I freeze, instantly. I always end up saying
" Well the novel is about what would happen after we find god, i mean I don't believe in god- i have to explain that later. But in this world we find god....like shes no a god, but well we find her and we take her in for research- she doesn't fight back because shes too weak....because there's things going on in the metaphysical world that are stressing her....so she gives peoples these gifts right? Like, think x-men, but on a global scale. and these people get hunted. And well, my main character, like, she has the gift but she doesn't? Like she's been touched by her god but never developed any powers, but shes hunted all the same- and the book follows her personal growth and her finding god-who really isn't a god.... make sense?"
The "god" in my book is just a powerful spirit, and that is explained later- there are no gods, just entities that gained more power by being in the other realm longer, but trying to explain that ends up as a lesson in philosophy that I don't always want to get into since it ties to my spiritual beliefs.
Haven't found a way to word it better.