Nashville-based independent Christian recording artist and host of the “Live Hope Minute” radio feature, Mark Smeby, holds the honor of having his version of “Mary, Did You Know” be the most downloaded digital holiday music song on amazon.com for the fourth year in a row, topping popular artists like Mariah Carey, Burl Ives, and Gwen Stefani.

Smeby is currently traveling the country on his annual Hope of Christmas tour, visiting churches, concert halls, and prisons on his 6000-mile solo journey. He’s also promoting the December 12 release of the hardcover one-year devotional version of his Live Hope Minute radio feature which is currently heard on 250 radio outlets around the US and Canada. The book, releasing through BroadStreet Publishing is available through livehopenow.com and all major online retailers. The radio feature is also now available as a free mobile application for both Apple and Android devices, in addition to its availability as a podcast through Apple Podcasts and iHeartRadio.

Additionally, Smeby is being seen on television around the world this month in the airing of the Christmas favorite “The Perfect Gift,” a motion picture addressing the conflict of culture vs. Christmas. The film, which cast Smeby as the main antagonist, also prominently features his song “Emmanuel (You Are With Me).”

Enter to receive a free copy of the Live Hope Minute devotional and get a free sample of the book, by texting LIVE to 54900 (messaging rates may apply). More information about Mark and his projects can be found at livehopenow.com, facebook.com/Smeby, or twitter.com/msmeby.

Paraclete Press is pleased to announce that debut author Katherine James has won the Christianity Today 2018 Fiction Book Award with her novel, Can You See Anything Now? (October 2017 / ISBN 978-1612619316 / Trade Paperback).

“Can You See Anything Now? marks the debut of an exciting literary talent. I hear echoes of Elizabeth Strout and Richard Russo in Katherine James’s richly detailed world, in her empathy, quiet humor, and hope. Richard Foster has said that writing is spiritual if it ‘drill[s] down into the subterranean chambers of the human soul.’ James manages this improbable task as she explores the lives of an inter-generational cast—including the irresistible Margie—drifting between the small-town foibles of Trinity and urban particularities of Manhattan. May her characters, insights, and often-striking prose find the wide audience they deserve.”
—Daniel Bowman, professor at Taylor University, writing for the award committee

James’ novel launched Paraclete’s new fiction line, and for a faith-based press with traditional leanings, the book represents not just a new direction, but a risk, considering James’ use of expletives, and themes of addiction and self-injury in the book that are unsettling to some, though important and realistic to others.

James explores grace in the midst of tragedy, and in the lives of her unforgettable, utterly ruined characters. Can You See Anything Now? follows a year in the small town of Trinity, and the lives of the suicidal painter, Margie, who has been teaching her evangelical neighbor, Etta, how to paint nudes; her husband, the town therapist who suspects his work helps no one; and their college-aged daughter, Noel, whose roommate, Pixie, joins them at home for a winter holiday. The result is a powerful novel of redemption, revealing a new author of great importance.

Author Katherine James has an MFA in fiction from Columbia University in New York City, where she received the Felipe P. De Alba Fellowship. She has been on staff with CRU, a ministry to college students, for over twenty-five years. She is a member of Redbud Writers Guild, and is senior editor for CruPress. Her memoir about the opioid epidemic in the suburbs of Philadelphia and the ways that it affected her family will be published by Paraclete in the fall of 2018. Learn more about the book here.

Can You See Anything Now?
October 2017, Trade paper, $16.99, ISBN 978-1-61261-931-6
Author photo credit: Dorothy Greco
​
​For more information contact Laura McKendree
lauram@paracletepress.com, (800) 451-5006 x 316

Carol Steam, Ill. — The latest album from U2 entitled Songs of Experience is expected to top the Billboard 200 chart for the week of December 23, 2017. This is no surprise, given the Irish rock band’s history of producing No. 1 albums: already, the group boasts seven No. 1 albums to its credit. What is surprising is the special shout-out in the liner notes to The Message Bible.

Lead singer and activist Bono has been a fan of Eugene Peterson’s Bible paraphrase The Message for nearly twenty years. Now, in the liner notes, Bono shares with his audience how Peterson’s translation of Psalm 100 resonates with him: “In The Message . . .  I read Psalm 100: ‘Enter with the password: “Thank You!” Make yourselves at home.’”

