Jason Ingram has been named Christian Songwriter of the Year during SESAC's annual Christian Music Awards—an honor he has received now six times in the past 10 years.

During the performing rights organization's ceremonies, held March 5 in Nashville, Ingram was recognized for writing "All For You," which was recorded by Mikeschair.

Ingram also wrote "Forever Reign," (One Sonic Society); "Good to be Alive" (Jason Gray); "Our God's Alive" (Andy Cherry); "White Flag" (Passion with Chris Tomlin); and "You Are I Am" (MercyMe).

Songwriter Seth Mosley was honored with 12 performance awards for songs such as "All Things Possible" by Mikeschair, "Fighter" by Manafest and "Outta My Mind" by Anthem Light, among others.

Other SESAC award-winners included Cary Barlowe,Timothy Skipper, Juan Otero, Jamie Grace and Sony ATV Timber Publishing—named Christian Publisher of the Year.

Based in Nashville, SESAC—originally the Society of European Stage Authors & Composers—is a service organization created to assist both music creators and users through royalty collection and music licensing.

Click here for a complete list of winners of SESAC's 2012 Christian Music Awards.

Munce Group is holding its annual "Kid's Day" in an effort to help member retailers connect with their communities for Easter.

Scheduled for Saturday, March 23, the event is designed to draw parents and children to Christian stores for a day of crafts, games, story time and giveaways.

Hosted with help from the Christian Authors Network (CAN), the event will spotlight books, including Bill Myers' "T.J and the Time Stumblers" series (Tyndale House Publishers) and Crystal Bowman's Lily's Easter Party (Zonderkidz). Promotional materials will include a coloring page by Marsha Hubler, author of the "Keystone Stable" series (Zondervan); craft activities by Sherry Kyle, author of The Christian Girl's Guide to Style (Legacy Press); and games and puppets by Karen H. Whiting, CAN's treasurer and author of My Mini Dream Room (Legacy Press).

Mary Bittle, co-owner of Morning Star: A Perfect Gift in Thurmont, Md., plans to use Hubler's coloring page at her store for a contest before Kid's Day.

"We go all out for Kid's Day," said Renee Davis, manager of Living Word Christian Bookstore in Sarasota, Fla. "We bring in costumed characters, have someone do face painting and hold an Easter egg hunt. This year we'll have the Berenstain Bears and the Chick-fil-A cow. The children especially love making crafts in our learning center."

Kid's Day will also feature activity handouts for parents. One created by Jocelyn Green, author of Stories of Faith and Courage From the Home Front (AMG Publishers) and Faith Deployed (Moody Publishers), offers tips for celebrating special days such as Easter when one parent is absent due to travel or deployment.

Munce Group formed a partnership last June with CAN, a marketing co-op with more than 100 members, which seeks to educate authors and promote their books. Munce serves more than 500 stores nationwide.

Mark Burnett and Roma Downey's novelization of The Bible TV miniseries, The Bible: A Story of God and All of Us (FaithWords), debuted at No. 3 on the Fiction best-sellers and at No. 17 on the General best-sellers from the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association (ECPA), tracking sales for the week ending March 2, according to Pubtrack Christian data. The novel was released Feb. 26.

The Top 20 General best-sellers were: 1. Jesus Calling, Sarah Young, hardcover (Thomas Nelson); 2. Multiply, Francis Chan (David C Cook); 3. Heaven Is for Real, Todd Burpo (Thomas Nelson); 4. Jesus Calling, Young, large print deluxe (Thomas Nelson); 5. Unglued, Lysa TerKeurst (Zondervan); 6. The Harbinger, Jonathan Cahn (FrontLine/Charisma House Book Group); 7. Gods at War, Kyle Idleman (Zondervan); 8. Crazy Love, Francis Chan (David C Cook); 9. Jesus Calling, Young, deluxe (Thomas Nelson); 10. Follow Me, David Platt (Tyndale); 11. Jesus Calling, Young, women's edition (Thomas Nelson); 12.  The 5 Love Languages, Gary Chapman (Northfield Publishing/Moody Publishers); 13. Forgotten God, Francis Chan (David C. Cook); 14. Jesus Today, Young, hardcover (Thomas Nelson); 15. The Purpose Driven Life, Rick Warren (Zondervan); 16. Trauma Plan, “Grace Medical” No. 1, Candace Calvert (Tyndale House Publishers); 17. The Bible: A Story of God and All of Us; 18. Not a Fan, Kyle Idleman (Zondervan); 19. Bees in the Butterfly Garden, “Gilded Legacy” No. 1, Maureen Lang (Tyndale); and 20. Draw the Circle, Mark Batterson (Zondervan).

