Global Mission pioneers, or Seventh-day Adventist lay volunteers, will distribute 40 million “Sow 1 Billion” brochures around the world, according to a goal set last month by the Global Mission operations committee. The goal will mobilize a force of some 20,000 to 30,000 pioneers, according to Michael Ryan, Global Mission director.

Sow 1 Billion is a plan voted last year by international church leaders to distribute 1,000 million brochures—invitations to study the Bible—during the next few years. Global Mission’s commitment represents a significant contribution to the effort, says Bettina Krause, coordinator of the initiative. “There’s a growing excitement about Sow 1 Billion,” she says. “We’re hearing from lay people, from local churches, from youth groups, all asking how they can be involved in distributing these invitations.”

Global Mission’s goal of 40 million brochures means that each pioneer would need to distribute some 2,000 brochures in a year, or about six per day, says Ryan. These pioneers are trained lay volunteers who receive a small stipend to spend one to two years in areas where there are no Adventists, working to establish new groups of Adventist Christians.

Sow 1 Billion will be officially launched in September this year, although actual distribution will begin on different dates around the world, depending on local timetables. Each pocket-sized tract will include space to list the addresses of Bible correspondence schools, or other contact information for respondents to request Bible lessons. Adventist-laymen’s Services and Industries is a major partner in the Sow 1 Billion effort, providing funding for the printing of the 1 billion brochures, and developing a special Web site that will offer online Bible studies in a variety of languages.