SANTA MONICA, Cal. (November 26, 2018) – A humorous memoir by 80-year-old Peggy Rowe, About My Mother (November 13, Forefront Books) hit three major bestseller lists over the weekend appearing at #8 on the New York Times, #6 on Wall Street Journal and #16 on USA TODAY.

“It’s such an honor to work with Peggy Rowe,” said Jonathan Merkh, founder and publisher of Forefront Books. “The strength of her humor and storytelling has captivated America.”

About My Mother features a foreword from Rowe’s son – Executive Producer, Show Host, and Podcaster Mike Rowe, who has helped make his mother a favorite among his “little Facebook friends” (as coined by Peggy) with a regular bit he calls, “Mondays with Mother,” where he shares her humorous antics with more than 5 million Facebook friends. Mike’s fans have turned out in droves to support About My Mother, which now has 85,000+ followers on its own Facebook page.

Upon its pre-release in September, About My Mother temporarily trumped Bob Woodward’s Fear to become the number one seller on BN.com and caused havoc at Amazon.com due to its overwhelming popularity. When it originally released this summer, the then self-published title sold 10,000 copies in three weeks, drawing the attention of publishers including newly-created Forefront Books, helmed by former Howard Books/Simon & Schuster publisher Jonathan Merkh, who picked it up. About My Mother: True Stories of a Horse-Crazy Daughter and Her Baseball-Obsessed Mother released from Forefront Books on November 13 and distributed by Simon & Schuster.

“It never fails.  Every time I involve my mother in a TV show or a commercial campaign, she upstages me,” says Rowe.  “Now, just as I was preparing to write a book of my own, she cranks out a feel-good hit of the summer.  And I’m not even in it! Typical.”

Peggy Rowe is working on her second book.

About My Mother:  There’s a Thelma Knobel in everyone’s life.  She’s the person taking charge—the one who knows instinctively how things should be. Today, Thelma would be described as an alpha personality.  But while growing up, her daughter, Peggy, saw her as a dictator–albeit a benevolent, loving one. They clashed from the beginning: Peggy, the horse-crazy tomboy, and Thelma, a genteel controlling mother, committed to raising two refined, ladylike daughters.

When major league baseball came to town in the early 1950s and turned sophisticated Thelma into a crazed Baltimore Orioles groupie, nobody was more surprised and embarrassed than Peggy.  Life became a series of compromises–Thelma tolerating a daughter who pitched manure and galloped the countryside, while Peggy learned to tolerate the whacky Orioles fan who threw her underwear at the TV, shouted insults at umpires, and lived by the orange and black schedule taped to the refrigerator door.

About Forefront Books:  Serving as a concierge publisher, Forefront Books works directly with clients to create a winning publishing strategy.  Forefront Books’ founder and publisher, Jonathan Merkh, has over 25 years of experience and has published over 1,000 books including over 50 New York Times best-sellers with 10s of millions of copies sold with authors such as Dave Ramsey, Charles F Stanley, The Robertson family from Duck Dynasty and many more. Forefront Books is distributed by Simon & Schuster.

Contact:  Jennifer Willingham / Paige Collins, ICON Media Group, jennifer@iconmediagroup.com / paige@iconmediagroup.com, 615-483-4729 / 615-934-4162

New York, November 11, 2018 — Held every October in Lille, France, the Clowns of Hope Relay Marathon event raises money for this charitable organization.  The money is used to send clowns and other artists into children’s hospitals to lift the spirits of the ailing children.  The event attracts around 1500 runners, all of whom run a 5k, 7k or 10k leg of the marathon.

With sunny skies and temperatures reaching 75°F, it was perfect weather for the race.  Nord Compo sent three teams to support the charity (and to run).  While no Olympic records were broken, thousands of Euros were raised for this worthy cause.

Pictured is Nord Compo’s “Team USA.”

