CHARLOTTE, NC– It’s not uncommon to have trouble getting into the “Christmas spirit,” and that may especially be the case in 2020. John Piper understands. In a recent video on Desiring God, Piper offers encouragement and the recommendation that The Christmas We Didn’t Expect by David Mathis is a wonderful resource for renewing awe and wonder during Advent (The Good Book Company, October 2020).

Along with Piper’s recommendation, several other videos connected to this Advent devotional are inspiring Christians to adore Jesus—the One who came to save us and make our futures certain.

Watch now:

John Piper’s Advent devotional recommendation– Learn why this book is meaningful to John Piper.

David Mathis and Desiring God’s invitation to readers– An invitation to walk the path from Nazareth to Bethlehem, and from Galilee to Jerusalem, in all its unexpected twists and turns.

The story behind the devotional– Discover the heart of this book and its structure.

A reading of the poem “In The Bleak Midwinter”– Listen as David Mathis reads a Christmas poem inspiring awe of Christ.

For media inquiries and access to promotional assets, contact publicity@thegoodbook.com.

About the author: David Mathis serves as a senior teacher and executive editor at Desiring God, and is a pastor at Cities Church in St. Paul. Mathis currently resides in Minneapolis with his wife and four children.

About The Good Book Company: Founded in 1991, The Good Book Company (TGBC) is an international Christian publisher. Their Bible studies, books, devotionals, videos, tracts, evangelistic courses, and training materials are used throughout the English-speaking world, and in translation in over 35 languages worldwide. Everyone at TGBC is passionate about the Lord Jesus, His word, His church, and His gospel of grace. They create and publish biblical, relevant, and accessible resources that will encourage Christians to keep going, keep growing, and keep sharing their faith.

THE POWER OF A PRAYING^® SERIES AUTHOR STORMIE OMARTIAN ACCEPTS AWARD ON NOVEMBER 18

EUGENE, Ore. (Nov. 18, 2020) – Stormie Omartian is only the third recipient to receive the prestigious Pinnacle Award presented by the Evangelical Christian Publishing Association. This high honor recognizes the impact of Omartian’s The Power of a Praying^® (Harvest House Publishers) series on the Christian publishing industry and society as a whole. Omartian’s series, which features 20 books and more than 30 million copies sold, focuses readers’ attention on talking to God regularly.

On May 5, the ECPA first announced that Omartian would receive the award at their annual Leadership Summit gathering. Stormie then delivered a special prayer thanking God for the opportunity each ECPA author and publisher has to serve God by sharing the truth of Jesus through their work. Omartian asked God to enable each author to continue writing books that awaken people to His miraculous and life-saving power.

“Stormie’s books on prayer have had an enormous impact on the way Christians relate to God and to each other,” said ECPA president Stan Jantz. “I’m not exaggerating when I say her books have spawned a global movement of prayer.”

Stormie’s emphasis on the importance of prayer has encouraged millions of people throughout the years at conferences, over the airwaves, and in their homes.

“Stormie is so deserving of this high praise and honor,” said Harvest House Publishers president Bob Hawkins. “Her prayerfully-crafted messages of biblical hope are both timely and timeless. Stormie’s passion for leading readers to know Jesus as the true source of real hope is inspiring to all. We are incredibly grateful to have worked with her now for over 35 years!”

Stan Jantz presented the Pinnacle Award to Stormie on November 18, 2020, at the conclusion of C-Suite Connect via Zoom. Omartian’s presentation was followed by a tribute video featuring messages from her husband and publisher, including LaRae Weikert, who worked alongside Stormie for over three decades.

