by Kevin /
It was October 1, 2010, 2:30 in the morning, and our original website was finally live and functional. Three hours later I got on a plane in Washington, DC to fly to Minneapolis for the 2010 Desiring God National Conference. Co-founder Bob Bevington and I were about to debut the company and our first two books. These were Sexual Detox (by our other co-founder, Tim Challies), and Wrestling with an Angel, by Greg Lucas, whom I “happened” to meet in the Minneapolis airport almost immediately upon landing.
The conference theme seemed perfect for launching a publishing company (not that we planned it that way). It was called Think: The Life of the Mind and the Love of God, and featured a truly remarkable group of speakers, including R.C. Sproul, Albert Mohler, Francis Chan, Randy Alcorn, Sam Storms, Kevin DeYoung, Thabiti Anyabwile, J.D. Greear, Justin Taylor, Rick Warren, and John Piper.
Bob had flown in from Ohio the night before. We met at the conference bookstore where our books, already in print, were waiting for us in boxes. We set up our table and tried to spread all two of the titles around to actually fill the table. Then the bookstore opened and the first rush began.
The next few days were, for me, a wonderfully sleep-deprived blur of encouraging conversations, great messages, new connections, and seemingly chance meetings with many friends and acquaintances. We left the conference excited, amazed by God’s grace, and grateful for his mercy, yet more aware than ever of all the work that lay ahead.
Now, 5 years later, we are still around! God has sustained us and is continuing to do so. This coming January, Lord willing, we will have 40 books in print. Bob and Tim and I are all still active with the company, this blog is just starting to get some long-overdue attention (from us, that is), and we are more encouraged than ever about the future.
Please stick around! Looks like the fun is just beginning.
Yes it has been quite a journey!
It started as a concept Kevin developed in his mind. But before the vision could materialize we needed funding and a business structure. If you’ve never been involved in something like that, take it from us–it can be quite a challenge.
The odds were stacked against us. We were very aware of the statistics–only one out of five start-up companies remain in business five years later!
But with the Lord, the odds mean nothing. He has seen us through so far, working through a diversity of people from authors to editors to the invaluable behind-the-scenes folks who tend to the details.
We couldn’t have done it without Him . . . and them!
Excellent points…kudos and much gratitude to so many who have helped and are helping! SDG!
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