This year, Higher Ground has been blessed to interview dozens of authors and speakers and cover various books and clothing lines that are inspired by the creator’s Christian faith. Here’s an ultimate Christmas gift guide of books and other items to help you and your family find encouragement amid a chaotic landscape.
Merry Christmas!
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Kid gift ideas: Books for young readers
’Rosie Finds Her Shine,’ by Megan Rogers
There’s a passage from the book of Psalms that says, “The Lord is close to the brokenhearted.” It’s a truth Megan Rogers has experienced in some pretty profound ways over the past 15 years. Not only did she lose both her best friend and her mom to cancer within a span of about 10 years, but she also had to learn to trust God when it seemed like her life was falling apart.
The former professional dancer and author of “Rosie Finds Her Shine,” shared more about the breakout book and the powerful lessons she’s learned about what can happen when you step out in faith.
“Rosie” became her “grief project” and the exact thing she needed to combine her love for family and dance.
“God really took that seed of dance that He planted in me and He kind of like let it evolve into another dream where I’m still able to tap into the dance side with Rosie being a dancer,” she explained.
’I’m So Blessed,’ by CAIN
When people used to tell Logan Cain, of the contemporary Christian music trio CAIN, that their kids loved his music, he sort of took offense. After all, one doesn’t dream about becoming an award-winning recording artist with the goal of making “childish music.”
But over time, Mr. Cain began to realize that God was using the trio’s catchy tunes to help instill timeless truths in people of all ages, completely altering his definition of success.
They just released “I’m So Blessed,” a children’s book, which harnesses the message from their hit song to create a lyrical picture book with bright and playful illustrations. The book not only entertains young hearts and minds but provides an opportunity for parents to introduce Christian truths to their kids in a powerful and long-lasting way.
“I hope that people will incorporate this book into their time together and then ultimately, I hope kids 15, 20 years from now, maybe they’re in a tough spot and they’re in conflict or they’re under stress and they can remember, like, all my best days and my worst days, I’m still a child of God,” Mr. Cain noted. “The blessings are not the things around me, but the thing that’s within me, the blessed assurance that Jesus is mine.”
‘The Fox, the Fair, and the Invention Scare’ by Kirk Cameron
“The Fox, The Fair, and the Invention Scare,” is Kirk Cameron’s third release with conservative publisher Brave Books and tells the story of a fox and a giraffe who overcome the animosity of their families to become friends.
“It’s a great little story for kids to learn what it means to turn the other cheek, to go the extra mile, to do good to those who hate you, and love those with whom you’ve been fighting,” Mr. Cameron told The Washington Times.
‘A Message in the Moon’ by Roma Downey
Actress and producer Roma Downey wrote a children’s book to help kids of all ages deal with loss, grief and times of transition. “A Message in the Moon” is based on the comforting message Mrs. Downey’s father gave her when she first left for college in an age before cellphones and video calls.
“[My dad] pointed to the sky and he pointed to the moon and said, ‘If you ever miss me or are feeling homesick, just look at the moon, Roma, because I’m going to leave a message in the moon,’” Mrs. Downey explained. “And so it brought me great comfort for those first few semesters. I looked to the night sky and I would feel great comfort and strength because my dad would leave me his love messages in the moon. And in return, I would send a message back to him.”
Faith-filled books for adults
’Chloe: Book One of Chloe’s People: A Novel,’ by Cheryl Chumley
Despite spending her entire professional career in journalism, The Washington Times Opinion Editor and host of “Bold and Blunt” podcast Cheryl Chumley always knew she was going to write a fiction novel someday. What she didn’t expect was that an impromptu conversation with another Christian about trauma, poor decisions and second chances would be what inspired her first novel.
Her book, “Chloe: Book One of Chloe’s People: A Novel,” tackles the lack of empathy she sees in the church for those who have struggled to make good decisions in life as a result of their difficult backgrounds.
“If you’re raised in a sort of a terrible home life, your choice, your way of looking at the world, is going to be very different from somebody who’s raised with God, with family values, traditional values, and so forth,” Ms. Chumley noted. “And so, the reason I wanted to write ’Chloe’ was to address what I think in the church is a failing to understand those who have really dark pasts or who are walking in what seems to many in the church to be a willful lifestyle of rebellion against God. And I wanted to sort of bring that to the forefront to help people in the church, those who believe, have more compassion reaching out to those who don’t.”