About Stormie Omartian: Stormie Omartian is an award-winning, bestselling author and speaker whose books have sold more than 40 million copies worldwide. The Power of a Praying^® series includes The Power of a Praying^® Wife, The Power of a Praying^® Husband, The Power of a Praying^® Woman, The Power of a Praying^® Parent, The Power of Praying^® for Your Adult Children, and The Power of a Praying^® Grandparent. She is also the author of Just Enough Light for the Step I’m On; Lead Me, Holy

Spirit; Prayer Warrior; and Out of Darkness, which is her personal journey out of the devastating darkness of the first 28 years of her life until she found Everlasting Light in her Lord and Savior, Jesus. Her new release is The Power of Prayer^TM to Enrich Your Marriage (February 2, 2021). Stormie personally connects with readers and listeners by sharing her experiences and lessons from the Bible, illustrating how God transforms lives when we learn to pray and trust in Him. Stormie and her husband, Michael, have been married more than 47 years and have two married children and two granddaughters.

About Harvest House Publishers: Harvest House Publishers, a Christian publishing company based in Eugene, Oregon, publishes more than100 books per year and carries a strong backlist offering nearly 1,700 titles. Over 145 million Harvest House books have been sold worldwide through diverse distribution channels, and additional tens of millions have sold in over 75 different languages. For more information, visit www.HarvestHousePublishers.com.

About the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association (ECPA): The Evangelical Christian Publishers Association is an international nonprofit trade organization comprised of member companies that are involved in the publishing and distribution of Christian content worldwide. Since 1974, ECPA has strengthened Christian publishing by building networking, information, and advocacy opportunities within the industry and throughout multiple channels so that our members can more effectively produce and deliver transformational Christian content.

Media Contact: Jana Burson, jana@epic.inc  615-429-3900

(Nashville, Tenn.) November 17, 2020—HarperCollins Christian Publishing (HCCP) and Urban Ministries Incorporated (UMI) today announced a partnership for two of the most well-known organizations in the Christian publishing industry. The two companies have entered a co-publication and co-distribution partnership that will collectively expand resources into new and existing markets. Through this partnership, UMI will help HCCP identify, publish and promote prominent and emerging voices; and distribute more resources, relevant to UMI’s loyal customer-base of African American, and African churches, denominations, and consumers.  Together, the companies will form new connections with ministry organizations, churches, and Christian readers who engage with the Bible and study God’s Word.

UMI is one of the nation’s oldest and most well-known Christian resource providers to the African American church, serving more than 40,000 churches over its fifty-year history with books, curriculum, small group study resources and Vacation Bible School products. HCCP is the world’s largest Christian book and Bible publisher, comprising the Thomas Nelson and Zondervan publishing groups. With nearly 300 years of publishing multiple book genres, Bible translations, curriculum-based resources, and online communities selling content in a variety of formats, HCCP has the largest global distribution network for faith-based materials.

“We are very excited to begin our work with the UMI team,” said Mark Schoenwald, president and CEO of HarperCollins Christian Publishing. “We have been working together for more than a year on what would be the best way for the two companies to utilize our respective strengths to impact our companies’ missions. UMI has established trusted relationships with church denominations that HCCP has historically underserved. Under this partnership, we know that our books, Bibles, and curriculum will further resonate with the African American community and it is a privilege to partner with UMI to place our God-honoring, bestselling content into the hands of thousands of church congregants across the U.S. Together, we will surpass any milestone that either organization could accomplish separately. We are excited to learn from one another and build something that will have an eternal impact.”

“HarperCollins Christian Publishing is going to be a great partner for UMI, and we are excited to get to work,” said Jeff Wright, CEO of UMI. “Last month, UMI was fortunate to celebrate its fiftieth anniversary, and this agreement signals our dedication to the future.  UMI has a desire to collaborate with companies that share our commitment to the African and African American audience and we want to be a conduit for God’s Word in our community. The resources in HarperCollins Christian Publishing’s catalog provide opportunities for personal growth, biblical study for churches and small-groups, values-based children’s books and Bibles, and so much more that our church and ministry partners will value and utilize. We are encouraged that we are starting our next fifty years in such a monumental way.”

UMI and HCCP are working on multiple integrated projects to kickstart the two-year agreement. In July 2020, the companies created and distributed a contextualized “mag-alog,” to more than 10,000 African American churches and church leaders to showcase books and Bibles published by HCCP that appeal to a more culturally-diverse audience, including an excerpt from Grammy-award winning Christian hip-hop artist and author Lecrae’s most recent book, I Am Restored (Zondervan, October 2020). Customers are able to order any of these resources directly from UMI. As the partnership continues to unfold, the two companies will release new resources into the market.

