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"I think it’s great!" -
Rob Frost sends
4th birthday greetings to word-on-the-web
Church Army’s word-on-the-web ministry celebrates a double milestone
this month. Not only does October mark word-on-the-web’s fourth birthday,
the ministry has just topped the 6,000 subscriber mark for its free daily email
service, which is sent to people in more than 100 countries.
For the past four years, word-on-the-web has sent short challenging Bible
studies each day to whoever wants to receive them. These studies have been
written by people such as Luis Palau, rock bands Delirious? and yFriday,
singer Sue Rinaldi, and people from organisations such as Girls’ Brigade,
Boys’ Brigade, YFC, YWAM, Salvation Army, as well as a number of bishops.
One of the writers, the Rev Dr Rob Frost, of Share Jesus International has
sent his congratulations: "word-on-the-web is an accessible, approachable
and appropriate way in which Christians can relate to God's word for everyday
life. In a generation which is increasingly computer literate it's exciting
to see that God's word can be imparted in ways that most people can now relate
to. I think it's great!"
Danny Brierley, another word-on-the-web writer and Head
of Oasis Youth Action also sends his best wishes: "Oasis commends word-on-the-web
for making the Bible's timeless truth so accessible to today's IT-literate
generation
for whom the web is not new technology, but simply part of everyday life."
The founders of word-on-the-web, David and Alison Booker - both of them Church
Army officers now working in Leicester - recount their memories from October
2000: ‘It is hard to believe word-on-the-web was launched four years
ago! The day the email with the first reading went out we really wondered
what the response would be. We’d prayed, talked it through, and really
believed it could work. It took a while to help those who were allergic to
email and computers to understand what we were trying to do, but finally
we were given the opportunity to try the idea out. Having convinced people
to let us have a go we hoped the risk would pay off!
"Four years on it’s amazing to know the daily notes go to around 6,000 people, not just in the UK but around the world. More important than the simple numbers are the stories that number represents. Almost from day one a steady drip feed of emails came through from people thanking us for the project. Some had drifted away from church; others had been thinking about faith and had found us on the web. Through the daily emails they found an opportunity to glimpse God and many moved towards Him."
"It was a real privilege to launch word-on-the-web and see it through its first couple of years. Long may it keep rolling!"
word-on-the-web is currently run by Project Administrator Ruth Walker, who has been with it since day one, and Editor Andrew Wooding, who has just started his third year with the project.
As well, as the daily Bible studies, on the website there are also up-to-date film reviews, interviews, Christian CD reviews, a discussion forum, a monthly competition, and much more. To subscribe to the free daily email, visit www.word-on-the-web.co.uk and click the "Signup" link at the top of the page.
