New production company will help train future filmmakers

Alex and Stephen Kendrick, the brothers who created the hit movies Fireproof and Courageous, are “expanding their film-making endeavors beyond the walls” of Sherwood Baptist Church in Albany, Ga. 

“It is with hearts of gratefulness for the past and a sense of God’s leadership for the future that the Kendrick brothers are announcing a new direction,” the siblings said on their website. “Kendrick Brothers Productions will be launching an independent movie production company designed to partner with believers across the nation and help train the next generation of Christian filmmakers.”

After years of prayer, and with the support of Sherwood Baptist Pastor Michael Catt and Executive Pastor Jim McBride, the brothers plan to make their next as-yet-titled movie under the new company. 

Alex Kendrick said that the venture “is basically growing pains.”

“My brother and I are still ordained ministers at the church, and it’s still our home base,” said Kendrick, who with his brother made four films under the Sherwood Pictures banner—Courageous, Fireproof, Facing the Giants and Flywheel. “This is a blessed venture from the pastor of the church and what God is calling us to do. It’s part of growing pains of this movie ministry.”

Catt added: “We love these guys and are grateful for God sending them to our staff over a decade ago. When we began this journey, none of us had movies in mind. It will be exciting for us to take the steps of faith required to see where God will take us. … Our prayers are with them as they pursue future endeavors.”

Under the new company, the Kendricks will able to film outside Albany, and not just use volunteers from the church in making their movies.

“For the next movie, we will shoot wherever we need to shoot, and we’ll include as many Christian film students [as possible],” Kendrick said. “We need to be investing in the next generation, teaching them what we know at this point. We’re thinking of passing the torch someday. We still have several films in us. Just as 2 Timothy talks about teaching faithful men, we want to teach other filmmakers to honor the Lord.”

The brothers are currently writing the script for their next movie. 

“We know the title, theme and story, but it’s a little too soon to say,” Kendrick said."

Show sees announcement from former presidential candidate Rick Santorum, appearance by Michael Landon

Films and video took the spotlight at this year’s ICRS in St. Louis, with the announcement of new studio partnerships and screenings of upcoming releases. CBA President Curtis Riskey said DVD sales in Christian stores increased 27% from 2010 to 2012, and he sees this category as an area as a vital one for Christian retailers and for spreading the gospel in a postmodern world.

“One area where we are seeing growth is Christian films,” Riskey said. “We’re at a critical place in the church, where young people either don’t know about Jesus Christ or don’t care. We need to go where they are, and Christian films can do that.” 

On the opening night of the show, former U.S. Senator and GOP presidential candidate Rick Santorum told the audience he has accepted the position of CEO of EchoLight Studios. At a later press conference, Santorum said that EchoLight is the first fully integrated faith-based film company, meaning it can produce, finance, market and distribute films across every platform.

“We can develop not only our own projects, but we can build this industry from the bottom out,” Santorum said. “One of our key partnerships must be CBA and the Christian retail store, and we want to be their trusted brand. I have no doubt that we can serve and minister and share the gospel, not just to the flock, but to the world. I’m jumping in with both feet.”

Santorum and EchoLight President Bobby Downes said the company has a $20 million investment fund to produce Christian films and to help new screenwriters and filmmakers. To that end, EchoLight recently pledged up to $1 million to produce and distribute a new work from the Best Film winner of 2013’s 168 Film Project, $250,000 to the San Antonio Independent Christian Film Festival (SAICFF) and committed to a five-year, multimillion-dollar production and distribution deal with Liberty University.

EchoLight treated convention-goers to a screening of its upcoming fall theatrical release, The Redemption of Henry Myers, starring Drew Waters of TV show Friday Night Lights and Erin Bethea of Fireproof. 

Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment invited retailers to a reception to catch a glimpse of its upcoming films. Due out this fall and in early 2014 are Heart of the Country, starring country music star and actress Jana Kramer; The Ultimate Life, a sequel to the hit film The Ultimate Gift; and Cowgirls ‘N Angels 2.

Director John Ward said he signed Kramer to film Heart of the Country right when she left the TV series One Tree Hill and before her country music career took off. He said his goal in the film was to take the biblical story of the prodigal son and bring it to life in a modern-day setting.

“What I wanted to do was adapt the words of Jesus, make them about a prodigal daughter and show what that might look like if they were lived out today,” Ward explained.