UMI (Urban Ministries, Inc.) is the largest independent religious media and publishing company serving the African American market. Founded in 1970 in Chicago, IL., by Dr. Melvin E. Banks, Sr., UMI creates positive, transformative analog and digital content based on a biblical worldview that is especially empowering to the African American community. UMI offices are in suburban Chicago. UMI exists to disseminate culture changing, biblically sound content and has tremendous credibility in producing high quality material reaching millions of people throughout the globe.

HarperCollins Christian Publishing: The world’s leading Christian publisher, HarperCollins Christian Publishing Inc., comprises both Thomas Nelson and Zondervan publishing groups.  The Company produces bestselling Bibles, inspirational books, academic resources, curriculum, audio and digital content for the Christian market space.  Also, home to BibleGateway.com, the world’s largest Christian website, FaithGateway.com, StudyGateway.com and ChurchSource.com, online communities dedicated to helping people grow in their faith. HarperCollins Christian Publishing is headquartered in Nashville, TN with additional offices in the U.S. and Mexico.  For more information visit www.HarperCollinsChristian.com.

Contact: Casey Harrell, Senior Director, Corporate Communications, 615.902.1109
casey.harrell@harpercollins.com

WHEATON, Ill.—Crossway is pleased to announce that Gentle and Lowly: The Heart of Christ for Sinners and Sufferers (Crossway, April 2020) has won the 2020 WORLD Magazine Accessible Theology Book of the Year. Megan Hill’s A Place to Belong: Learning to Love the Local Church (Crossway, May 2020) was awarded honorable mention in the same category.

“It’s a great honor for Crossway books to show up in WORLD Magazine’s Accessible Theology Books of the Year list—a category near and dear to the heart of our publishing program,” commends Justin Taylor, Crossway’s executive vice president of book publishing and book publisher. “Dane Ortlund’s Gentle and Lowly is a beautiful book about our beautiful Savior, and we are grateful to see the ways in which God is using it to encourage his weary people with the heart of Christ. WORLD rightly describes Megan Hill’s honorable mention book, A Place to Belong, as ‘a love letter to the Church.’ Has there ever been a better time for an extended meditation on how to love the beautiful place where reconciled sinners can most deeply belong? We give thanks to God for these authors, these works, and the ways in which he is using them in the lives of his people.”

WORLD Magazine’s national editor, Jamie Dean, writes of Gentle and Lowly, “Perhaps a boiled-down way to think about what Ortlund expresses: If we are in Christ, God doesn’t just tolerate us. He welcomes us. He doesn’t only love us. He likes us. That’s what it means to be His friend. Ortlund makes it clear this is only possible because Jesus suffered God’s wrath for sin on the cross. In that way, the book is an uncommon volume that could speak deeply to two very different groups of readers: mature Christians already familiar with God’s grace and non-Christians wondering about a God of both wrath and love.”

In Gentle and Lowly, Ortlund takes readers into the depths of Christ’s very heart for sinners, diving into Bible passages that speak of who Christ is and encouraging readers with the affections of Christ for his people. His longing heart for sinners comforts and sustains readers in their up-and-down lives.

With rich theology and practical direction, Hill’s A Place to Belong invites readers to experience the local church in light of the Bible’s testimony. Considering nine biblical terms for the church—such as beloved, brothers and sisters, saints, and gospel partners—Hill equips Christians to love and serve one another. New Christians and mature believers alike can find learning to love the local church as one of their greatest privileges and highest joys.

Dean writes, “Megan Hill has written a love letter to the church in A Place To Belong. With many Christians separated from public gatherings for weeks or months this year, this book might cause a craving for casserole-laden tables in fellowship halls—not for the pasta salad, but for the feast of fellowship in Christ. Hill reminds readers that in a complex world, God carries out His mission and purpose in simple ways: Ordinary worship by ordinary people gathered in ordinary places.”

