Operation World
Encyclopedia
Operation World is a reference book and prayer guide, begun by Patrick Johnstone and continued by Jason Mandryk, both from WEC International
. Operation World is published by Biblica (in hard copy format), and produced by GMI (Global Mapping International) (electronic format). It is aimed at informing Christians about every country in the world in order to encourage the church
to pray
for the world and to engage the world in Christian mission. This resource is written from an evangelical Christian point of view.
Operation World is regarded by most evangelicals as the definitive volume of prayer information about the world and is the recipient of the ECPA
Gold Medallion Award for Excellence in Evangelical Christian Literature. It also was on the list of the 50 most influential evangelical books in Christianity Today
magazine. It is intended to mobilize the church to effective intercession and world mission and ultimately, to help the global Church fulfil the Great Commission
.
Operation World has been published in seven editions. The most recent is the 2010 edition, released in October 2010, the first major update since the 2001 edition. The original edition was produced in 1964 by Patrick Johnstone, a missionary in South Africa, as a 32-page booklet of basic information about 30 countries. Operation World has been translated into several other languages: Spanish, French, Dutch, German, Portuguese, Russian, Korean, and simplified Chinese. Parts of Operation World have been translated into Arabic, Indonesian, Urdu, and Czech. The cumulative number of copies printed in all languages exceeds 2.5 million. The team behind the production of Operation World consists of 8-10 full-time unpaid volunteers, from six countries.
The 1,000-plus page prayer resource is also organized as a calendar-year daily prayer guide. Each 3- to 4-page daily section begins with basic information on a country’s geography, demographics, population, literacy, economy, etc. Operation World then gives a breakdown of percentage of religions, Christian denominations, and missions groups, followed by points for prayer. These prayer points are directed toward the social, political, economic, cultural, and religious life of each nation, as well as life and activity of the existing Church in each country.
Thematically, Operation World begins with global issues and world missions, then narrows to cover the six continents before it settles into a country-by-country format, covering every nation and autonomous territory.
Data is gathered from sources including primary input from national Christian church leaders, missionaries, and researchers. A consultative process is used, eliciting input and response from nearly 2,000 such contacts in every part of the world. Information is also gathered from more than 200 periodicals and journals, the plethora of news agencies, websites of churches and ministries around the world, and more encyclopedic resources such as the World Christian Database, the Ethnologue, and the Joshua Project. The Operation World database includes information on approximately 33,000 Christian denominations, 16 major religions, 1,200 missions agencies, and 16,000 fields of ministry.
WEC International
WEC International is a mission agency which focuses on church planting, and emphasises the importance of shared life in a local church as a vital expression of Christian life...
. Operation World is published by Biblica (in hard copy format), and produced by GMI (Global Mapping International) (electronic format). It is aimed at informing Christians about every country in the world in order to encourage the church
Christian Church
The Christian Church is the assembly or association of followers of Jesus Christ. The Greek term ἐκκλησία that in its appearances in the New Testament is usually translated as "church" basically means "assembly"...
to pray
Pray
Pray may refer to:* Prayer, an active effort to communicate with a deity or spiritIt may also refer to:-Places:Italy* Pray, Piedmont, a comune in the Province of BiellaUnited States* Pray, Wisconsin, an unincorporated community-People:...
for the world and to engage the world in Christian mission. This resource is written from an evangelical Christian point of view.
Operation World is regarded by most evangelicals as the definitive volume of prayer information about the world and is the recipient of the ECPA
Evangelical Christian Publishers Association
The is an international non-profit trade association whose member companies are involved in the publishing and distribution of Christian content worldwide...
Gold Medallion Award for Excellence in Evangelical Christian Literature. It also was on the list of the 50 most influential evangelical books in Christianity Today
Christianity Today
Christianity Today is an Evangelical Christian periodical based in Carol Stream, Illinois. It is the flagship publication of its parent company Christianity Today International, claiming circulation figures of 140,000 and readership of 290,000...
magazine. It is intended to mobilize the church to effective intercession and world mission and ultimately, to help the global Church fulfil the Great Commission
Great Commission
The Great Commission, in Christian tradition, is the instruction of the resurrected Jesus Christ to his disciples, that they spread his teachings to all the nations of the world. It has become a tenet in Christian theology emphasizing missionary work, evangelism, and baptism...
.
Operation World has been published in seven editions. The most recent is the 2010 edition, released in October 2010, the first major update since the 2001 edition. The original edition was produced in 1964 by Patrick Johnstone, a missionary in South Africa, as a 32-page booklet of basic information about 30 countries. Operation World has been translated into several other languages: Spanish, French, Dutch, German, Portuguese, Russian, Korean, and simplified Chinese. Parts of Operation World have been translated into Arabic, Indonesian, Urdu, and Czech. The cumulative number of copies printed in all languages exceeds 2.5 million. The team behind the production of Operation World consists of 8-10 full-time unpaid volunteers, from six countries.
The 1,000-plus page prayer resource is also organized as a calendar-year daily prayer guide. Each 3- to 4-page daily section begins with basic information on a country’s geography, demographics, population, literacy, economy, etc. Operation World then gives a breakdown of percentage of religions, Christian denominations, and missions groups, followed by points for prayer. These prayer points are directed toward the social, political, economic, cultural, and religious life of each nation, as well as life and activity of the existing Church in each country.
Thematically, Operation World begins with global issues and world missions, then narrows to cover the six continents before it settles into a country-by-country format, covering every nation and autonomous territory.
Data is gathered from sources including primary input from national Christian church leaders, missionaries, and researchers. A consultative process is used, eliciting input and response from nearly 2,000 such contacts in every part of the world. Information is also gathered from more than 200 periodicals and journals, the plethora of news agencies, websites of churches and ministries around the world, and more encyclopedic resources such as the World Christian Database, the Ethnologue, and the Joshua Project. The Operation World database includes information on approximately 33,000 Christian denominations, 16 major religions, 1,200 missions agencies, and 16,000 fields of ministry.