The Ultimate Life stars Waters and Peter Fonda, among others, and was directed by Michael Landon Jr. and produced by Rick Eldridge. Landon recently directed an original film, When Calls the Heart, based on Janette Oke’s “Canadian West” series from Bethany House. The pilot will air in October on the Hallmark Channel, and Hallmark will launch a TV series beginning in January. Landon and Oke answered questions from retailers during a screening of the pilot.

“I like to create projects, like my dad did with the Little House series, that bring the family together in one room, not the kids off in one room watching something and the parents in another room watching something else,” Landon told the audience. “I love the idea of everyone gathering around the dinner table, then watching something together—like my family did on Wednesday nights at 8 p.m. 

“Not that I had any choice about that,” he added with a laugh.

Word Distribution celebrated 20 years of VeggieTales with a sneak peek of Merry Larry and the True Light of Christmas, featuring the voice of Duck Dynasty’s Si Robertson.

Co-creator Mike Nawrocki was on hand to thank retailers and Big Idea’s Greg Fritz announced that since DreamWorks acquired the company, it has partnered with Netflix to create a new VeggieTales TV series to debut in 2014. Retailers broke into applause when told that the show will air uncensored, meaning that it will have faith-based content.

At a workshop titled “Retailing in the Digital Media Age: Where does your store fit in the value chain?” a panel moderated by the Dove Foundation’s Dick Rolfe considered whether digital downloads, Redbox and Netflix are signaling the end of DVD sales.

“Three years ago, the headlines all said that once consumers went digital, they would never go back,” said Paul Lauer, president of Motive Entertainment, the firm that has helped market films that grossed more than $2 billion worldwide, including Mel Gibson’s The Passion of The Christ. “But what we are finding is that 25% of American households make up almost 75% of sales across all channels. They use them all—Redbox, Netflix, DVDs, CDs and movie theaters.”

Another screening featured Pure Flix’ sequel Revelation Road 2: The Sea of Glass and Fire, slated for DVD and Blu-ray release Sept. 10. Actors David A.R. White and Brian Bosworth spoke after the event. 

Bridgestone Multimedia Group announced it will be moving beyond its licensed properties to begin filming its own productions in 2014. Bridgestone also screened its newest licensed DVD releases, The Lost Medallion and Jimmy. The Lost Medallion stars Alex Kendrick (Courageous, Fireproof) in a film that teaches foster kids how important they are to God. Jimmy—winner of five Dove Foundation awards—tells the story of a mentally disabled teen finding faith.

City on a Hill Productions invited key retailers to a VIP reception followed by an open screening of Acts of God, which won two Crown Awards as Best Picture and Best Drama at the International Christian Video Media Conference in June.

Capitol Christian Distribution held suite events to introduce its sales team and two upcoming properties to key retailers. Iesodo (pronounced yay-so-doh, which means “The Way of God” in Japanese) is a new children’s series with birds as the leading characters, including a white dove Jesus figure named Iesodo. The character made several appearances on the exhibit floor with actress Erin Bethea. The first episode is due on DVD in October. 

Grace Unplugged hits theaters Oct. 4 and follows an 18-year-old Christian singer who sets out to become a pop star and finds that success puts her faith to the test. 

Kingstone Media Group announced that Affirm Films/Sony Pictures Entertainment is adapting to film Kingstone’s  graphic novel The Remaining. Premiering in fall 2014, the thriller follows a group of friends who must figure out what to do after the rapture.

Company moved more than 5 million units in 2012 alone

Choice Books hosted a reception at the International Christian Retail Show (ICRS) to celebrate 50 years in business. 

“We give thanks to God for his faithfulness in leading Choice Books these past 50 years and fondly remember the four founders who cast the original vision that continues to inspire and motivate us today,” CEO John Bomberger said.

“Choice Books has a rich history of dedicated, hard-working staff committed to sharing God’s love through books and many strong partnerships with publishers and retailers who have helped Choice Books fulfill its mission and purpose over the years,” Bomberger added. “We say thanks to all our partners and give God the glory for our collective work together.”

A reception held June 24 at the Ramada Plaza Downtown in St. Louis drew nearly 80 representatives from various publisher partners “for a time of fellowship and reflection on the past 50 years,” the company said. 

