Tag Archives: Religion and Spirituality

Day of Prayer #3: Reflections from Jersey: “We must never underestimate the power of prayer”

Posted on September 7, 2010 by | Leave a comment

Praying HandsHow was it for you? For me, last week’s Day of Prayer was wonderfully encouraging and I’d like to offer my personal thanks to everyone who took part. Whereas this time last year most of the online activity seemed to be via twitter, this year facebook took the lead: almost every time I logged on to facebook, someone within our trade had posted an update to say that they were praying or somebody else was. I invited Julie Buesnel to offer us some reflections from her perspective at one of our more far-flung outposts, Christian Solutions, Jersey:

Julie Buesnell, Christian Solutions, Jersey

Julie Buesnell, Christian Solutions, Jersey

Julie writes: We must never underestimate the power of prayer.

On Friday we had many people emailing in their support, not only for Christian Solutions; but also for the whole of the Industry. Customers came in and out throughout the day. Some prayed downstairs (one lady was here for her lunch hour) others walked around the shop quietly praying by themselves. Many of us across the Island of Jersey were united in Prayer for the whole of the industry. This shows the level of support that we have.

At one point the shop was so full of praying and buying Customers that I couldn’t get from one side of the shop to the other. We were greatly encouraged at the support that we received. We are indeed the Light in the Market Place and the day of prayer is so important. People are beginning to catch our vision, and realise that they don’t have to buy on Amazon to get a quick delivery. Deliveries to Jersey from our Suppliers are fantastic at the moment.

People are also realising that if they do buy from us instead of online and maybe, yes, pay a little more, what they are actually doing is supporting the mission side. We must be thankful to God for those people who are supporting us, and keep praying for those who don’t.

I was also contacted by the local Radio Station to give an interview at the most popular time of day 5.45pm, yes pm, not the usual 6.45 or 7.45am on a Sunday morning. It was a very short interview and I did feel cut off in my prime; but those who listened said I got the message across: praise God for that.

These days of prayer are so very important. Many people come into our shop searching for something, not always knowing what, but we can point them in the right direction and help them to find Jesus. Through the shop only last week, I met three people plus a mum who are searching for something, this has resulted in me taking them along to the local Christianity Explored course starting on 27th September at Pizza Express. It is for these people that we continue to put in all the hours, and it is all for the love of Jesus.

I look forward to the next day of prayer.

From the other end of the country…

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Posted in Christian Bookshops, Independent Booksellers

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Day of Prayer #3

Posted on September 3, 2010 by | 11 Comments

Praying HandsTODAY, Friday 3rd September 2010, is our third Day of Prayer for the Christian book and retail trade, and there’s lots to be thankful for as well as to pray for. For details of meetings at various venues around the country, please see the facebook event page; but regardless of where you are — whether on your own or with others — please take some time out today to remember Christian authors, agents, booksellers and publishers in your prayers.

  • May each of us, from our different vantage points, come to understand that we are all in this ministry together, serving the same Lord and working for God’s Kingdom. May we never seek to gain unfair competitive advantage over one another but may we instead seek opportunities to support one another in love.

Please continue to pray especially for Mike Norbury as he comes to terms with the recent loss of his wife, Jackie. Mike writes:

Will you please thank all the (literally) hundreds of people in this great trade of ours who sent messages of prayer and condolence by card, letter, Facebook and e-mail. It was like being carried on a wonderful bed of feathers lifting me above what could have easily been a bed of nails.

My request for prayer now is that:

  1. I will be able, eventually, be able to come to terms with her leaving me at such a young age – just 48. Even though I know she’s in the loving arms of our Saviour and rejoicing with Him for eternity It is so hard.
  2. That God will continue to put His loving arms around us all as we get used to life without Jackie, especially her family in Bolton (and a sister in the USA) who are heartbroken.
  3. That the good work He started through Jackie will continue – already her testimony is changing lives.

Let’s also pray for:

  • Living Oasis Croydon seeking suitable premises after losing the lease on the former Wesley Owen store to another company.
  • Shops and other businesses struggling to make ends meet. In particular, please pray for LST Books & Resources and my colleague Nick Aston as he prepares to take on responsibility for the shop after my departure on 16th Sept; and for me as I focus on developing UKCBD and this blog post-LST; and the poor unfortunates at Sainsbury’s, Biggleswade, who will be contending with my presence on a part-time basis as I seek financial stability.
  • Durham Cathedral Shop: the story is far from over as staff adjust to new working relationships. Please pray for the Cathedral authorities as they struggle to come to terms with their complicity in staff mistreatment; the tribunal process seeking justice and compensation; and the Brewer brothers as they continue to evade justice: may there be a fair outcome for all.
  • STL UK as they continue to rebuild trust with their trading partners at both ends of the supply chain: publishers, other suppliers and retailers alike; the former STL staff whose roles were made redundant, and the staff now working under a new regime.
  • All other businesses and individuals still struggling in the aftermath of Biblica’s withdrawal from the UK Christian trade last year; for Biblica themselves as they have yet to acknowledge or show signs of repentance for the damage done.
  • Eden.co.uk as their business continues to grow and they explore ideas for working creatively alongside the rest of us.
  • Hymns Ancient & Modern and St Andrew Press seeking a way forward for Church of Scotland publishing.

For more prayer points and a good overview of the current state of play in the Christian book trade, please see GLO Bookshop’s note, Day of Prayer for UK Christian Bookshops Friday 3rd September 2010

Let’s be thankful for:

There’s much more we could be offering prayer and praise for, of course: these are just a few things off the top of my head as I write this post: thank you for reading and thank you for praying.