WORLD Magazine’s 2020 Books of the Year awards 25 books in five categories that editor in chief Marvin Olasky say “contribute to understanding big controversies and great divides, including creation-evolution battles in science, racial and religious splits in American society, and times of war and revolution in our past.”

Founded in 1938, Crossway is a not-for-profit global Christian publishing ministry that publishes gospel-centered, Bible-based content to honor our Savior and serve his church. Crossway seeks to help people understand the all-encompassing implications of the gospel and the truth of God’s word—for all of life, for all eternity, and for the glory of God alone. Crossway is the global publisher of the ESV® (English Standard Version®) Bible, more than 1,000 Christian books, and an extensive list of gospel literature. For additional information, visit crossway.org.

Contact: Lauren Susanto, lsusanto@crossway.org  crossway.org

 

Experienced Freelancers Offer Help for Working at Home

Grand Rapids, Mich.—Working at home is the new order of the day, but doing so it’s easy. Now four experienced freelance writers, who have each worked at home for years, offer their best advice on navigating this new way to work. The Joy of Working at Home: Embracing the Freedom, Avoiding the Pitfalls ($2.99, Credo) offers a comprehensive look at how to work best at home. The book is available on Kindle.

“This guide offers readers advice on everything from setting up office space to tackling technology, from setting boundaries to keeping mentally healthy,” said Tim Morgan, coauthor and director of the Journalism Certificate Program at Wheaton College (Illinois).

The three other coauthors are Ann-Margret Hovsepian, a Canadian freelance writer and author of Restore My Soul: A Coloring Book Devotional Journey; Ann Byle, author of Christian Publishing 101 and writer for Publishers Weekly who lives in West Michigan; and Randy Petersen, author of more than 50 books who lives in the Philadelphia area. Together the four authors have more than 75 years of experience working at home.

This practical manual comes at the right time as the pandemic forces many to work from home and as the benefits of working from home become evident. Readers will discover:

• Best practices for a useful workspace
• Tools for managing time and tasks
• Advice on staying healthy, professional and productive
• Tips for setting boundaries
• Help for blending work and family

“We can help you navigate working at home because we’ve done so for years and know both the joys and the struggles,” said Byle, who has been a freelance writer for 23 years.

“There is much to be gained by working at home. We want you to embrace the freedom in brings, while avoiding the pitfalls that can hinder your best work,” said Petersen.

For more information, contact Ann Byle at annbyle@gmail.com or 616-389-4436.

CHICAGO, IL— Independent Publishers Group (IPG) is launching several marketing campaigns and sales specials to support bookstores and readers ahead of the holiday shopping season.

“For nearly 50 years, IPG has prided itself on serving and being a part of the independent bookseller and publishing communities,” said Joe Matthews, IPG’s CEO. “This year has not been easy on any of us in the publishing industry, and we are hoping that with these sales and programs we can help readers and bookstores in what will hopefully be the best months of 2020.”

In conjunction with the American Booksellers Association’s (ABA) Indies First and Small Business Saturday campaigns, IPG will be offering a 50% discount on trade titles to booksellers who place orders directly through ipgbook.com or their IPG independent rep, using prom code IPGF20. The special applies to frontlist and backlist titles, and can be used on three separate orders over $100 before the end of the year.

On the direct-to-consumer side, IPG is launching the “Give Books This Holiday Season!” campaign through their website, where a 40% discount is offered on all orders, valid now through December 31, 2020, with promo code IPGHOLIDAY40. This discount is available to orders of any size, on all formats, and across all IPG lines.

Similarly, IPG’s publishing division, comprised of Chicago Review Press and Triumph Books, is offering a 50% discount on all titles through their websites chicagoreviewpress.com and triumphbooks.com, with promo codes SEASONSGREETINGS and HOLIDAYCHEER, respectively. These discounts are across titles and formats, and available now through December 31, 2020.

For ebooks, IPG is running a Holiday Reading Mega Sale across publishers with titles selling for $3.99 and under at major retailers including Barnes and Noble, Kobo, Apple Books, Amazon, and others. These sales are focused on holiday and winter themed titles, cooking, entertaining, crafting, and fiction, and the sales run through December 31, 2020.