Started in 1962, Choice Books has made major inroads in general market distribution of Christian books, selling more than 5 million faith-based titles in 2012 through more than 12,000 kiosks at supermarkets, highway rest stops, drugstores, department stores and airports, company officials said. 

The vision for Choice Books began in the late 1950s and early 1960s when Mark Martin of Harrisonburg, Va.; Eugene Garber of Kalona, Iowa; Norman Martin of Chambersburg, Pa.; and Orrin Eichelberger of Canton, Ohio, began selling inspirational books to local stores. Based in Harrisonburg, Va., the company now has seven regional distributors and more than 250 employees.

During the reception, six publishers were presented with an engraved book clock and recognized for significant sales in their longtime partnership with Choice Books: Moody Publishers; Baker Books/Baker Publishing Group; Zondervan and Thomas Nelson, now under HarperCollins Christian Publishing; Tyndale House Publishers; Harvest House Publishers; and Barbour Publishing. Choice Books purchased titles from more than 90 publishers last year.

‘Passing the torch’ to the Association for Christian Retail expected to ‘further broad distribution of the gospel message’

CBA will take over the recently closed Christian Trade Association International (CTAI), which was established, ironically, when the Christian retail organization shed its overseas chapters in 2005.

“We are very saddened by Christian Trade’s closing, but CBA wants to see the work continue,” said CBA President Curtis Riskey. “Our desire is to maintain international services and possibly create something new.” 

Kim Pettit, CTAI’s executive director and CEO, informed supporters in an email in early July that the international organization had closed. 

“After much prayer and long deliberation, our board of directors made the unanimous decision to dissolve Christian Trade and its affiliated ministry Christian Trade Association International World Ministries, effective June 30,” she wrote. 

However, CBA will now provide CTAI’s members “options to continue existing memberships and benefits without charge directly with CBA,” CBA officials said. 

CTAI Chairman Jean-Luc Cosnard, publisher of Editions Vida in Paris, said CTAI’s board expressed its desire to see international services continue through CBA, and noted that all of the group’s assets had been transferred to CBA. 

“I have found that CBA Chairman George Thomsen and President Curtis Riskey have shared Christian Trade’s fervent desire to serve the trade, not just in the U.S., but internationally as well,” Cosnard said. “As the product, pricing and distribution models in our industry continue to evolve, rather than continuing our separate efforts to serve Christian suppliers and retailers around the globe, we are passing the torch to CBA.

“We trust they will continue the good work that Christian Trade has carried out, and that our members will benefit from having a wider range of resources and services available to them in the future,” Cosnard added. “Our desire has always been to see the industry grow so that more people might come to know Christ through our resources, and we believe that this consolidation is the best way to accomplish this in the future.” 

Pettit will work with CBA as a consultant to transition international services. 

“It is tough to see the association close, but I am encouraged to see the legacy of Christian Trade’s late founder, Jim Powell, continued to further broad distribution of the gospel message,” Pettit said. 

Powell, who died of cancer last November, stepped down as president of CTAI in 2011 to serve in Papua New Guinea. 

Riskey said CBA will work to multiply what CTAI achieved by leveraging further industry resources to benefit global distribution. 

“Ultimately, we want to see the work that was begun brought to fruition and the Word of Jesus Christ shared throughout the world,” Riskey said. 

CTAI has members in 148 countries and associations in 18 nations, which will continue to operate.

Famed Hollywood couple Mark Burnett and Roma Downey’s smash History Channel hit sells 1 million units

Mark Burnett and Roma Downey’s The Bible miniseries has received three Primetime Emmy Award nominations from the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences.

The 10-episode History Channel miniseries is up for Outstanding Miniseries or Movie category, competing with FX Networks’ American Horror Story: Asylum, HBO’s Behind the Candelabra, HBO’s Phil Spector, USA’s Political Animals and Sundance Channel’s Top of the Lake.

The Bible also was nominated in the Outstanding Sound Editing for a Miniseries, Movie or a Special and Outstanding Sound Mixing for a Miniseries or a Movie categories. 

Airing in the spring and culminating Easter Sunday, The Bible, which starred Downey as Mary, the mother of Jesus, was the top new cable series of the year. In its first week of home video release, it was the top-selling miniseries of all time and the number one television series on DVD and Blu-ray in the past five years, according to TVbytheNumbers.com, which also reported that in only three months, it had sold 1 million units.

