How are we to understand the surprises life brings, the events and upsets that challenge what we believe about ourselves and our purpose? In Everyday Annunciations, Susan Swetnam encourages readers to imagine how their own upheavals might function as “everyday annunciations”—invitations to partner creatively with God in new ways.

Reflecting on six Renaissance paintings depicting Mary’s response to her own annunciation, Swetnam unflinchingly acknowledges the difficulty of regrouping when life changes radically. Drawing on Mary’s example, wisdom figures both historical and contemporary, Scripture, and powerful personal narrative, Everyday Annunciations offers constructive hope for those struggling to find a way forward when life catches them by surprise.