Moody Bible Institute, an organization that has already trained generations of Christian leaders around the world, distributes millions of books and provides biblically-based programming through one of the oldest Christian radio networks in the country, today dedicated its new global media center, The Chapman Center.

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Karen Kingsbury comes a heart-wrenching and redemptive new story in the Baxter Family series about a couple desperately waiting to bring their adopted child home and a young mother about to make the biggest decision of her life.

About the Book:  Cole Blake, son of Landon and Ashley Baxter Blake, is months away from going off to college and taking the first steps towards his dream—a career in medicine. But as he starts his final semester of high school he meets Elise, a mysterious new girl who captures his attention—and heart—from day one.

Elise has her heart set on mending her wild ways and rediscovering the good girl she used to be. But not long after the semester starts, she discovers she’s pregnant. Eighteen and alone, she shares her secret with Cole. Undaunted by the news, and in love for the first time in his life, Cole is determined to support Elise—even if it means skipping college, marrying her, and raising another man’s baby.

When Elise decides to place her baby up for adoption, she is matched with Aaron and Lucy Williams, who moved to Bloomington, Indiana to escape seven painful years of infertility.

But as Elise’s due date draws near, she becomes focused on one truth: she has two weeks to change her mind about the adoption. With Cole keeping vigil and Lucy and Aaron waiting to welcome their new baby, Elise makes an unexpected decision—one that changes everyone’s plans.

Tender and deeply moving, Two Weeks is a story about love, faith, and what it really means to be a family.

Karen Kingsbury, #1 New York Times bestselling novelist, is America’s favorite inspirational storyteller, with more than twenty-five million copies of her award-winning books in print. Her last dozen titles have topped bestseller lists and many of her novels are under development with Hallmark Films and as major motion pictures. Her Baxter Family books are being developed into a TV series slated for major network viewing sometime in the next year. Karen is also an adjunct professor of writing at Liberty University. In 2001 she and her husband, Don, adopted three boys from Haiti, doubling their family in a matter of months. Today the couple has joined the ranks of empty-nesters, living in Tennessee near five of their adult children.

Learn more about Karen’s books and upcoming projects and speaking events at www.KarenKingsbury.com or follow her on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram @KarenKingsbury.

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Karen Kingsbury’s own Adoption Story

For years, shelved somewhere in the storage space of my mind was a dry statistic, a fact that had little bearing on my daily reality. The statistic was this: Millions of children around the globe are without a family. My husband and I were vaguely aware of this truth. At times we had even discussed adoption. But the statistic about homeless children was not something that kept us awake at night.

We were busy, after all, my husband, Don, teaching and coaching, and me, writing Life-Changing Fiction ™. Besides, we already had three beautiful children, a number we planned to stop at after our youngest, a boy, was born with a heart defect that required surgery when he was just three weeks old. And so the statistic about homeless children remained, and we did nothing about it.

Then late one night alone in my office I met Emmanuel Jean.

In the quiet incandescent glow of my computer screen, I stumbled upon an Internet site that had a photo listing of children available for adoption in Haiti. One of those was a darling five-year-old boy with huge brown eyes and dimpled smile. “Emmanuel Jean,” the heading stated. Then it gave his nickname: EJ.

The connection between us was instant.

“EJ is a charmer,” the accompanying description said. “He is the first to hug the workers at the orphanage each day and is easily one of the fastest learners in our classroom.”

His photograph made an impact that was overwhelming and indelible. In a moment’s time, Haiti was no longer another country with starving homeless children. Rather it was the homeland of this precious child.

I could almost hear him calling out to us: “Mommy, Daddy, I love you. I’m here waiting for you. Please come take me home. I need a family.”

Until then, family discussions on adoption had been brief and esoteric. All that changed the moment I found EJ. I called my husband into my office and for the next hour we talked about this sweet child. There were no disagreements. EJ belonged in our family. Now we needed to present the idea to our children.

