A task force of 20 Seventh-day Adventist Church leaders assembled here Feb. 6 to plot strategy and implementation for the “Sow 1 Billion” initiative that will place one thousand million pieces of literature in homes and hands around the world by the end of 2003.

“My sense of the world church is that the church is uniquely focused on world mission these days,” said Pastor Jan Paulsen, Adventist Church world president. “Time is not on our side. There is instability in the world today. In parts of the world where growth has been sluggish, there’s a compelling desire to try again.”

A universal theme for the tracts has been decided: “Be Not Afraid,” a phrase found throughout the Bible, most notably in John 6:20, where Jesus reassures the disciples who see Him walking on the water towards their boat: “It is I; be not afraid.” (KJV)

The tracts are designed to convey a basic message of hope, and also serve “as a means to capture people’s interest, raise questions, and offer a way to find answers,” according to design guidelines for the tracts, which are being prepared and printed throughout the Adventist Church.

While the program is still in its early days, the numbers are starting to add up. According to Mike Ryan, director of Global Mission, more than 130 million tracts have already been printed in the church in Inter-America, a region which covers Central America, most of the Caribbean and the northern portion of South America as well. The church in other regions, Ryan said, will print and distribute in excess of 300 million tracts. All regional entities of the church are expected to come online through the course of the year.

A goal of the “Sow 1 Billion” effort is to generate interest in Bible studies by correspondence, in person and via the Internet. Denzil McNeilus, president of Adventist-laymen’s Services and Industries, an organization of lay members committed to sharing Christ in the marketplace and a sponsor of the initiative, said one part of the effort would involve putting together online Bible studies in 100 different languages by Sept. 1, 2003.

“We expect that a couple of million people will want to do their Bible studies via the Internet,” McNeilus told the task force meeting. “With our Web portal, the idea is you would have one place to go for Bible studies.”

According to Bettina Krause, assistant to the president for global initiatives, “The scope of this initiative is extraordinary. A mere 0.5 percent response rate translates into 5 million requests for Bible studies—quite a challenge for a church with a baptized membership of approximately 13 million people.”

For members and local churches, Krause added, the opportunity is clear. “It’s an opportunity for every Seventh-day Adventist to be involved in personal outreach–-no matter what their age, experience or background. It requires no special skills—just a commitment to hand out brochures to friends, neighbors, and people you meet during the course of your everyday life,” she said.