Additionally, it was recently announced that NBC will broadcast a sequel that will focus on events after the death of Jesus. The network is teaming up with producer Mark Burnett (The Voice, Celebrity Apprentice) for A.D.: Beyond the Bible, which is the tentative title for the new series.

Joint-venture store changes names, retains current manager

LifeWay Christian Stores has acquired Johnsen & Taylor Bookstore, which was founded as a joint venture between Tyndale House Publishers and South Africa-based Christian Publishing Company (CPC). Terms of the agreement were not released.

The 6,432-square-foot location has changed its name and officially opened as a LifeWay store Aug. 1. Originally opened in November 2010, the 5,000-square-foot Town Square Wheaton store in Wheaton, Ill., was named in honor of Chris Johnsen, managing director of CPC and founder of Christian Art Gifts of South Africa, and Kenneth and Margaret Taylor, founders of Carol Stream, Ill.-based Tyndale House.

“Our motivation since day one was to serve our local community through the ministry and resources of a Christian retail store,” Tyndale officials said. “We have achieved this goal, and as we look to the future of the store, we feel the community will be better served by being part of a larger Christian retail organization that is focused on retail and has a clear mission of bringing gospel-centered resources to local communities.

“[LifeWay’s] core values and mission align with what we desire for Johnsen & Taylor, and we are excited to see this ministry continue to flourish within the LifeWay group,” Tyndale officials added. “The store location, store manager and the employees, who wished to continue, all remain the same.”

LifeWay Christian Stores President Tim Vineyard said: “Our goal is to be a one-source location with Christian resources for churches and individuals as we strive to fulfill our vision of providing biblical solutions for life. It is a pleasure to be a part of the Wheaton community.” 

Store Manager Mark Sutkowski said that many individuals and churches “are excited about LifeWay Christian Stores being here.”

Sutkowski said he was personally “looking forward to having the ability to reach out to the local churches in a greater way” through cooperative community projects, seasonal campaigns and high-quality ministry resources.

U.S. government must decide whether to appeal court’s ruling

A federal court granted Hobby Lobby Stores a preliminary injunction July 19 against the Health & Human Services (HHS) abortion-drug mandate. The ruling prevents the U.S. government from enforcing the new law requiring the company to provide insurance coverage for the morning-after pill and similar contraceptives for its employees. 

The case is on hold until Oct. 1. The federal government must now decide whether to appeal.

The preliminary injunction was issued by U.S. District Judge Joe Heaton in Oklahoma City, where the 500-plus store arts-and-crafts chain is headquartered. The suit also covered the Mardel Christian bookstore chain, also owned by the Green family.

The victory came less than a month after a landmark decision by the full 10th Circuit Court of Appeals that ruled 5-3 in favor of Hobby Lobby exercising religion under the First Amendment. The appellate court also said the retailer was likely to win its case against the mandate.

“The tide has turned against the HHS mandate,” said Kyle Duncan, general counsel with The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty and lead attorney for Hobby Lobby.

In an opinion read from the bench, the court said: “There is a substantial public interest in ensuring that no individual or corporation has their legs cut out from under them while these difficult issues are resolved.”

At press time, more than 60 lawsuits were in process challenging the HHS mandate. The Becket Fund represents a number of higher education institutions as well as the Eternal Word Television Network.

Move made after businesses expressed concern that the federal law’s requirements were too complicated

Businesses with more than 50 employees have a one-year reprieve in implementing the new health care law’s employer mandate. On July 2, the Obama administration announced a delay until 2015 of the implementation of the requirement that businesses provide health insurance to their workers or pay a penalty.

In a separate move, contraceptives will stay covered under provisions of the Affordable Care Act (aka Obamacare). Despite resistance from faith-based organizations, the Obama administration said June 28 that it was moving ahead with the rule requiring most employers to provide free “morning-after” and “week-after” pill coverage in their employee health insurance plans. 

The postponement announcement was made by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) after numerous complaints from businesses arguing that the requirements of the new health care law were too complicated and difficult to implement in time.

Other key parts of the law, including the health exchanges where individuals can buy insurance, are on schedule to open Oct. 1, wrote Valerie Jarrett, a senior adviser to President Obama, in a White House blog. 

The delay does not change the individual mandate, which requires most Americans to buy insurance. Some consumers may receive subsidies to help them pay for the insurance depending on their incomes.

