Mr. William Paul Young

On Thursday, February 11, William Paul Young, author of the breakaway hit, self-published book, The Shack, will speak. At #1 on the NY Times Bestsellers List for 49 consecutive weeks, and with over 7 million copies in print, this book is stirring up conversations about the Trinity, points people to the Bible, and ultimately to the love of God for all.

Wrapping stories that have emerged from The Shack and from his own life, Paul Young addresses what he considers the Question of First Importance - the nature and character of God. Who is this God, really? In the second session, he continues using story to bring to light what he considers the Question of Second Importance - who are 'we' to this God. What is our nature and identity in light of the First Question?

The First Question of Importance
The Second Question of Importance

Born in Alberta, Canada, he spent the majority of his first decade living with his missionary parents in Netherlands New Guinea, among the Dani, and the second decade in Western Canada as his father pastored a number of small churches. After paying his way through Bible College, Wm. Paul Young spent one summer in the Philippines and another touring with a drama troupe before working in Washington D.C. at Fellowship House, an international guest house. Completing his undergraduate degree in Religion, he graduated summa cum laude from Warner Pacific College in Portland, Oregon. The following year, he met and married Kim Warren and for a time worked on staff at a large suburban church while attending seminary.

Over time he has owned businesses and worked for others in diverse industries and through it all has been a writer, whether songs, poetry, short stories or newsletters; never for public consumption but for friends and family. The Shack was a story written for his six children, with no thought or intention to publish. It is as much a surprise to him as to anyone else that he is now an ‘author’. These are some of the facts of his life, but they don’t begin to tell the real story. In some ways his life is partly revealed in both characters—Willie and Mack. But an author is always more. On