I printed his photo, and the next morning Don and I introduced him to Kelsey, Tyler, and Austin. Setting his picture up in front of an empty chair, I asked our kids, “How would you like EJ to be your brother? He’s five years old and he lives in Haiti.”

“Well,” our only daughter, Kelsey, 12, said thoughtfully, “he looks friendly.”

“He’s five?” seven-year-old Tyler chimed in. “That’s right between me and Austin.”

Two-year-old Austin just grinned and pointed. “That my brother? Huh Mommy and Daddy? That my brother?”

We studied EJ’s picture for days until he actually felt like part of our family. At night we prayed about him, connecting, building a bond that grew stronger with each glance at his face. He was living at the Heart of God Ministries orphanage in Port-au- Prince, so we contacted workers there and learned more about him. Finally, with full hearts, we made our decision. EJ would be our son, a part of our family forever.

Over the next several months, we completed a daunting amount of paperwork for the INS and Haitian dossier. But because we took it one document at a time, we were never overwhelmed. Through every step we were driven by EJ’s face. In fact, it wasn’t long before we were driven by another little face as well – that of a six-year- old boy named Joshua. The photo listing said Joshua was a happy child who excelled in academics and sports. He had great leadership qualities.

“Kids, what would you think about having two brothers?” My husband asked our three children one evening. “Mommy and I think maybe EJ would like a brother who was more like him – another little boy from Haiti.”

Again our kids were excited about the idea. But for reasons we didn’t understand at the time, we were given wrong information about Joshua. The website description was incorrect, one of the workers told us.

“Frankly,” she said, “Joshua would not blend well with other children.”

With unsure hearts, we decided on a different boy, a six-year-old named Sean Angelo. Six months later, we got the call every adoptive parent waits for.

“Okay,” the orphanage director told me, “your children are ready to come home.”

Haiti is widely known as one of the poorest countries in the world. It is a place rife with dangers, and there were months when I considered having our new little boys escorted home. But in the end God made it clear I was to go there. Take pictures, absorb myself in their culture if only for a short while, and bring home a piece of their heritage. Something I could share with them later.

My first impressions were exactly what I expected for a country with 80 percent unemployment and no sanitation system. Trash piled high along city sidewalks, inviting the random cow or pig that mingled amid wandering pedestrians. Wide- eyed children begged on the corners and a vacant stare masked the faces of most. Buildings and roadways were in disarray, reminding me of scenes from earthquake and hurricane disaster sites.

I was taken to the orphanage and introduced to my two new sons – EJ and Sean. The boys were dressed in their best, donated clothing, and both offered me shy smiles as they sat on my lap. They didn’t speak a word of English.

This – all of it – was what I’d expected.

But I didn’t expect what happened next. As I sat there searching for a common bond with EJ and Sean, a little boy walked up and brushed a lock of hair off my forehead. “Hello, Mommy.” His voice was clear, his English perfect. “I love you.”
Then – while the noise from forty-two orphans faded away – he sang to me, “Lord, I give you my heart. I give you my soul. I live for you alone””

My heart was hooked and snagged in a matter of seconds. “What’s your name?” I asked the child.

“Joshua,” he told me. “My name’s Joshua.”

This was the six-year-old Joshua we had considered adopting before finding out about Sean Angelo. This was the child we were told might not fit into our family. An hour later I knew the whole story. Joshua was still up for adoption. The orphanage worker who had given us misinformation about him no longer worked there. Joshua was a wonderful child, outgoing and confident, brilliant in his studies and good with the little ones at the orphanage.

He and EJ and Sean were buddies – inseparable.

I called my husband that night and wept. “Joshua belongs with us. I can’t imagine leaving him here.”

My husband’s answer was something I’ll never forget. “Two … three … what’s the difference, Karen? If you feel that strongly about him, bring him home.”

Of course in the world of international adoption the process is never that simple.  Six months after EJ and Sean came home, Joshua followed. Only then did we truly feel our family was complete.

