor; her parents work long, hard hours in the struggle to put food on the table for the family — and Zar took advantage of the many hours she was on her own to pursue her own desires. “I didn’t listen to my teachers or my parents,” she recalls. But then she went to a children’s club at the local church. They were studying God’s Big Story and our Stories of Hope curriculum together. And today Zar says: 6 “Now, I am changing gradually from inside out … I worship the Lord with all my heart. I know more about God and His love. He is the living God, the Creator of all and the Savior of my soul too. Now I believe God and I will follow Him till the end of my life.”
THE BIG STORY: FOR GOD SO LOVED THE WORLD …
She went to a Hope Club — heard an amazing story — even learned to tell it herself — and received a small card with an illustration of the story to remind her how it goes. She went back the next week — learned another story and got another card — now she can flip them over, lay them side by side — and see the beginning of a much bigger illustration. The only way she can complete this larger story picture is to come to the Hope Club meeting again the next week — After 16 weeks, she’s heard all the stories — and now her collection of cards can be fitted together to create the large illustration of the Bible’s overarching metanarrative of salvation. “From the first day I came to this group, I began to realize that I am important, and I have value, because God loves me, and He cares for me,” says Marieta, a little girl from Mozambique. She chose to follow Jesus … and began sharing the stories she learned with her mother, who also came to faith in Christ! This is the power of God’s Word, spoken or written or conveyed in simple illustrations. This is the power of God’s Big Story!
A MIXED-FAITH FAMILY — AND A TRANSFORMATION…
They live in a nation where Christians are often under the threat of persecution for their faith — extremist members of the traditional, majority religion denigrate believers in Jesus … But in Praful’s family, religion wasn’t controversial. His mother had been born into a Catholic family, and his father followed the traditional religion of their nation. His mother followed the traditional rituals with her husband … and she celebrated Christian holidays with her side of the family … To Praful, religion didn’t seem to matter much at all. Especially because the family is impoverished, and he himself had gone to work as a young teenager. Making money to help feed the family was more important than any gods or idols. But then his friends began attending a youth group at the local church — they were so excited about the first meeting, Praful asked to change his schedule at work so he could attend. He received his own Book of Hope and began studying God’s Word with the group. One day after class, Praful asked the pastor to explain more about Jesus … and that night in his dreams Praful saw the Lord calling to him: “Come to Me! I love you so much!” Today Praful has committed his life to Christ, and he’s growing in his faith as he attends youth groups and services at the local church.
Meet Schura …
The passion and vision of your OneHope ministry is: God’s Word. Every Child. We want every boy and girl to know that Jesus loves them, and this year our faith goal is to get God’s Word to 136 million young people all over the world. This is critical because the next generation is under attack: the pandemic, the economic chaos, religious and political upheaval — children and youth today need God’s love and protection! They’re young people like Russian teenager Schura, who lived in poverty with a very dysfunctional family and had no hope for the future … until you sent the Hosanna Plan team to his village, and he received the Book of Hope and learned about Jesus. Today Schura has Christ as his Savior and is growing in God through the local faith community. His life has been transformed! With your partnership this year, we’ll reach more children and youth through print programs, film media, and digital outreaches than ever before!
A Family Transformed …
Alma didn’t know how to teach her son about Jesus. She brought him to church and hoped he was learning in Sunday school, but she mentioned to the children’s pastor that she felt unprepared to answer his questions or guide him spiritually. The pastor introduced her to the Kids Bible Experience for children who are growing out of the Bible App for Kids. He suggested she watch Kids Bible Experience along with her son. Today Alma and her son are both using the app as a regular part of their devotional time. It has completely enhanced their relationship with God — and touched their family, too: Alma’s husband and her son’s grandmother are all attending church with them now. The entire family has been transformed by the power of God’s Word!
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