International (MNN) ― Quick: is Book of Hope a ministry or a product? Book of Hope's founder Bob Hoskins wanted that answer to be clear.
However, Hoskins says one day, "I received a letter from a missionary saying, 'Half the children in our country are illiterate. How are we going to get Jesus' story to them?' "
UNESCO says one in every five people on earth can't read. That's over a billion souls that can't be touched by a book.
Hoskins knew then that they had to respond to the changing technologies that were bringing the world closer together. "We had to communicate not only to those who were readers, but also to those who could not read," which led to other media development for sharing the Gospel.
They developed and released the film The GodMan, which has been viewed by more than 10 million children and youth in hosted showings, and by hundreds of millions more via broadcast TV.
That brought another question: why did a ministry called "Book of Hope" use a film, and the Internet? It was time for a name change. "What we really are about is God's Word for every child. So the name 'OneHope' encompasses the Book of Hope, The Godman film, and the internet ministry. We're starting to do text messaging of Scripture to children and youth in some countries."
Hoskins and his son, Rob, along with their ministry board of directors and leadership team, prayed about a new name to better reflect this expanding vision. OneHope is the name God led them to for the following reasons:
*OneHope captures the original vision God gave: to rescue children and youth from the despair and lies of the enemy by providing them with the one and only hope for eternity.
*OneHope is perfect in an age of relativism when children are not only taught that there are no absolute truths, but also that there are many ways to God. The ministry believes it is critical they understand there is only One Hope for the future, and that they can find this Hope in the Scriptures.
*OneHope also reflects the proclamation of the Living Word, the Savior, whether through print, film or some other media.
The OneHope team wants to reach over 70 million children with the Gospel. Bob Hoskins Sr. says, "One dollar will deliver the Word of God either through the Book of Hope or The Godman film to three children. Those books are presented by volunteer Christian workers who've been trained in churches to begin to disciple them to become real followers of Christ."
Click here to learn how to help spread God's Word through OneHope.
