On World Radio Day, TWR Praises God for Amazing Technology
[Estimated reading time: 5 minutes]
Check in with TWR at practically any time of the year and you’ll find that we’re investing significantly in our global radio network.
In the past year, for example, the media ministry has completed a major upgrade of a transmitter to provide better AM coverage for the Persian-speaking world; is continuing the restoration of its 300-foot towers on Guam; and is now preparing to install a generator at the Eswatini station to keep broadcasting even during power outages. These projects are made possible only through the generosity of a growing band of missions-minded supporters.
So, why is investing in radio so essential to us as we strive to reach the world for Christ? Because we know UNESCO is right when it says on the website promoting World Radio Day 2025 that “at the global level, radio remains the most widely consumed medium.” Even though TWR is vigorously expanding into many other forms of digital media, radio has been at the core of the ministry's strategy since its founding and remains a vital tool for sharing the gospel with the thousands of unreached people groups.
According to the U.N.’s World Radio Day webpage, “Radio is a low-cost medium specifically suited to reaching remote communities and vulnerable people, offering a platform to intervene in the public debate, irrespective of people’s educational level. It also plays a crucial role in emergency communication and disaster relief. Radio is uniquely positioned to bring communities together and foster positive dialogue for change. By listening to their audiences and responding to their needs, radio services provide the diversity of views and voices needed to address the challenges we all face.”
Most of these strengths have been reflected across seven decades of TWR operations. With a multinational team of workers, partners and volunteers doing ministry from the Americas to Mongolia to Zimbabwe, TWR broadcasts multilingual gospel programs to a potential listening audience of 4 billion people.
Radio’s Strengths Affect Lives
When natural and man-made disasters strike, such as the devastating earthquakes in Türkiye and Syria two years ago, the ministry endeavors to respond with special programming tailored for the survivors. In areas with little access to biblical teaching and worship, radio can provide a spiritual lifeline.
“My family and I love this radio ministry,” a listener in Ethiopia wrote. “I understand that the ministry is very important for people who are living in the remote areas, because in many areas, the listeners have no congregation in which to worship God, and to have fellowship with God, they have only this radio program to hear the Word of God.”
Typically inexpensive to receive and easy to understand even for those with little education, radio can have a huge impact on marginalized lives.
“Through Women of Hope, I not only find strength but have also been given the chance to learn to read and write through TWR Nepal’s literacy classes,” a prison inmate in Nepal said. “It was a dream I thought I had left behind, but now, step by step, I am becoming literate. These skills are helping me feel more confident, and I look forward to putting them to use when I rejoin society.”
Where information is severely restricted, radio and other media can overcome political and cultural barriers.
“It was through your programs that I accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior,” a listener in Türkiye wrote in an email. “I had to hide it because I was a civil servant. You have helped me a lot in knowing Jesus Christ and growing as a believer. I used to read the Bible regularly in secret, but your sermons opened my mind to understand the teachings of Jesus Christ.”
Although most TWR programs are geared toward sharing the gospel, discipling believers and studying the Bible, others offer practical advice on subjects such as farming, leadership, conflict resolution and health.
“I am a Muslim and listen to the Dr. Luke program,” a listener said in a phone call. “I like him a lot. The program gives me a lot of knowledge about how to protect myself against viruses. Today, thanks to what I learned from the program, I give advice to people around me and encourage them to go to health centers if they have a problem, because health is not something to be neglected.”
Radio’s More Than Background Noise for Student
On this 14th World Radio Day, TWR joins in celebrating the countless ways this technology has been put to great use. Most of all, we thank the Lord for entrusting us with this powerful medium to speak hope to the world. As evidenced in this report from a 10th-grader in Nepal, who makes it a habit to listen to TWR programming while studying, messages over the airwaves can be life-transforming.
“I find comfort in the prayers shared during the program and have even started praying along with them when they invite us to join in,” the youth said. “Gradually, my thoughts and behavior began to change. My mindset, actions, and attitude toward life shifted and toward the Word of God. I now feel a new strength within me, knowing that God is with me, guiding me every step of the way. God has been blessing my studies and my memory power as well.”
