Ordinary Matters
Ordinary Matters
The Ordinariness of Holiness
0:00
Current time: 0:00 / Total time: -37:20
-37:20

The Ordinariness of Holiness

A Conversation with author Karen Stiller about Imagination and the Possibility of Holiness

We hit a new milestone for Ordinary Matters: a guest on our podcast! It was a sweet joy to chat with Karen Stiller. She is an author, award-winning senior editor of Faith Today, writing coach, and (now) elder stateswoman of Ordinary Matters. In this conversation with Karen, we dive into the world of imagination.

Our minds can conjure the unimaginable, sometimes sending us into a tailspin. However, we can also envision a fuller life and take small steps to make it a reality—like helping someone carry their bags, putting away a stranded shopping cart, or tending to our grief well. What if we imagine a life of holiness in all these ordinary matters? That’s the essence of Karen’s new book, Holiness Here: Searching for God in the Ordinary Events of Everyday Life. And that’s why we invited her to talk with us about the ordinariness of holiness.

The sacredness of everyday moments lies in the small acts of kindness and grace we extend to ourselves and others.

Holiness Here: Book Giveaway!

It gets better still: Not only is there a new episode of our podcast, we also have one copy of Holiness Here to give away.

Here’s how you can get it: Listen to this episode and leave a comment. That’s it. You will be entered to win this free copy of Karen’s book. We’ll let you know via the comments who won. And, Yes … we are unashamedly trying to get you more engaged with us!

We do hope you find our conversation with Karen as enjoyable as we did. Let us know what you think!


P.S. Karen wrote a beautiful endorsement for my forthcoming book, Longing for Joy: An Invitation into the Goodness and Beauty of Life. Here’s what she had to say:

Through honesty, poetic logic, and the beauty of a writer who clearly knows his way around a page, Alastair Sterne points the way toward joy for even the most Eeyore-like reader. Like a master craftsman, Sterne weaves story, Scripture, and meaning into the most convincing case for joy I've read yet.

Thanks, Karen!

Discussion about this episode