CSS is a Christian publisher that publishes Christian Books, Christian Subscriptions, Sermon Subscriptions, Sermon Books, Children's Sermons, Sermon Resources, Christian Preaching Resources, Worship Resources, Worship Preparation Tools, Pastor Resources, Lectionary Preaching Resources, Christian Stewardship Programs, Christian Education Resources, Church Supplies, Biblical Studies, and many any other worship resources and Christian resources to meet that needs of pastors and the global ministry.

• Christian Books in categories such as Adult Studies, Biblical Studies, Children's Sermons, Christian Stewardship, Church Growth, Church Programs, Drama, Evangelism, Faith Development, Inspirational Reading, Pastoral Resources, Prayers, Preaching Resources, Sermons, Stories, Study, Worship Resources, Youth Resources and many other Christian Books.
  
• Christian Subscriptions and Sermon Subscriptions affiliated with SermonSuite such as Children’s Sermon Service, Emphasis, The Immediate Word, StoryShare, The Village Shepherd, Sermon Studio, and Gospel Grams.
  
• Sermon Books and Sermon Resources such as Christian Sermons, Children’s Sermons, Lectionary Sermons, Lent and Easter Sermons, Palm Sunday Sermons, Good Friday Sermons, Sermon Illustrations and many other Sermon resources.
  
• Christian Preaching Resources, Worship Resources, Worship Preparation Tools and Pastor Resources.
  
• Lectionary Preaching Resources include Revised Common Lectionary Resources, Lectionary Sermons, Lectionary Preaching Workbooks, Lectionary Stories, Lectionary Scenes, Lectionary Tales, Lectionary Worship Aids and Lectionary Worship Workbooks for Cycles A, B and C.
  
• Christian Stewardship Resources for individual giving. Our Christian Stewardship Programs include the Pony Express Stewardship Program and We Are Family Stewardship Program.
  
• Christian Education Resources such as Christian Evangelism, Christian Drama, Christian Youth Ministry, and Children's Lessons, Bible Studies.
  
• Church Supplies such as Church Bulletins for Advent, Christmas, Christmas Eve, Ash Wedneday, Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, Easter Vigil, Easter Sunrise, Baptism, Communion, Confirmation, Graduation, Wedding, Funeral, Pentecost and others.
  
• Lent and Easter Resources for every day in Holy Week include Lent and Easter Worship Services, Lent and Easter Sermons, Lent and Easter Preaching Resources, Lent and Easter Christian Books, Lent and Easter Biblical Studies and Drama, devotional resources, Palm Sunday preaching, worship and drama, Maundy Thursday preaching, worship and drama, Good Friday preaching, worship and drama, Easter Vigil worship, and other worship resources for Lent and Easter.
  
• Advent and Christmas Resources include Advent, Christmas Eve and Christmas Worship Services, Advent and Christmas Sermons, Advent and Christmas Preaching Resources, Advent and Christmas Christian Books, Sunday school, devotional resources, and other worship resources for Advent and Christmas.
  

From Paint to Publishing
A Brief History of CSS

From humble beginnings nearly 35 years ago, when a paint salesman convinced his pastor to distribute copies of the weekly children’s sermon so that other preachers could also use them, CSS Publishing Company has grown today into a nationally-known publisher of ecumenical Christian resources, specializing in titles that meet the practical ministry needs of a diverse customer base.

Wesley T. Runk, Founder

Original home of CSS 1972 Expansion Current home of CSS

On a warm summer day in 1968, a paint salesman in Lima, Ohio visited his pastor, Wesley T. Runk, and announced that he had been sharing Runk’s children’s sermons with his customers, who were sharing them with their pastors. A few began to inquire if the messages could be obtained in a written form. The salesman had a vision: “Pastor, you write the children’s sermons a couple of weeks ahead of time and mail them out to other ministers. They will pay for them — it will be like a magazine subscription.” After sending some samples to pastors in his synod and receiving positive replies, Runk sensed that perhaps the paint salesman was on to something. So in October of 1968 the Children’s Sermon Service was launched by a team of two Lutheran pastors (Runk and Tom Lentz) and a Christian education director (Jean Hines) who took care of mailing lists and performed office duties. In January of 1970 CSS Publishing Company was officially founded. Its product line quickly expanded beyond children’s sermons to many other offerings, yet the company retained the initials CSS from Children’s Sermon Service as a nod to its heritage. In 1973 CSS began to publish lectionary-based sermons and worship resources, the niche upon which the company built its name and reputation. Each year CSS broadened its approach, as it became a highly regarded channel for pastors of many different denominations to share their work. Field-tested programs in stewardship, evangelism, drama, youth ministry, and Christian education were added to the children’s lessons, sermons, and worship resources. As a result, CSS Publishing Company has continually grown in publications, employees, and sales. The company built its own in-house printing operation, and is fully self-sufficient with the capability to handle diverse book projects from start to finish. CSS has embraced the high-tech world of digital printing, providing many benefits for its customers. Throughout the company’s ongoing expansion, CSS employees have remained a collegial family and pride themselves on teamwork and friendly, helpful service. CSS also houses four subdivisions: • B•O•D (Books On Demand), a short-run book manufacturer; • Academic Renewal Press, specializing in reviving classic academic texts in the field of Religion; • Stewardship Resources, which provides stewardship programs and products for churches; and • Fairway Press, a self-publishing company that helps authors get their works published without going through traditional publishing channels. Today, CSS is a thriving company boasting an active backlist of more than 1.000 titles. In addition to producing approximately 60 new titles per year, CSS Publishing Company continues to provide the subscription resources for clergy that it started over 30 years ago, including Children’s Sermon Service Plus, Emphasis: A Preaching Journal For The Parish Pastor, and GospelGrams (the original children’s activity bulletin). CSS is firmly focused on continuing to fulfill its mission of being a leader in the field of religious publishing.