Dr. Hickey has been working with various political, religious and ethnic groups in Pakistan for over 16 years building bridges of friendship and cooperation with all religions and races of the Muslim, Hindu and Christian faith. Her recent, sixth-trip turned out to be one of the most successful in Marilyn’s 40-plus year history of international ministry.

A record number of people attended the three nights of healing meetings at the Karachi YMCA compound. By the third night, the attendance was up to 200,000 while the streets leading to the compound had to be shut down as thousands were positioned outside the ground’s walls watching the event on large screens. Multiple healings were reported, including a Muslim man who was paralyzed can now walk and a little boy blind from birth can now see, and captured on video.

High-Government officials supported Dr. Hickey’s meetings. Senior advisor to Pakistan’s Prime Minister, Dr. Paul Bhatti, thanked Dr. Hickey for praying for the physically sick but also for healing from illiteracy, poverty and terrorism. Governor Sindh Dr. Ishrat Ul Ebad Khan, who was very instrumental in securing the required permissions from the Pakistani government for this historic event, invited Marilyn to his home to pray for his family. The group joined hands and prayed for Pakistan, Karachi and the duties of his office. Dr. Hickey was also invited to a special luncheon with the leaders of the MQM party, the third largest political party in Pakistan, where she prayed for healing for each person and handed them her latest book, Pathway to Miracles.

Dr. Hickey and her team were greeted at the Karachi Airport by several hundred local leaders who showered her with traditional flowers, six local television stations that interviewed her about her visit, and a band.

“I cannot thank God enough for all that He’s done here,” states Dr. Hickey. “Everything that we believed for, He made happen – beyond what we could have hoped or imagined.”

NavPress’ newest release, The Message Study Bible, provides readers the groundbreaking translation of The Message with gleanings from a lifetime of personal study by Pastor Eugene H. Peterson. The Message Study Bible combines Peterson’s explanations and observations with The Message text. The Message Study Bible includes 640 study notes from his writings and sermons, contemplative readings and prayers, and an introductory, exclusive “Reading the Scriptures” essay.

For example, in Deuteronomy 31, versus 9-13, Peterson imparts this explanation:

“The words I have translated ‘holy awe before God’ (verse 12) is from the Hebrew phrase ‘fear the Lord.’ The Bible isn’t consumed with getting us to believe in God. It assumes that everyone more or less does. What it’s interested in is our response to him. Will we let God be who he is, majestic and holy, vast and wondrous? Or will we always be trying to whittle him down to size, confining him within boundaries we’re comfortable with? But then we aren’t dealing with the God of creation, the God of the Exodus, The God of the Resurrection. Rather, we’re dealing with a reproduction made in our own image, something that’s attractive to the masses so it can be marketed to the masses. To guard against all such blasphemous chumminess with the Almighty, the Bible talks of the ‘fear of the Lord.’ And it does so not to scare us but to bring us to an awesome attention before the overwhelming grandeur of God.”

The Message is a contemporary rendering of the Bible from the original languages, crafted to present the tone, rhythm, events, and ideas to American English.  This year marking its 10^th Anniversary, The Message has sold more than 16 million units sold and comes highly recommended and endorsed by contemporaries including Bono, J.I. Packer, Max Lucado and Amy Grant.

Greater Texting offers subscriptions of daily messages that are delivered directly to a mobile phone at a time selected by the subscriber. No launching an app or digging through an email inbox is required. Text Message Devotionals are great for anyone who owns a cell phone, but can be especially valuable to teens and young adults who are increasingly devoted to their cell phones and less and less to the Word of God.

“It’s very simple,” said Cynthia Bezek, editor at NavPress. “You go to a website, pick out the topic you’d like to receive prayers, Scriptures, or inspiration about, pay $5, select the time of day you would like your text messages to come, and then for the next 30 or 40 days an inspirational text will come directly to your phone. You can also subscribe to a set of topical text devotionals for a friend, the kids in your youth group, or whomever you know who enjoys texting.”

“We are excited to be making valuable Christian discipleship content available utilizing this simple but impactful form of delivery,” said Michael Visentine, COO of NavPress. “Subscribers also get the opportunity to donate 30% of the subscription fee to a church or ministry of their choice, so it also becomes a great way to support a church, school, or other ministry organization, like The Navigators.”

