World’s longest-running devotional marks 90 years of publication
“The Upper Room,” the longest-running daily devotional in the world, celebrates its 90th year of publishing stories of faith and prayer in 2025.
When Francis Craig approached her pastor, Dr. Paul Korn, with an idea for a regularly published prayer guide filled with stories and scripture, she never imagined the global impact to come. With more than 1.5 billion copies printed to date, the devotional is now available in more than 30 languages across 100 countries, in multiple formats.
“The Upper Room’ was created as a gift for the worldwide church from day one — a simple, effective tool for uniting Christians in daily prayer and scripture,” said the Rev. Jeffrey Campbell, the interim publisher. “While culture has shifted and evolved since the devotional was launched in 1935, the eternal truths of scripture continue to guide and empower lives around the world. The word of God has no boundaries.”
From its earliest days, editors ensured that each issue had three key features — it would fit in a pocket or purse; it would include strong international representation among its contributors; and it would be an ecumenical gift to the church worldwide. Its content has been published in many different formats through the years, expanding its impact and reach. Published formats have included:
• 1935: “The Upper Room” debuts in print
• 1938: Spanish edition launched — the longest-running non-English edition
• 1946: Radio edition begins broadcasting
• 1958: “Talking books” (LP vinyl records) are launched, transitioning to cassette tapes in the 1970s and CDs in the 1990s
• 1974: Large-print edition debuted
• 1997: Website and email versions became available
• 2001: MP3 audio edition is introduced
• 2016: “The Upper Room” app is launched for Apple and Android devices
• 2024: The latest non-English edition, Marathi, launched
“Throughout the years, the purpose and ministry of the daily devotional guide have not changed,” said Lindsay Gray, executive director of The Upper Room Editions. “With each issue, we offer people around the globe a way to connect with God every day by sharing presence in the world. The faithfulness and generosity of generations of` Upper Room readers have sustained this ministry from the first issue until now.”
–Alan Goforth
