World Church: 'GodPod' Technology to Bring Gospel to Remote Peoples

January 24, 2006 Silver Spring, Maryland, United States .... [Mark A. Kellner/ANN]

A small device roughly the size of an iPod that can store up to 160 hours of audio content will soon be used to bring the gospel to remote people groups in Africa and elsewhere, according to two Seventh-day Adventist church media organizations.

The "GodPod" device, created by Christian technology firm MegaVoice, includes a solar panel with rechargeable batteries, a power jack for separate recharging, a speaker, an earphone jack and controls for playback, pause and volume control. Both Adventist World Radio (AWR), the radio mission arm of the Adventist Church, and It Is Written, a television outreach, will use the device in separate projects.

According to Shawn Boonstra, speaker/director of It Is Written, the ministry will send these devices to nomadic people dwelling in the Kalahari Desert of Southern Africa. "We've decided to place 1,500 of these units [there] -- a thought that really excites me. Imagine hundreds of [people] who are suddenly able to hear God speak to them in their own language."

Adventist World Radio is starting with 500 of the devices loaded with their own programs, according to AWR president Pastor Ben Schoun, which will be distributed in South Sudan and North Africa. People may listen to the recordings multiple times as they study the Biblical concepts, which is particularly useful for people who are illiterate. When they are ready for new content, they can bring their devices to a central location, such as an AWR studio or Bible school, where staff will load a fresh set of programs.

"AWR sees great potential in this new technology," says Schoun. "We are starting this pilot project with 500 units, which cost approximately [U.S.] $25 each and are much cheaper than tape recorders or MP3 players. There are many more territories that could benefit from these devices, and sponsorship from churches or individuals could enable AWR to expand this outreach in the near future."

It Is Written can be reached at www.iiw.org, and Adventist World Radio is at www.awr.org.