The Top 10 Fiction best-sellers were: 1. The Harbinger; 2. Trauma Plan; 3. The Bible: A Story of God and All of Us; 4. Bees in the Butterfly Garden; 5. Abducted, "Pacific Coast Justice" No. 2, Janice Cantore (Tyndale); 6. The Last Disciple, "The Last Disciple" No. 1, Hank Hanegraaff and Sigmund Brouwer (Tyndale); 7. Flame of Resistance, Tracy Groot (Tyndale); 8. The Icecutter's Daughter, "Land of Shining Water" No. 1, Tracie Peterson (Bethany House/Baker Publishing Group); 9. Safe In His Arms, "Under Texas Stars" No. 2, Colleen Coble (Thomas Nelson); and 10. Swept Away, "Trouble in Texas" No. 1, Mary Connealy (Bethany House/Baker Publishing Group).

The top five Bibles were: 1. The Story, NIV, deluxe, hardcover, New International Version (Zondervan); 2. NLT Life Application Study Bible Personal Size, hardcover (Tyndale); 3. NLT Life Application Study Bible Personal Size, softcover (Tyndale); 4. NKJV Pew Bible, large print hardcover (Thomas Nelson); and 5. NKJV Personal Size Giant Print Reference Bible, hardcover, black, New King James Version (Thomas Nelson).

Reversing course after eliminating its imprints six years, Thomas Nelson will be releasing nonfiction under two imprints. In a move announced recently during the HarperCollins Christian Publishing spring sales conference, Nelson will publish adult nonfiction titles under Nelson Books and W Publishing Group starting in the fall.

Under the One Company corporate initiative in 2007, the Nashville-based publisher removed more than 20 imprints from its branding structure.

"At that time, the company realized a value and strength in promoting one company brand," said Mark Schoenwald, president and CEO of HarperCollins Christian Publishing. "Over the past six years, our publishing teams have worked hard to distinguish Thomas Nelson in the industry. However, we have also realized the importance of having distinct imprint identities for our large and growing nonfiction groups.

"The decision to restore the Nelson Books and W Publishing imprints is a sign to the industry, authors and readers that we are more committed than ever to serving the market with a diverse and vibrant family of nonfiction publishing teams," Schoenwald added.

Restoring the imprints will allow parent company HarperCollins Christian Publishing to "facilitate growth, offering three distinct nonfiction brands"—Nelson Books, W Publishing Group and sister company Zondervan, company officials said.

"We are honored to continue the great publishing legacy that W Publishing and Nelson Books represent," said David Moberg, Thomas Nelson's senior vice president and group publisher. "They will be the cornerstones of our future growth in the nonfiction trade area."

Nelson Books will focus on publishing titles in the areas of spiritual growth, inspiration and practical living, with memoir, biography, history and culture releases each year.

"I began my career in publishing in 1991 as part of the Nelson Books team, and I am delighted that my team has the opportunity to continue the rich legacy of that great imprint," said Brian Hampton, senior vice president and publisher of Nelson Books. "We are eager to pursue our mission of publishing content that informs, inspires and creates change that matters—in this life and the next."

Under Hampton's leadership, Nelson has published 40 New York Times best-sellers in the past eight years, including the 2011 ECPA Book of the Year, Bonhoeffer by Eric Metaxas.

W Publishing will concentrate on women's spiritual growth, practical living and memoirs. Under the leadership of Matt Baugher, senior vice president and publisher who will lead W Publishing, Thomas Nelson has published one of the fastest-selling Christian titles in history with Todd Burpo's Heaven Is for Real, which has sold more than 8 million copies in the past two years.

"W Publishing has long been a respected home for authors," said Baugher. "The W team will concentrate on walking alongside gifted communicators and storytellers to expand their reach."

The Bible, a 10-hour TV miniseries that debuted March 3 on the History Channel, has dominated social media, trending as the No. 1 Twitter topic throughout most of its two-hour premiere.

More than 14.8 million viewers watched the first episode of The Bible, the highest-rated cable show of the year, prompting accolades from numerous media outlets. USA Today noted that "the good book was good news Sunday for History," while the Los Angeles Times observed that "The Bible makes history for History."

Mark Burnett, best known for producing the TV shows Survivor, The Voice and The Apprentice, and his wife, Roma Downey, of Touched by an Angel fame, produced the five-part miniseries of major Bible stories, from Noah's ark and the Exodus to the death and resurrection of Jesus, scheduled to air for five Sundays this month—culminating on Easter, March 31.

"We know God moved," Downey said of the miniseries' debut. "People of all denominations showed the power that can be unleashed in our culture when we band together, individual believers with a shared purpose and vision. The world is won when the church is one."