Those early days together hold dozens of moments we’ll never forget. The time when EJ and Sean first entered the bathroom to wash their hands. Slowly the water grew warm and as it did, they began speaking loudly in Creole, pointing to the water and jumping up and down. It wasn’t difficult to figure out why they were excited. They’d never felt warm running water.

Then there was the day our family visited the zoo. EJ and Sean were mesmerized by the animals, but the experience was nothing to what came next: A trip to the grocery store. It was a starving little boy’s paradise.

As their English improved, we learned more about their past. Our boys had lost parents to starvation or illness and had gone without food for days at a time. They customarily ate something called “dirt cakes,” which looked like cheap pottery made from clay, dirt, and water. Village women mixed this recipe, baked it, and gave it to the children to ease the pain in their empty tummies.

Meals came only after great effort. Our boys were adept at using rocks to knock mangos from trees, or to kill wild birds. In the early months, Sean, especially, would see a bird and nearly go ballistic, pointing and motioning toward the nearest rock. His message was simple – “Please, Daddy, this is something I can do! Let dinner be on me tonight.” Politely, and with a full heart, my husband dissuaded him from killing birds.

In those first months, we dealt with the basic cultural adjustments. Sleeping in beds instead of on the floor, using bathrooms, table manners. Often people commented on the blessing we were to these little boys. But we corrected them every time. The blessings were all ours.

One was watching our three biological children embrace their new brothers. This was especially obvious when the kids played together, or did homework. Because of the efforts of Kelsey, Tyler, and Austin, our new sons quickly learned basic reading and were welcomed by their classmates. Their school even took on the Heart of God Ministries orphanage as a service project and collected two suitcases of school supplies for the Haitian children.

Adopting has also made me more compassionate in my novel writing. That much is evidenced by my mention of adoption in several titles including my upcoming novel TWO WEEKS.

Another blessing was realizing the depth of faith these children had when they came home. They had nothing in Haiti, not even a chance to live. But they had a deep love for Jesus, and prayed and sang throughout the day. In a culture ridden with voodoo, it was especially comforting to know that a Christian orphanage in Haiti had given these children so strong a foundation. In the early years, the boys loved singing for God, and sometimes cried during worship time at church.

“Are you sad, honey?” my husband would sometimes ask.
“No, Daddy. I’m just so happy when I think of everything Jesus has done for me.”

The boys were very loving in those early years, hugging us often and telling us – first in Creole, then in English – exactly how much they loved us. I can remember Sean saying, “Mommy, when I get big I’m going to get a job and make lots of money. I’ll send some to the people in Haiti and give the rest to you.”

I was puzzled by this. “That’s very nice, but why do you want to give me money?” “Because …” his eyes glistened. “You and Daddy have given so much to me.”

People often asked us about the transition. How did you bring children into your home who have nothing in common with you, they wondered. You have different skin colors, different cultural understandings, different languages – even different food preferences.

We tell them this: With much prayer.

Often in those early years we had conversations about skin color.

“Why do I have black skin and you and Daddy and Jesus have white skin?” Sean asked once in the first few months after he came home.

“Well,” I said, “First, Jesus didn’t have white skin. He had brown skin. And God gave everyone a special color, a color he loved for that person. All the colors of skin are the same to Jesus, and they’re all beautiful.”

Sean thought about that for a minute. “What color skin will I have in Heaven?”

“I’m not sure.” I pulled him into a quick hug. “But I hope it’ll be just like it is now. Because you’re skin is beautiful, Sean … and you’re such a handsome boy. I wouldn’t want you to look any different than you do right now.”

Sean’s smile stretched across his face. “Thanks, Mom.” Then he ran out of the house to join his brothers in the backyard once again. I’ll never know if that was the perfect answer, but I know this: God alone provided the answers as questions like that come up. For our part, we always welcomed the discussion.