Looking back:

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Posted in Book Trade Ramblings, Christian Bookshops, People News

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Salvation at Hand for St Andrew Press? Kirk Proposes Deal with Hymns Ancient and Modern

Posted on August 31, 2010 by | 2 Comments

SALVATION may be at hand for St Andrew Press, the Church of Scotland’s publishing division, in the shape of Hymns Ancient and Modern (HM&A), which took on publishing responsibilities for the Church of England only last year.

St Andrew Press was faced with the threat of closure earlier this year as part of a controversial cost-cutting exercise by the Kirk which led to John Brown, brother of former Prime Minister Gordon Brown, stepping down in protest from his position as a lay member of the Kirk’s Publishing Committee when redundancies left the Press with just one member of staff to oversee operations.

According to the official Kirk announcement, three bids were considered for St Andrew Press and the Mission and Discipleship Council, which is responsible for the Press, felt that the bid from HM&A was “the best option” with a final decision due to be made by the Council of Assembly. The Revd Mark Johnstone, Convener of the Mission and Discipleship Council, described it as “a win win situation for the Church as we get to retain our valuable St Andrew Press brand, increase our market reach and raise money for the Church, all at no cost to us.”

Perhaps he is right, if that’s what winning is about. The press release makes no mention of what a handover of operations to HM&A might cost the sole surviving member of staff or what the implications might be for booksellers in terms of trade representation: at present St Andrew Press is represented by the SPCK-led Christian Publishers Representatives (CPR) team.

If — as seems likely — the deal with HM&A goes through then St Andrew Press would seem set to become part of the growing Norwich Books & Music distribution portfolio alongside Church House Publishing and Darton Longmann & Todd, amongst others. Whilst it will remain possible to place orders via the PubEasy network, it will no longer be possible to pay invoices or process returns via batch.co.uk as NB&M have yet to sign up to batch.

If you, beloved reader, are a batch.co.uk user, perhaps now would be a good time to contact NB&M and gently encourage them to join.

Reports Elsewhere (most recent first)

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Posted in Christian Publishers, News

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TEXTS OF TERROR: The World’s Most Frightening Bible?

Posted on August 18, 2010 by | 12 Comments
American Patriot's Bible: The Word of God and the Shaping of America

American Patriot's Bible: The Word of God and the Shaping of America

I first came across this Bible courtesy of our cousins across the pond at STL USA (who themselves now face the indignity of being put up for sale by Biblica, with reassurances from Doug Lockhart that sound eerily reminiscent of Keith Danby’s reassurances about STL UK last year — but that’s another story…).

I hoped and prayed that it was some sort of sad joke — after all, who (apart from Israel) could truly lay claim to the Bible as part and parcel of their national heritage? But no, this aberration, complete with USA flag blended into the cover, is all too real; and now — according to a recent report in Christian Retailing — The American Patriot’s Bible has reached the terrifying position of being one of North America’s bestsellers, reaching No. 5 on amazon.com’s bestseller lists. Despite the title, there really is more than one American patriot.

In an age of global terror threats, when we should surely be seeking ways to bridge the gap between different cultures rather than to push them further apart, the last thing the world needs is a Bible branded with America’s — or any other country’s — identity. If the Bible is the Word of God, it is surely God’s Word for all people, for all nations. Is that not what scripture itself, what Jesus himself, teaches us? No doubt Thomas Nelson’s marketing people had only the best of intentions in mind in their shaping of this nightmare: to encourage the American people; but are their minds really so detached from reality that they can’t see the message that something like this conveys to the rest of the world?

If the “de-Christianisation” of Living Oasis means making a clean break from this sort of insanity, then I am so with Andy Twilley now; but if product such as this is the true face of Christianity in the 21st century then I am, indeed, ashamed of the Gospel. Becky Garrison is right: this must surely be one of those things that makes Jesus look at his Dad and go, “I died for this?”

I suppose we should be thankful for small mercies: they could have featured US Army tanks invading Iraq or Afghanistan on the cover…

Update 25/08/2010: Not US Army tanks, just a specially packaged pocket version for the troops, cunningly designed to match the uniforms. From the Nelson Newsroom:

A condensed pocket edition, bound in the new official MultiCam® fabric used on the U.S. Military’s uniforms and packs, minus the government’s infrared technology, is also available to inspire today’s modern-day patriots in the trenches.

— The American Patriot’s Bible Editor Joins Glenn Beck Events

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Posted in Bookshop Ramblings

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A Facebook Roundup for the Christian Book Trade

Posted on July 20, 2009 by | 24 Comments

facebook

Last Updated August 31, 2010

As more and more of us are connecting with our customers and one another via facebook, I figured it was about time to compile an index. If your company is on facebook but not listed here, shout out and I’ll update the list; and if you’re not there yet, why not? There are paid options available but a basic presence is free, easy to use and a great way to keep up with your customers and colleagues.

Some of us have set up groups, others have created pages, profiles and/or events: which way did you go and why? Which would you say has proved most effective in reaching your customers? If you’re about to start out on facebook and are not sure which way to go, check out the resources section below.

If you’ve got a tale to tell of how using facebook has helped — or hindered — your company, whether by connecting with your customers or suppliers or in some other way, please leave a comment. Anyone else too, for that matter: it’s an open book, waiting to be written, and we’re all in it together.

Trade Groups

Bookshops/Retailers | Facebook Search: Christian Bookshop

What happened to Wesley Owen? Since last year’s demise of their parent company, IBS-STL UK, most branches of Wesley Owen have reopened under the Living Oasis banner: listed above.

Looking for Christian bookshops in the USA? Search for Christian Bookstore.

Publishers/Suppliers

Others

Finally, a word to the wise: if you haven’t set up your own facebook group or page yet, the very least you should do is run a facebook search for your company name to find out what others are saying about you…

Resources

Where Next?

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