I want to try something. Thanks to Chris Anderson’s new book, Free — and the controversy it has caused — there has been a lot of discussion around the Web regarding the value of products. Specifically, whether or not it makes sense to offer a product for free?

I don’t know the answer to that. But I do know that I have a whole lot of the first edition of Pocket Guide to the Bible (the Relevant Books edition) sitting in a warehouse, in boxes of 48. Jossey-Bass is about to release a new, repackaged version of that book. Which sorta makes my old version a collector’s item. Or irrelevant. Or something.

So I thought I’d try an experiment: What if, for a short time only, I provided copies of this first iteration of Pocket Guide to the Bible for virtually free? Only there’s a catch. You can’t get just one copy. You have to take 48.

So beginning right this moment, you can get a box of 48 Pocket Guide to the Bible books for the price of $0.01. One tiny cent. AND…I’ll sign them. Every one. All I ask is that you cover the shipping & handling for these boxes so I don’t actually lose money on this.

Shipping is $19.99 for the box. So in total, $20.00 gets you 48 signed books. No strings attached.

The deal won’t last long. The offer stands until exactly 10 pm Central time tomorrow night, July 28. At that point, I’ll remove the button below.

I’m thinking this will be a great deal for high school ministries, college ministries, small-group leaders, Gosselin family members, or anything similar to get a bunch of books for giveaways or gifts. If you agree, make that purchase. Buy a box. And let your ministry friends know about this crazy almost-free deal.

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Update: 9:00 pm, Tuesday, July 28 — The crazy almost-free deal has ended. Big thanks to the more than 50 of you who bought boxes. I’m working on them now and will ship them as I finish.

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