Bono has enthusiastically endorsed The Message on many occasions, stating, “It has been a great strength to me. . . . [Eugene Peterson has] brought the text back to the tone in which the books were written.”[1] In his foreword to The Message 100, Bono recalls, “I discovered Eugene Peterson’s The Message through the Psalms. In the dressing room before a show, we would read them as a band.” In 2016, Bono and Peterson met to discuss their love of the Psalms in a short film called, “The Psalms.”

During a videotaped testimonial celebrating The Message’s publication, Bono explained that as a songwriter, it was very clear to him that Peterson is “a poet as well as a scholar.” The singer expressed appreciation to Peterson for the artistry and conversational tone of his translation of Scripture, saying:

“You brought the musicality to God’s Word that I’m sure was there, was always there in intention. There have been some great translations, some very literary translations, but no translations that I’ve read that speaks to me in my own language. So I want to thank you for that.”

For more information about The Message, visit NavPress.com.

The NavPress mission is to advance the calling of The Navigators by bringing biblically rooted, culturally relevant, and highly practical products to people who want to know and love Christ more deeply. Through The Message Bible and other insightful resources, NavPress seeks to bring positive spiritual movement to peoples’ lives. In January 2014, NavPress entered into an alliance with Tyndale House Publishers to strengthen and better position NavPress and its rich content for the future. NavPress provides books and other content that bring spiritual impact, life transformation, and help lead in the mission of making disciples. 

[1] “Eugene Peterson: U2 Connections,” @U2, https://www.atu2.com/news/connections/peterson/

The Message Bible is a NavPress resource published in alliance with Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.

NAVPRESS and the NAVPRESS logo are registered trademarks of NavPress, The Navigators, Colorado Springs, CO.

WESTMONT, IL—The Gospel Coalition honored two InterVarsity Press titles, In Search of Ancient Roots and The Economics of Neighborly Love, with 2017 TGC Book Awards.

TGC editor Ivan Mesa said, “Each year we review around three hundred titles between our academic journal Themelios and our regular book reviews section, so at the end of the year it’s good to take stock of the most helpful titles from 2017.”

In Search of Ancient Roots: The Christian Past and Evangelical Identity Crisis by Kenneth J. Stewart was the winner in the History & Biography category. Stewart surveys five centuries of Protestant engagement with the ancient church, showing that Christians belonging to the evangelical churches of the Reformation have consistently seen their faith as connected to early Christianity. Stewart explores areas of positive engagement, such as the Lord’s Supper and biblical interpretation, as well as areas that raise concerns, such as monasticism.

Gavin Ortlund reviewed Stewart’s book for TGC in November and said, “In Search of Ancient Roots is a helpful resource that not only provides context for understanding evangelical departures, but also envisions the kind of robust, historically rooted Protestantism that may discourage them from happening in the first place.”

The Economics of Neighborly Love: Investing in Your Community’s Compassion and Capacity by Tom Nelson was chosen as the runner-up in the Public Theology & Current Events category. Marrying biblical study, economic theory, and practical advice, Nelson presents a vision for church ministry that works toward the flourishing of the local community, beginning with its poorest and most marginalized members. Nelson resists oversimplification and pushes us toward more complex and nuanced understandings of wealth and poverty.

Tim Keller, pastor at Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York City, said, “Tom Nelson’s new book is a great contribution to a growing and needed literature that helps churches connect to their parishes and neighborhoods and serve not only individuals, but the public good. There is an emerging awareness of the importance of this, but few volumes are as practical as this one in describing the way forward.”

TGC winners and runners-up were chosen based on whether they offer gospel-centered argument and application; include faithful and foundational use of Scripture, both Old Testament and New Testament; foster spiritual discernment of contemporary trials and trends; and encourage efforts to unite and renew the church.

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: Krista Clayton
630.734.4013 | kclayton@ivpress.com

WESTMONT, IL—InterVarsity Press received seven Christianity Today 2018 Book Awards, including the top honor for book of the year that went to Liturgy of the Ordinary: Sacred Practices in Everyday Life by Tish Harrison Warren.

Selected by Christianity Today editors as the title that “best embodies our pursuit of Beautiful Orthodoxy,” Liturgy of the Ordinary was also the winner in the spiritual formation category of the 2018 Book Awards. Framed around one ordinary day, Warren’s book explores daily life through the lens of liturgy, small practices, and habits that form us. Each chapter looks at something—making the bed, brushing her teeth, losing her keys—that the author does every day.

