Bill Hybels' Just Walk Across the Room Takes Top Honors
Contact: Lindy Lowry, 760-940-0600 x 3237
SAN DIEGO, April 23 /Christian Newswire/ -- Outreach magazine announces the winners and finalists of its Fourth Annual Best Outreach Resources of the Year Awards. This year's awards honor nearly 50 resources (10 winners and 37 finalists), including books, curricula, music, feature films, short films and DVDs released in 2006.
In addition, Outreach magazine editors reviewed the winners in 10 categories to select one resource as the overall winner for Outreach Resource of the Year: Just Walk Across the Room Experience (Zondervan) by author and Willow Creek Community Church founding and Senior Pastor Bill Hybels. The book also won in the Personal Evangelism category.
"Just Walk Across the Room was our clear winner," says Outreach magazine Editor Lindy Lowry. "Our editors continue to hear stories of how thousands of churches across the country have used this book and accompanying DVDs and small group curriculum to equip their congregations to share their faith."
Hybels added: "Just Walk Across the Room is my sincerest attempt to inspire Christ-followers to raise their level of evangelistic risk as they point people to faith. While I am both humbled and honored by this award from Outreach magazine, my greater hope is that it will cause a surge in outreach efforts by individuals and local churches around the world."
This year's awards again featured a panel of 10 experts--each experienced and respected leaders in their various fields of ministry--who evaluated and voted on the nominees in a specific category, and provided expert commentary on each finalist. The list of expert panelists can be found at: www.outreachmagazine.com/library/features/mj07ftrybor.asp
The remaining nine award winners were selected by panelists and Outreach magazine readers from a list of four to five finalists in specific categories: Children's Outreach, Youth Outreach, Postmodern Outreach, Target Outreach, Outreach Leadership Training, Small Group Outreach, Global Outreach, Outreach Testimony/Biography and Outreach DVD/Movie. The complete list of finalists and winners can be found at:
www.outreachmagazine.com/library/features/mj07ftrybor.asp
This year's list of award winners represents several current issues and trends in both the Church and today's culture. The winner in the Target Outreach category, God's Grace and the Homosexual Next Door co-authored by Exodus International President Alan Chambers, drives home the message to the local church that Christ's grace is for everyone, including homosexuals.
The Nativity Story (winner in the DVD/Film category) shines a spotlight on Hollywood's increasing shift toward religious themed filmmaking, while the Small Group Outreach winner, Discussing The Da Vinci Code, highlights how churches are using the appeal of feature films to engage their communities with the Gospel. And as an increasing number of Rwandan holocaust survivors are now surfacing to tell their stories of the 100 days of horror, author Immaculee Ilibagiza offers her redemptive account of tragedy and forgiveness in Left to Tell, winner in the Outreach Testimony/Biography category.
The winners and finalists for the magazine's Fourth Annual Outreach Resource of the Year Awards were recently published in the cover story of Outreach's May/June 2007 issue. Winners will be honored during this year's National Outreach Convention (Nov. 7-10) during a reception.
Over the last four years, Outreach has become known for the publication of its annual report on the top 100 Largest and Fastest-Growing Churches in America, as well as its annual awards for the Outreach Resource of the Year and the first annual America's Most Innovative Churches list published in the January/February 2007 issue.
Outreach editorial staff includes Lynne Marian, executive editor/ publisher; Shari Taylor, associate publisher; Lindy Lowry, editor; Heather Johnson, managing editor; Andrea Bailey, associate editor/online editor; Jeannie Choi, assistant editor; Christi Riddell, art director and Mike Noe, graphics designer. Columnists/contributing editors include Brad Powell, Lee Strobel, Thom S. Rainer, Steve Sjogren, Brian Mavis, Ed Stetzer and Anthony D. Coppedge. Editorial Advisory Board members include Rodolpho Carrasco, Lynne Ellis, Randy Frazee, Marlon Hall, Dan Kimball, Michael Lindsay, Mark Mittelberg, Brian Peterson, Rajendra Pillai, Rebecca Manley Pippert and Steve Sjogren.
San Diego, California-based Outreach magazine offers the ideas, insights and stories of today's outreach-oriented church. First published in January 2003 by Outreach, Inc., Outreach is one of the fastest-growing periodicals for church leadership based on circulation. Outreach is available by subscription or in many Christian and general periodical retailers through Ingram Periodicals Distribution. For information, subscriptions or advertising, visit www.Outreachmagazine.com.
