Gaither Music Group has launched an exclusive fall promotion of music, DVDs and gifts at Cracker Barrel Old Country Store locations. The chain is offering special editions of Gaither Homecoming releases, Giving Thanks and Count Your Blessings on DVD and CD, plus the Gaither Vocal Band’s Greatly Blessed and Bill Gaither: Christmas In the Country CDs. As well as music, the partnership includes a new line of Homecoming gifts and keepsakes. Among them are a Bill Gaither rocking chair, an etched “Because He Lives” necklace, a 2011 daily planner and a journal.  

 Gospel singer Albertina Walker died Oct. 8 after battling emphysema. She was 81. Hailed the “Queen of Gospel,” Walker founded the Caravans at age 22, which helped launch the music careers of gospel legends such as Shirley Caesar, Inez Andrews, Dorothy Norwood, Bessie Griffin and the Rev. James Cleveland. Walker was inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame in 2001. The following year President George W. Bush honored Walker for her contribution to gospel music in a ceremony at the White House.   ?

 Point of Grace won Entertainer of the Year during the 16th Annual Inspirational Country Music Awards Show, held Oct. 14, at the Trinity Music City USA Auditorium in Hendersonville, Tenn. Carrie Underwood won Inspirational Video of the Year for her No. 1 hit “Temporary Home,” while Sandra Bullock’s Oscar-winning film The Blind Side was recognized with the Faith, Family and Country Movie of the Year.   ?

 LifeWay Christian Stores named Jan Watkins, who runs LifeWay Christian Store in Tukwila, Wash., as 2010 Manager of the Year. Watkins was honored Oct. 11 during the awards banquet of the National Sales Meeting, an annual event for all LifeWay store managers and leadership, held at the LifeWay Ridgecrest Conference Center in Ridgecrest, N.C.

Zondervan and Biblica offer revised Bible translation to people 'eager to experience' updated text

The updated New International Version (NIV), the world's best-selling Bible translation that is being revised for the first time in 25 years,—was made available last month for online viewing at www.biblegateway.com and www.biblica.com in advance of new print Bible products being available next spring.

Zondervan,—which publishes both the NIV and Today's New International Version (TNIV), and Biblica, holder of the NIV copyright, made the announcement in October at the Third Lausanne Congress on World Evangelization in Cape Town, South Africa, which drew more than 4,200 participants from nearly 200 countries.

"The NIV has become part of our culture,—part of the shared experience of millions of people," said Keith Danby, international CEO of Biblica. "This is the reason why we felt it was appropriate to make the update available online as soon as it was ready. 

End-times thriller will have 'bigger budget' for the big-screen production, due to start next year

Plans are being made for a new, improved movie version of the best-selling end-times thriller Left Behind (Tyndale House Publishers).

The project is being developed by Cloud Ten Pictures, which released the first film adaptation of the book in 2000, following it with two other installments from the successful series of novels by Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins—which have sold more than 64 million copies since the first title came out in 1995.

The second screen version of Left Behind: The Movie follows the resolution of a long-running dispute between Cloud Ten and LaHaye, who was unhappy with the filmmaker's releases. The film rights reverted to LaHaye and Jenkins in 2008 as part of a settlement, but were returned to Cloud Ten as of Oct. 1, the company announced.

Christian Bookstore Coin gives New York store's shoppers 'instant gratification with perceived value'

A longtime independent Christian retailer in Cortland, N.Y., has come up with a change for her customer loyalty program—which she credits for boosting sales and increasing traffic.

Kitty Jones, owner of Spirit & Life, has taken over distribution of the Christian Bookstore Coin (CBC) from New Creation Gifts. 

The size of a quarter, the shiny gold coin has Heb. 13:8—which says "Jesus Christ the same yesterday, today and forever"—on one side and "$1 off in trade" on the other.

A month after Donald Miller announced that plans for the film version of his breakthrough book had been scrapped because filmmakers couldn't get enough funding, fans of Blue Like Jazz (Thomas Nelson) established a savebluelikejazz Web site to raise $125,000 in 10 days.

Miller recently announced that the effort had raised enough money to start filming in late October in Nashville. He credited kickstarter.com, a "crowd-funding" Web site that raises money for creative projects, for helping save the project.

Retailers and gallery owners say action by popular 'Painter of Light' artist will protect the company from 'frivolous lawsuits'

Christian retailers and gallery owners say they do not expect any negative impact from the company of "Painter of Light" Thomas Kinkade's recent filing for bankruptcy protection.

Dennis Lovvorn, co-owner of New Covenant Christian Bookstore in Shelbyville, Tenn., told Christian Retailing that he has carried Kinkade's art for 15 years.

"I have over 100 paintings," said Lovvorn, a Kinkade dealer for nine years. "I keep it stocked because it's a good line for us. I don't have any intention of discontinuing it. I'm very happy with them. It's been a bright spot in a dismal economy."

The Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection petition was filed this summer, allowing the Kinkade production arm, Pacific Metro,  to reorganize and put an automatic stay on the collection of all judgments, including one for $3 million owed to Karen Hazlewood and Jeff Spinello, the Los Angeles Timesreported.