It has been a banner year for Harold L. Senkbeil. This month, The Care of Souls: Cultivating a Pastor’s Heart by Senkbeil received the ECPA 2020 Christian Book award for the Ministry Resources category.

In response to the win, Senkbeil said, “I am humbled that my The Care of Souls garnered a third major book award—this time from the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association. It has been deeply gratifying to see the reception the book is gaining among pastors of many different denominations around the world.”

The Care of Souls has also won awards from Christianity Today and The Gospel Coalition, in the Church / Pastoral Leadership and Ministry book categories, respectively. CT’s reviewer Timothy Paul Jones said that “this book renewed my joy in being a pastor and, every once in a while, traced a tear at the corner of my eye.” Ivan Mesa, Books Editor at The Gospel Coalition, noted that the book will be “a must-read for young pastors for years to come.”

Lexham Press’ editor Todd Hains commented that, “too often Christians see what works in industry and want to try it out in the church. Hal’s book stands in stark contrast. Pastors have work to do but it can’t be done out of their own ingenuity and resources; the Lord God alone will do it by his word. As the Bible says, ‘Neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth.’ I’m so pleased to see evangelicals getting excited about this ancient way of pastoring.”

Senkbeil is the author of several other books with Lexham Press, including Church Leadership and Strategy for the Care of Souls in the Lexham Ministry Guide series, for which he is the General Editor. In addition, his forthcoming book Christ and Calamity: Grace and Gratitude When the Days Are Evil will be released this June.

Senkbeil believes that the need for pastors is greater than ever. “As people struggle to make sense of an increasingly chaotic world, they need pastors grounded in substantive theology and equipped for compassionate care. I believe the turmoil of recent months shows why the rich classic heritage for soul care is so vital.”

The Care of Souls (Lexham Press, June 2019) invites a new generation of pastors to form the godly habits and practical wisdom needed to minister to the hearts and souls of those committed to their care. Find out more about The Care of Souls here.

Lexham Press seeks to increase biblical literacy, thoughtful Christian reflection, and faithful action around the world by publishing a range of Bible study materials, scholarly works, and pastoral resources. For more information, visit lexhampress.com

Contact: Lindsay John Kennedy, Lexham Press Publicist, lindsay@lexhampress.com

Peabody, Massachusetts, May 20, 2020:  Christianbook is honored to have been awarded the 2019 Bizrate Insights Circle of Excellence Platinum Award. Founded in 2000, the Circle of Excellence honors retailers in their network who have earned outstanding ratings from their customers during the previous calendar year – and only the best of the best reach Platinum status.

Bizrate Insights, one of the largest sources of consumer-generated reviews of online retailers in the United States, has announced the winners of its 20^th annual Bizrate Circle of Excellence Award. The distinction recognizes those online retailers within the Bizrate Insights North America Network who have demonstrated outstanding performance, as rated by their customers, throughout a one year period. Winners continuously obtained feedback from their customers throughout the award year and received ratings that are statistically significantly above the Bizrate Insights North America Network average. The ratings are from direct feedback, collected at the point-of-sale and after the delivery of goods, from customers concerning eight key satisfaction indicators – Overall Satisfaction, Product Selection, Check-out, Ease of Finding Products, Repurchase Intent, Product Met Expectations, Customer Support and Satisfaction, and On-Time Delivery. Christianbook is among an elite group of online retailers who have achieved Platinum status multiple times, this being the 19^th Platinum Award for the company.

“We’re thrilled to receive this award, and we’re extremely grateful for our customers and for their continued feedback and support. The comments we receive from Bizrate Insights are a valuable resource for improving our overall customer experience,” said Ray Hendrickson, President/CEO of Christianbook. “This Circle of Excellence Award demonstrates our commitment to delivering the highest level of customer service, and the fact that we’ve been able to achieve Platinum level for 19 of the 20 years that this award has been presented is a tribute to our great staff and the exceptional service they provide to our customers on a daily basis.”

