If the price of the book prevented you from sharing Christ with others then I might be in aggreement with the idea that it is wrong to charge so much. However, this is just one of thousands of resources available to you that will help you to improve your show and ministry. In general though I do feel that "Christian" stuff is way over priced and I fear that we are in the USA guilty of taking advantage of Christians by selling them high priced stuff without true justification. Go to any "Christian" bookstore and see if you can say with a straight face that what is for sale and the prices it is sold at makes sense.

Steve
You might want to consider Duane's three volume DVD set "THE ART OF GOSPEL MAGIC" It contains lots of the things in his book and you get to see it first hand, instead of trying to picture it in you mind.
Thanks Mark

When I started publishing books years ago I wrestled with the need to "get the word out there" and "covering expenses" and "rightful compensation for my creative efforts" As I added Magic eBooks and eBook versions of my 34 published works I realized that the 'true value' can only be decided by the person receiving the message "some seeds falling on fertile ground, others on stone."

So, I now offer everthing at No Charge and allow the buyer to decide
its worth and send financial support if they wish to do so. I believe
that the Lord will guide that I will receive more than if I established an arbitrary price, or a fluctuating one based on "what the market will bear."

Actually, the feedback I receive helps me revise and produce even better eBooks,
allowing me to continuously 'live' in helping others.

That works well for cheap people...When my wife produced an album we started selling at a certain price and we sold several. We decided that we wanted to get it into people's hands because it's ministry and lowered the price. We didn't sell any more at the lower price than the original price. Finally we raised the price to an amount higher than we ever sold one...we sold out.

It's preceived value...if you're just giving books away, then the preceived value of that book is low...but raising the price and having a sale from time to time give people that warm fuzzy feeling that they got a good product at a great price. That's just how it works.

I think if you can raise money for your ministry by having things available for people to purchase...great. I also believe it is wonderful when you can bless folks with the something "free" as well. So both are good.

Oz and Wilde: FX4 Christ (the ministry I'm involved in) generally gives their notes/books/notebooks away when they teach. But it is because we have been blessed with the resources to produce them. But we also don't currently draw any salary from what we do...so all donations go back into the ministry directly.

I suppose I look at the notes as "teasers" to a book we will eventually assemble and sell...but we have only "been on the scene" a few years...and are not established as many. We also don't do it full time so it just takes a little longer.

We just make sure everything we create is good quality. Because even the free stuff reflects on you.

Hey Kif, I wonder how much Oz would go for...lol

Now there is a judgment that has nothing to do with Christianity! Many churches function on donations rather than tithing and that doesn't make their congregation "cheap." Exxon makes billions by abusing people's sense of need for an automobile -- that doesn't make it ethical, or "the way it works." Yes, perceived value is very important. I just prefer to leave that up to the individual performer to decide what is best for them. There is a restaurant in Colorado that has no prices on their menu -- allowing people to just pay what they think the meal/expereince is worth. Cheap?? The owners have quit their computer programming jobs because htey are making so much money.

I am glad you can charge large fees and get it. That doesn't mean you are right, or that any one who charges less is wrong. I said I don't charge for my ShareBooks -- I never said I work for nothing. My cutomers are happy with what they pay. Can you say that? I only make money so that I can help others anyway.

Last week a Member took my "No Charge" option instead of a 'Buy Now' price of $5.55. After he read the material he sent me $20 with a hint at more after his next show where he uses three new Sleights. So, I guess he's just cheap.

Or maybe he was just rare...I wasn't saying anything against you, but it's against the mindset of those who want something for free. There's a big difference between someone who can't afford something and you want to bless them with it and those who can afford to pay and is just too cheap to do so.

I'm a full time pastor and have been in the ministry for more than half my life and one thing I've never figured out is why is it that Churches/Christians think they should get something for free or cheap just because they're a church or a Christian?

You are worthy of your labor, don't sell yourself short.

You missed the other point of what I shared...We too wanted to just bless people, but consumers are value driven, so it's perceived value. If it's free the mindset of most is that it must not be a great product...it can be the greatest book in the world, but if I don't perceive it as valuable to me, then I won't get it.

