26 January 2026 | Maryland, USA [Gina Wahlen]
Stories are powerful. They inspire, encourage, teach, and connect us. For more than a century, Seventh-day Adventists have been inspired by mission stories from around the world—stories that show how God is working in countless lives and places, and that encourage believers to help share His love through their prayers and mission offerings.
It all began in 1912, when the General Conference (GC) Committee, the forerunner of today’s GC Executive Committee, voted to establish the Thirteenth Sabbath Mission Offering. This “new plan” was introduced in the very first Missions Quarterly, published by the Seventh-day Adventist Foreign Mission Board that same year, during the first quarter of 1912.
“The General Conference Committee has voted to allow us to select the last Sabbath in each quarter as a day when we may donate to a special object,” the announcement read. It explained the GC Treasury Department would “designate, quarter by quarter, the special object to which we may give.”
The publication urged each Sabbath School to adopt a “Dollar Day,” encouraging all members to give one dollar on the thirteenth Sabbath of each quarter, “thus uniting with the other schools in contributing to the special enterprise.”1
The first Thirteenth Sabbath Offering was focused on India and coincided with the arrival of two missionary couples, Elder and Mrs G W Pettit, and Elder and Mrs J M Comer, whose work was to reach the people in the great cities of India.
The First Missions Quarterly
The first Missions Quarterly gave a short introduction to life in the cities of India and a brief overview of the Adventist work there. It contained an appeal from Adventists in India for workers to reach people in the cities, and a joyful report that help was on the way. The publication concluded with the question “What Will Our Sabbath Schools Do?” stating:
“An opportunity is now given to every Sabbath school to help the work just now starting in the cities of India. Remember the date—the thirteenth Sabbath in the present quarter, March 30, 1912…Remember to pray for India as you give.”2
Sabbath school members rallied to the cause, and the first Thirteenth Sabbath Mission Offering yielded US$7,674.33 (a sum equivalent to US$256,322.62 in 2025).
The Missions Quarterlies became a popular feature in Sabbath schools as they presented stories and mission reports from various parts of the world, and offerings increased. The following quarter, the Selukwe Reserve in Africa was featured, yielding a generous offering of $12,680.64. The third quarter featured stories from China, and the fourth quarter focused on South America. In all, offerings for the first year of the Thirteenth Sabbath Mission Offering totalled a remarkable sum of $67,321.003 (equivalent to approximately $2,248,493 in 2025).4
Capturing the Mission Spirit
As the years went by, the Missions Quarterly continued publishing stories from around the world, capturing the spirit and fervour of Adventist mission and reflecting the church’s rich tradition of cultural diversity in its membership and mission. Each issue highlighted a particular mission field and included an update on the progress of gospel work, personal testimonies, the strategy for future work in the area, and how believers at home could help the mission.
Published continuously since 1912, the Missions Quarterly (now Mission) has inspired members around the world through stories of courage and faith, even amid two world wars and other global crises. Over the years, the publication continued to expand and include more material, including photographs and illustrations.
In the second quarter of 1955, a Children’s Edition of the Missions Quarterly was released, carrying stories, poems, songs, and activities specially written for primary-age children. The publication continues today as Children’s Mission.
Mission Spotlight
By 1970, mission storytelling expanded with an audiovisual program titled Mission Spotlight. The concept and production were developed by Oscar Heinrich, who was, at the time, the Communication director of the Southern Union Conference, located in Decatur, Georgia, United States.
From printed pages to digital screens, from early reports in India to stories from every corner of the globe, one message continues to shine through: God is still at work, and His people are still called to share His love.