Other than curious moments like this, adding three Haitian first-graders to our family during the growing up years was nothing but wonderful. None of the problems we feared materialized. As for skin color and race, all people are unique, God-designed individuals. The color of our current tent is not important to God.

Still, we believed that their Haitian background would one day be important to our sons. As such, I learned to cook Haitian beans and rice. In the early years, we ate that way at least once a week and we marveled at the platefuls of food our new boys could put away. To help the boys maintain their Creole, that first year or two we sometimes spent the dinner hour asking the boys to teach us various phrases. In addition, we networked with a small Haitian-American contingency not far from our home.

We have also started a family foundation called the “One Chance Foundation.”  This foundation is supported by readers like you, and it gives grants to parents at the end stage of the adoption process. Parents ready to bring their adopted child home to their forever family.

The boys are grown now. Two are out in the world figuring out life and EJ is in his senior year at Liberty University.  We wouldn’t change anything about our story. But we do believe and stress this fact: Our primary heritage is found not in our ancestors or family genealogies or birthplaces.

But at the cross, in Christ alone.

There is a story often told of a particularly rough storm that came up one night and left a sandy beach strewn with starfish. The next morning, a child walked along the shore, stopping every few feet to pick up a starfish and fling it out to sea. An old man watched the child and finally shouted at him. “Why bother, son. There’s too many starfish to make a difference.”

With that, the boy picked up another starfish and looked at it intently before heaving it out to sea, then turning to the old man he said, “It makes a difference to this one.”

The statistics on homeless children in our world remain daunting. But our family has seen this truth at work: Adoption makes a difference – even if only for one child.

Ada, Mich. (November 15, 2018)—The winners of the 2018 Christy Awards were announced on Wednesday, November 7, at the Christy Award Gala in Nashville, Tennessee. Baker Publishing Group authors won a total of five Christy Awards, including True to You, which won the 2018 Christy Book of the Year and also won in the Contemporary Romance category. The House on Foster Hill by Jaime Jo Wright won in the Mystery/Suspense/Thriller category, Missing Isaac by Valerie Fraser Luesse won in the First Novel category, and The Lacemaker by Laura Frantz won in the Historical Romance category.

Established in 1999, the Christy Awards recognize the value of Christian novels in contemporary culture and honor authors who create stories written from a perspective of faith. For the complete list of winners, please click here.

True to You by Becky Wade

(Bethany House; ISBN 9780764219368; ebook ISBN 9781441231208; $13.99)

After a broken engagement, genealogist Nora Bradford decides focusing on her work and her novels is safer than romance. But when John, a former Navy SEAL, hires her to help find his birth mother, the spark between them is undeniable. However, he’s dating someone else, and Nora is hesitant. Is she ready to abandon her fictional heroes and risk her heart for real?

 

The House on Foster Hill by Jaime Jo Wright

(Bethany House; ISBN 9780764230288; ebook ISBN 9781493411986; $14.99)

Fleeing a stalker, Kaine Prescott purchases an old house sight unseen in Wisconsin, which turns out to have a dark history: a century earlier, an unidentified woman was found dead on the grounds. As Kaine tries to settle in, she learns the story of her ancestor Ivy Thorpe, who, with the help of a man from her past, tried to uncover the truth about the death.

 

Missing Isaac by Valerie Fraser Luesse

(Revell; ISBN 9780800728786; ebook ISBN 9781493412617; $14.99)

When Pete McLean loses his father in the summer of 1962, his friend Isaac is one of the few people he can lean on. Though their worlds are as different as black and white, friendship knows no color. So when Isaac suddenly goes missing, Pete is determined to find out what happened—no matter what it costs him. His quest will lead him into parts of town that he knows only through rumors and introduce him to a girl who will change his life. What they discover together will change the small Southern town of Glory, Alabama—forever.