You do whatever you want, I was just sharing and passing on my own experiences.

Maybe I shouldn't have given away my 3 DVD set "THE ART OF GOSPEL MAGIC" in fear I might of degraded it's worth. I don't think that happened.

I strongly see Terry's point though,and I agree with what he has said. But, everyone is missing Steve's.

It comes down to being a personal thing. I don't think the person who got the DVD's was too cheap to buy it, and I felt blessed by giving it out freely. God has blessed me in many ways, and I like to be able to bless others in anyway I can. However, business is business, and if every christian business person gave things out for free, he'd be out of business. It is okay to make a profit as a christian, but taking advantage over supply and demand by over pricing an item to such high extremes doesn't sit good with me. If someone wants to invest, they are better off investing in stocks and bonds, not christian material.

This of course is my personal opinion.

Well, investment doesn't have to be in money. I believe that I invest in a person's hope and aspirations. It's akin to that old 'fish' analogy -- to give a fish or teach to fish. Either way, if a man has to pay for the fish or the lesson he might be fearful or skeptical. So, he tends to buy only the fish he always knew, and cook it the same way, and invite the same friends to his meager meal. He might look at the 'lessons' available, but is unable to know of their worth or potential. So, I have dedided to teach people how better ways to fish, to cook, to set their table and entertain their guests -- and sometimes I will get invited to the feast, or they send me a basket of vegetables in return, or they simply smile more through the day. I assure you, that the 'interst' on my investment will be more thna money can buy -- but that will come my way also.

Hummmm -- maybe I am not talking about selling or giving magic eBooks at all, but of simply acting as I believe Christ says that I should. I don't give anything away for 'free'. Each person who gets a ShareBook at "No Charge" must commit to actually reading it, trying it and giving me feedback. If they wish to give me something back to fuel my creativity -- that is fine also. But they do that without fear, without risk and with full knowledge of the perceived value of the information to themseves. For me, it is just a way of "walking the talk."

Maybe I am being foolish to act in faith and simple trust in people's better nature,
but from feedback received so far -- I have started three new eBooks, and one of them might just be the one you need.

Having said that, I fully agree than many Christians want something for nothing, but then so do the members of every other organized religious practice, or political party or social organization. There is a sense of 'entitlement' that is slowly destroying this nation's values, and with it simple faith. A lot of that comes from fear and anxiety. The last thing they should have to worry about is whether they will get value for an eBook - or a magic performance.

Just an opinion.

Hey Dan, I strongly support giving things away if the Lord so leads. I've given equipment away to members of the Café when the Lord spoke to my heart to do so and I have been a receipient of a great blessing by someone here on the Café.

I agree with Terry - not a fair comparison at all.

Remember that Jesus (as far as we can see) probably spent most of His adult life as a businessman in a carpenter shop. I'm sure there were items He gave away to bless someone. I'm also sure He charged a good and fair price for His work. And it's quite likely that He would increase prices as needed to meet expenses and personal needs.

That being said, I'm sure God has room for all who will follow Him, no matter what that may look like in individual lives. I can give my opinion based on who I am in Jesus, but if I'm not careful I can quickly leave the realm of what I know as fact about Him and begin basing my opinions on how Jesus is expressed through the limitations of my personality, experiences, desires, giftings, etc. Peter, James, John, Thomas - same Jesus, different men, different walks and expressions of divine life. Jesus came to give life, not a cookie cutter.

"Follow Me." And so we must in our business dealings. Maybe you and I can walk together in some of our dealings, and maybe we can't because we're not being led down the same path. And we may need to change paths from time to time. Apparently, at one point, the "ministry bag" didn't have a coin to pay the tax; at the Last Supper, though, they thought Judas was going to go distribute from that same bag. I don't know that I would want to make a life-direction decision based on only one of these, or on however much Jesus charged for a table on any given day.

Ed

Stempleton just doesn't want to pay 120 bucks for a book. It's not even that expensive - especialy if it's rare!~