Meeting George Barna

Imaginary Jesus is published by Barna Books, which is an imprint of Tyndale House Publishers.  A lot of people wonder what that means, and how involved George Barna was in the book, whether I know him, did I really meet him in Portland (like in the book), et cetera, et cetera.

Above is a picture of me and George Barna when we met for lunch a few months ago. I know what you are thinking: "IS THAT A BABY'S HEAD IN THE LOWER RIGHT HAND CORNER OF THE PICTURE?"

Set your mind at ease. That is, indeed, a baby's head.  But the baby was only sleeping.  I was holding her.  The baby is fine.  I know, some of you who dislike George Barna think maybe something terrible happened to the baby.  Maybe it fainted, something like that.  But no.  The baby simply fell into a sweet slumber.

Here's how it came about that I met George Barna.  My agent sent my book to Tyndale.  The editors at Tyndale talked to George's agent.  She talked to George.  Then we all talked to each other.  And then, later, it became a Barna book.  I could go into more detail, but really that's pretty much how it happened.  You can see some of George's thoughts about the whole thing.

The Barna Group then did some research based on themes from Imaginary Jesus, specifically looking at whether Americans think they are connected to God, and do they believe that he speaks to them in a personal way, and what people believe about God interacting with them during times of pain.  You can read an article summarizing parts of that research here.

Anyway, this all culminated in a lovely lunch together with George in southern California at a really great fish and chips place.  George even bought our lunch (thanks, George!), which makes him immediately a great guy to my way of thinking.  We had a fascinating conversation about our relationships with Jesus, talked about books, culture, the church and what to do when there is controversy around your writing or ministry.  George had wise advice and insights and I really enjoyed the conversation.

As for the questions at the beginning of this post, George and I do, indeed, know each other.  We have not (yet) met in Portland.  And George and I met after the book was already written, though I did incorporate some of his research into the book by the time the final draft rolled around.  But I was certainly the author.

All that to say, I think it is another of the Lord's blessings to Krista and me that this book has allowed us to cross paths with George.  Now you may ask questions in the comments and I will answer them.  Because I can't help myself and I just keep talking all the time. 

Thanks for your kind attention, Imaginary Friends.