Operation Seed & Scripture

Overview:
Within many communities, mine included, you can find Little Free Library book exchanges. If you are unfamiliar, it is a simple concept. The Little Free Library is a community driven nonprofit whose mission is to build free book sharing boxes. These small outdoor libraries let people take a book and share a book. With over 200,000 locations in 128 countries and more than 500 million books shared, their goal is to inspire readers, build community, and expand access to books worldwide. You have probably seen these locally but might not have known their purpose. One of my friend’s daughters even thought they were giant birdhouses for multiple birds or maybe one big bird, which is adorable. Watch this video for an explanation of how The Little Free Library works.

I walk past one of these daily when taking my dog for his morning constitutional and I usually peek inside to see what the inventory looks like. While these boxes are for everyone, they tend to cater to children, teens, and younger adults. On my walk the other day I noticed someone had placed a Bible inside, and by my second lap someone had already taken it. I thought what a wonderful idea. There was a cornucopia of books ranging from sci-fi to horror to those slightly risqué Fabio covered romance novels, but nothing scriptural, nothing to feed the soul or even plant the seed of God’s word.

The next day, when I passed it again, I left a few of my ABC’s of Salvation gift cards (front side / back side). It is a simple way to share the message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ in a passive, digestible way. Over the course of about two weeks the cards slowly disappeared until none were left. One here, a few there, but it was clear people were organically taking them. Even better, the website linked via the QR code on the card started getting more traffic. No doubt from the cards I left. Once again I thought, we could be doing more, but how.

My first instinct was to buy a bunch of Bibles and use the Little Free Library on-line locator to find more boxes in my area and place Bibles in each. But remembering myself as a young teen, if someone had handed me a Bible back then, I probably would have ignored it or felt overwhelmed and intimidated at the idea of reading the whole Bible. Back then that would have felt like a daunting project. So I prayed on it and looked for a middle ground. I wanted to share the Gospel, offer more scripture than a simple card, but still keep it approachable. That is when I remembered a simple little book a Christian brother Watchman River introduced to me through his podcast called “God’s Promises for Your Every Need.”

If you are not familiar with it, it is fantastic. It is a small paperback that fits in your pocket, car, or bag, filled with Bible verses organized by subject. Feeling confused and want to know what the Bible says about it? Open the book, check the table of contents, find “What to do when you feel” and then “Confused,” go to page 98, and there you will find several pages of verses addressing that very thing. It is simple, practical, and helpful for anyone. Check out these sample pages.

This book is a subtle way to introduce scripture. It is discreet, not confrontational, and very approachable. I realized it needed one more thing, a simple clean decal placed on the inside of the last page using the ABC’s of Salvation design from the gift cards. The decal directs people to a website that clearly explains the gift of grace. That way, when they eventually reach the last page, they will find this decal get the Gospel, hear the message of grace, and be able to use the QR code to access even more, including a very simple video explaining grace from my Pastor Charlie Garrett of The Superior Word Church in Sarasota, Florida.

With that in mind, I already sourced a manufacturer to buy the books in bulk, and my sticker person from my music industry marketing days is ready to go for the inside cover decal.

This brings me to the actual mission of Operation Seed & Scripture. I intend to purchase a bulk quantity of “God’s Promises for Your Every Need” and then add the ABC’s of Salvation insert decal to the inside of each book. Then, using the Little Free Library on-line locator, I will find as many boxes as I can within roughly an hour of my home in Montgomery County, PA and begin placing the books. I also spoke to a good friend and brother in Christ who lives in Philadelphia, and he committed to doing the same in his area.

This is where we need some help. I am happy to handle the logistics, the manufacturing, assembling each book by hand, planning the drop offs, placing one or two books in each location, and following up. None of that is an issue. The only challenge is covering the cost. That is why I set up this webpage, to give people who believe in this idea a way to help fund the project if they feel led to do so.

The wholesaler I found priced the first order at 100 books, which I feel is a realistic starting point. If this turns out to be successful and we want to continue, we will expand the operation. Here is what is needed for wave 1:

  • Operation Seed & Scripture Wave 1 Total Cost: $ 529.15

To keep things simple, the easiest way to receive donations is through PayPal. Please keep in mind PayPal takes a small fee from each transaction, so consider that when giving. This felt much easier than setting up a GiveSendGo or GoFundMe, so hopefully this works. I will post a running total at the bottom showing how much has been given and how much we still need.

As of 11/24/2025:
• Goal Needed: $529.15
• Amount given: $100.00
• Amount Still Needed: $429.15

If you’d like to help, you can donate securely via PayPal using the donate button below or the QR Code, and thank you!