People can browse and subscribe for text message devotionals and find out more at the Greater Texting page on Facebook or at www.greatertexting.com.

Dr. Jay and Julie Kent-Ferraro were, by all accounts, a model couple. Both well educated, successful, and upwardly mobile. Jay, a highly trained professional with a doctorate in psychology alongside an MBA; he had a thriving national executive coaching and consulting practice to the corporate elite. Julie, a former Miss Oklahoma contestant and model, was a professional entertainer with a demo album to her credit and a highly regarded talent and performance coach. It was a fairytale courtship, redefining the boundaries of reality.

Success rewarded the family with a gorgeous home, comfortable lifestyle, and grand vacations. Behind the storybook appearances, however, the foundation of the marriage had cracked. Jay entered into a clandestine affair, separating himself emotionally from the family. When the affair was finally revealed, both Jay and Julie had to face the ugly reality of infidelity. Jay and Julie separated; shortly afterward Julie was diagnosed with lymphatic cancer. Divorce and a broken home followed.

Beneath the ashes of their burnt lives though, the seed of a deeper love never before experienced was birthed. Julie found herself offering forgiveness and unconditional love to Jay. “Each day I made a decision to be mature, responsible, and generous with Jay, the opposite of what my instincts told me to do,” states Julie. “I chose to love him from a position of pure grace, the way I had loved him for over ten years, instead of allowing his affair or the predicament change that for me. Anything can be forgiven once we choose to no longer live with the impact of something.”

 Jay found himself responding to Julie; it was through her gift of forgiveness and unconditional love, that Jay realized his offense. “It became amazingly clear to me that I needed to reach for something beyond myself if I hoped to discover truth.”

Jay and Julie resolved to reinvent their relationship and their life together, one informed by the lessons of the past trauma, creating a sense of possibility and hope. With a lot of work and commitment, Jay and Julie healed their scarred relationship with love. “A person is entitled to receive from love only in proportion to what they contribute to it,” advise Dr. Jay and Julie. “Soul mates, what many in pursuit of infidelity presumably seek, are created, not found. True love has nothing to do with finding the ‘right’ person to love us; it is always about becoming the ‘right’ person capable of love.” 

In the shadow of the Magic Kingdom, on a tranquil lake surrounded by their children, Jay and Julie once more exchanged their marriage vows; they are happier and more in love than ever. Dr Jay and Julie have not only lived the experience of an affair and divorce, but are willing to tell the nuanced truth about it without spin, censorship or concern for ego. “Affairs will either destroy you or grow you up, and which it does is always a choice”, affirms Dr. Jay and Julie. “The power of love is limitless and it is only within discovering that power that healing and relationship transformation is realized.”

 Surprised by Love offers sage advice and wisdom for any couple recovering from infidelity or divorce, as well as those dissatisfied with their current marriage relationship and circumstances. “Relationships don’t end because of a lack of love, they end because of the death of intimacy,” maintains Dr. Jay.  “There is nothing more powerful than defiant love that refuses to be defined by the circumstances it is thrust into, and instead, elects to act on principle, deeply held values and compelling beliefs to what is right regardless of what your feelings tell you.”

 For more information and for an interview with Dr. Jay and Julie Kent-Ferraro

Contact: Julie Spiewak, jspiewak@freshimpactpr.com, #425-678-8208

 Book Facts

ISBN 978-0-9820590-5-0

257 pages

6×9 Trade paper

Category:  Relationships/Love & Marriage

Release Date:  May 1, 2011

www.surprisedbylove.com

Marriage and family relationship expert Dr. Gary Smalley clearly understands the challenges you face. He’s a seasoned parent and grandparent and has addressed countless mothers and fathers worldwide over his forty-year career. In this interactive DVD series, Dr. Smalley points you to God’s directives on how to parent with more wisdom, confidence, and ease.

In his relaxed yet insightful style, Dr. Smalley shares four core beliefs to build up in your children: humility, loving God, loving others, and gratitude. The Enemy sneers at the collateral damage he inflicts through greed, pride, lust, and anger. Dr. Smalley counters these devastating attitudes and behaviors by empowering you and your children to stand firm with life-protecting Scriptures. The twelve down-to-earth sessions will equip you to manage what you and your children think about every day. It’s never too late to experience the freeing benefits of guarding your family’s minds and hearts.

