LAKE FOREST, Calif. (BP)–Best-selling author of “The Purpose-Driven Life,” Southern California pastor Rick Warren, is set to embark on a tour marking the two-year anniversary of the book’s release.
“No one is more amazed than I am that this book has been so widely received and continues to sell,” said Warren, pastor of Saddleback Church. “It’s both astonishing and humbling.”
The Purpose-Driven Life has averaged selling nearly 800,000 copies a month since its release 24 months ago, making it the best-selling hardback nonfiction trade book in history and a mainstay on numerous best-seller lists. It hit the No. 1 spot more than 20 times during an 87-week run on The New York Times’ list and was named Book of the Year in both 2003 and 2004 by the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association.
During his 12-day tour, Warren will speak to a variety of East Coast audiences in 16 events about what he describes as “the renewal of purpose happening in America — the grassroots spiritual awakening that has been reported in dozens of national newspapers.”
“I believe that we are possibly on the verge of a new reformation in Christianity and another Great Awakening in our nation,” Warren said. “The signs are everywhere, including the popularity of this book.”
Warren plans to use the tour to speak to different groups of what he calls “cultural influencers,” including the media and entertainment industry in New York City, military and government leaders in Washington, D.C., and business leaders, philanthropists, psychologists, religious leaders and university students in other locations -– and the national convention for Mothers of Preschoolers in Nashville, Tenn., where three children’s Purpose Driven books will make their debut.
The tour also will kick off the next 40 Days of Purpose campaign involving more than 10,000 churches worldwide. Nearly 20,000 churches have already completed the initiative.
Stops on the tour include:
Sept 17 — Washington, D.C., including an event at the Pentagon.
Sept 19 — West Point, N.Y. at the U.S. Military Academy.
Sept 19-21 — New York City, including an appearance on NBC’s “Today Show.”
Saddleback Church is one of America’s largest and best-known churches. Warren began the purpose-driven movement in 1985 which has trained more than 300,000 pastors worldwide and spread to 122 countries. His previous book, “The Purpose-Driven Church,” also was a Book of the Year honoree by the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association. Warren also is the publisher of the pastors.com website and of Rick Warren’s Ministry Toolbox, a weekly newsletter for ministers with 136,000 subscribers.
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