Jarrett said the move shows the Obama administration is paying attention to the concerns of business.

“As we make these changes, we believe we need to give employers more time to comply with the new rules,” Jarrett wrote. “Since employer responsibility payments can only be assessed based on this new reporting, payments won’t be collected for 2014.”

The delay provides the IRS more time to simplify reporting requirements, as well as for businesses to understand reporting systems. The government still wants businesses to voluntarily begin reporting in 2014, so they will be ready for 2015.

Business groups had complained that the law created an administrative burden as businesses attempted to update technology and plan to provide health coverage to their employees, despite not knowing how much the insurance would cost.

Businesses with more than 50 employees would have paid a fee of $2,000 per uninsured employees after the first 30 employees. The Congressional Budget Office anticipated those penalties to generate $4 billion in 2014, USA Today reported. 

The final contraceptive rule adopts a simplified version of an approach proposed by the government in February to balance the interests of women with the concerns of employers with religious objections, the New York Times reported.

Computer giant says there was no conspiracy, plans to file appeal to fight what officials say are ‘false accusations’

A federal judge has ruled that computer giant Apple violated antitrust law by conspiring with publishers to raise e-book prices. In 2012, the Department of Justice brought charges against Apple and five major publishers—Hachette Book Group, HarperCollins Publishers, Holtzbrinck Publishers (Macmillan), Penguin Group (USA) and Simon & Schuster—all of which settled, leaving Apple to have its day in court alone. 

Plaintiffs—the Justice Department and 33 states and U.S. territories—filed suits April 11, 2012, alleging that Apple and the five publishers conspired to “raise, fix and stabilize the retail price for newly released and bestselling trade e-books” in violation of Section 1 of the Sherman Antitrust Act and various state laws.

In federal Judge Denise Cote’s 159-page decision issued July 10 from the U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, she wrote: “The Plaintiffs have shown that the Publisher Defendants conspired with each other to eliminate retail price competition in order to raise e-book prices, and that Apple played a central role in facilitating and executing that conspiracy.”

Apple has a vested interest in e-book sales, as it sells the iPad tablet and distributes digital books through its iBookstore. The collusion was seen as an effort to compete with Amazon’s $9.99 price on many e-books, including New York Times best-sellers. The court’s opinion explained how and why prices for many e-books “rose significantly” in the U.S. in April 2010.

The opinion also noted that the Plaintiffs “are entitled to injunctive relief” and that “a trial on damages will follow.”

Apple says it plans to appeal the ruling. Company spokesman Tom Neumayr denied that Apple conspired to fix e-book pricing and plans to continue to fight the “false accusations.”

Stormie Omartian hopes to continue decade-long sales success with new ‘Prayer Warrior’ fall release

Mega-selling author Stormie Omartian was known as a fitness instructor in the early ‘80s. Thirty years later, she seems to have found the fountain of youth, but it’s not exercise she is known for now—it’s the power of prayer.

When Omartian and husband Michael were writing Christian music and producing albums for Sparrow Records, she thought to ask Sparrow’s president about producing an exercise video and a book to offer her many supporters. It was his response that led to her remarkable publishing journey.

Omartian’s exercise albums reached Gold status and the videos sold millions, so by the time her first book, Greater Health God’s Way, came out in 1984, it sold just as well. That’s when Harvest House Publishers asked Omartian if she had other books in mind. She did, of course, with the first, her autobiography, Stormie, released in 1986. Today, her many books, including the wildly popular “The Power of a Praying” series, have sold nearly 26.5 million copies, including foreign editions and ancillary titles.

“In the beginning, wherever I was speaking a Christian bookstore was close at hand,” Omartian said. “I did events in the stores and met the owners, who were so wonderful, sweet and supportive.”

While her heart breaks for those stores forced out of business by the economy and the rise of big-box competitors, she recalls that “they would talk to customers and recommend and promote my books. They were really instrumental in getting my books out there.”

For LifeWay Christian Stores, Omartian is one of their key brands, promoted extensively in their 163 stores in displays and catalogs. In fact, according to Rachel McRae, LifeWay’s book buyer, the chain likes to have an Omartian book in front of customers all the time.

“Stormie Omartian has a huge following and is a great traffic-driver in LifeWay stores,” said McRae. “Stormie’s readers align with our core LifeWay customers. Women 35-55 are the core of who she writes for and our core customers.”