 

The Lacemaker by Laura Frantz

(Revell; ISBN 9780800726638; ebook ISBN 9781493412501; $15.99)

Lady Elisabeth “Liberty” Lawson is a darling of fine society in a rugged land, and she is anticipating an advantageous marriage. That her betrothed is a rake and love is lacking is of little consequence—or so she tells herself. Though her own life seems in order, colonial Williamsburg is a powder keg on the verge of exploding. Those with connections to the British nobility are suspected as spies, and Liberty soon finds herself left with a terrible choice.

 

Bethany House has been publishing high-quality books for over 50 years. Recognized as the pioneer and leader in Christian fiction, we publish over 75 new fiction and nonfiction titles annually in subjects including historical and contemporary fiction, Christian living, devotional, family resources, and theology.

Revell has a passion for providing books that inspire and equip readers, offering them hope and help for daily life.

Baker Publishing Group publishes high-quality writings that represent historic Christianity and serve the diverse interests and concerns of evangelical readers.

Contact: Ruth Anderson, (616)676-9185 x8131, randerson@bakerpublishinggroup.com

WESTMONT, IL— Scot McKnight, renowned scholar, speaker, and award-winning author, has inked a book contract with IVP Academic for a fresh translation of the New Testament.

Tentatively titled The Second Testament, this volume follows on the heels of John Goldingay’s The First Testament: A New Translation, published by IVP earlier this year.

“From the moment I began reading The First Testament, I knew that John Goldingay was onto something that was going to change the way that I engaged with the Bible forever,” said Justin Paul Lawrence, director of sales for IVP. “I also knew that we needed a New Testament companion that had the same approach. I am so happy that one of my favorite NT scholars Scot McKnight has agreed to help us complete this important set. I can’t wait to delight readers with the complete set.”

The Second Testament aims to provide the careful reader with a closer experience to the original Greek texts, mirroring the work of Goldingay in The First Testament, and keeping in kind with the sounds and styles of the era in which it was originally written.

McKnight, who is a longtime member of the Society of Biblical Literature and the Society for New Testament Studies, saw an opportunity to create a fresh translation that would work alongside Goldingay’s. McKnight has closely followed the last three decades of Goldingay’s translations and interpretations and was eager to dig in to The First Testament when it was released in September of 2018.

“Readers of the Bible need a variety of translations,” said McKnight. “Most translations are shaped to speak to English readers, and the translation is pitched at a level that makes the translation understandable to the most possible readers. In so doing the Bible can become so ‘English-y’ that it no longer sounds like it comes from a different era and from non-English writers. The Second Testament complements translations available today by offering one that sounds less like English and more like the native Greek of the ‘second’ (New) Testament authors, and will also provide insights into the unique style and vocabulary of each author of The Second Testament. I am so excited to complement the stimulating and engaging translation of The First Testament by John Goldingay. I will attempt to bring out the new and the old of Goldingay’s approach to translation.”

McKnight is the author or editor of sixty books, and he is the Julius R. Mantey Professor of New Testament at Northern Seminary in Lombard, IL. McKnight obtained his PhD at the University of Nottingham and has been a professor for more than three decades, serving at North Park University and Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. McKnight’s praised book The Jesus Creed: Loving God, Loving Others (Paraclete, 2004) won the Christianity Today Book of the Year award for Christian living. He is also an editor for IVP Academic’s forthcoming revision of the Dictionary of Paul and His Letters, set to be published in 2022.

In The Second Testament, McKnight plans to follow Goldingay’s translation principles while adjusting to the language shift to Greek from Hebrew and Aramaic. Additionally, he will provide brief introductions to each book, similar to those in The First Testament. McKnight also would like to bring the New Testament authors’ unique voices to life by highlighting their own syntaxes and styles.

“Any book project is an honor to undertake, but it’s an especially thrilling opportunity—and sobering responsibility—to set out upon a new translation of divine Scripture,” said Jon Boyd, editorial director for IVP Academic. “We’re conscious of the privilege of working so closely with these truly unique texts. This is a project that will call upon our best efforts and attention at every stage of the publishing craft, a challenge we relish and one that prompts our humble prayers.”