Burnett added: "This book is alive. Today, more Americans and Canadians are talking about God's chosen people. They're talking more about the faithfulness and perseverance of Noah, Abraham and Moses than any time in recent history."

The Christian products industry has gotten behind The Bible, with chains such as LifeWay Christian Stores promoting the miniseries. On March 12, Word Entertainment will release a musical companion to the project called The Bible: Music Inspired by the Epic Miniseries.

The 12-track album, which highlights themes from the miniseries, features several contemporary Christian artists, including Meredith Andrews, Chris August, Francesca Battistelli, Big Daddy Weave, Jason Castro, Group 1 Crew, Dara Maclean, Point of Grace and Sidewalk Prophets. Country stars Wynonna Judd and Kenny Rogers also come together on the compilation for a special rendition of "Mary Did You Know?"

"When we heard Francesca Battistelli's rendition of 'In Your Eyes,' we immediately loved it," Burnett said. "All of the artists' music fits beautifully with our vision of The Bible."

FaithWords has released two novels and a devotional based on  the miniseries: The Bible: A Story of God and All of Us: A Novel Based on the Epic TV Miniseries; A Story of God and All of Us: Young Readers Edition; and A Story of God and All of Us Reflections: 100 Daily Inspirations Based on the Epic TV Miniseries. All were written by Burnett and Downey. Twentieth Century Fox (Provident Distribution) will release The Bible on DVD and Blu-ray April 2.

Click here for more information on the album, which retails for $9.99.

Click here to read a column about The Bible miniseries by Downey and Burnett in the February issue of Christian Retailing.

Click here for more information on The Bible miniseries. 

Longtime Christian retailer Bill York died at his Richmond, Va., home Feb. 25 after a long-undiagnosed case of Lyme disease, the Richmond Times-Dispatch reported. York who owned Logos Bookstore in Richmond from 1972 to 2009, was 83.

His store was part of the Association of Logos Bookstores, a nonprofit trade association that serves seven independent Christian bookstores in the U.S. An InterVarsity Christian Fellowship staffer at Virginia Commonwealth University, York and his wife, Beth, opened one of the first Logos bookstores in the 1970s.

The store was "a place adjacent to campus where many students and Richmond residents came, not just for books, Bibles, gifts and music, but for prayer, Bible study and encouraging words," said Logos officials. "He will be remembered as a soft-spoken Southern gentleman, book lover, bird lover, Jesus lover and a man who loved people regardless of religion, race or nationality."

He was a founding member of Logos' board. In 1972, InterVarsity Press published York's One 2 One, a collection of brief Bible studies that helped Christians introduce their friends to Christianity.

In addition to his wife of 51 years, York is survived by his son, daughter, brother and three grandchildren. A memorial service will be held March 9 at St. Giles Presbyterian Church in Richmond.

Seven in 10 Americans polled said they are adjusting spending plans to cope with changes in federal tax laws. Recent changes decreased the take-home pay of many workers, according to the National Retail Federation's (NRF) 2013 Tax Returns Survey, conducted by BIGinsight.

When asked how the laws have affected spending, saving or budgeting of their households, nearly six in 10 (58.2%) said their plans have been either somewhat or greatly impacted. Nearly half (45.7%) said they will spend less overall, and 35.6% will watch for sales more often. Additionally, one-third (33.5%) will reduce how much they dine out and 24.5% will spend less on "little luxuries," such as trips to coffee shops, manicures and high-end cosmetic items.

Of those greatly impacted, nearly half (49.2%) will delay major purchases, such as a car, TV or furniture; 58.2% will reduce the number of times they dine away from home; another 43.4% said they will contribute less to savings; 46.4% will comparison-shop more often; and 54.4% will spend less on clothing.

"A smaller paycheck due to the fiscal cliff deal, higher gas prices, low consumer confidence and ongoing uncertainty about our nation's fiscal health is negatively impacting consumers and businesses across the country," said NRF President and CEO Matthew Shay. "Every day we hear about building the middle class. We can only do that if we tear down barriers that prevent consumers from investing their hard-earned money back into our nation's economy. It's really that simple."

The poll of 5,185 consumers, conducted in February, found that half of those who make less than $50,000 a year said they will spend less overall. Additionally, 23.2% will spend less on groceries, compared to 16.7% of consumers who make more than $50,000 a year, and 27.6% will shop at discount stores more often, compared to 19.7% of adults making more than $50,000.

The survey found nearly two-thirds (65.8%) of consumers are expecting a tax refund this year. When asked how they plan to spend it, 37.2% said they will use the money to pay down debt, 44% will put it into savings and 29.7% will use it for everyday expenses.