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God Is Stranger: What happens when God turns up?
What happens when God turns up? 'Has God become as familiar and forgettable as a fridge magnet? That's the danger Krish Kandiah faces up to in this wonderfully readable and very challenging book. Bible stories come to life as Krish tells them afresh, richly illustrated with personal experience and social relevance, and in each case the living God turns up - strange, dangerous, and, like Aslan, not safe but good.' CHRIS WRIGHT, LANGHAM PARTNERSHIP In an age of social and political uncertainty, Krish Kandiah turns to less familiar and more uncomfortable parts of the Bible to discover the true character of God - but be warned: he may be stranger than you think.
Building on the challenges he explored in PARADOXOLOGY, Krish strips us of our comfortable assumptions and invites us to look afresh at God's character. When Abraham welcomes three men for dinner, he ends up pleading for the life of a city. When Jacob meets God by the river, they end up in a fight. And when two forlorn disciples meet a stranger on the road, their lives are turned upside down.
GOD IS STRANGER challenges us to lay down our expectations of God and delight in the power that is proven by his very strangeness. 'Be warned: this book could seriously affect your view of yourself, of the world and of God - I highly recommend it to you!' PAULA GOODER, BIBLE SOCIETY 'An important and timely book from someone who lives out its message.' PETE GREIG, 24-7 PRAYER INTERNATIONAL
Building on the challenges he explored in PARADOXOLOGY, Krish strips us of our comfortable assumptions and invites us to look afresh at God's character. When Abraham welcomes three men for dinner, he ends up pleading for the life of a city. When Jacob meets God by the river, they end up in a fight. And when two forlorn disciples meet a stranger on the road, their lives are turned upside down.
GOD IS STRANGER challenges us to lay down our expectations of God and delight in the power that is proven by his very strangeness. 'Be warned: this book could seriously affect your view of yourself, of the world and of God - I highly recommend it to you!' PAULA GOODER, BIBLE SOCIETY 'An important and timely book from someone who lives out its message.' PETE GREIG, 24-7 PRAYER INTERNATIONAL
352 pages, Paperback
Published November 20, 2018
40 people are currently reading
315 people want to read
About the author
Krish Kandiah
27 books67 followersKrish is the founding director of Home For Good, a young charity seeking to make a real difference in the lives of vulnerable children by finding loving homes for children in the care system. He is an advocate for fostering and adoption. He has written 13 books including the catalytic "Home for Good: Making a Difference for Vulnerable Children"and the award winning "Paradoxology" and now his latest book "Faitheism: Why Christianity and Atheism have more in common than you think." (Hodder 2018) Dr Kandiah has been published in the Times of London. the Guardian and is a regular broadcaster on BBC Radio 4 and Radio 2.
Dr Kandiah is in demand as a speaker at both national and international conferences. He recently spoke to a full house at TEDxOxford on the topic "Can Hospitality Change the World?" Krish is a consultant offering both creativity and academic reflection to bring strategic change, culture shift and innovation. He has expertise in the overlap between faith and development, faith literacy and communication. Krish is an ambassador for the UK aid and development charity: Tearfund.
Dr Kandiah is in demand as a speaker at both national and international conferences. He recently spoke to a full house at TEDxOxford on the topic "Can Hospitality Change the World?" Krish is a consultant offering both creativity and academic reflection to bring strategic change, culture shift and innovation. He has expertise in the overlap between faith and development, faith literacy and communication. Krish is an ambassador for the UK aid and development charity: Tearfund.
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Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
February 27, 2021
I really like Krish Kandiah's willingness to tackle some of the most difficult parts of the Bible head-on. I already read his book Paradoxology which deals with the types of questions the world may throw at us. Why does God allow suffering? Why does He save some and not others? Why does He command genocide?
In this book, Kandiah explores more of the 'strangeness' of God's character and nature. I think the church does have a tendency to fit God into a pre-conceived idea of what they think He is like. We are comfortable with stories of His love and mercy and the idea that He always has our back. But what about the times we pray desperately and He seems to be silent? When He acts at what seems to be the very last minute? When He even seems cruel?
Kandiah takes stories such as Abraham, Jacob and Ezekiel and explains how we need to be willing to wrestle with these struggles. Keep going to God in these times. Keep praying because it's the very act of prayer and not the outcome that is the crucial thing.
I found this book to be a very timely read whilst living in the middle of a pandemic. I'm sure nearly everyone has had moments where they questioned the sovereignty of God. Why were so many lives lost? Jobs? Money? Families split? Where are you God? What are you doing?