About Christianbook:  From its humble beginnings in 1978, operating out of mom and dad’s home in Lynn, Massachusetts, and carrying only a few academic titles at discounted prices, Christianbook has grown to become the world’s largest seller of Christian products. Through its online presence, Christianbook.com, and 65 unique catalogs, the company offers the lowest possible prices and maintains an inventory exceeding 500,000 items. The wide selection includes books, Bibles, homeschool resources, toys and games, gifts, academic resources, church supplies, DVDs and music. Christianbook.com provides additional information on its website, including author profiles and interviews, detailed product descriptions and excerpts, music clips, articles, reviews, specialized search engines, and video content. The company provides not only great value but also exceptional customer service and support. In addition to receiving the Bizrate Circle of Excellence Platinum Award for 19 years, Christianbook is also a nine-time recipient of the Boston Globe’s Top Places to Work award. The company currently employs a staff of over 550 employees, and operates out of a 370,000SF facility located in Peabody, Massachusetts, that houses our distribution center, full-service call center, and corporate offices. Christianbook is committed to the spreading of the gospel both through the products we sell each day and in our philanthropic support of missions around the globe. In particular, we seek to have an exponential impact on the kingdom by equipping overseas pastors and Bible school students, who then have a lifetime of impact in their ministries. We are also a proud supporter of the City of Peabody and many local charities.
http://www.christianbook.com

Contact: Bridget Timmins at btimmins@christianbook.com

[NASHVILLE, TENN., May 26, 2020—] B&H Publishing is proud to announce its acquisition of songwriter, performer and record producer Sandra McCracken for her first book.

McCracken’s book, tentatively set for publication in September 2021, will be a collection of thoughts and essays of how we can experience God’s comfort in all circumstances through Scripture, story and gospel imagination.

A dynamic writer, McCracken has had many of her songs, including “We Will Feast In The House Of Zion” and “Thy Mercy My God,” to settle into regular rotation in Christian worship services internationally. Her songs have also been featured on ABC’s “Grey’s Anatomy” and recorded by All Sons And Daughters, Porters Gate, Audrey Assad, Josh Garrels and more. Further, she is a founding member of Indelible Grace Music and Rain For Roots (children’s music) and has been a guest writer for Art House America, She Reads Truth, The Gospel Coalition, “Christianity Today,” “RELEVANT Magazine” and other national outlets.

“For years, Sandra McCracken has been writing beautiful, encouraging songs filled with Scripture that point people to Jesus,” said Taylor Combs, Associate Publisher of Christian Living and Leadership. “She is one of the most creative and thoughtful lyricists in Christian music, and we can’t wait to see how her writing develops into her first book.”

McCracken’s contract was negotiated by Chris DeTray at Reservoir Management and Lynn Morrow, with worldwide rights.

For more information, visit bhpublishing.com.

B&H Publishing Group, an imprint of LifeWay Christian Resources, is a team of mission minded people with a passion for taking God’s Word to the world. Because we believe Every Word Matters® we seek to provide intentional, Bible-centered content that positively impacts the hearts and minds of people, inspiring them to build a lifelong relationship with Jesus Christ. Among our print and digital releases for the trade, church and academic markets, titles include “The New York Times” No. 1 bestsellers “The Love Dare” and “The Vow,” No. 1 CBA bestseller “I Am a Church Member,” as well as the newly-revised Christian Standard Bible (CSB) version.

Carol Stream, IL. May 11, 2020 – Christianity Today is calling for submissions for the 2021 Christianity Today Book Awards. The CT Book Awards, along with our “Beautiful Orthodoxy” Book of the Year, will be announced in December at ChristianityToday.com. Winners will be featured prominently in the January/February 2021 issue of CT and widely promoted in CT newsletters and on the site. Publishers of the winning books will also have the opportunity to participate in a promotion organized by CT’s marketing team.

