Real Time Grace at the Speed of Jesus
Date Published: August 5, 2025
Publisher: Lucid Books Publishing
What do a Russian in gold hot-pants, a cow-pat fight, and real-time grace have in common? They all show up in this wildly funny, deeply heartfelt exploration of what it means to live out faith in the mess of real life.
Full Phoenix Rising is not your typical Christian inspiration book. It’s part memoir, part stand-up comedy, and part soul-reflection, told by a black-sheep pastor with a knack for getting into trouble—and finding Jesus there. Duncan invites readers into his most awkward moments, spiritual insights, and hilarious disasters to remind us that God’s grace isn’t reserved for the polished and perfect—it’s for the ones still wiping off the cow poo and reaching for hope.
If you’ve ever felt like you don’t quite fit in at church, questioned your worth, or just needed permission to laugh at how weird this whole faith thing can be, this book is for you. Come for the cow-pats, stay for the grace.
Can you tell us a little about the process of getting this
book published? How did you come up with the idea and how did you start?
I think I often have ideas
about good books, or topics. Most of the time I sit with them for a couple of
weeks, sometimes I’ll write an essay and after doing that I’ll think the idea
is finished. Other times, like with this book it becomes an itch that needs a
much bigger scratch. So I’ll turn it into a skelton outline with chapter
headings, if I write more than 10 chapters then it starts to become a book.
Usually at that point I’ll start shopping to publishers to see if they agree
and want to pick it up.
What surprised you most about getting your book published?
I guess the support I got
from the publisher around the idea. It’s always a positive thing to have others
who want to champion the idea in a way that you can distill a multitude of
thoughts into one coherent book. I feel much of my thinking feels a little pulp
fiction and lucid helps to make it coherent non-fiction.
Tell us a little about what you do when you aren’t writing
Lots more than likely I have
undiagnosed ADHD. So I pastor 4 days a week, I coach Brazilian Jiu Jitsu 2
times a week, I have a creative communications side business that books work
sporadically. I am working on an AI project with a crew out of north America,
and I’ve done a bunch of podcasts. Then in my spare time I’m married with 2
kids and coach two sports for them in basketball and baseball.
As a published author, what would you say was the most
pivotal point of your writing life?
Strangely it was a less than
positive childhood experience. I remember having a terrible experience with an
English teacher, we rarely saw eye-to-eye and about mid-way through year 12 she
transferred to another school. She was a regular smoker and so as a present we
got her cigarettes. I remember her sharing before leaving that I might have
been the least likely to do anything in writing and I was a horrible essay
writer. We had signed each of the cigarettes (I know it was the 90s and a
little rougher) she pulled mine out and smoked it in class. I remember
thinking, one day I’ll prove her wrong, which didn’t happen until almost 15
years later when I published my first book.
Where do you get your best ideas and why do you think that
is?
Oh everywhere! They honestly
come to me at a bunch of places but I think I get clarity on them in the
shower. Theres something when you don’t have a phone, tv or books that you get
real clarity on an idea. Its probably a waste of water the amount of times I’ve
figured out a skeleton to an idea while I’m in the shower.
What is the toughest criticism given to you as an author?
Your book sucks and I want my
money back. To which I responded, I’m sorry you paid for the chance it might be
good, I never made promises that it would be good. Beauty is in the eye of the
beholder.
What has been your best accomplishment as a writer?
I think that I now have 3
published works is pretty exciting, I was also pretty stoked when the most
recent one made #1 on religious humor which made me pretty stoked.
How many unpublished and half-finished books do you have?
Probably 4-5, and then there
is about 6-7 creative plays and movies or tv shows that I have in various
stages of being unpublished!
Before stepping into full-time ministry, Duncan spent years waking up Sydney with wisdom, wit, and questionable life choices as the host of one of the city’s most popular Breakfast Radio Shows.
With over 20 years of pastoral experience in Australia and the USA, he is fluent in both “G’day Mate” and “Bless your heart.” He’s married with two kids and an American Chocolate Labrador, who is convinced every sermon should include belly rubs.
Equipped to handle both heresy and headlocks, Duncan takes pastoral care very seriously—though whether a theological debate ends in grace or a grappling match depends entirely on the situation.
He proudly refers to himself as a Professor, purely to annoy actual academics. What can we say? He’s a man of many talents.
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