GRAND RAPIDS, Mich., March 7, 2012—With five titles appearing in Outreach Magazine’s resources of the year for 2011, Zondervan is the top publisher, claiming a quarter of the entire list. The titles include The King Jesus Gospel: The Original Good News Revisited by Scot McKnight, Half the Church: Recapturing God’s Global Vision for Women by Carolyn Custis James, Muslims, Christians and Jesus by Carl Medearis, The Nature of God: Ocean Adventures Book and The Nature of God: Ocean Adventures Volumes 1, 2 and 3 DVDs by Peter Schriemer and Sticky Faith: Everyday Ideas to Build Lasting Faith in Your Kids by Kara E. Powell and Chap Clark.

Outreach Magazine announced the ninth annual resources of the year in their March/April issue. From the 170 publisher submissions of books published between November 1, 2010 and October 31, 2011, editors and category experts whittled the list down to twenty—including the five Zondervan titles. According to Outreach, the selected resources celebrate the best outreach-oriented books and curricula in areas such as evangelism, compassion and justice ministries, missional living and cross-cultural ministries.

  • The King Jesus Gospel: The Original Good News Revisited by Scot McKnight was the only title featured in the evangelism category. In the book, McKnight argues that contemporary evangelicals have built a "salvation culture" but not a "gospel culture." Evangelicals have reduced the gospel to the message of personal salvation. This book makes a plea for us to recover the old gospel as that which is still new and still fresh.
     
  • Half the Church: Recapturing God’s Global Vision for Women by Carolyn Custis James was named in the culture category. James presents an inspiring vision of God’s plan for women that avoids assuming for them a particular social location or family situation. She reveals the surprising way God crafts a new identity for women who respond to the call of his kingdom—regardless of age, life stage, social location, and point on the globe.
  • Muslims, Christians and Jesus by Carl Medearis is a DVD based study that was honored as the small group curricular resource of the year. In this four-session video study, Medearis provides American Christians background info on Islam and tools for sharing Christ with their Muslim neighbors. From the Ground Zero mosque to whether we believe in the same God, Medearis also addresses key questions and responses to the current Muslim/Christian tensions facing our society.
  • The Nature of God: Ocean Adventures Book and The Nature of God: Ocean Adventures Volumes 1, 2, and 3 DVDs by Peter Schriemer were recognized in the children’s outreach category. Schriemer presents rich and age-appropriate content to teach children more about God’s creation of eco-systems, flora, and fauna specifically found in the Hawaiian Islands of the United States.
  • Sticky Faith: Everyday Activities to Build Lasting Faith in Your Kids by Kara E. Powell and Chap Clark was a selection in the youth outreach category. In the book, Fuller Youth Institute Executive Director Dr. Kara E. Powell and youth expert Chap Clark use research from the Fuller Youth Institute’s “College Transition Project” to empower parents with positive and practical ideas to nurture within their kids a living, loving faith that lasts a lifetime.

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About Zondervan
Zondervan, a HarperCollins company, is a world leader in Christian communications and a leading Christian publishing brand. For more than 75 years, Zondervan has delivered transformational Christian experiences through general and academic resources by influential leaders and emerging voices, and been honored with more Christian Book Awards than any other publisher. Headquartered in Grand Rapids, Mich., with additional offices in Miami, Zondervan conducts events and publishes its bestselling Bibles, books, audio, video, curriculum, software, and digital products through its Zondervan, Zonderkidz and Editorial Vida brands. Zondervan resources are sold worldwide through retail stores, online, and by Zondervan ChurchSource, and are translated into nearly 200 languages in more than 60 countries. Visit Zondervan on the Internet at www.zondervan.com.