Parents need simple, straightforward tools to replace harmful influences with Scripture. “I want to equip you to shape your children’s lives by hiding God’s Word in both their minds and their hearts,” states Smalley. “For me this new DVD series is the most important project I’ve ever produced.” This interactive workbook, to be used with the DVD and leader’s guide for study groups, provides practical steps, thought-provoking questions, and fun activities that prepare parents to shape their children’s lives by hiding God’s Word in their minds and hearts.

For more information, please visit: http://www.guardingyourchildsheart.com/

For an interview, contact: Julie Spiewak, #425-678-8208, jspiewak@freshimpactpr.com

Seattle, WA

“Turning down the financial heat between men and women is not easy because we come at money from such different perspectives,” states Matt Bell, personal finance writer, speaker, and author of Money and Marriage: A Complete Guide for Engaged and Newly Married Couples.  Consider the following:

 -          Men and women have different spending priorities. Men are more likely to indulge on electronics; women on travel.

-          Men and women view money through different emotional filters. When asked which terms best describe their feelings about money, men are more likely to choose confidence; women are more likely to pick anxiety, apprehension and confusion.

-          Men and women are interested in different financial topics. Men follow investing and entrepreneurship; women prefer savings, frugality, and shopping.

Different perspectives equal conflict. Research shows we tend to magnify the difficulty by choosing mates who are especially different than we are when it comes to money; tightwads tend to marry spendthrifts, and vice versa.

What’s a newly engaged or newly married couple to do with these despairing facts?   

In Money and Marriage, Matt encourages couples to learn to use money in a way that minimizes financial disputes, contributes greatly to marital happiness, and gives couples a sense of deep joy and satisfaction by understanding where the other spouse is coming from in regard to money. “By talking about the various influences that have impacted your use of money,” states Bell, “you will gain empathy for each other, identify potential sources of financial conflict, and better understand each other’s financial strengths and weaknesses.”

Practical sound financial advice, Money and Marriage offers specific financial instruction and gives additional questions to discuss so that couples can use money to work as a team in accomplishing their financial goals, including:

* Financial full disclosure for couples: a discussion guide to determine net worth, financial goals and aspirations, and everything in between.

* Financial Temperament Quiz: how your temperaments affect your finances.

*  A 10-step action plan for a better financial future.

*  A checklist of important financial decisions and documents every married couple should have in order.

*  Ruthlessly avoiding debt, and if in debt, how to eliminate it quickly.

*  Two chapters on house buying and how much to spend.

*  Interactive exercises to reveal the couples approach to money, along with discussion questions to guide the process.

Answers to most financial questions are readily available online. Yet there seems to be no end to the number of people who struggle and drift toward too much debt, too little savings, and more than enough financial stress. Bell believes it’s because few people understand who they are and what their lives are all about: “Once I understood that I am a manager of God’s resources instead of an owner, or worse, a consumer, I began to understand the purpose of my life. And by understanding the purpose of my life, I understood for the first time the purpose of money.”

For More Information or For an Interview, Contact Scott Spiewak, sspiewak@freshimpactpr.com

ISBN: 9781615215614

PRICE: $14.99

PAGES: 240, Trade Paperback, SIZE: 5 ½ x 8 ¼

PUBLISHER: NavPress www.navpress.com, STREET DATE: March 15, 2011

Seattle, WA

Shattered involves a very disturbing secret—a daughter’s bad choice results in the murder of her mother. When Cleo’s mom says she can’t go into the city to see a Christian concert with friends, Cleo sneaks out anyway. It’s harmless enough, right? Not when your mom goes looking for you and ends up murdered. Cleo is the only one who knows why her mother was in a seedy part of town that night, but she’s determined to keep the secret that’s breaking her heart.

Carlson says the inspiration came in the form of an alarming statistic: “’Homicide is the second leading cause of death for young adults.’ The reason teens are at risk is primarily two-fold. First of all, most teens don’t fully grasp that risky behavior can result in dangerous and perhaps even deadly consequences. Also, most teens underestimate the impact that ‘small’ decisions can have on their lives.”