Ann Carlson Kennedy, a blogger at Preventing Grace, said, “No matter which chapter you’re reading, it’s hard not to suffer from writer envy. Liturgy of the Ordinary is a gracious, gospel-oriented, fantastically un-preachy invitation to be a more integrated believer. Warren takes the most basic components of everyday life and turns them inside out to reveal the extraordinary work of God. You don’t have to be liturgically minded to be helped by her thought, experience, and spiritual depth.”

Embodied Hope: A Theological Meditation on Pain and Suffering by Kelly M. Kapic was the winning title in the theology/ethics category of the Christianity Today 2018 Book Awards. Kapic meditates on how our suffering—particularly our physical suffering—relates to the Christian faith.

Aimee Byrd, blogger and author of Housewife Theologian, said, “Embodied Hope is a breath of fresh air and a source of hope, as Kapic takes a holistic approach to pain and suffering. Rather than downplaying orthodoxy in order to be practical and compassionate, he gives us a rich teaching of Christian anthropology, Christ’s person and work, and an eternal perspective. He takes care to deal with the physical aspects of suffering as well as its connection with the spiritual. This approach directs our gaze to Christ while not ignoring the hard questions that sufferers and caretakers must face.”

The four IVP titles that received the Award of Merit include:

Winsome Persuasion: Christian Influence in a Post-Christian World by Tim Muehlhoff and Richard Langer received the Award of Merit in the apologetics/evangelism category. Muehlhoff and Langer present a model for cultural engagement that integrates communication theory, theology, and Scripture. “Too many books simply make assumptions about secular modern culture and about the way that we need to respond,” said Holly Ordway, professor of English and apologetics faculty member at Houston Baptist University. “Muehlhoff and Langer take the necessary step of analyzing the way that culture works, especially with regard to media and social issues, and their deft analysis generates significant insights. The authors apply orthodox Christian principles to hot-button issues without being shrill or partisan. In so doing, they model what the book strives to teach.”

Culture Care: Reconnecting with Beauty for Our Common Life by Makoto Fujimura was honored with the Award of Merit in the culture and the arts category. Fujimura issues a call to cultural stewardship to artists and all “creative catalysts” who understand how much the culture we all share affects human thriving today and shapes the generations to come.

“Culture Care is a breath of fresh air for today’s world. Fujimura invites us to find and make beauty in the world with attentive minds, grateful hearts, and generous spirits,” said Jennifer Craft, associate professor of humanities and theology at Point University. “The central idea is a call to generative care—fruitful, generous, stewarding practices in a culture characterized by an attitude of openness, love, and appreciation for beauty. This call to appreciate and cultivate beauty is perhaps the most profound insight for today’s culture, which prioritizes the fast, useful, or most profitable.”

Mending the Divides: Creative Love in a Conflicted World by Jon Huckins and Jer Swigart received the Award of Merit in the missions/global church category. Jenny Yang, senior vice president of advocacy and policy for World Relief, said, “One of the most challenging tasks within the church in the next few decades will be the work of peace-building and reconciliation, of learning from and loving neighbors who are often very different. Taking the parable of the Good Samaritan as their starting point, Huckins and Swigart have written a practical, hands-on manual that shares their rich experiences working in peace-building across various contexts, from local to global.”

The Award of Merit winner in the politics and public life category went to Restoring the Soul of the University: Unifying Christian Higher Education in a Fragmented Age by Perry L. Glanzer, Nathan F. Alleman, and Todd C. Ream. Nikki Toyama-Szeto, executive director for Evangelicals for Social Action, said, “A thorough and ambitious book,Restoring the Soul of the University issues a stirring call to Christian institutions of higher education. The authors offer a deep historical analysis, along with a careful framing of the questions, philosophies, and challenges that define the mission of the university.”

See a complete list of past IVP award winners.

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: Krista Clayton
630.734.4013 | kclayton@ivpress.com

As the world remembers the tragedy at Sandy Hook in Newtown, Connecticut, Paraclete Press is privileged to release The Child of Faith: Raising a Spiritual Child in a Secular World by mother and son writing team, Sophfronia Scott and Tain Gregory.

“This book we feel is a message of hope,” says author Sophfronia Scott. “By sharing our story we hope other families will see it is possible to help their children have spiritual lives in this very secular day and age. And that spirituality really can help in dark times.”