The program, featuring world mission reports in 8-millimetre films and coloured slides with narration on audio cassette, was piloted in approximately 300 Sabbath Schools in the North American Division.5 The new program was a success, leading to an endorsement at the 1970 General Conference Session held in Atlantic City, New Jersey, in the United States.6
While early editions were distributed with slides and cassette tapes, the program shifted to VHS tapes in the 1980s and DVDs in the 2000s. During its 37-year run as a supporting ministry of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, Mission Spotlight featured Adventist church work in 160 countries and served 3,000 Sabbath Schools in seven world divisions until 2007.7
Today, the mission videos produced by the Office of Adventist Mission at the General Conference are named Mission Spotlight in honour of the programs faithfully produced for so many years by the Heinrich family, and are available free as a high-quality digital download or as DVDs.8
Global Mission and “Inside Stories”
Twenty years after the promotion of Mission Spotlight at the 1970 GC Session, the world church voted at the 1990 GC Session a strategic mission initiative called “Global Strategy,” which was soon renamed “Global Mission,” and an office at the GC was organised to coordinate it. The core purpose of this initiative was, and continues to be, to refocus the church on the unreached and plant new congregations among unentered peoples/areas, especially the 10/40 window. The initiative, which follows Christ’s holistic approach, “has funded projects resulting in thousands of new churches and small groups, many in previously unentered regions, thanks to the support of generous donors.”9
According to Michael Ryan, the first director of the Office of Global Mission, one way the church found to increase mission awareness and giving was to place powerful mission stories within the pages of the Adult Sabbath School Lessons (now known as the Adult Bible Study Guide).10 Branded with the Global Mission logo, the first “Inside Story” weekly mission story series appeared in the Second Quarter, 1994, edition of the Adult Sabbath School Lessons.11 More than 30 years later, the powerful “Inside Story” series within the pages of the Adult Bible Study Guide continues to inspire readers across the globe.
Today, in addition to the Youth and Adult Mission, Children’s Mission, Mission Spotlight, and “Inside Story,” the GC’s Office of Adventist Mission also produces the Mission 360 magazine, featuring inspiring stories about missionaries, Adventist volunteers, Global Mission pioneers, tentmakers, and church planters. In addition, Adventist Mission produces Mission 360 TV, taking viewers inside mission stories to explore the lives of missionaries and people serving God all over the world.
All these resources and more are available free on the Adventist Mission website. The Youth and Adult Mission and Children’s Mission quarterlies are also available on the official General Conference Sabbath School app.
From printed pages to digital screens, from early reports on India to stories from every corner of the globe, one message continues to shine through: God is still at work, and His people are still called to share His love. For more than a century, mission stories have reminded us that we are part of something much larger than ourselves—a worldwide movement proclaiming hope to a waiting world.
1 Missions Quarterly, First Quarter, 1912, pp. 1, 2, https://documents.adventistarchives.org/Periodicals/MissionsQtrly/MQ19120629-V04-01.pdf
2 Ibid., p. 8.
3 Missions Quarterly, Fourth quarter, 1913, p. 23, https://documents.adventistarchives.org/Periodicals/MissionsQtrly/MQ19131227-V04-08.pdf
4 CPI Inflation Calculator, https://www.in2013dollars.com/us/inflation/1912?amount=67321
5 Review and Herald, Oct. 24, 1968, p. 18, https://documents.adventistarchives.org/Periodicals/RH/RH19681024-V145-43.pdf
6 Review and Herald, General Conference Bulletin 9, June 25-July 2, 1970, p. 7, https://documents.adventistarchives.org/Periodicals/GCSessionBulletins/GCB1970-09.pdf
7 R. Steven Norman III, “Celebrating 120 Years: 1901-2021” Southern Tidings, April 2021, p. 9, https://www.southerntidings.com/wp-content/uploads/pdf_archives/2021/Apr21.pdf
8 Rick Kajiura, “Ten Years of the Adventist Mission DVD,” https://am.adventistmission.org/v4n2-18
9 Kayla Ewert, “Global Mission,” Encyclopedia of Seventh-day Adventists, https://encyclopedia.adventist.org/article?id=GI8Z
10 Personal phone interview with Michael Ryan, Sept. 18, 2025
11 Adult Sabbath School Lessons, Second Quarter, 1994, https://documents.adventistarchives.org/SSQ/SS19940401-02.pdf
[Photos: Ben White on Unsplash]
The original version of this article was posted on the Adventist Review website.