I would recommend reading this and being prepare to wrestle with the reality that God does not act as we always want Him to. His ways are higher. He sees the whole picture. We do not.
Ultimately, Kandiah reminds us that when God seems strangest and most distant, we cannot escape Jesus. We cannot forget that this God became a poor carpenter, hated and brutally murdered for our sakes. Remember that He was the only one truly forsaken by God. So that we would never be.
The only reason I didn't give this five stars was my slight confusion over the very clear agenda that Kandiah was pushing - that Christians should be hospitable and willing to open their doors to anyone and everyone. That because God made Himself a stranger, we should welcome all strangers.
While I appreciate the heart behind this - I do think hospitality is a powerful tool with which we can welcome others - it just felt a little jarring and out of place with the rest of the book.
Still, would definitely recommend reading and considering what Kandiah has to say. A challenging read for sure.
In this book, Kandiah explores more of the 'strangeness' of God's character and nature. I think the church does have a tendency to fit God into a pre-conceived idea of what they think He is like. We are comfortable with stories of His love and mercy and the idea that He always has our back. But what about the times we pray desperately and He seems to be silent? When He acts at what seems to be the very last minute? When He even seems cruel?
Kandiah takes stories such as Abraham, Jacob and Ezekiel and explains how we need to be willing to wrestle with these struggles. Keep going to God in these times. Keep praying because it's the very act of prayer and not the outcome that is the crucial thing.
I found this book to be a very timely read whilst living in the middle of a pandemic. I'm sure nearly everyone has had moments where they questioned the sovereignty of God. Why were so many lives lost? Jobs? Money? Families split? Where are you God? What are you doing?
I would recommend reading this and being prepare to wrestle with the reality that God does not act as we always want Him to. His ways are higher. He sees the whole picture. We do not.
Ultimately, Kandiah reminds us that when God seems strangest and most distant, we cannot escape Jesus. We cannot forget that this God became a poor carpenter, hated and brutally murdered for our sakes. Remember that He was the only one truly forsaken by God. So that we would never be.
The only reason I didn't give this five stars was my slight confusion over the very clear agenda that Kandiah was pushing - that Christians should be hospitable and willing to open their doors to anyone and everyone. That because God made Himself a stranger, we should welcome all strangers.
While I appreciate the heart behind this - I do think hospitality is a powerful tool with which we can welcome others - it just felt a little jarring and out of place with the rest of the book.
Still, would definitely recommend reading and considering what Kandiah has to say. A challenging read for sure.
October 27, 2018
For those that are interested in God and why sometimes it seems He's not around when you need him or around when you'd rather He wasn't, this might be a good book to read. The author walks his readers through the Old and New Testaments looking at some of those times. The part I especially liked was that he linked them to the here and now. I found his work enlightening and fresh. Also very challenging at some points. He does emphasize the social action aspects more than I than I've been accustomed to, but not without warrant to do so.
What didn't I like? There's not much to say to answer that question, except the movement and tone of the last few chapters was spoiled for me when he interjected some views that were just not appropriate in that particular spot in the narrative. In my opinion at least, others may not agree.
This is a book to keep and revisit from time to time, not necessarily in its entirety, but maybe those chapters that might help to refocus my attention in the right direction.
What didn't I like? There's not much to say to answer that question, except the movement and tone of the last few chapters was spoiled for me when he interjected some views that were just not appropriate in that particular spot in the narrative. In my opinion at least, others may not agree.
This is a book to keep and revisit from time to time, not necessarily in its entirety, but maybe those chapters that might help to refocus my attention in the right direction.
July 7, 2023
4.5 stars
This book gets better and better with each chapter. Kandiah really makes you think about how God can be so close yet so far apart to us, and uses well known Bible stories to illustrate his points. His explanation of Matthew 25:36-41 is amazing. Kandiah can explain deep truths in a “readable”, easy to understand way without insulting your intelligence by “dumbing it down.”
The conclusion to the book is absolutely fantastic and so thought-provoking that it should have been the introduction. It took about three chapters for me to really get “into” the book, so a stronger hook would have been nice.
This book gets better and better with each chapter. Kandiah really makes you think about how God can be so close yet so far apart to us, and uses well known Bible stories to illustrate his points. His explanation of Matthew 25:36-41 is amazing. Kandiah can explain deep truths in a “readable”, easy to understand way without insulting your intelligence by “dumbing it down.”
