Giving Away Our Books

Shortly after we began CCW I began to write small booklets. We gave these away by the multiplied tens of thousands since 1989 when our first booklet was released—all at the ministry's expense. That is, we paid for the production of the item (including writing costs, editing, layout, correspondence, promotion, secretarial expense), and the shipping/handling costs (mailers, labels, labor, postage). I believe it would be easy to demonstrate that we spent over $100,000 in giving just one of our booklets out.

Was it worth it? There is no question in our minds about that. What, after all, is the value of a soul? We've experienced an amazing drama watching these "little sentinels" march around the world. Many have been converted, assured, strengthened, and challenged by the written word. I could tell you numerous stories.

Our ministry is all about giving. We have a clear policy not to ask for funds to run this work, but we simply look to God for all we need. He has not disappointed us. Often (in fact, most of the time) God supplies at the last moment, but He always comes through. This way of ministering stretches our faith, but we would not have it any other way. We have come to realize that even though we don't have huge coffers, our Father does. When we spend everything we have (which we always do), He provides more still. And, of course, all other activities carried out by CCW are supplied by unsolicited contributions to the ministry outside of book sales. I speak for free, so this is not a source of income for us either. God is the only one we look to.

The spread of the computer and the internet has made our work better, we believe. At the same time, sending out small booklets is less needful since people can download most of our items. It no longer seems reasonable for us to produce and mail these items at such an expense. Because of this current reality, we have been gradually fading out the "free booklet" side of our work. We are a little sad about this, but we think it is good stewardship.

A couple of years ago, we began publishing slightly larger books for sale. The rationale for this is simple: We wanted to offer higher quality items that may be obtained through bookstores and other ministries as well as directly from us. This required putting a price on our work. We have not been disappointed in the results. Our first book, for instance, has gone to over 28,000 people in two years. We hope, Lord willing, to publish two or three books each year.

We don't print until the prospective book is underwritten. In surprising ways, generous people have voluntarily given the final production expenses (usually $5000) to print each new book for the first time. Donations for books and regular donations are kept separate. There are many costs beyond this that we trust God to meet all along the way, but this is the critical amount that indicates we are ready to pursue a book. The money our ministry receives above our costs is kept for the further production of the particular book we're offering.

As you know, we attempt to put the lowest possible pricing on our books. This is possible because we do not have a distributor outside of ourselves. Most of a book's cost is wrapped up in paying distributors (often 65%). We're a ministry that publishes what we are deeply convicted about, not merely a publisher.

We also have another strategic ministry going on with the books we publish. We give them away. Literally thousands of our books have been given already. In a way, this is the replacement for the giving of booklets for the 16 years prior. We fully expect God to supply all that is needed to accomplish His will. What we are doing doesn't make a whole lot of fiscal sense (if you know what I mean), but it makes plenty of sense in God's economic system.

How does this work?

• We give away free books on our www.WaytoGod.org evangelistic site to those who are true seekers.
• We often give books to pastors/leaders at conferences.
• We are privileged to offer some of our books to missionary enterprises.
• We supply churches that minister evangelistically during catastrophes like Katrina.
• We reduce the price for some churches that need our materials but cannot afford them at present.
• We use some monies from book sales to offset overseas printing expenses when our books are published in other countries.
• We give to any person who asks who cannot afford what they really need.

There are some precautions we have related to giving, of course. Because we have received all we have from God through the hands of generous people who contribute to our ministry, we have the responsibility not to squander what God has given. Many times we are asked for bulk materials from overseas ministries and individuals whose identity is not verifiable. Sadly, we cannot supply free copies in many of these cases. It is well-known that there are people who procure free items from the States and make their living deceitfully by selling those items. Also, legitimate and often struggling booksellers are driven out of business when this happens. We tend to send items only if the ministry requesting it is verifiable by some other ministry we know or recognize and a personal letter is sent rather than an email message. Often we must make a judgment about the number of copies we will send also. As you know, the mailing costs are often more than the item. We are constantly working on improvements in this area. At times we have similar requests that are "unmeetable" for various reasons even in the States.

How does this affect you?

Well, first of all, you share in this giving with us. When books are purchased, some of what is given is used to send free items. Secondly, you may be in need of our books and cannot afford them, or can only supply a smaller amount of money to purchase them. We understand that. Please ask for help if this is so. We have attempted to put our costs as low as possible already because we are sensitive about the expense of books, but we will work with you if you actually cannot afford an item. Please don't be afraid to ask if this is your situation. We are working together with you on mission for God. All of our money and yours is His ultimately. If we cannot help out at a particular time, then we will tell you.

Let me be straight with you: We run this ministry on almost nothing, that is, nothing but God. And that means that we have everything we need!

I hope this helps you understand how we operate. We look forward to hearing from you.

Jim Elliff
President
Christian Communicators Worldwide