About Independent Publishers Group (IPG):  Founded in 1971, IPG was the first organization specifically created for the purpose of marketing titles from independent presses to the book trade. Today, IPG’s wide reach into the book market includes distribution of both print and e-books from a wide array of publishers, digital printing and traditional publishing. With consistent growth year over year, IPG’s success has come from supporting and encouraging the growth of its publishing partners in the United States and worldwide. IPG was acquired by Chicago Review Press in 1987, and this acquisition formed the parent company Chicago Review Press, Inc., which now owns Chicago-based indie publishers Chicago Review Press and Triumph Books.

Contact: Alisse Goldsmith-Wissman, Publicity Manager, 312.337.0747  agoldsmithwissman@ipgbook.com

Nashville, Tenn., November 23, 2020 – Thomas Nelson Publishing today announced Rosie Rivera has signed a one-book contract with W Publishing Group. God Is Your Defender: Learning to Stand After Life Has Knocked You Down will share how Rivera leans on God in the midst of life’s hurts while also grappling with the strong desire for justice. Simultaneously released in Spanish by Grupo Nelson, God Is Your Defender is planned for release in June 2021.

Rivera is represented by Beth Davey of Davey Literary & Media. World rights were acquired.

“Rosie’s life reads like a movie script,” said Stephanie Newton, associate publisher, W Publishing Group. “While she has endured tragedy, heartbreak, success, and love, it is clear that God serves as the central character in her life. W Publishing Group is honored to bring her experiences and learnings to all people who have been hurt and long for peace.”

“At Grupo Nelson, we’re thrilled for the opportunity to work with Rosie Rivera on her next book,” said Cris Garrido, vice president and publisher, Grupo Nelson. “The combination of personal stories and practical Biblical truth will resonate well with her large audience as well as with new ones that will find hope and empowerment.”

Rosie Rivera is an author, entrepreneur, and the testamentary executor of Jenni Rivera Enterprises, as well as an international speaker, author and an influential public figure. Rosie uses her platform to lift up, motivate, and give hope to sexual abuse victims as a survivor and counselor. Rosie has co-hosted the top Spanish morning shows such as Despierta America and Un Nuevo Dia. She cohosts a marriage podcast called The Power of Us on Revolver Podcast with her husband, Abel Flores. The couple live in Lakewood, California, where they raise their three children.

Thomas Nelson is a world leading publisher and provider of Christian content and has been providing readers with quality inspirational product for more than 200 years. As part of HarperCollins Christian Publishing, Inc., the publishing group provides multiple formats of award-winning Bibles, books, gift books, cookbooks, curriculum and digital content, with distribution of its products in more than 100 countries. Thomas Nelson is headquartered in Nashville, TN. For additional information visit www.thomasnelson.com.

Contact: Allison Carter, Director of Publicity, W Publishing, 615-902-2143, Allison.Carter@harpercollins.com

WESTMONT, IL—Jay Y. Kim, author of Analog Church, has signed a contract with InterVarsity Press to release a second book, Analog Christian, in Spring 2022.

Ethan McCarthy, associate editor for IVP, said, “Jay’s first book, Analog Church, was released in March 2020, just as churches across the land were suddenly forced to grapple with its themes in new ways. What’s at stake in our trade-offs between digital and analog forms of church? What has the church lost in its acquiescence to our thoroughly digital culture? What finally makes the church the church? We’re so pleased to partner with Jay again on this new foray into the conversation–a conversation that’s taking on an ever-increasing sense of urgency in these days of isolation and Zoom.”

Kim said, “The digital age is dangerously undoing some of the most critical components of discipleship to Christ. Following Jesus in any particular era of human history has always posed challenges unique to that particular era and its particular cultural moments and mediums. It is no different in the digital age. The moments and technological mediums we’re experiencing and utilizing today have the potential to undo much of the work of Christ in us, if we continue to live unaware and unresponsive.”

