A Small Dream Just Became a Reality
The story behind the book, and a thank you to the community that helped create it
Today, I’m delighted to share that Sacred & Secular: Finding God in the Ordinary is now available on Amazon.
The Kindle edition and paperback are both now available, and I'll include links at the end of this post for anyone who would like to take a look.
Holding this book in my hands feels a little surreal.
The articles that make up this collection were never originally intended to become a book. Most were written early in the morning with a cup of tea nearby, often in response to a question, a conversation, a Bible passage, or simply something I had been wrestling with myself.
Over time, those individual reflections began to form a larger conversation about faith and doubt, wonder and mystery, and finding traces of God in places we might not expect.
The title Sacred & Secular came to me before I set up our community online and has stuck ever since. It emerged from a conviction that the line between those two worlds is much thinner than we imagine. We tend to divide life into nice, orderly compartments: spiritual and ordinary, holy and everyday.
Yet again and again, I have found that God seems remarkably interested in ordinary places, ordinary people, and ordinary moments.
Many of you have been part of that journey.
Some of you have been reading since the early days on Medium. Others discovered my writing through Substack. Many of you have left thoughtful comments, asked difficult questions, shared your own experiences, and helped shape the conversations that eventually became this book.
For that, I am deeply grateful.
Putting the book together turned out to be a much bigger project than I expected. Hundreds of articles had to be reviewed. Some were discarded. Others were revised. In the end, fewer than a quarter made it into the final manuscript.
The final collection represents what I believe are some of the strongest reflections I have written over the past few years.
The result is a book that explores faith from a variety of angles. It contains reflections on scripture, questions about God, moments of doubt, overlooked details in familiar Bible stories, and the unexpected ways faith intersects with everyday life.
My hope is that it will be equally at home in the hands of a committed Christian, a spiritual seeker, or someone who simply enjoys exploring life’s deeper questions.
If you have ever found value in my writing here, I hope you will consider taking a look.
More than anything, though, I simply wanted to pause and say thank you.
Writing can sometimes feel like a solitary activity, but books do not emerge in isolation. They are shaped by conversations, encouragement, questions, challenges, and communities.
This book would not exist without you.
Thank you for reading, subscribing, commenting, and journeying alongside me.
Paul
Sacred & Secular: Finding God in the Ordinary is available now in Kindle and paperback editions on Amazon.
Click here for the USA version
One final favour. If you do pick up a copy and enjoy it, an honest review on Amazon would mean a great deal. Reviews help new readers discover the book and are one of the most valuable ways you can support an independent author.
If you’re new to Sacred & Secular and would like to continue exploring faith, doubt, scripture, and the deeper questions of life, I’d love to welcome you as a subscriber here on Substack.