’Gospeler: Turning Darkness into Light One Conversation at a Time,’ by Willie Robertson
Willie Robertson was just a young boy when he first experienced the transforming power of the Gospel. He watched as his own father went from a raging, adulterous alcoholic to a sober, born-again family man after coming to Christ — and it always stuck with him.
In addition to inspiring the record-setting film “The Blind,” which was released earlier this year, the Robertsons’ incredible testimony of how the Gospel can transform an entire family and leave a lasting legacy of faith was the motivation behind Mr. Robertson’s latest book: “Gospeler: Turning Darkness into Light One Conversation at a Time.”
“Everything in life that I’ve done, pretty much everything, has been influenced by the Gospel coming into my family’s life,” Mr. Robertson said. “I mean, that’s the deep-seated appreciation that I have for the Gospel.”
’7 Lies That Will Ruin Your Life: What My Journey from Porn Star to Preacher Taught Me About the Truth That Sets Us Free’ by Joshua Broome
It’s been just over 10 years since Joshua Broome walked into a bank with the intention of going home and killing himself right after he deposited his last paycheck from his job as a porn star. From the outside, it looked like he had everything — good looks, money, fame — but inside he was filled with regret, disgust and shame. That changed the moment a compassionate bank teller did him a simple kindness.
“The father of lies, Satan, he wants to distort your thinking,” explained the 41-year-old, who recently released his first book titled, “7 Lies That Will Ruin Your Life: What My Journey from Porn Star to Preacher Taught Me About the Truth That Sets Us Free.” “I thought if I make enough money, I’ll be happy. If I obtain enough notoriety, I’ll be happy. If enough people, you know, know my name, I’ll be happy. And I’d made well over a million dollars. I had won performer of the year. I’d done over a thousand movies and I’d done all this stuff and it didn’t work. And when it didn’t work, it amplified my anxiety. It deepened my depression and I wanted to take my life.”
‘Is God Real?: Exploring the Ultimate Question of Life’ by Lee Strobel
Bestselling author Lee Strobel tackles one of life’s most pressing questions, providing fascinating evidence for biblical truth in his new book “Is God Real?” Exploring the Ultimate Question of Life.”
“We’re seeing a decrease in the percentage of Americans who believe in God,” said Mr. Strobel. “It’s down to 81 percent, the lowest ever … and, yet, I believe that is spawning increased openness to spiritual matters.”
‘Wimpy, Weak & Woke: How truth can save America from utopian destruction’ by John Cooper
John Cooper, frontman of “Skillet” and author of “Wimpy, Weak, & Woke,” doesn’t shy away from calling out the ills of our current culture, including a weak church that is allowing the “de-evolution of society.”
“America was founded on these principles of absolute truth … and a moral code based on Judeo-Christian ethics,” Mr. Cooper said. “All that has been challenged, truth has been challenged … and if we go down this road of postmodernism and saying ’there is no such thing as absolute morality and absolute truth, it will lead to the destruction of society.’ And everyone thought it was alarmist … and here we are in 2023.”
Gifts for the whole family
Unsung Hero
“Unsung Hero,” a major motion picture depicting the incredible journey of the Smallbone family, Joel Smallbone said the movie is close to his heart, especially considering it’s his parents’ “migration story.” The film shows the trials and tribulations the Smallbone family encountered when they left their native Australia and arrived in America.
They had little more than their love for one another yet somehow survived — and thrived. Their daughter Rebecca St. James became a monumentally popular Christian singer and Joel and Luke went on to found For KING + COUNTRY, with additional siblings also working in the arts.
But “Unsung Hero” is a project that might not have happened had they listened to critics. Despite making more than $21 million at the box office, some tried to dissuade the Smallbones from making it.
“We’d had other people in the industry … say … ’This is a terrible idea,’” Mr. Smallbone said. “Don’t do this.”
The Smallbones, answering their call, felt their family’s “sacred story” needed to be told, so they ignored the warnings and pressed on with “Unsung Hero,” which is now airing on Starz.
Unitus Clothing Apparel
When NBA player Jonathan Isaac refused to kneel during the national anthem amid the Black Lives Matter protests in the summer of 2020, it sparked a new determination in him to wear his Godly principles and values on his sleeve — literally. Fast forward three years, and the Orlando Magic forward recently launched his own sports and apparel company, Unitus, to encourage others to not be ashamed of what they believe.
“Unitus was taking the values that I hold dear, in my personal life: faith, family, freedom and a plethora of other ones, and putting them on a pedestal through, in my opinion, really dope merch, and allowing people to join the community and wear their values on their sleeve and not be ashamed of them,” Mr. Isaac told The Times.
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