This new Bible translation will be added to IVP Academic’s already robust line of reference works and monographs. The Second Testament is expected to release in the spring of 2021 with marketing efforts focused on the annual gatherings of the Evangelical Theological Society, the Institute for Biblical Research, the Society of Biblical Literature, and the American Academy of Religion that fall.

Founded in 1947 as an extension of InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA, InterVarsity Press serves those in the university, the church, and the world by publishing thoughtful Christian books that equip and encourage people to follow Jesus as Savior and Lord in all of life. For more information, visit ivpress.com.

Contact:  Alisse Wissman | 630.734.4059 | awissman@ivpress.com

 

Chicago, IL:  The Christian Community Development Association (CCDA) & The John and Vera Mae Perkins Foundation (JVMPF) were thrilled to cap their 30th annual, national conference in Chicago, IL, by celebrating the legacy of Dr. John & Vera Mae Perkins on November 2, 2018. Dr. Perkins was present at the gala with his daughters Priscilla and Elizabeth. Vera Mae, his wife, wasn’t able to attend because of health constraints but was introduced via Facebook Live where she expressed her gratitude for God’s blessings as they served for 30 years with CCDA.

During his message, Dr. Perkins talked about his years growing up in a Mississippi sharecropping family. As an early pioneer of the civil rights movement, he dedicated his life to the cause of racial equality. The CCDA leadership thanked Dr. Perkins for his faithfulness and unrelenting dedication to show others how to live out biblical reconciliation.

Dr. John Perkins is the founder and president emeritus of the John and Vera Mae Perkins Foundation and co-founder of Christian Community Development Association. He has served in advisory roles under five U.S. presidents, is one of the leading evangelical voices to come out of the American civil rights movement, and is an author and international speaker on issues of reconciliation, leadership, and community development. For his tireless work he has received 14 honorary doctorates from universities including: Virginia University of Lynchburg, Wheaton College, Gordon College, Huntington College, Geneva College, Spring Arbor University, North Park College, and Belhaven College. In 2004 he partnered with Seattle Pacific University to launch the campus-based John Perkins Center for Reconciliation, Leadership Training, and Community Development.

In his crowning work as a Moody Publishers’ author, Dr. Perkins speaks honestly to the church about reconciliation, discipleship, and justice in his book One Blood: Parting Words to the Church on Race and Love ​(April 2018).

The CCDA is a network of Christians committed to seeing people and communities holistically restored. Not just spiritually, but emotionally, physically, economically and socially. Not by offering mercy alone, but by undergirding mercy with justice.  Chicago is where the movement of CCDA began 30 years ago through inspired men and women who were rooted in relationship and reconciliation.

(November 13, 2018 — Carol Stream, Illinois, USA) –– “LittWorld provides me a global family of Christian writers and publishers,” said journalist Lekan Otufodunrin of  Nigeria. “I came back better equipped for ministry to Christian journalists and other publishers in my own country and beyond.”

Lekan, online editor of The Nation newspaper in Lagos, was one of 250 publishing staff and writers from 52 nations who participated in LittWorld 2018, MAI’s triennial global publishing conference, October 28 to November 2, in Singapore.

Plenary speakers addressed the conference theme, “the Word Made Fresh,” and included Jeff Crosby of InterVarsity Press, Ramez Atallah of the Bible Society of Egypt, Bishop Robert Solomon of Singapore and author Pusonnam Yiri of Nigeria, among others. The more than 40 small-group workshops taught practical skills in digital publishing, writing, editing, design/illustration, marketing, management, and more.

“I came home with so many new thoughts, insights and knowledge and a deepened experience of God. I’ve been trying to put it into words for people, but somehow I feel like I’m failing to explain just how special LittWorld is,” said author Joan Campbell of South Africa. “The sense of care, unity and servanthood is something that particularly struck me.”