By telling the story of a relatively good girl who makes one bad choice that unravels her life, Melody allows the reader to vicariously walk in Chloe’s shoes. The reader witnesses Chloe being dishonest to her mother, then later experiences Chloe’s pain when her mother is murdered as a direct result of the lie. Chloe’s choice to continue hiding the truth only multiplies her problems. The pain and guilt she suffers over her mother’s death is overwhelming.

“Seemingly ‘small’ bad choices can have enormously bad consequences,” states Carlson. “Not all secrets are good secrets. Even if it’s painful, confession of guilt is a real step toward healing. God can forgive us, restore us, transform us…from even the most negative experience.” Readers will walk with Chloe through her story of grief, guilt, faith, and forgiveness.

Shattered is the second book in the ‘Secrets’ series; all very dark, edgy, and serious…but Carlson states that’s because so many teens are drawn to the difficult places. “Unfortunately adolescents don’t understand the very real danger that lies in such places. I would rather my readers ‘visit’ these scenes with the safety net of fiction fully in place. I hope my readers learn vicariously through my characters and, as a result, make smarter, healthier, safer life choices. According to the fan mail I receive daily, it’s working.”

For An Interview With Melody Carlson or For More Information, Contact:

Julie Spiewak, #425-678-8208, jspiewak@freshimpactpr.com

ISBN:  9781600069499, PRICE:  $14.99

PAGES:  208, PAPERBACK, SIZE:  5 1/2 x 8 1/4

TARGET AUDIENCE:  Young adult fiction readers, teen girls

CATEGORY:  Fiction/Young adult

     Current Double Crowne Black Diamond MonaVie Executive, Brig Hart, shares the wealth practices he has learned on the road-of-life in his new book, Why Not You? Why Not Now? The Brig Hart Story, from an industry and company that raised more capital in two years ($2 billion dollars) than many Fortune 500 Companies have made in twelve years. 

Popular books like Business for the 21^st Century and KaChing showcase the overwhelming response to Cottage Industries in today’s economy; a model that entrepreneur and author Brig Hart helped found. Robert Kiyosaki has gone so far as to say that network marketing is the only way America will survive this economic downturn. Billionaires Richard Branson and Warren Buffett have both owned network marketing companies, as have entities as diverse as Citigroup to Remington to Jockey. 

Meet the man who is the world’s most successful relational marketer; through Brig’s meteoric rise to success, the history of MonaVie and the network marketing industry were rewritten.

     Hart was on a quest for personal health when he visited Dallin Larsen, CEO of Monarch Health Sciences in Salt Lake City, Utah, to sample his juice drink with the renowned acai berry. Brig was not visiting Dallin to get involved in his business; he just wanted to feel better. Brig’s health improved dramatically and he knew Dallin had a good thing. “I knew I had found something special,” states Brig. “We agreed that if Dallin could move the company’s focus to the juice, we’d invest in it.” At the end of 2009, MonaVie was a billion-dollar business. The company was named by Inc. magazine as the fastest growing private company in the Food & Beverage category, and was number 18 overall on the magazine’s Top 500 list.

     In Hart’s new book, Why Not You? Why Not Now? The Brig Hart Story, Brig teaches the very principles he has learned and has used to train and mentor more millionaires than anyone else in the country. “I went to work on designing a new total support system of relational marketing through my company R3Global, something that, oddly enough, had never been done before in network marketing companies other than ours—at least none with which I was familiar. In other companies, the emphasis was on building the business; with our total support system, I wanted to help build the entire person,” affirms Brig.

     Brig boldly believes that people need to take control over their financial future. “Most wealthy people work for themselves; they own their own businesses, rather than living under the Damocles Sword of the next company-mandated downsizing, or hoping to get a check from a government-championed retirement plan… It is obvious that we now live in the Informational Age rather than the Industrial Age. That’s why I believe relational marketing will be the premier approach to business in the future.”

      Vision, planning, and effort are required to succeed in the Cottage Industry but no other opportunity exists to create wealth without substantial amounts of education, seed capital or special skills. “I started my first network marketing business with an overdrawn bank account.  I didn’t have any money back then.  But I do now!” laughs Brig.  “Someone else says, ‘If you want to be a success, go to school, get good grades, and when you graduate, you can get a good job.  Then if you work really, really hard, you’ll get rich.’ Don’t get me wrong; I’m not denigrating education, and I believe greatly in hard work, but merely having a good education and working hard will not guarantee that you will be wealthy.”