2015
Out of Sorts:
Making Peace with an Evolving Faith
by Sarah Bessey
Foreword by Jen Hatmaker
Once upon a time, you had it all beautifully sorted out.
Then you didn’t.
From the popular and provocative author of Jesus Feminist comes a riveting new study of Christianity that helps you wrestle with—and sort out—your faith.
In Out of Sorts, Sarah Bessey helps us grapple with core Christian issues using a mixture of beautiful storytelling and biblical teaching, a style well described as “narrative theology.”
As she candidly shares her wrestlings with core issues—such as who Jesus is, what place the Church has in our lives, how to disagree yet remain within a community, and how to love the Bible for what it is rather than what we want it to be—she teaches us how to walk courageously through our own tough questions.
In the process of gently helping us sort things out, Bessey teaches us how to be as comfortable with uncertainty as we are with solid answers. And as we learn to hold questions in one hand and answers in the other, we discover new depths of faith that will remain secure even through the storms of life.
What People Are Saying
“Out of Sorts reads like a love letter to Jesus and to all those desperate to see His true face. Through her indomitable heart, brilliant mind and vivid writing, Bessey sets an extravagant, cozy table in the middle of the spiritual desert. She invites her Jesus and all restless wanderers to the table and through her- we fall in love again. Bessey hosts the most holy of reunions. She is the writer, the Christian, the woman we need at this very moment and her latest offering will comfort, awaken, challenge, and heal. Out of Sorts already lives on the shelf I reserve for my all time favorites.
— Glennon Doyle, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Untamed and founder of Together Rising
“Touching a raw nerve in contemporary evangelical experience, Sarah Bessey reflects on the inevitable reality of walking the path of faith without having it all worked out—and at times having none of it worked out. Thoughtful, compelling, moving and real, Bessey models a faith many are seeking but afraid to voice, a faith released of the obligation to be certain. This is the kind of book you’ll want to read and tell friends about.”
— Pete Enns, author of The Bible Tells Me So: Why Defending Scripture Has Made Us Unable to Read It
“Listen, Wanderer, Wonderer, Church Girl, Question-Asker, Status Quo Upender, those of you in the in-between somewhere, those of you in the wilderness, those of you safely home: this book will be a balm. If you have ever trusted me, now is the time. What you will find in these pages is nothing short of a gift. There are plenty of us out here reimagining, rethinking, reevaluating, restarting. You aren’t alone. Sit down, pour yourself a cuppa tea (I’m channeling Sarah here), and receive this permission to leave behind the stale trappings of religion in order to find Jesus again. He is as good as we ever hoped. Thank you, my dearest Sarah Bessey, for helping us find our way back home.”
— Jen Hatmaker, New York Times bestselling author of Fierce, Free, and Full of Fire: The Guide to Being Glorious You and award-winning host of the For the Love Podcast
“This is the truth: Sarah is one of my very favorite writers. The quality of her writing is so inspiring and beautiful and moving to me. And her complicated dance with church and all its tentacles is one that is familiar to so many of us. I love this book.”
— Shauna Niequist, author Present Over Perfect