Awards Categories:

1. Apologetics/Evangelism
2. Biblical Studies
3. Children and Youth
4. Christian Living/Discipleship
5. The Church/Pastoral Leadership
6. Culture and the Arts
7. Fiction
8. History/Biography
9. Missions/The Global Church
10. Politics and Public Life
11. Spiritual Formation
12. Theology/Ethics
13. CT Women*
14. The “Beautiful Orthodoxy” Book of the Year*

To be eligible for nomination, a book must be published between November 1, 2019 and October 31, 2020. CT is looking for scholarly and popular-level works, and everything in between. A diverse panel of scholars, pastors, and other informed readers will evaluate the books. Detailed instructions for how to submit your nomination can be found online at MoreCT.com/2021Nomination

*CT Women and Beautiful Orthodoxy are special add-on categories. Books nominated in these categories must have first been nominated in one of the other main categories. (They will be eligible to win more than once.)

Deadline:  The deadline for submitting nominations is Wednesday, August 5, 2020.
Please read complete submission instructions at MoreCT.com/2021Nomination

Christianity Today is a nonprofit, global media ministry centered on Beautiful Orthodoxy—strengthening the church by richly communicating the breadth of the true, good, and beautiful gospel. Reaching over five million people monthly with various digital and print resources, the ministry equips Christians to renew their minds, serve the church, and create culture to the glory of God.

Contact: Leanne Snavely, 630-260-6200 x7214 lsnavely@christianitytoday.com

WESTMONT, IL—InterVarsity Press was pleased to have four titles and one book cover selected for the 2020 Word Awards Shortlist. These honors are given out by the Word Guild each year to encourage the pursuit of excellence in writing and to help to raise the profile of Canadian writers who are Christian. The winners in each category will be announced at an online event on June 13.

The 2019 IVP books that were selected for the Word Guild short lists in the following categories include: 

Academic

The Gospel According to Eve: A History of Women’s Interpretation by Amanda W. Benckhuysen

Timothy Larsen, McManis Professor of Christian Thought at Wheaton College, said “Not only is The Gospel According to Eve a brilliant work of historical recovery, but it also helps Christians today to reflect on issues such as media representations of women, the education of girls, marriage, childrearing, social reform, and public ministry. This book is good news for believers, whether they are men or women.”

The Victory of the Cross: Salvation in Eastern Orthodoxy by James R. Payton Jr.

How can Christians claim that the death of Jesus Christ on the cross is a victory? Here James Payton, a Western Christian with a sympathetic ear for Eastern Orthodoxy, explores the Orthodox doctrine of salvation. Payton was also recognized by the Word Guild for three previous books: Light from the Christian East, Getting the Reformation Wrong, and A Patristic Treasury.

Apologetics/Evangelism

Surprised by Paradox: The Promise of “And” in an Either-Or World by Jen Pollock Michel

With signature candor and depth, Jen Pollock Michel helps readers imagine a Christian faith open to mystery. While there are certainties in Christian faith, at the heart of the Christian story is also paradox. Jesus invites us to abandon the polarities of either and or in order to embrace the difficult, wondrous dissonance of and. She writes, “As soon as we think we have God figured out, we will have ceased to worship him as he is.”

Surprised by Paradox was also one of four titles to make the Word Guild’s short list for the Best Book Cover Award. The design for this book was created by IVP’s art director, David Fassett.

Biblical Studies

Bloody, Brutal, and Barbaric?:  Wrestling with Troubling War Texts by William J. Webb and Gordon K. Oeste

“William Webb and Gordon Oeste have written a courageous book dealing with some of the most challenging ethical questions about war, rape, and violence in the Old Testament,” said Michael F. Bird, lecturer in theology at Ridley College in Melbourne, Australia. “They approach it with ethical sensitivity and a high regard for biblical authority, explaining ancient war practices and advocating what I regard as a convincing thesis about an incremental redemptive ethic. A landmark publication on a perplexing subject!” 

For a complete list of IVP award winners visit ivpress.com/award-winners.