The conclusion to the book is absolutely fantastic and so thought-provoking that it should have been the introduction. It took about three chapters for me to really get “into” the book, so a stronger hook would have been nice.
June 17, 2023
Wow. This is such a challenging and inspiring book. Definitely one that takes some time to read and makes you stop to think and reflect. I would highly recommend this book and I feel as if I could reread this book right now and get so much more out of it. Thanks Cass for the recommendation!
April 22, 2022
Love the challenge of how we can love the stranger and how we can practically do that, but found it quite heavy & hard to read.
August 7, 2017
This is a terrific book. The first thing to say is though it is rich with good theology it is highly readable and accessible. This is not a text book; this could as easily be read on the beach as it could in the study. Taking a number of different moments in Scripture where God seems either to be absent or acting very strangely, the author weaves of view of God and humanity that is both highly orthodox and deeply challenging.
This is the book to read or give to someone who is convinced that 'social justice' is not the church's primary calling. This is a book for anyone who has ever been nervous of strangers. This is a book for anyone who has wondered what the heck God is up to and why he can't act in a more straightforward and understandable manner. This is a book for anyone who has ever thought large parts of the Bible are alien, time-bound and confusing.
Krish Kandiah has the preacher's gift for the pithy, earthy illustration from everyday life; the humility of someone who's been challenged to really live what he's writing about and the gift of the communicator to deeply challenge without ever condemning the reader. This book is gold. Just read it - and live it.
This is the book to read or give to someone who is convinced that 'social justice' is not the church's primary calling. This is a book for anyone who has ever been nervous of strangers. This is a book for anyone who has wondered what the heck God is up to and why he can't act in a more straightforward and understandable manner. This is a book for anyone who has ever thought large parts of the Bible are alien, time-bound and confusing.
Krish Kandiah has the preacher's gift for the pithy, earthy illustration from everyday life; the humility of someone who's been challenged to really live what he's writing about and the gift of the communicator to deeply challenge without ever condemning the reader. This book is gold. Just read it - and live it.
August 1, 2019
Have we put God in a box? Do you get the impression God will walk with you be with you talk with you always? Does God only show up at church? Is our faith all about me and my God? Does God only have a heart for his people? These are some of the questions this book explores by walking through different scenes and people's lives in the Bible.
Krish rips open the sanitised Sunday school version of these stories to help shed some deep truth on them that may have been concealed.
Each chapter layers and discovers different elements of God and how he relates to us and how we should relate to others. How God so often turns up as a stranger, and what does that mean for our heart for the stranger.
I loved his overlaying of contemporary story with Scripture, and felt a strong conviction about my own heart for the other. As he rightly says. 'The litmus test of authentic discipleship is not one of doctrine but obedience.' Also his radical hospitality vs. hands off tolerance is a needed insight in our secular age. And the call to know God as stranger we need to be in the 'wrong places'. Great insight. Putting ourselves in different environments with different people is really BIG.
I would have loved two things
1) A bit more 'what does this look like' e.g singles, neighbours, etc
2) A sense of the journey through the book, sometimes at the end of a chapter I had to regather my thoughts to think what is the key thing he is driving at here.
Great read, with big lifestyle changes needed if we are going to move the rudder of our life around towards the stranger.....
Krish rips open the sanitised Sunday school version of these stories to help shed some deep truth on them that may have been concealed.
Each chapter layers and discovers different elements of God and how he relates to us and how we should relate to others. How God so often turns up as a stranger, and what does that mean for our heart for the stranger.
I loved his overlaying of contemporary story with Scripture, and felt a strong conviction about my own heart for the other. As he rightly says. 'The litmus test of authentic discipleship is not one of doctrine but obedience.' Also his radical hospitality vs. hands off tolerance is a needed insight in our secular age. And the call to know God as stranger we need to be in the 'wrong places'. Great insight. Putting ourselves in different environments with different people is really BIG.
I would have loved two things
1) A bit more 'what does this look like' e.g singles, neighbours, etc
2) A sense of the journey through the book, sometimes at the end of a chapter I had to regather my thoughts to think what is the key thing he is driving at here.
Great read, with big lifestyle changes needed if we are going to move the rudder of our life around towards the stranger.....