Taking the events of that tragic day, but also the years preceding it, and the days of recovery and healing that followed, Sophfronia and Tain share stories, experiences and ideas to help parents get to the heart of the question: How do you help a child have faith—real faith that they own—in the challenging world we live in today?

Read more from Sophfronia about This Child of Faith and her family’s journey of faith today in Time, Fox News online, and Religion News Service.

This Child of Faith: Raising a Spiritual Child in a Secular World
Releases today, December 14, 2017
Trade paper, $16.99, ISBN 987-1-61261-925-5
Read more

Sophfronia Scott is a novel and essay writer who spent a large part of her early career as a writer and editor for Time and People magazines. She holds a BA in English from Harvard and an MFA in creative writing from Vermont College of Fine Arts.

Tain Gregory is in the eighth grade at Newtown Middle School. He enjoys riding his bike, playing video games with his friends, acting in musicals, and playing piano. He’s also a Boy Scout in Newtown’s Troop 770 and appeared in the documentary Midsummer in Newtown.

In this beautiful and timely memoir, mother and son share insights from a family’s spiritual awakening, a journey that led to a deep experience of God and a new way of life in the world. Not only do they offer practical advice on faith formation, but they tackle a difficult question: How does faith prepare us not only life’s joys but for its most shocking tragedies? The answer is deceptively simple: by paying attention to the Spirit and trusting one another. Read this one and weep. And discover the hope of a child. —Diana Butler Bass, Author, Grounded: Finding God in the World, A Spiritual Revolution

Contact:  For more information contact Laura McKendree
lauram@paracletepress.com, (800) 451-5006 x 316

Photo credit: George Duncan

FRANKLIN, TENNESSEE-  December 14, 2017-  Clovercroft Publishing, one of the publishing imprints of Christian Book Services, LLC, announced today that they will be publishing a book by the executive who broke the “glass ceiling” at the largest corporation in the world.  Celia Swanson became the first female executive vice president in the history of the Walmart corporation.   The book, entitled Gracious and Strong, will be published on April 1, 2018.

Celia Swanson is an accomplished senior executive who spent 25+ years at Walmart championing its culture and its people. She is notably recognized as the first female executive vice president at Walmart Stores, Inc. breaking the glass ceiling for women. Swanson has achieved what very few women in corporate America have.

She earned a reputation for being a key culture ambassador throughout her career demonstrating a people-first mindset. In addition, she was hand-selected by the Walmart U.S. CEO to lead a cost-savings and associate engagement strategy transforming store operations for 1.4 million associates.

In addition to her professional career, Celia is known for her community leadership in Northwest Arkansas. She was recently selected by the Northwest Arkansas business community as the 2016 Athena Woman of the Year for her excellence in community service, board leadership and regional impact in Northwest Arkansas. She was also the only leader to receive the top two operations awards from Sam’s Club and Walmart U.S. As a speaker, Swanson delivers leadership talks across the globe. Celia is a keynote leader at The Conversation, a prestigious mastermind event for world changers, and many other events.

In the book, Swanson shares her faith that guided her efforts as she rose through the ranks in an environment that was not always conducive to a life guided by grace.  The book is appropriate for general, as well as Christian bookstores.

According to Larry Carpenter, president and CEO of Clovercroft Publishing, “Gracious and Strong will help readers navigate the obstacles they will face, while becoming an authentic leader who helps others navigate their lives too. There are many ways to be a leader, but the one who inspires others and helps them achieve their full potential is a leader who is gracious and strong. This book will change how readers see leadership and give them tools that they need to step out in their leadership role and pursue positive change within themselves, their family, and their team.”

Carpenter further added, “We were thrilled to work with an author who serves as such an inspiration to women and to all people in positions of leadership.”

The book will be sold and distributed through Ingram Publisher Services, but will be available through all wholesale distributors.  It is available in trade paperback for $14.99 and in hardcover for $24.95.  The book can be preordered through Ingram/Spring Arbor now.

For more details on the company, go to the company’s website at www.clovercroftpublishing.com or contact Larry Carpenter at (615) 472-1128 or at larry@christianbookservices.com.