Contact: Krista Clayton | 630.734.4013 | kclayton@ivpress.com

THE CHURCH, COVID-19, AND WHAT HAPPENS NEXT FOR CHRISTIAN PUBLISHERS

Recently ECPA president Stan Jantz had a conversation with Devin Maddox, Trade Group Publisher for B&H Publishing Group. Stan asked Devin about the ways publishers can serve pastors and the church during the current crisis, as well as in the next few months and years when the world emerges from the pandemic. 

SJ: What are the two or three critical challenges facing the church right now?

DM: When I think of churches, I think about church members first. I think we—publishers—are tempted to think of pastors (only) when we think of churches, and for good reason. Pastors are motivated readers and dedicated to church service. So, I will offer one critical challenge for pastors, and one critical challenge facing church members.

Church Members: I think loneliness is the through line for many challenges church members are facing. Younger, older, and middle-aged church members are disconnected from community, and every other challenge in their life is magnified by loneliness/disconnection.

Pastors: Pastors always face the same challenges their membership faces, but they do so with the burden of putting everyone else first. They are those who must figure out when and how to meet (safely) in the future. Yet, they too are lonely and struggling. Nobody is calling to check on how the pastor is doing in quarantine, and many will burn out without proper soul care. 

SJ: As the country emerges from the pandemic, what role will churches play in helping people regain their emotional, financial, and spiritual footing?

DM: The church is the spiritual infrastructure of every community, city, and nation. Many churches are being refined right now by the pressure of the moment and will be proven healthier on the other side. Other churches, sadly, will not make it–not for financial reasons (only), but because there was not much spiritual life to nurture during the pandemic in the first place. I predict a spiritual baby boom on the other side of the pandemic, where healthy churches will see a multiplying effect when we can all gather again. Initially, there will be a surge in attendance due to pent up demand. Appetite for things like VBS, in-person Bible study, and student ministry activities will be at an all-time high. Churches that are ready to meet that demand will benefit (as will their members, and their visitors). 

SJ: You have a seminary degree and are nearing completion of your PhD. As a publisher with a unique background and perspective on the church, what are you doing right now to help the church?

DM: Stan, we all know PhDs are “doctors that can’t actually help anybody.” All kidding aside, I have divided my time in five areas. 1) I am continuing to lead a small group at our church (a two year old plant that moved into permanent space in January), 2) I have been working outside in our garden/yard almost every day (so far, repaired our deck, built a treehouse, installed a basketball goal), 3) run at least 1 mile+ every day, regardless of weather, 4) worked at B&H, and 5) led a Life Together Zoom book club with members from Canada, NYC, Texas, Michigan, and Kentucky (my PhD studies have centered on Dietrich Bonhoeffer–our first meeting was “Zoom-bombed” by literal Nazis who seized our meeting link, and drew swastikas all over the screen).

SJ: You have a heart for pastors. What do pastors need most from publishers in the next year?

DM: I do not think pastors need publishers to innovate the intellectual content of Christianity. Rather, I do think pastors need publishers to innovate in the areas of content delivery, new author voices, and visual presentation.

We have seen a generation of bestsellers that have delivered solid content on felt needs that are not going away in the next generation (marriage, parenting, prayer, discipleship, preaching, etc.), even if the bestselling authors retire. The next generation will not, however, rely on their parents’ spiritual mentors alone. The opportunity for publishers is to help pastors by raising up new voices this generation can claim as their own, that can deliver compelling content on the same felt needs.

One more thing, though: since this generation is marked by “the rise of the nones,” I think the starting point for felt needs is much further back than previous generations. In the next year, we need to think seriously about laying spiritual foundations that are sturdy enough to weather moments like the one we are in. We need to ask and answer the most basic questions: “Why church attendance?”; “Is church membership necessary?”; “How should I pray?”; “How can I read the Bible on my own?”; “Is the God of the Bible mean/angry?” etc. I cannot overstate what a major opportunity this type of resource is for churches reaching the next generation. 