December 31, 2019
Krish's strength is his ability to contextualize obscure biblical motifs with modern-day metaphors that would ring the light bulb in every reader's mind; biblical theologians will appreciate (and possibly pick up) how he simply presents and illustrates complicated theological terms. I also really loved how he would compare similar scenarios that multiple biblical characters face, and how his careful exposition of Scripture was highly accessible to novice theologians.
Reading the bio on the book's rear cover, I wondered if he would proof-text Scripture with hermeneutical lenses of justice and mercy, and I am glad to discover that he did not force it especially in the first few chapters of the book. Towards the end of the book, the passages he chose to expound on increasingly covered the theme of loving the poor, the stranger and one's neighbour.
While I recognise that this book is excellent in many ways, it does not qualify a spot on my bookshelf of truly exceptional 6-star books. I felt that the editor could use a stronger hand and make the book a 250 or even a 200 page book, because of the many times I got lost in certain long-winded and off-tangent sections. Although I struggled to retain interest, I soldiered onto the end because I was determined to write this review, and I suspect that many other readers would have given up. Thankfully these problems were observed in only a few chapters that could have done with better brevity and clarity; the rest of the book was flawless.
Reading the bio on the book's rear cover, I wondered if he would proof-text Scripture with hermeneutical lenses of justice and mercy, and I am glad to discover that he did not force it especially in the first few chapters of the book. Towards the end of the book, the passages he chose to expound on increasingly covered the theme of loving the poor, the stranger and one's neighbour.
While I recognise that this book is excellent in many ways, it does not qualify a spot on my bookshelf of truly exceptional 6-star books. I felt that the editor could use a stronger hand and make the book a 250 or even a 200 page book, because of the many times I got lost in certain long-winded and off-tangent sections. Although I struggled to retain interest, I soldiered onto the end because I was determined to write this review, and I suspect that many other readers would have given up. Thankfully these problems were observed in only a few chapters that could have done with better brevity and clarity; the rest of the book was flawless.
November 1, 2019
What I appreciated most about this book is that it brings a fresher, different perspective to our concept of knowing God. We all know God is our loving, heavenly Father; but sometimes in Scripture (and in life) God shows up in ways that we don't expect, ways that are strange to us. And that's how it should be, because He is God and we are not. Krish Kandiah explores several of the stranger passages in Scripture to explore this concept.
Loved this passage from the introduction: "What if God is supposed to be mysterious? What if trying to wrestle with who God is, not just blindly accepting what we've been taught, is exactly what our minds were made for? What if it is this pursuit of an unexpected God, a difficult faith, that makes our brain cells fire into life?"
Loved this passage from the introduction: "What if God is supposed to be mysterious? What if trying to wrestle with who God is, not just blindly accepting what we've been taught, is exactly what our minds were made for? What if it is this pursuit of an unexpected God, a difficult faith, that makes our brain cells fire into life?"
February 25, 2019
Finished this book last evening. If you really want to relook at your own understanding of who God is, this is the book.
You might have seen a number of photo postings that I have put up that underlined thought-provoking quotes in the past weeks. They are from this book. The most recent one being from last evening.
This is not a book that will make you comfortable with your relationship with God or assure you of more blessings from Him. This is a book that challenges you to not only relook at your understanding of who God is and at the same time asking ourselves the hard question of whether you are truly following His teaching and His model.
You might have seen a number of photo postings that I have put up that underlined thought-provoking quotes in the past weeks. They are from this book. The most recent one being from last evening.
This is not a book that will make you comfortable with your relationship with God or assure you of more blessings from Him. This is a book that challenges you to not only relook at your understanding of who God is and at the same time asking ourselves the hard question of whether you are truly following His teaching and His model.
June 25, 2017
Christianity made tangible
Just occasionally one stumbles on a book which gives expression to truth in ways that seem so self-evident that one wonders why it was not written long ago. Not since David Shepherd (former Bishop of Liverpool) wrote 'Bias for the Poor' has there been such a convincing and Biblical case for a call to serve the world's needy people. Kandiah goes deeper and further than any before him. And he does so persuasively, passionately, practically, and personally. It is a book that must not be ignored.
Just occasionally one stumbles on a book which gives expression to truth in ways that seem so self-evident that one wonders why it was not written long ago. Not since David Shepherd (former Bishop of Liverpool) wrote 'Bias for the Poor' has there been such a convincing and Biblical case for a call to serve the world's needy people. Kandiah goes deeper and further than any before him. And he does so persuasively, passionately, practically, and personally. It is a book that must not be ignored.
