The new release date for the highly touted book will give the author more time to finish the manuscript, according to Karen Campbell, director of public relations for Zondervan.

Warren is the pastor of Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, Calif., and author of The Purpose-Driven Life (Zondervan)--the best-selling hardcover nonfiction title in publishing history.

In a high-profile campaign, Warren and Zondervan recently chose the winner of the cover design contest for The Hope You Need, which centers on lessons learned from the Lord's prayer and will retail for $24.99.

"The Lord's prayer is profound, yet simple," said Warren. "Not a single word is wasted. ... The message of hope needs no promotion, just distribution. You don't have to promote water to people dying of thirst. You just need to tell them where to get it."

Click here for more on The Hope You Need.

Meanwhile, The Reader's Digest Association (RDA) is dropping its high-profile joint venture with Warren, due to a lack of subscriptions to the Purpose Driven Connection magazine, the New York Post reported. The magazine will cease publication after the Christmas issue--due out in mid-November. RDA, which is operating in Chapter 11 bankruptcy, will then hand over the magazine to Warren to continue as an online-only publication, the newspaper reported.