CBA Industry Blog

Curing Craziness

A few minutes ago I popped my head over my cube wall to ask my co-worker Cathy if we were done yet. Done with what, she wanted to know. “Done being crazy, that’s what.”

This time of year is notorious for making the CBA staff slightly… okay… extraordinarily stressed out and brain dead. (I called my boss the wrong name not once, but twice yesterday!) I’m sure the rest of you are experiencing some of that same frantic commotion these days too.

As crazy as we may all be these next few weeks, I wouldn’t miss it for the world. (And I’m not just saying that because I work for CBA!) Several months ago at a CBA area meeting, I spoke about the upcoming Show and how much I enjoy it. Actually, I think I said something to the effect of its one of my favorite parts of my job and one of my favorites thing I get to do all year. I might not look like I’m enjoying myself come Thursday afternoon, but that’s another story...

So, to share some of my excitement with you, here are a few reason why I’m really looking forward to being in Orlando next week…

Fox’s “The List” and other DVD thoughts…

Last week I had the privilege of reviewing Fox’s latest release, The List. Check it out if you haven’t heard about it yet. Hopefully though it’s selling in your stores already, as I’m slightly behind on some posts here. (Did you know ICRS is a mere three weeks away?)

Now, I say it was a privilege to watch this film because I highly appreciate the work of the Fox team, and the diversity they bring to the DVD category in Christian retail stores is even more appreciated not only by me, but by the viewers too.

(And – slight confession – being a teenager ten years ago meant not being able to escape the TV show phenomenon known as Dawson's Creek, in which Mary Beth Peil always played the ultra-conservative Christian grandmother. Watching Peil act in The List was kind of like taking a walk down memory lane again. Only this time, there were no braces and awkward high school dances.)

In the zone...

Wow! This has been one crazy week. Who gets anything done this time of the year? And to make matters worse, that countdown to ICRS is not stopping! 45 days is not a long time. Not at all.

From within the walls of the CBA building, the annual sighing fest has begun. Those sighs are usually accompanied by an encouraging, “Okay. I can do this. We can do this. It will get done for the Show.”

Earlier this afternoon I took a few extra minutes to run across the street to the Focus on the Family bookstore where some of the Waterbrook team was hanging out with Alex and Brett Harris, authors of the new book, Do Hard Things. The Harris guys were having a book signing so I thought I’d take a moment to connect with them and see how customers reacted to seeing such young faces making such bold statements.

The Down Lo: Prince Caspian

My friends at Grace Hill Media gave tickets to a number of us here in Colorado Springs to a screening of Prince Caspian the other night. Now, I have to admit, I wasn’t as enthusiastic about seeing Caspian as all the giddy children around me were. I loved the first Narnia film and I knew eventually I’d see the second one in the theater, but I am ultra-conservative when it comes to buying into hype of any kind. And when it comes to sequels.

The lights in the theater had barely dimmed when the same excitement that overcame those children moments earlier crept up on me too. Before I knew it I was back in Narnia, along with all the other Pevensie children.

Here are my quick thoughts… hope you get to see it this weekend!

- Pretty sure Aslan didn’t get enough screen time. The few moments he had, particularly the ones with Lucy, were especially precious and powerful.

- As the quote goes in the previews, you may find Narnia a more savage place than you last left. It’s gorgeous, but definitely more intense (read: war-torn and suspenseful) than the first visit.
- Great post-viewing discussion opportunities abound. You might want to take notes.

- My hat is off to Andrew Adamson and his team. I cannot begin to imagine taking on the challenge of directing a film like this, but thank you for doing so. It was an enjoyable and often times breath-taking journey back. Well done.

Faith Films vs. Family Films

Okay retailers, I need your help. I am writing an article for an upcoming issue of CBA Retailers+Resources on the subject of faith films versus family films, and I need to explore the idea of how retailers are now choosing what to stock in their stores.

So, what do you think? How do you decide what to carry? How much do your customers' demands influence your purchasing habits? Where do you draw the line what's appropriate? Is it okay for a Christian retail store to carry more mainstream products like Hannah Montana DVDs? What is actually selling your stores today? If we stripped away all family films, what would your core inventory really be? And perhaps more importantly, what do you want to see from the studios?

My deadline is Wednesday so hurry and either post your comments here or email me! Thanks much!

The Down Lo: The Shack? For the win? For the loss?

I read The Shack last week. More precisely, last Wednesday night. I started it around 8:00 PM and couldn’t really stop. At 3:00 AM, my lights finally went out. I cannot recall the last time I did that with a book simply because I was intrigued.

When one of my roommates, who works at Focus on the Family, learned of my all-nighter, she immediately asked my opinion of the book. Apparently, the Focus staff has received quite a few earfuls regarding The Shack and its content that can seem heretical.

I shared my thoughts with my roommate, something I’m not going to do here though. In the course of our conversation what struck me as ironic is how divided some are on this book. I can see how this situation could easily turn into an unfortunate dramatization of Matthew 7:4.

For retailers selling it, I imagine The Shack is helping boost some sales. Otherwise, how did it climb to #4 on the best sellers lists? What I am curious to know though is how are customers responding to it? For those carrying the book, have your customers come back to share their opinions? For those not carrying the book, how have your customers reacted to your decision? And where is the line drawn when it comes to heresy, especially when a profit can be made?

Be the change - no matter the sacrifice

I try not to watch TV too much. It’s bad for my health and the hours I spend glued to it are nonrefundable. Last night though for whatever reason I flipped on ABC’s Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. Before I knew it, my cheeks were blackened from my running mascara. (Trust me… I feel like an even bigger nerd for admitting that to all of you.)