Ada, Mich. (December 15, 2017)—Christianity Today recently announced the winners of their 2018 Book Awards. Baker Publishing Group won the top award in three categories. The Day the Angels Fell by Shawn Smucker won in the Children and Youth category, The Tech-Wise Family by Andy Crouch received top honors in the Christian Living/Discipleship category, and Engaging Globalization by Bryant L. Myers won in the Missions/Global Church category. In addition, three Baker publications won Awards of Merit: Paul and Gender by Cynthia Long Westall in Biblical Studies; The Science of Virtue by Mark R. McMinn in Spiritual Formation; and Scripture as Real Presence by Hans Boersma in Theology/Ethics. Christianity Today honors the books they consider “most likely to shape evangelical life, thought and culture.” For the complete list of winners, please click here.

The Day the Angels Fell by Shawn Smucker
(Revell; ISBN 9780800728496; ebook ISBN 9781493411078; $17.99)
After his mother’s death, twelve-year-old Samuel Chambers would do anything to bring her back. Prompted by three strange carnival fortune-tellers and his mysterious and reclusive neighbor, Sam begins his search for the Tree of Life—the only thing that could possibly bring his mother back. His quest to defeat death entangles him and his best friend Abra in an ancient conflict and forces Sam to grapple with an unwelcome question: Could it be possible that death is a gift? Haunting and hypnotic, The Day the Angels Fell explores the difficult questions of life in a voice that is fresh, friendly, and unafraid.

The Tech-Wise Family by Andy Crouch
(Baker Books; ISBN 9780801018664; ebook ISBN 9781493406555; $13.99)
Making good choices about technology is more than just using internet filters and determining screen-time limits. It’s about building character, wisdom, and courage rather than accepting technology’s promises of ease and instant gratification. Alongside in-depth original research from Barna Group that shows how families are wrestling with technology’s new realities, Andy Crouch takes parents beyond the typical questions of what, where, and when to show us that in a world full of devices, there’s a way to choose a better life than we’ve imagined.

Engaging Globalization by Bryant L. Myers
(Baker Academic; ISBN 9780801097980; ebook ISBN 9781493410262; $26.99)
Globalization is speeding up our world, extending our relationships globally, and bringing us closer together in many ways. The church and many Christians, however, remain largely unaware of its seductive power. This up-to-date resource by a veteran leader in global development work with World Vision orients readers to the history of globalization and to a Christian theological perspective on it, explores concrete realities by focusing on global poverty, and helps readers reimagine Christian mission in ways that announce the truly good news of Christ and God’s kingdom.

Paul and Gender by Cynthia Long Westfall
(Baker Academic; ISBN 9780801097942; ebook ISBN 9781493404810; $32.99)
Respected New Testament scholar Cynthia Long Westfall offers a coherent Pauline theology of gender, which includes fresh perspectives on the most controverted texts. Westfall interprets passages on women and men together and places those passages in the context of the Pauline corpus as a whole. She offers viable alternatives for some notorious interpretive problems in certain Pauline passages, reframing gender issues in a way that stimulates thinking, promotes discussion, and moves the conversation forward. As Westfall explores the significance of Paul’s teaching, she seeks to support and equip males and females to serve in their area of gifting.

The Science of Virtue by Mark R. McMinn
(Brazos Press; ISBN 9781587434099; ebook ISBN 9781493411214; $18.99)
The church and science have drifted apart over the past century. However, this book shows that the new science of virtue—the field of positive psychology—can serve as a bridge point between science and the church and can help renew meaningful conversation. McMinn clarifies how positive psychology can complement Christian faith and promote happiness and personal flourishing. McMinn brings the church’s experience and wisdom on six virtues—humility, forgiveness, gratitude, grace, hope, and wisdom—into conversation with intriguing scientific findings from positive psychology.

Scripture as Real Presence by Hans Boersma
(Baker Academic; ISBN 9780801017032; ebook ISBN 9781493406654, $39.99)
This work argues that the heart of patristic exegesis is the attempt to find the sacramental reality (real presence) of Christ in the Old Testament Scriptures. Leading theologian Hans Boersma discusses numerous sermons and commentaries of the church fathers to show how they regarded Christ as the treasure hidden in the field of the Old Testament and explains that the church today can and should retrieve the sacramental reading of the early church. Combining detailed scholarly insight with clear, compelling prose, this book makes a unique contribution to contemporary interest in theological interpretation.

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

Contact: Lynnae Lubbers
(616)676-9185 x193  llubbers@bakerpublishinggroup.com