"Dad and me": meeting William Paul Young

Today I conducted the first interview of my life: with William Paul Young, the author of "The hut". The magazine "New life" had asked me to stand in for an editor who was absent. I was happy to do so. It was more than just an interview. It was an encounter with a person who is at home with himself and with God.
Since I don't want to reveal anything about the interview before printing it, in order to New life not steal the show, I'll just tell you a bit about the "trappings".

Tea and family

"Have you ever tried that? It tastes disgusting." With these words, Paul Young pointed to a cup of mate tea that a member of staff had brought him. Laughing, he pushed the cup to one side and turned to me.
I asked him: Do you want to know anything else about me before we start the interview? Yes, that's what he wanted. But he didn't ask me about my profession, my qualifications, but about my family!

Hut seminars

I also told him about our seminars. Inspired by his book, I had organised the seminar "In his hut" developed. It is intended for people who long to (re)enter into a relationship with God but don't know how. Not every author likes it when people take their ideas and develop them further. But Paul Young reacted differently. I told him that at the weekends, some people are able to let go of burdens - sometimes for the first time in decades. He was beaming all over his face: "That's wonderful!"

His story and God's humour

Paul Young clearly has an interest in people and their history. I had already noticed that before the interview. He gave a moving talk in the morning. He told the story of how the book "The Hut" came about and how it was distributed. He talked about how an 84-year-old man without an internet connection or bank account became one of the key figures in the distribution of the book in Australia. "That was our marketing strategy for Australia!" he said with more than a dash of self-irony.

You could tell he was still rubbing his eyes, shaking his head and asking himself: "Is this real, what I'm experiencing? Is this really my story?" He can only describe the fact that he wrote such a global bestseller as an unknown author in two words: "God's humour!"
"Where does humour come from, if not from God?" The question probably surprised one or two listeners. According to Young, some people think that God is like a "bad-tempered Gandalf" (original quote: "Gandalf with an attitute"). Young's God, on the other hand, is not in a bad mood for no reason. Rather, he is turned towards people with active love. Young expressed with every sentence he spoke that he deeply believed this: God loves people. And he wants to be in a relationship with them.
Many listeners and even the translator had tears in their eyes. Sometimes with emotion. Sometimes with laughter. Paul Young talked about the criticism he received for dressing Papa God in the guise of a fat black American woman. Not everyone could swallow that well - including his mother, who initially thought he was a heretic.

He remained relaxed: "The Bible uses many images to describe the maternal side of God: The God who cares for a newborn or who wants to take his people under his wings like a mother hen. I could have had God come through the door as a fat hen in my story - but that just wouldn't have had the same effect."

Signing session

The queue was 40 metres long. Young greeted every single person who came to his table with a handshake and a few friendly words. Then he sat down, wrote a personal dedication and stood up again to hug the person. Some only briefly. Others, who he probably sensed were in need of attention, he would hug for half a minute or longer.
I don't know how long he signed for. I watched for half an hour. Then I went for a delicious lunch. When I came back, he was signing again, or still signing. For another half an hour. He turned his attention to each person. For the first time, I could really visualise what it looked like when the Bible says that Jesus said goodbye to people. Not with a distant blessing from afar. But personally and closely.

Family and healing

While Paul Young was signing, I got chatting to his wife and daughter. "No, the book didn't change him. The change happened before. Sure, we've met new people since he wrote the book. But apart from that, it hasn't changed our lives and how we live together as a family." Both mother and daughter told me the same thing.

Kim Young, Paul's wife, elaborated: "One change was that he always had to be right before his healing process. He was always a gentle man. But he used to always have to be right. That gave him security. He doesn't need that anymore. I myself have become more compassionate since I saw how much a person can go through and how that can break them."

"Change" and "process" - these are two words that I keep hearing from Paul Young later in the conversation. He wishes others the same thing that he has experienced himself: That they let God into their "hut". For him, the "hut" is a metaphor for the place inside our hearts. Where everything we prefer to keep hidden is locked away: Pain, brokenness, secrets, addictions and fears. He wants people to experience God coming into their hut, accepting and loving them... and accepting and loving... and accepting and loving. And then changes them.

"After this 11-year process, my wife and I were two of the healthiest people we know. " (Original quote "most healed people"). That doesn't sound arrogant coming from Paul Young. It sounds more like a child's amazement at a miracle.

Paul Young will be in Europe until 23 September 2010: Vienna 22. 9. , Bern 23. 9.