Aaron Shust has achieved another first. The award-winning CMA artist has released his first live recording album, “Love Made a Way.” It is his eighth album overall. His label, Centricity Music, wanted the live recordings. “That’s petrifying,” he said. “There’s something inviting and welcoming about going into the studio, and if you make mistakes, y…

A new book provides a fascinating insight into the world of former President Obama’s outreach to faith-based communities. Michael Wear is an evangelical Christian who served in Obama’s Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships in the White House during the president’s first term. Wear directed faith outreach during the 2012 re-election as…

Family and music are both a way of life for Christian duo Grayson/Reed, and they wouldn’t have it any other way as they have found a certain balance in their lives. Husband and wife duo Molly Reed and Mike Grayson are releasing their new CD “Walk” on Jan. 13, 2017, just shy of their fourth anniversary in February. Molly granted me a telephone inter…

A new author wants your worship life to be the opposite of boring. John Hambrick is part of the leadership team at Buckhead Church, part of North Point Ministries in the Atlanta area. He’s also the author of the powerful new book “Move Toward the Mess: The Ultimate Fix for a Boring Christian Life” by David Cook publisher. The foreword is by Andy St…

The widow of NFL center Grant Feasel is sharing her family’s story to help warn others about the dangers of sports-related concussions. Cyndy Feasel lost her husband Grant in 2012 to cirrohsis of the liver due to alcoholism, which was connected to a degenerative brain disease called CTE. The CTE in turn was caused by a lifetime of receiving concuss…

Pastor Lucas Miles is in the early stages of producing a historical documentary of Nimrod, a person from the ancient world who is mysterious but very relevant to people today. The Book of Genesis says Nimrod was responsible for building the Tower of Babel. Jewish tradition backs this up, Miles said. Nimrod also was responsible for the creation of N…

Lucas Miles seeks God in church, in movies and in books. Lucas produced the movie “Rodeo Girl” with Kevin Sorbo and is producing a new film, “Crowning Jules,” which is in the works. A 2017 release date is likely as the producer is hunting for a distributor as of September 2016. “Crowning Jules” is a teenager adventure comedy along the lines of “Fer…

Spiritual warfare is real. This story is about a fictional take on spiritual warfare. Julie Hall is the author of the “Life After” trilogy. Book One, “Huntress,” was released in Nov. 2015. Book Two, “Warfare,” will be released in fall 2016. Hall, who used to work in youth ministry, said her series is in the young adult fiction category and should a…

Christian lead singer Chad Mattson is celebrating 13 years of sobriety with the new album “Follow Through” with the band Unspoken. “Follow Through,” from Centricity Music, will be available Aug. 26, 2016. (Editor's note: All commercial music in my podcasts is used by permission of the artist who created it or representatives of the artist. I use li…

To simply call Dave Richardson Jr.’s new book, “Transparent,” an apologetics book would be an easy way to ignore what is underneath the surface of its powerful new look at why you believe the way you do. Everyone makes assumptions. “Those assumptions are the things that drive us and control us every day,” Richardson told me. “It’s like an autopilot…

“Shepherd, Potter, Spy and the Star Namer: Survival in Canaan” is a fascinating title for a fascinating book. The historical fiction novel is told from the point of view of a 12-year-old shepherd boy, Keshub, in the land of Canaan during the period where Joshua leads the Israelites into the Promised Land. Keshub is a Gibeonite, a people who lived i…

Carol McLeod, a Christian radio personality, invites women to experience exuberant joy and hope with God through her new weekly devotional titled “Joy for All Seasons.” McLeod is a public speaker and prolific radio and podcast personality in addition to writing books and more. Her program “Defiant Joy! Radio with Carol McLeod” is found on Sirius XM…

What’s in a name? A lot, when you are talking about the Creator of the universe. Children’s author Diane Stortz wants to help children better understand some of God’s names — 40 of His names, to be exact. Stortz’s publisher, Tommy Nelson (an imprint of Thomas Nelson), has released her new book titled “I Am: 40 Reasons to Trust God.” This is her thi…

Baptist preacher Kent Philpott has a heart for sharing the Gospel with his Muslim neighbors. And he is ready to help you share the Good News as well with his second-edition book titled, “If Allah Wills.” Philpott, pastor of evangelical churches for 45 years, former leader in the Jesus People Movement in San Francisco, has been writing about Islam s…

Dr. James Goll of Franklin, Tennessee is president of Encounters Network, an international outreach ministry. He has written 35 books, including his latest, Releasing Spiritual Gifts Today, which is the topic of this column. The book is published by Whitaker House publishers and is in the Christianity/Pentecostal & Charismatic categories. I like ho…

Zoro the drummer, or the minister of groove as he’s called, has played for the likes of Lenny Kravitz, Bobby Brown and Frankie Valli. Now, the minister of groove is stepping up his efforts to help people discover, develop and use their God-given gifts and talents. That may seem like an odd thing for a drummer to focus on. But Zoro is not your avera…