The internet has changed the world as we know it. Most historians compare this new technology to the invention of the printing press, the telegraph, and the telephone. Communication will never be the same.

Whatever you think of the technology, its impact on our world has been dramatic – which is why Clear and Simple Media decided to create three websites. Those sites allow us to deliver our content to anyone who has access to the internet, anywhere in the world. Last year, people from more than 90 countries accessed those sites.

But that decision to create an online presence has also had some unexpected results. It is providing new opportunities that we did not envision when we made that decision three years ago.

We have been asked by our network of friends in Burkina Faso to translate all of the content of our A Simple Word website (www.asimpleword.org) into French. That is no small task. The site has more than 400 individual pages of content covering every book of the Bible. The cost of the project is an estimated $20,000, including translation, technical support, and web design. When completed, we will redesign the graphics and create a new site that targets French-speaking West Africa.

When the site is ready, we will “gift” it to our friends there. The network in Burkina Faso (made up of national workers) will then be able to promote and manage the site from there. They will also be able to respond to all of the requests that come from the site and help the inquirers connect with Christians in their areas. We will start the first project in Burkina Faso under the supervision of IMB and SIM national workers there.

As we have reported previously, much of West Africa is less stable today than it was a decade ago. The leaders in Burkina Faso believe that providing a site like this will help the church through this challenging period.

If this project works as we hope, we will expand this strategy to include networks we have connections within Togo, Ivory Coast, and Senegal.

These projects are some of the most ambitious that we have attempted to date. We are asking our readers to pray that we will have the wisdom and the stamina to complete the projects within the deadlines set for their completion. We hope to have the site translated into French and ready to go online by the end of August.