MAI President John Maust noted, “At this LittWorld I was particularly struck by the high quality of participants and presenters, both in terms of professional skills and spiritual depth.  Lasting outcomes are sure to follow.”

“An unexpected joy was 60 percent new attendees,” said local host chair Bernice Lee of Singapore. “Each one is a potential collaborator in MAI’s efforts to eradicate the global hunger for the written word!”

During LittWorld MAI announced creation of the Robert B. Reekie Global Publisher Award, an annual award named for MAI’s founding president recognizing ministry excellence by a Christian publisher serving in a challenging context.  MAI Director of Publisher Development Ramon Rocha III pronounced MIK Publishing House of Pakistan as the first recipient of the award, with MIK General Manager Peter Calvin and several staff members  coming forward to accept it.

MAI also presented its “Lifetime Training Award” to author Miriam Adeney of the US for her stellar equipping and encouragement of writers in multiple nations across more than four decades.

In keeping with the LittWorld 2018 theme, “The Word Made Fresh,” the conference highlighted creative ways to communicate Christian truth through the written word, and included a first-time screenwriting track led by Australian screenwriter and TV/film producer Simon Hunter.

“I was truly inspired to sit in a room with 52 nationalities all worshipping together,” he said afterwards. “In a current cultural climate that seeks to separate us into identity groups, the myriad of faces from across the globe made it very clear for me that there is only one answer to division—Christ.”

For photos or further details, email mai@littworld.org or call (630) 260-9063

Connect with MAI: littworld.org, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube.

Nashville, Tenn. November 5, 2018 — Since the release of his latest book, “The Storm-Tossed Family: How the Cross Reshapes the Home” (September 2018, B&H Books), bestselling author Dr. Russell Moore has appeared on top national media outlets to discuss his latest book, current events and how the gospel shapes a Christian’s understanding of the family.

Most notably, Moore has been featured on CNN’s “Erin Burnett OutFront,” “The 700 Club,”  National Review, Christianity Today, RELEVANT Magazine, The Gospel Coalition and many other radio, television, online, print and podcast outlets.

A longtime pastor, a former professor and provost of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and current president of the Southern Baptist Convention’s Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission, Moore brings theological insight and pastoral approach to this most sensitive of topics. The topics addressed in the book, including marriage, sexuality and fidelity; divorce, abuse and broken relationships; parenting, discipline and bonding; trauma, generational sin and healing, have resonated with both secular and Christian media, and in his interviews Moore has skillfully connected these biblical principles to current events and culture.

“Understanding the family starts first not at the dinner table or in a honeymoon suite, but at the cross,” said Moore. “We can be free to be family when we see how God designed families but also how these families point beyond our individual stories to the ultimate story of our lives—the gospel.”

Moore has also written several op-eds about the book, including several still in the works that will be published in the next few months. National Review recently published “What’s the Real Issue behind the Abortion Debate?” while Baptist Press, RELEVANT Magazine, The Gospel Coalition, Christian Broadcast Network and The Christian Post have written on the book or featured an excerpt.

His radio and podcast interviews include “BreakPoint Podcast” with Warren Smith, “Equipped with Chris Brooks,” “Lighthouse Faith with Lauren Green” (FOX Radio), “The Gospel Coalition” Podcast, “The RELEVANT Podcast” and WORLD Magazine’s “Listening In” Podcast.

For more information on The Storm-Tossed Family, visit http://stormtossedfamily.com/.

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Russell Moore is president of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention, the moral and public policy agency of the nation’s largest Protestant denomination. He is a frequent cultural commentator, an ethicist and theologian by background and an ordained Southern Baptist minister. Moore is the author of several books, including ”Onward: Engaging the Culture without Losing the Gospel.” A native Mississippian, he and his wife Maria are the parents of five sons. For more information, visit russellmoore.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.