Pioneer
Bible quizzing had been a part of Assemblies of God Christian Education in the US, which involved students memorizing portions of the New Testament and answering questions based on the Scripture portions. George Edgerly, an ordained minister with the Assemblies of God, was a significant force in the creation of Junior Bible Quiz in 1975. He authored the Junior Bible Quiz Fact-Pak.
Passion
Originally from Hyderabad, Rev. Andrew Devarapalli and his family love their motherland, India. God placed in their hearts a passion to introduce JBQ to children in India, so they know the Bible in their hearts and minds. Knowledge itself is not enough, but this family desires that the Bible will transform the children, and they will live to become good citizens in society, showing Jesus’s love in words and deeds.
Introduction
A divine connection led this family to Rev. Thimothi Rao Motupalli, General Superintendent, Telugu District, SIAG. With his support and encouragement, JBQ’s initial translation and launch took place in October 2022. Rev. David Livingston worked on the Telugu translation. Its full implementation began in July 2024.
Vision Expands
Afterwards, God connected the Devarapalli family with Rev. Paul Thangiah, General Superintendent, All India Assemblies of God. It was also his vision to expand JBQ across India in order to instill Biblical values in the next generation. The Devarapalli family is grateful for his tremendous support to impress the Word of God upon the children of India’s churches.
Launch
Next, God connected the Devarapalli family with Rev. Patterson Lamech, Children’s Director of All India Assemblies of God, in November 2024, under the direction of Rev. Paul Thangiah. With Rev. Patterson Lamech, work has been going on to translate JBQ into additional Indian languages, beginning with Hindi, Kannada, and Zomi. These JBQ translations were launched at the All India AG Conference in June 2025, and JBQ India itself was launched then as well.