SJ: During the pandemic, LifeWay.com has been reaching a lot of readers for B&H and a host of other ECPA publishers. What accounts for the effectiveness of this online store?

DM: For LifeWay, many key factors led to a season of significant growth. First, LifeWay.com has been building momentum after closing brick-and-mortar stores before the pandemic, recovering loyal customers who began migrating to a different way of shopping with LifeWay over the last year. The dot com channel was increasing in unique customer traffic, transactions, and revenue every month. However, during the pandemic, the channel saw exponential growth. The number one factor for success was whether or not LifeWay’s distribution center could safely remain open during the pandemic. Fortunately, the DC is located in a part of the country that was not hit as hard as other places, so the men and women that work there were able to continue to work safely and uninterrupted. At the same time–unfortunately for all of us–almost every brick and mortar retailer shut down, and almost every online retailer could no longer safely operate without significant disruption (or had to deprioritize books in favor of PPE). Hopefully, all ECPA publishers, including B&H, will see increased sales opportunities for the industry on LifeWay.com post-pandemic, and see the marketplace open back up, and be able to safely stay open in the near future.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (May 13, 2020) – Today, Thomas Nelson announced that Live, by Sadie Robertson, has surpassed more than 100,000 copies sold.

Well-known dive industry professional author Jon Coon has released his latest novel Ghost River. This highly anticipated book promises to give fiction readers a crime-thrilling, suspenseful and authentic summer read.

Ghost River is the thrilling supernatural story of badly constructed bridges based on actual events of collapsed bridges. It follows the impact of an underwater criminal investigator whose partner is murdered and whose life is threatened when he discovers a multistate conspiracy responsible for bridge failures and several deaths.

“One of America’s top writers of modern sea adventures,” wrote Clive Cussler, New York Times best-selling fiction author.

An article in the 2014 Journal of Rock Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering reported, “In the last thirty years over six hundred bridges have collapsed or failed due to scour (erosion) problems.” A brief survey of those failures reveals faulty engineering and poor construction played major roles in several of those failures, resulting in many deaths. Because of those deaths, states were forced to create bridge inspection teams, who discovered numerous bridges desperately in need of repair. The discoveries made by those dive teams in turn saved many lives.

Public safety and police diving, for many years, had the highest number of fatalities of any technical or commercial aspect of diving. Diving frequently under extremely adverse conditions and all too often without proper comprehensive training, many divers were lost not because of the complexity of the missions or the adversity of the environment but because of the lack of basic dive skills.

Ghost River was written as a tribute to the very few, highly competent instructors who made it their life’s calling to provide the training necessary to keep those divers alive. The book does so by accurately describing the demands of the job and the risks divers may face all while providing an exciting story full of twists and turns from beginning to end.

Senior members of the dive community will fondly remember the adventures of Doc Holiday, the former SEAL who went to Bermuda to rescue his kidnapped daughter and in the process became entangled in a web of archaeological subterfuge and deadly drug smuggling. Jon’s first two books, Thief of the Deep and its sequel Blackwolf, set in the Cayman Islands, became industry favorites, selling thousands of copies. Ghost River will not disappoint.

Sample Chapters.

About the Author
Jon recently retired after twenty-nine years as a PADI regional manager, former commercial and scientific DSO, who specialized in explosives work in salvage diving and worked on scientific and archaeological projects internationally. Jon and his wife Rachel live in South Carolina and are active in church, Rotary, pickle ball, and golf. Your comments about the book will be greatly appreciated.

[NASHVILLE, TENN., May 18, 2020—] In a culture where love is defined by pop songs and romantic comedies, it’s not surprising that many marriages don’t last, and many married couples are struggling to stay together. Bob Lepine, marriage and family expert and host of the nationally syndicated radio program “FamilyLife Today®,” gives couples a biblical understanding of genuine love in his new book, “Love Like You Mean It: The Heart of a Marriage That Honors God” (B&H Publishing, July 2020).