In last night’s episode, the Martinez family received not only a new home for the six of them, but also a new community center and a second home to help others start a new life. The Martinezes purposely moved into a crime-ridden neighborhood in Albuquerque with the dream of ministering to the people and really changing a community. As I watched this story of one family’s radical commitment to do all they can to better a miniscule corner of the world, I was struck with pride – absolute beaming pride – in their hearts, in their clear communication of their mission, and in how they have been humbly glorifying God day after difficult day. Here on my TV were brothers and sisters in Christ truly living the call.

Since moving to their broken community eight years ago, the Martinezes have seen incredible changes in the hearts and lives of their neighbors, as well as in the crime statistics. They still have a lot of work to do, but they are determined to fulfill their calling.

It is often stories like these that inspire me the most. I tend to see the world as being filled with fantastically unending opportunities for betterment, but when complacency kicks in, negativity isn't too far behind.

The Down Lo: Livin' in Hyperreality

In years past I remember sitting through sermons in which pastors spoke on the struggle of jealousy when it comes to others’ professions, incomes, and lifestyles. Particularly in my monetarily lean collegiate days I can recall thinking, “Why would I be jealous of another’s career? I’m pretty sure I’ll be happy to simply have a job that pays me on a regular basis with more than just free food.” 

Then the real world sets in, and simply covering my expenses isn’t enough anymore. Sometimes throughout the day I will find myself fixated on self-serving demands: I want to globetrot; I want an iPhone; I want more recognition; I want yet another pair of shoes to add to my already ridiculously enormous collection. There never seems to be enough time or money these days, does there?

I’m reviewing a book right now that you can read about in the June issue of CBA Retailers+Resources so I won’t give away too much of it here, but rather I’d like to pull out a few quotes that haven’t left my thoughts since reading them this past weekend.

“The clear message behind hyperreality is that… we need to imitate the lives we see in movies, in advertising, in lifestyle magazines, in music videos, and on television – then we will be happy.”

“In a hyperreal culture much of our happiness is out of our control because it is tied up in a system of comparison.”

“You can spend all day wishing you had the lifestyle of a Hollywood celebrity, but the fact of the matter is that if you are born in the West, you have won the cosmic lottery.”

“Sure, we want freedom from the oppression of always having to measure up, to live life as a brand, constantly feeling the pressure to be interesting, attractive, and cool. But we cannot imagine what life would be like if we left all of that pressure behind. So we attempt to live as half slave and half free.”

“Jesus is asking them to believe in his way of living, of acting; he is asking them to trust him and get on board with his way of doing things. He is asking the crowd if they trust him enough to model their lives after his.”

How does this relate to you? Well, we can all always use an opportunity to check our hearts, but maybe we need to dig deeper than that. Maybe we – me, you, your customers, the body at large – need to come to the understanding that while growing Christian businesses and ministries may not be on par right now with something like creating the next Google, they do serve a greater purpose. They remind us that it’s okay to not live in the land of hyperreality, but rather in the land of God’s reality.

Music blares from my iPod in another room. Shane & Shane strum out one of their classic tunes. “His mercies are new. His mercies are new every morning. And that is enough for me.” Yes, I should think, that is enough for me.

Lo's Gettin' Expelled!

Earlier this week our friends at Motive Marketing stopped by to preview the film, Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed, for our staff. If you haven’t heard about this movie yet, take a gander at its web site or do a little research on the controversy surrounding this film’s content and release.

However, when it comes to the word ‘controversy’ I think this is where the English language fails us at times. Controversy seems to imply a sense of right and wrong, of one party winning over the other. Expelled doesn’t necessarily take the viewers down a decisive path, but rather, just that, a path. It’s Ben Stein’s journey of understanding the differences between seemingly predominant evolution theories and lesser known, lesser accepted ideas of like intelligent design.

Obviously I’m positively biased in this case for several reasons:

1. I like the guys at Motive. They’re cool.

2. Ben Stein is quite the intellectual giant. Having him as your guide through this documentary is a surprisingly pleasant addition to what could have very easily been a boring film.

3. I’m not the biggest fan of science. In fact, I managed to avoid taking all the traditional science requirements in college by finding "creative" alternatives. Hence my current knowledge random topics like 16th century painting materials. But Expelled uses the medium of film to perhaps its fullest potential – to mobilize viewers to action by showing them a previously un/underexposed issue.

In the film, Ben has this great line that I will inevitably misquote, but the gist of it is this: “I thought Darwinism was it. Aren’t we were all evolutionists now?” The line is said in slight jest and actually acts as a transition into explaining the fact that, no, we’re not all evolutionists now.

A co-worker was anxious to see this film for months, because as she tells me frequently, “This topic fits right in with studies like The Truth Project that our church has been doing. It really is a matter of understanding what a Biblical worldview is and how that impacts our daily life.”

There are so many different ways to approach discussing this movie – and hopefully over the next few weeks we’ll be posting several of those approaches here – but in the meantime I think I’m just going to leave you with this:

Reason #4 why I’m slightly biased and majorly excited – Expelled is controversial in that it opens up a debate; it leaves room for discussion. It isn’t the Passion of Christ; it’s not going to hit viewers over the head with a Biblical principle or draw them into the life of an Old Testament hero, but it does provide lightly drawn lines back to a Biblical worldview. And where do you think might those interested in learning more about a Biblical worldview go to find quality, informative resources and answers that will help them make a decisive decision?

Hmmm….

Have you heard?

The CBA Impact Awards nomination surveys are live!

Member suppliers, click here to vote.

Member retailers, click here to vote.

The voting ends on April 14th so hurry and cast your ballots! For more information, click here to learn more about these awards. Thanks!