TWR believes in the power of stories. Stories grip our imaginations and transform our hearts. We also believe in the importance of teaching and discipling children in the faith. That’s why we’ve partnered with A Visit with Mrs. G Ministries to translate, produce and distribute Bible stories for children in Arabic, Mandarin, Persian, Spanish and Swahili. With our partner in Denmark, we have begun translating and producing these children’s Bible stories into Somali for refugees in Ethiopia.
A Visit with Mrs. G was written and produced for radio in the late 1970’s. These 50+ books by Kitty Anna Griffiths are dramatic retellings of Bible stories intended to “come alive” for children. A Visit with Mrs. G stories are broadcast in English across the world, including TWR UK at the weekends. The Arabic, Mandarin, Spanish and Swahili stories are now available on TWR360 and the Speak Hope Android app, with more to be added as they are completed.
As well as the A Visit with Mrs. G programme, in Kenya, the Bible Stories Alive programme is translated from English into Swahili and aired on SIFA FM’s Voi and Maata radio stations in Turkana county. This year, the programme was also added to a third station in Marsabit.
The radio show is geared toward children between the ages of four and eight and is aired every Saturday between 8 a.m. and 9 a.m. Children often join the programme live in the studio and interact with the host. Due to the pandemic, this has not been possible, and now the broadcasters must rely solely on interactions through phone calls and text messages. Hosts are encouraging the children to wash their hands, avoid crowded places and to stay home as much as possible.“The children are really enjoying the Bible stories and they appreciate the effort we are making,” said one of the station managers.“We are also praying very hard that COVID-19 will come to an end.”
Due to the pandemic, children and their parents are spending more time together. This is the case of Mr. Kane and his daughter. Sarah, age 9, is the youngest of eight siblings and has a love and passion for music. “She wakes up the earliest every morning, turns on the radio and starts singing along with the gospel music,” explained Mr. Kane. “This is her way of doing devotions.” Sarah has come to love listening to SIFA FM Marsabit from her parents, who listen to a broad range of programmes offered by the radio station.
Before COVID-19, Sarah faithfully attended Sunday school each week. According to her parents, Sarah has been lamenting about the closure of Sunday school in the wake of COVID-19. Now, Sarah has been eagerly listening to the Bible Stories Alive programme being aired on Sifa FM Marsabit. The programme gives her the opportunity to learn Bible stories that she would normally hear in Sunday school.
Ms. Padre, also from Marsabit, reported that she listens to Bible Stories Alive with her daughter Mesret. Mesret loves the programme and reported that it always leads to a biblical conversation between her and her mom.
Join with us as we thank God for the ways TWR is reaching out to children around the world. We particularly pray for the new A Visit with Mrs. G translations and for the Bible Stories Alive programme in Kenya. As the pandemic has disrupted normality and brought many challenges, we pray these programmes will bring hope to children around the world.