“Love Like You Mean It” helps husbands and wives discover that it’s not primarily emotions that define marital love but actions and decisions that fuel emotions and cause marital love to grow. Lepine unpacks the idea that without love, we are “nothing” and then explores the remaining attributes of genuine love listed in 1 Corinthians 13, which are the foundation on which healthy marriages should be built: patience, kindness, humility, generosity, easy-goingness, virtue, honesty, tenacity and perseverance.

Each section is filled with relatable anecdotes and colorful examples and includes short discussion questions and brief action items. The discussion starters help couples talk about the text and how it applies to their relationship. The action steps offer husbands and wives practical ways to grow closer to one another and to God.

“This book dives into what a marriage would look like if we took the definition of love provided for us in 1 Corinthians 13—the well known ‘love chapter’ in the Bible—and made it the foundation for our marriages,” says Lepine.

Lepine’s approach to writing “Love Like You Mean It” is atypical of most marriage books that first identify relationship challenges and then provide biblical wisdom to those issues. “Love Like You Mean It” starts with one passage of scripture and then dives deeply into what couples can learn from that passage and apply it to their marriages.

“I think we’ve all fallen into the trap of thinking about love and marriage in emotional and self-focused terms,” says Lepine. “I also see two big misconceptions couples have about marriage. The first is that marriage should be easy. Engaged couples often think, ‘How hard can it be? We’re in love!’ But it takes work for two sinful, self-focused people to live together and love each other well.

“The second misconception is that my biggest problem in marriage is something outside of me—like my circumstances or my spouse. I think the Bible tells us that the biggest problem we have in our marriages is inside of us. It’s the log in our own eye. For most of us, that’s where our focus ought to be.”

For almost three decades, Lepine has worked with FamilyLife, primarily as co-host of “FamilyLife Today®,” FamilyLife’s daily nationally-syndicated radio program, and currently as senior vice president. As a three-time recipient of the National Religious Broadcasters Radio Program of the Year award, “FamilyLife Today®” focuses on helping listeners build stronger, healthier family relationships. Since the ministry’s inception in 1976, 3 million people have attended FamilyLife events, 1.6 million people listen weekly to radio programming and people in more than 100 countries have access to FamilyLife resources.

Prior to joining FamilyLife, Lepine worked in local radio stations around the country. He is the author of “The Christian Husband” and the on-air voice for “Truth for Life” with Alistair Begg. Lepine also serves on the Board of Directors for National Religious Broadcasters.

In addition to his work with FamilyLife, Lepine has been the teaching pastor at Redeemer Community Church in Little Rock since its founding in 2008.

For more information about “Love Like You Mean It,” visit https://lovelikeyoumeanitbook.com/.

Bob Lepine is senior vice president of FamilyLife and co-host of “FamilyLife Today®,” FamilyLife’s nationally-syndicated radio program. A veteran of Christian radio, Lepine has a degree in communications from the University of Tulsa. Prior to joining FamilyLife in 1992, Bob worked for local radio stations in Tulsa, Phoenix, Sacramento, and San Antonio. He is the author of “The Christian Husband” and the on-air voice for “Truth for Life” with Alistair Begg. Lepine also serves on the Board of Directors for National Religious Broadcasters. Lepine lives with his wife, Mary Ann, in Little Rock, Ark. where he also serves as an elder and teaching pastor at Redeemer Community Church.

B&H Publishing Group, an imprint of LifeWay Christian Resources, is a team of mission minded people with a passion for taking God’s Word to the world. Because we believe Every Word Matters® we seek to provide intentional, Bible-centered content that positively impacts the hearts and minds of people, inspiring them to build a lifelong relationship with Jesus Christ. Among our print and digital releases for the trade, church and academic markets, titles include “The New York Times” No. 1 bestsellers “The Love Dare” and “The Vow,” No. 1 CBA bestseller “I Am a Church Member,” as well as the newly-revised Christian Standard Bible (CSB) version.