In Analog Church Kim asked questions about how the digital age and its values might be undoing critical elements of what it means to be the church. Kim said, “In Analog Christian, a follow-up of sorts, I intend to ask the same question from a discipleship point of view. Specifically, as the digital age moves us toward discontentment, fragility, and foolishness, how are followers of Jesus to respond? What is the theological basis for living in creative resistance to the forces and ethos of our day? How might Christians cultivate contentment, resilience, and wisdom, in practical ways to not only survive but thrive as we navigate our unique moment in history?”

Kim is pastor of teaching and leadership at Vintage Faith Church in Santa Cruz, California. He also serves on the core leadership team of the ReGeneration Project and cohosts the ReGeneration Podcast. He lives in Silicon Valley with his wife and two children.

IN THESE TURBULANT TIMES, JOEL OSTEEN TEACHES HOW TO EMPTY OUT THE NEGATIVE, AND CREATE A LIFE FILLED WITH JOY AND PEACE!

#1 New York Times bestselling author and the Senior Pastor of America’s largest church, Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas, invites readers to let go of the negative and focus on the positive to make room for JOY in his new book, Empty Out the Negative: Make Room for More Joy, Greater Confidence, and New Levels of Influence (FaithWords/Hachette Book Group, November 10, 2020).  More than 10 million viewers watch his weekly inspirational messages through television, and over 60 million people connect with Joel through his digital platforms worldwide

We often go through life without even realizing all of the negative thoughts we have that are weighing us down until we feel paralyzed by Guilt…Resentment…Doubt…Worry. All can take their toll, mentally and physically. Once we allow these things in, they begin taking up all of the space for the good things that should belong there. Imagine your life is like a container. You were created to be filled with joy, peace, confidence, creativity. But if you allow worry, shame, and other negativity in, it pushes out good thoughts.

“The reason some people are not young and strong—I don’t mean just young physically, but young in spirit, vibrant and passionate about life—is because they’re filled with the negative. Worry will make you weak. Living stressed out will make you old, give you

Empty Out the Negative wrinkles, and take your passion. Being bitter, angry, and resentful will shorten your life..” —Joel Osteen, Empty Out the Negative

You control what you think about, what you choose to allow in. Every morning when you wake up, you need to empty out anything negative from the day before. Empty Out the Negative will help you disregard the ridiculing voices in your head and fill your spirit with positivity.

Santa Rosa, CA – Books & Such Literary Management authors were well represented among the select novelists who received Christy Awards during the November 12, 2020 virtual awards event. Of the nine category winners, three were Books & Such authors. Kristy Cambron’s novel, The Painted Castle (represented by agent Rachelle Gardner), received a Christy Award in the Historical Romance category. Robin W. Pearson (represented by agent Cynthia Ruchti) took top honors in the First Novel category for A Long Time Comin’. The evening was capped by the announcement that Books & Such author Amanda Dykes’ Whose Waves These Are (represented by agent Wendy Lawton), was not only a Christy winner in the General Fiction category, but was also named Book of the Year for 2020.

In total, Books & Such Literary Management authors occupied 9 of the 29 finalist positions, which included these winners of Christy Awards.

Book of the Year author Amanda Dykes says, “If I told you the story behind the months leading up to the writing of this book. . . if I told you I was ready to lay down my pen for good, that words would not come. . . that my heart felt too broken to offer anything, and yet God somehow allowed me to be a part of this story by letting that brokenness give way to a story of hope. . . you’d see that ‘impossible is where the miracles happen’ was my anthem. I am grateful beyond words to the ECPA and the Christy Award program for this very deep honor, and pray that it might help this story of healing and redemption—Whose Waves These Are—bolster hearts this year.”

The Christy Award®, named for the celebrated and beloved novel Christy, written by Catherine Marshall, honors excellence in Christian fiction.

Books & Such Literary Management was founded in 1996. The agency’s tagline—Distinguishing Literature—conveys the spirit of the group of six agents. Books & Such’s focus remains on high-quality writing and manuscripts that make important contributions to society’s ongoing conversations.  Books & Such Literary Management