UCB is celebrating 30 years of its popular Word for Today devotional. We explored some milestones in its rich history with CEO David L’Herroux.
1991: A reluctant writer
On Bob and Debby Gass’s wedding day, the pastor marrying them gave Bob – an enthusiastic preacher – a prophetic word: “The Lord has told me you will reach more people through your writing than you will in all the years of your preaching.” Bob (pictured above) didn’t want to write, yet his heart was stirred when he met UCB UK founder Ian Mackie.
Ian was trying to launch Christian radio but had no supporters and the government was refusing to give him air space.
So Bob offered to write a devotional with Scripture and thoughts for each day.
Three-and-a-half years later, Word for Today was born.
1994: Launch and growth
The first issue of Word for Today was published in April 1994 with a run of 3,500 copies.
Bob famously described it as ‘the small book that leads to the big book’.
For non-Christians, it offered an appetiser to introduce the idea of a relationship with God.
For Christians, it acted as ‘a vitamin boost’ for anyone struggling with or looking to deepen their faith.
Of course, the black and white first edition has developed since then.
“Today, the print version is in colour and the digital platform has brought us to a whole new level,” says UCB CEO David L’Herroux.
“Now Word for Today is on the radio, on social media and on an app.
You can have UCB in your pocket and turn to it at any time.
“We are 24/7, 365 days a year.
Whether it’s 2pm or 2am, people seeking answers can turn to us and find a message of hope.”
2019: A lasting legacy
Bob Gass passed away on 5 June 2019, but so devoted was he to sharing Scripture through Word for Today that he was determined to leave a legacy to bless readers long after his death.
“Some years ago Bob told us, ‘I don’t know when the Lord is going to call me but we need to be ahead of the game’,” says David.
“He launched a project to get ten years ahead so readers would have fresh content for another decade after he’d gone.
“And he succeeded! Many of the devotions people read on a weekly basis now have never been published before.
“Bob wanted to make sure the Word of God would continue to impact lives because he knew it is transformational.”
2020: Themed editions
As Covid locked the world down, Debby Gass, president and CEO of The Word For You Today in America, felt moved to produce content to help people through the pandemic.
“She launched a devotional called Faith, Hope and Courage which went to millions during Covid,” says David.
UCB had long published themed editions in the UK and so produced their own version of this.
Today, the organisation continues to help people during other challenging situations by producing targeted Bible teaching on other key issues.
“We have themed Word for Today on topics like grief, unemployment and fear,” David says.
2023: Tools for evangelism
UCB was keen to create an evangelistic version of Word for Today so, last March, ‘Word for Today – Just For You’ was launched.
“We take the great themes of the gospel – salvation, the cross, redemption – and present them in a 30-day devotional,” explains Mark Oakes, UCB UK’s Director of Communications.
It’s a great and timeless resource, he adds, for anyone who finds themselves tongue-tied answering questions about faith.
From an initial print-run of 150,000 copies just 20,000 are left, indicating that churches are using the devotional widely as an evangelistic tool.
June 2024: Celebrating 30 years!
On 29 June at the Bethel Convention Centre in Birmingham, UCB will gather thousands of Word for Today supporters together to celebrate its 30-year milestone.
Debby Gass and David L’Herroux will head up the list of speakers, Mark will lead a 150-strong choir, and UCB radio will broadcast onsite.
“We can’t have all the history we have without stopping and giving glory to God for it!” says David.
September 2024: Going digital
UCB is getting set to launch the latest iteration of Word for Today: a downloadable app for 10 to 14-year-olds.
“It’s a simple app that offers kids existing content from Word for Today, storyboarded into short videos,” says Mark.
As we spoke to UCB, 20 videos had already been produced and the team were busy recruiting volunteers to create more.
It’s a fitting way for the 30-year-old resource to bless even more people in future.
If you would like Word for Today for your church you can order up to 70 copies free, postage paid. Just get in touch with UCB at www.ucb.co.uk/signup
To reserve seats at UCB’s 30th anniversary celebration, visit www.ucb.co.uk/30years.