The average US Christian owns nine Bibles. Now one charity is calling for Christians across the US to clear their bookshelves so that their excess Bibles can be sent to Bible-less developing countries.

And two of Christian Resources International's (CRI) Great Crates shipments of Bibles are packed and ready to go to India next week, reports Mission Network News.

CRI's Fred Palmerton said: "They are heading for two different seminaries to be used in their library as well as street evangelising. Typically, [a Great Crate] will have between 2,000 and 4,000 pounds of Bibles."

But as the latest shipments go through the final checks before their departure to India and eagerly awaiting recipients, CRI is warning that the shipments only reveal the greater need for more resources to come in.

Research indicates that the average American Christian owns nine Bibles and is actively in the market for more. Meanwhile, CRI gets more than 250 letters a month from pastors and Christian workers in developing countries whose churches own no Bibles or Christian books.

To fill up this shortfall, CRI has launched 'Operation: Bare Your Bookshelf' which Palmerton sees as an ongoing means of involving the average American Christian in missions work.

The charity is encouraging believers to share their unused Bibles and Christian resources with believers elsewhere.

"We continue to receive more and more requests every month from developing nations needing a seminary book, or a Bible or some Sunday school materials, those kind of devices to teach or to learn. It overwhelms us."