In the latest Things Above conversation, James Bryan Smith talks with Jen Pollock Michel about her latest book, Surprised by Paradox. Among many things, they explore the depths of topics, such as paradox, awe, certainty, mystery, and calling. They even share a couple of jokes about a paradox that you won’t want to miss.

Surprised by Paradox invites us to recognize that, in a world filled with ambiguity, many of us long for a belief system that provides straightforward answers to complex questions and clarity in the face of confusion. But while there are certainties in Christian faith, at the heart of the Christian story there is also a paradox. Jesus invites us to abandon the polarities of either and or in order to embrace the difficult, wondrous dissonance of and. Michel’s book helps us recover the paradoxes and mysteries that keep us sane. By them, we learn to trust in a God who is way bigger than our limited expectations. As Michel says, “God has set the world alight with his presence. We just need eyes to see.”

Jen Pollock Michel is the award-winning author of Teach Us to Want and Keeping Place. Her third book, Surprised by Paradox, released on May 14. She lives with her husband and their five children in Toronto. You can follow Jen on Twitter.

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