February 9, 2020
This book is a must-read for all Western Christians. Convicting without shaming, Krish Kandiah walks through many of the stranger stories in the Bible and leans into what we often gloss over in Sunday school, showing how God is stranger than we like to think, we are strangers from Him, and we can know Him better by showing radical hospitality to strangers. If we are only serving those we know and turning away those we deem unworthy, we are the opposite of Jesus. There is too much I want to say about this book; you'll just have to read it for yourself!
August 14, 2018
There's a famous couplet attributed to a British journalist of the last century: How odd of God / To choose the Jews. It came to mind as I finished this excellent book - more along the lines of "How odd of God to show up so often as a stranger". Using stories from Abraham to Ezekiel to Cleopas, the author shows us that its in the unexpected revelations of himself that God captures our attention sufficiently so as to see him more clearly as he is.
January 19, 2020
Krish has so many insights into the Word of God! I picked up a lot of details in Scripture that I hadn't seen in their full cultural and emotional light before. (For example, that Isaac probably should've invited both boys to his deathbed, not just Esau.) My #1 takeaway? A deeper desire to know God and deeper conviction of His compassion for the poor and the stranger. *Disclaimer: This book felt slow at times, but it was worth finishing.
November 24, 2021
I thought this was a good look at some of the challenging (strange) ways that God shows up (or not) in the Biblical narrative, and how God is not easily understood by us or doesn't fit into our expectations of him. This book also weaves a narrative of hospitality and welcoming the stranger, which is also a common thread throughout scripture, but in some ways it felt like two different books squished together.
November 17, 2019
This was a really great book. It’s a creative way to engage the paradoxes of faith, but in a way that doesn’t just rationally resolve them. Krish honors the gospel here as read through the whole Bible and points to Christ. Lots of important thoughts here about hospitality and what it means to live in the kingdom.
February 24, 2023
Deep theology navigated by Krish with love in a very human way. Took me a very long time to get thru this book as it is not 'easy reading'. Not your bedtime story, as you would probably fall asleep, but for those looking for deeper dive into biblical characters and how they interacted with God. Give yourself time to go thru this one and reflect on what you can take away from each chapter.
July 11, 2023
This is an excellent look at the strangeness of God and of his call to welcome the stranger and show hospitality to those in need. A challenging read in terms of the call to give hospitality in a culture where zenophobia is so common. Would highly recommend this very readable, but challenging, book to others.
July 7, 2020
This book had some amazing insights. The author selected some of the more confounding passages in the Bible, especially some of the Old Testament passages and shared ways of seeing God through them. They were enlightening and challenging.
November 5, 2023
Absolutely fantastic. Couldn't recommend more highly.
Takes a fresh look at some of the "difficult" stories in the Bible that can challenge us. And reveals that God is more than the God we thought we knew.
Takes a fresh look at some of the "difficult" stories in the Bible that can challenge us. And reveals that God is more than the God we thought we knew.
September 8, 2018
Estudos muito interessantes sobre quem Deus é e como devemos atuar para com as pessoas à nossa volta.
October 13, 2019
One of the best and relevant books on how to live the Christian life. Also an excellent commentary on how often we dont know God and take for granted when he shows up.
May 26, 2021
A pretty exceptional read!
Want to read
April 19, 2024Paul marked as Want To Read
March 20, 2023
Lovely read. Very informative some nice takeaways. Plus did you know that natural gas does not actually have an aroma?
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April 5, 2018Two points to make after reading this book.
1. If you claim to be a "missional" Christian or attend a missional church this is a book you must read. Kandiah does not use the word missional in this work, but he is laying out the theological basis for the movement, and he lives out the convictions he puts down on paper.
2. If I was able to write half as well as Kandiah does, and exegete the Bible half as well as he does I would be twice the pastoral theologian I am now. This man reads the Bible "deeply" the way Miroslav Volf hopes all people would.
It belongs in the library of anyone who claims to follow Jesus in caring for the "least of these."
1. If you claim to be a "missional" Christian or attend a missional church this is a book you must read. Kandiah does not use the word missional in this work, but he is laying out the theological basis for the movement, and he lives out the convictions he puts down on paper.
2. If I was able to write half as well as Kandiah does, and exegete the Bible half as well as he does I would be twice the pastoral theologian I am now. This man reads the Bible "deeply" the way Miroslav Volf hopes all people would.
It belongs in the library of anyone who claims to follow Jesus in caring for the "least of these."
Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews