Kevin Johnson Books

Pray the Scriptures Bible: Psalms and Proverbs

In the world of books "hot off the press" actually means "hot off the binder." Nothing beats the smell of paper and hot glue. Pray the Scriptures Bible: Psalms and Proverbs is my latest work, and yesterday afternoon we got to watch it come off the binder.

I've combined the fresh, readable God's Word Translation with a stream of responsive prayers, praying back to God what he's said in Scripture. There's nothing quite like this one-of-a-kind experiential Bible, and it's just a small portion of what's coming. I'm now wrapping up the rest of the Bible for release in summer 2012. 

Pray the Scriptures Bible: Psalms and Proverbs is now available for order.

 

 

A Bit About Me

Picking a single word to describe myself isn't tough. Quirky. Updating my biographical sketch freshly confirmed that for me.

I also updated my About Kevin page.

 

Pray the Scriptures Bible: Psalms and Proverbs | GOD'S WORD Translation

When I concepted Pray the Scriptures Bible I envisioned a stream of prayers alongside an easy-to-read translation. I wanted a fresh yet accurate version that makes people stop and think, whether they're new Bible readers or folks who've worn out Bibles with frequent use. I looked for a translation that fit with the style I aim for in the prayers--warm and personal, yet clean and journalistic.

I'm happy to partner with Bethany House Publishers to use the God's Word Translation, "the Holy Bible in clear, natural English." GW accurately translates the meaning of the original texts into everyday language. It's readable...reliable...living...active...life-changing.

Here's what Billy Graham says: "GOD'S WORD is an easy-to-understand Bible translation. It is a wonderful version."

More at God's Word Translation.

 

Pray the Scriptures Bible: Psalms and Proverbs | Kind words

I'm grateful that co-authors and friends have already offered up some kind words for Pray the Scriptures Bible: Psalms and Proverbs. Here's what they say:

"I know firsthand that Kevin Johnson is biblically insightful and practical. Pray the Scriptures Bible will help you to pray deeply for yourself, your loved ones, and your world."

—Josh McDowell, speaker; bestselling author of More Than a Carpenter

“I strongly recommend Pray the Scriptures Bible. It launches and guides your prayers with the highest-octane fuel and most precise compass in the world: the living Word of God. Your prayers and your world will never be the same.”

—Ken Sande, president, Peacemaker Ministries; author of The Peacemaker and Resolving Everyday Conflict

“Even seasoned students of the Bible need help to make the living Word come alive again. Pray the Scriptures Bible brings together two tough spiritual disciplines—Bible reading and prayer—in a way that brings life to your soul. This is like rain on a parched field. Drink it in.”

—Bob Merritt, senior pastor, Eagle Brook Church; author of When Life's Not Working: 7 Simple Choices for a Better Tomorrow

“God has spoken and does speak in his Word. We respond in prayer. To listen without responding is rude, and to speak without listening is presumptuous. This tool will prove immensely in encouraging intimacy with God through hearing and responding.”

—D. Stuart Briscoe, minister-at-large, Elmbrook Church; founder, Telling the Truth

“For two decades Kevin Johnson’s writings have led students and adults deeper into the heart of God. Now he shows us how to use Scripture as the ultimate prayer book. We love it. This is powerful spiritual inspiration.”

—Drs. Les and Leslie Parrott, founders, RealRelationships.com; authors of Saving Your Marriage Before It Starts

 Thanks much!

 

Pray the Scriptures Bible: Psalms and Proverbs | What and Why?

I hate to waste words. And instead of being the obsessive self-editing author that I am and spending days wondering how to explain the concept behind Pray the Scripture Bible, I'll share what I wrote in the introduction:

"Most people pray. Many of us struggle. We wonder what to say to God and how to say it. We worry if we will get what we ask or if we can speak honest questions.

Pray the Scriptures Bible shows that all of God’s Word teaches us how to pray. I envisioned this experiential Bible as a fresh, accurate, straightforward translation together with a stream of prayers flowing from both heart and mind, speaking back to the God who speaks to us in the Bible.

The prayers intentionally stay close to the Bible text. Prompted by Scripture, they capture an everyday conversation with God. Praying the whole Bible forces us to form prayers from both teachings and stories…to make sense of challenging and awkward passages…to find personal relevance in verses dense with history and sparse on obvious application.

Pray the Scriptures Bible is a personal response to Scripture, but I searched for themes and words that fit easily in anyone’s mouth. I hope these prayers encourage your own one-on-one conversation with God—that these simple words help you process your own life circumstances and give voice to your own spiritual longings, wonderings, and worship.

Don’t keep these prayers to yourself. Pray them for others—family, friends, neighbors, co-workers, people you struggle to love, and the world at large. Pray them with others—in pairs, groups, and gatherings.

