Today, Prophecy Today publishes its 30^th review since the magazine went live in April. What will you be reading over Christmas?

Our goal has been to review books and resources that will be of interest to the discerning Christian. As Christmas approaches, why not look back through our reviews - and perhaps even let them inspire you to make some purchases? To encourage you in your reading endeavours, here is a brief note from the editor of St Andrew's Christian Bookshop.

A Note from St Andrew's Bookshop

Over the last year I have discovered some alarming facts; not only is the number of Christian books being sold still in decline, but when a Christian bookshop closes very little of its sales are picked up by nearby bookshops – possibly up to 95% is lost. A recent Evangelical Alliance survey on Bible reading reported that people under 44 years old read the Bible on average 40% less than people over 44 years old (I would suspect a survey on the reading of Christian books would be even more telling!). And when discussing all this with the Right Revd. John Pritchard, the former Bishop of Oxford, he stated that he believes many Christians are now 'religiously illiterate'! If the church is not reading Christian books it is missing out on a rich vein of spiritual knowledge and information to help us understand what we believe and why.

So what does this all mean for us in our bookshop ministry?

For me it has been both releasing and exciting that the decline of the Christian bookshop is not inevitable.

Yes, the market has changed. Many of us have to accept the collapse of sales from Sunday School prize-giving, the decline of church hymnbook sales as churches move to the big screen, and the gradual end of many regular church bookstalls.

The challenge ahead for all of us in Christian retailing is to help the church to rediscover the value of Christian books. We want to dispel the myth that it is always cheaper and quicker to buy book on-line rather than from your Christian bookshop (we can often give a quicker and better service). We are also working to encourage church leaders to regularly recommend books when they preach, and to consider having suggested books to read with each teaching series I believe that people are hungry to be fed but don't know what to read. When books are recommended, people buy them, read them and lives are changed.

Be encouraged – the end is NOT inevitable. BOOKS DO CHANGE LIVES!

So when you're making choices about what gifts will most bless your loved ones this Christmas, why not reject the socks and the bubble bath, and choose something to encourage, inspire, challenge, grow...Choose a Christian book!

St Andrew's Bookshop

Re-printed with kind permission.