The Power of a Praying Parent was released in 1995 and was the first book in her blockbuster series. 

“At the time, it was kind of risky because parenting books were hit or miss,” said LaRae Weikert, vice president of editorial at Harvest House. “We dove off the deep end, and the rest is history.”

The Power of a Praying Wife was released two years later and became, by far, the best-seller in the mix, with
3.8 million copies sold. When worldwide translations, additional editions and ancillary products are included in the total, sales of that title alone surpass 7 million.

“That book has had such a huge impact on Harvest House and on Christian retail,” said Weikert. “It broke a 21-year publishing record in 2002 for being No. 1 on the CBA best-selling list for 27 consecutive months.”

Omartian remembers calling Harvest House when Wife hit the top of the best-seller list. 

“I thanked Bob Hawkins for the work Harvest House did to get that book to No. 1, but he humbly said that they hadn’t done it,” she recalled. “He said God did that. But I also know Christian retailers recommended that book, and it made such a difference to have that word-of-mouth. A verbal recommendation makes such an impact, and I so appreciate what the retailers did.”

Wife also was named a finalist for the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association’s (ECPA) Charles “Kip” Jordon Christian Book of the Year for three consecutive years, 2001-2003.

Omartian’s “The Power of a Praying” books have consistently been recipients of ECPA’s Gold and Platinum sales awards, and continue to produce sales more than a decade after their releases. In fact, five titles in the series—The Power of a Praying Parent, Husband, Wife, Woman, The Power of Praying for Your Adult Children and ancillary products—will be re-released with new packaging and author updates early next year.

“I’m going through all of them and updating to the present, adding a chapter to each book, plus adding to the prayer/study guides and the books of prayers,” said Omartian. “Certain things hadn’t happened yet when I wrote them. For example, when I wrote Parent, my children hadn’t married yet, but now both of them are married. To look back and see how those prayers were answered has been miraculous.”

She laughs when she talks about the many letters and emails she receives asking for a book titled The Power of a Praying Grandparent.

“I’m waiting with my pen and paper in hand, but I don’t want to write it without the experience,” she said. “I tell them I’m waiting for the experience.”

Barb Sherrill, vice president of marketing at Harvest House, said that “bookstores just want new books. Stormie is still very popular and successful. Every time we offer something new, they are excited about it. Bookstores include it in their promotions, eblasts and catalogs.”

Every major bookstore chain and marketing group—from Mardel to Parable Group to Barnes & Noble and beyond—is eager to promote Omartian’s books to their customers.

“Everyone helps create a great launch,” said Sherrill. “This has been going on for more than a decade, and that’s how long her career has been strong and successful. It’s incredible her footprint is as large as it is.”

Omartian has a host of other books outside of her “The Power of a Praying” series, including September 2012’s Lead Me, Holy Spirit and its accompanying products. 

Prayer Warrior will release this month, along with several additional products.

“Both of these were very difficult to write because they can be touchy topics for people and can be scary,” said Omartian. “Both took a lot of time, careful reading of Scripture and prayer. I wanted Lead Me, Holy Spirit and Prayer Warrior to be user-friendly and encourage people to not be afraid of the Holy Spirit and spiritual warfare, and to understand the Spirit’s work in each of our lives.”

As for forthcoming books, “we’re always talking about future projects with Stormie,” Weikert said. 

Several projects are in the works, though nothing is public yet. 

“Stormie has been a key author for us all these years,” she added. “When you think of Harvest House, you think of Stormie Omartian. We’re so proud to be part of what God has given her.”

For McRae at LifeWay, a new Omartian book is cause for excitement. Her new titles sell well, which fuels sales of backlist titles and ancillary products. McRae is forecasting great sales for the upcoming Prayer Warrior for fall and into the holiday season.

“We love Stormie and we’re glad she loves us,” said McRae. “We’re always glad when there is a new book coming out. We save space in stores and catalogs for Stormie’s books.”

Omartian continues to credit the efforts of Christian retailers with helping to sell her books and continues to urge her readers to pay attention to Christian retail stores.

“I always encourage people to pray for their bookstore,” she said. “If they have a bookstore in their neighborhood, pray that the store would thrive and stay open because we want them to do well. Pray, but go visit and buy when possible.”