Thanks to Bethany House Publishers, from David Horton and Natasha Sperling to the entire staff, for partnering to use the God’s Word Translation to make this idea real. They join me in praying that this unique Bible will inspire your quest to know and experience God."

 

Sprouts! Four New Book Releases

For the past couple years I've been putting seed in the ground, doing the hard work before anyone can spot any growth. But my new books are popping up all over this month:

The Awesome Book of Bible Answers is just out and even better than I dreamed. Harvest House did an amazing job with this rework of a book I co-wrote with Josh McDowell.

Nathan Dungan of Share Save Spend has launched his multimedia project Money Sanity Solutions: Linking Money + Meaning. It's a phenomenal way to get families talking about money. I helped concept and draft the book for this interactive project. Check Nathan's web site for free add-on studies ("Bible POV") and a group facilitator guide I also wrote for the sessions.

I'm expecting to see a copy of Resolving Everyday Conflict from Baker Books in the next day or two. I worked with Ken Sande and his team at Peacemaker Ministries to adapt this practical guide from Ken's classic The Peacemaker. If you have conflict in your life--and who doesn't--you need this book.

And tomorrow Lyn and Elise and I actually get to catch a book as it comes off the press. Pray the Scriptures Bible Psalms and Proverbs is a sneak-peek portion of my new experiential Bible from Bethany House Publishers. Simple concept, profound impact. The project combines the highly-readable God's Word Translation with a stream of responsive prayers. The whole Bible launches in May 2012. In case you're wondering, yes, I'm done with Leviticus. It works.

More on all these later. Time to bolt to my real job, pastoring the lovable people at Emmaus Road Church in St. Louis Park, Minnesota. If you're in the area, come see us some time. We worship Sundays at 10 a.m at 6719 Cedar Lake Road.

 

Book Refresh | The Awesome Book of Bible Answers for Kids!

 

Harvest House Publishers has announced they will release The Awesome Book of Bible Answers for Kids! in April 2011. It's a book I co-authored with Josh McDowell, a guy who has spoken in 118 countries and has 51 million books distributed worldwide. This is an awesome refresh of the book originally titled Children Demand a Verdict (Tyndale 2003). The book has fun new art and will get a broad relaunch in the marketplace. Concise, friendly faith answers for kids 8-12.

More Photos

This summer I shot hundreds of technically ghastly photos as I struggled with new shooting techniques and image-editing software. See a few photos I still like in the recent gallery at kjphotos.zenfolio.com.

Upcoming Book | Resolving Everyday Conflict

A couple years back I worked with Ken Sande of Peacemaker Ministries to create a student edition of his bestselling book The Peacemaker (Baker Books, third edition 2004). This past spring I partnered again with Ken and his team to develop a brief adult version of his classic text on biblical conflict resolution. Eight easy-access chapters in this new book introduce the slippery slope of peacefaking, peacebreaking, and peacemaking—along with God’s power and practical steps for solving conflict. Look for Resolving Everyday Conflict from Baker Books in spring 2011. Learn more about Peacemaker Ministries’ full range of training and resources at peacemaker.net.

Fresh Chapter | Emmaus Road Church

2010 has brought our family plenty of happy mayhem, including my job shift to Emmaus Road Church in St. Louis Park. I’ll soon celebrate my sixth monthiversary as solo pastor at this cool and cozy church just west of Minneapolis. After months of getting to know the search team, board, and congregation, I started at Emmaus on Easter Sunday, then settled in during spring and summer and caught an August vacation. I’m now launching into fall with this tight and growing congregation “living out the way of Jesus Christ.” And in case you're wondering, I'm loving it.

Emmaus was planted in 2005 by Westwood Church (Chanhassen MN), which in turn was started by Wooddale Church (Eden Prairie MN). Emmaus is part of the Evangelical Covenant Church. More at emmausroadchurch.com.

Adrian Rogers Legacy Bible

Last week I received an early copy of The Adrian Rogers Legacy Bible. It's the project I was a couple weeks from finishing way back in the fall of 2008 when I got decked by health weirdness. The folks at Thomas Nelson and Love Worth Finding were beyond gracious as I slogged through the final sections. Even better than seeing the beautiful brown leather binding and knock-out interior design was a call I received from Dr. Rogers' widow. Mrs. Rogers said I had done the impossible twice over: I was able to adapt Adrian's substantial sermons into study notes, and I captured his voice. Her words hit me as one of the kindest endorsements ever of my editing and writing.

Billy Graham called Adrian Rogers "one of the greatest spiritual statesmen of this generation." Find out more about his life, ministry, and The Adrian Rogers Legacy Bible here.