Rick Warren's The Purpose-Driven Life (Zondervan) was named the winner of the Jordon Christian Book of the Year award for the second consecutive year at the 27th Annual Gold Medallion Book Awards banquet Saturday.

ECPA President Doug Ross also announced at the event that the Global Publishers Alliance, formerly the ECPO, held a golf outing in which $30,000 was raised to purchase copies of Warren's blockbuster book to be distributed in Iraq for Project Baghdad.

The keynote speaker for the evening, former Senate chaplain and Harvest House author Lloyd John Ogilvie, was honored with the ECPA Gold Medallion Lifetime Achievement Award. Ogilvie urged publishers in the audience to "continue a vital relationship with Christ in the midst of a very busy career."

This year 58 publishers submitted 471 books for consideration, and 232 judges scored each one for content, literary quality, design and significance of contribution. Thomas Nelson Inc.'s various imprints won five awards. Zondervan won three, while its children's imprint, Zonderkidz, was honored with one award.

Mark Kuyper, who assumes the association's presidency July 7, addressed the crowd, while current President Doug Ross kept the program moving. The banquet was held at the Westin Peachtree Plaza Hotel in Atlanta prior to the start of CBA International.

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