Pray! magazine announces that the Pray! Network, an online community devoted to prayer (www.praynetwork.org), has a record-setting 1,648 registered participants. The site went live the first week in April.

“The Pray! Network is a state-of-the-art ministry networking site that brings a diverse group of people together for the common purpose of deepening their relationship with God through prayer,” says site moderator Phil Miglioratti.

Participants interact through forums and blogs, inform and invite one another to events, and connect through affinity groups, such as Prayer @ NBC and Japan: Sanbi, Inori. They also communicate with photos and video clips that can be used in personal and corporate prayer settings and offer practical applications and resources related to prayer. Site members include pastors, prayer leaders, intercessors, and church members who are interested in prayer.

“We’re very happy with the rapid growth of the Pray! Network and the interest being demonstrated in prayer,” says NavPress President Mike Miller. “Our hope is that people worldwide will share insights and resources, make new friendships, and encourage one another in prayer.”

NavPress has named Barry Sneed its new vice president. Sneed will focus on church and denominational relations and help with the development of core discipleship and spiritual formation models and tools.

“We are very excited to have Barry become part of the NavPress team,” said Mike Miller, president of NavPress. “His expertise and background make him the ideal person to help NavPress meet the needs of the church. His experience in understanding discipleship and spiritual formation processes will be critical as we connect with churches to assist them with their discipleship work.”

Sneed most recently was the Lead Church Consultant and Regional Director for Church Relations and Consulting of LifeWay Christian Resources. In this role he helped churches assess, strategize, and implement church health and ministry effectiveness. One of his greatest strengths is helping churches identify and achieve their potential. He has also served in the local church for more than 20 years and was director of LifeWay's Discipleship and Family Leadership Department. At NavPress, he will be a member of the company’s senior leadership team.

“When the offer came, it was a ‘spiritual no-brainer.’ My heart and passion lines up with the biblical mandate to make disciples and with The Navigators’ calling to advance the Gospel of Jesus and His Kingdom into the nations through spiritual generations of laborers living and discipling among the lost. That’s as missional as it gets,” said Sneed.

Sneed is the co-author of Jesus By Heart and Transformational Discipleship (both LifeWay Church Resources).

To help support research into finding a cure for breast cancer, NavPress released The Message REMIX//Solo [Pink Edition] by Eugene H. Peterson on Sept. 15. A portion of the proceeds from every sale will be donated to breast cancer research.

NavPress also has launched www.solopinkedition.com, a site devoted to supporting those dealing with breast cancer. The site features encouraging videos, e-postcards, and a place for visitors to share their own experiences with cancer.

"Solo [Pink Edition] is significant in the history of NavPress,” said NavPress President Mike Miller. “The idea for this devotional Bible came from a staff member who had a personal experience with breast cancer, so this cause is very important to us."

NavPress has partnered with CBA and Dave Dravecky’s Outreach of Hope to offer a Christian retail exclusive. Christian retailers can participate in The Message of Hope program in which customers who purchase a copy of The Message//REMIX Solo [Pink Edition] are invited to sign bookplates to encourage cancer patients. The bookplates will be placed inside The Message of Hope booklets, which feature selected portions of The Message. Dravecky, a former MLB pitcher who survived career-ending bone cancer, will help distribute the booklets to cancer patients and survivors.

Christian Leadership Alliance President Frank Lofaro recently interviewed Mike Miller, president of NavPress, on technology and ministry for the fall 2009 issue of Outcomes magazine. Mike regularly writes about media, publishing, and spirituality in his blog, The Road Ahead . . ..

What is the biggest technology-related challenge for Christians today?

We live in two worlds simultaneously. We live in the virtual world, where many of us maintain relationships and do business. Most Americans are touched by the virtual world to some degree. But we also live in the physical world. The reality of blending the two worlds—which often clash—is probably the most significant issue regarding technology and the Christian faith. It's not the platforms, it's not the tools—it's the reality of two different worlds. Sometimes we give priority to one over the other. That's the big trade-off. And that is the biggest technology-related challenge for Christians in the 21st century.

Read the entire interview.