Blurb: This Christmas, Two Lost and Broken Families Need
Restoration.
Sam Jarrett was
just starting to explore spiritual things when his world was shattered. Now,
he's completely turned his back on God. Laura Preston is a devoted believer,
leaning heavily on her faith to get her through each tortured day.
Two Chance Meetings Spark a Friendship and a Glimmer of Hope.
Sam battles God's
prodding through Laura's gentle, caring spirit. When another tragedy strikes on
Christmas Eve, Sam is sure that God has completely deserted him. Laura tries to
show Sam that God loves him and has been there all the time, but how can Sam
trust when he has no faith?
A New Hope for
Christmas is a story of restored faith in a God who never leaves us, even when
we can't see or feel Him near.
Excerpt:
“Does it ever get any
easier?” Sam asked. His dark eyebrows knit together. “Ollie’s doctor seems to
think time is the answer to everything.”
Laura let out a stream
of air. “Yes. And no.” Her eyes met his. “It’s always there, but sometimes the
pain dulls. Then some days, without warning, it roars back like knives
stabbing. Where I can hardly breathe.”
Sam nodded. “Days like?”
“His birthday, Father’s
Day, our anniversary, her birthday. The first Thanksgiving.”
“And the first
Christmas.”
“Yes.”
Sam absently kneaded the
soft fur between Sunny’s ears. “I know I should put up a Christmas tree, but
I’m not sure I can do it.”
Laura gave him a sad
smile. “We always go--went--together as a family and cut down a fresh one. I
couldn’t face that this year, so we--well, Kerrie and I decided to do something
different. We made arrangements with the tree farm and paid for two families to
get a tree and ornaments from them. You know, someone who couldn’t have done it
on their own.”
Sam’s eyebrows raised.
“Wow--that’s, well, that’s really nice.”
“Our pastor has been
encouraging us to do acts of kindness for others to help our own healing
process.”
A look that she interpreted
as annoyance flashed across Sam’s face, just for an instant. He paused. “Is it
helping?”
Laura considered his
question. “Overall, yes. Some days are better than others. We’ll have to learn
to make new memories to move forward, and keep whatever ones we can handle.
We’ll go to my in-laws’ on Christmas Eve, decorate their tree and then spend
the night there. So Kerrie will get something, at least.” Her voice trailed
off.
Sunny sat up, padded
over to Laura, and laid her head on her knee.
Tears came to Laura’s
eyes, and she rubbed the dog’s head. “Well, aren’t you the sweetest thing?”
Sam smiled. “She’s very
intuitive.”
“How long have you had
her?”
“Ah, I got Sunny the day
I married Jennifer. They were a package deal. Seven and a half years ago now.”
“Isabella was allergic.”
Laura had always thought it puzzling that one daughter was severely allergic to
dogs while the other had no symptoms whatsoever. The longer she stroked Sunny’s
fur, the more comforted Laura felt. Kerrie had recently asked if they could get
a dog, but Laura could barely manage life for the two of them and had
immediately said no. Maybe she needed to rethink that.
Sam studied her, his
dark eyes serious. “You don’t seem angry. You’ve been at this longer than me.
Have you reached the acceptance phase?”
Laura blew out a breath.
“Oh, I don’t know about that. I have my moments, believe me.”
“I’m still in the angry
stage. I don’t think I’ll ever get past that.”
“We all have to work
through the stages of grief at our own pace, I guess.” Laura’s gaze landed on
the children. “It’s exhausting to feel pressured to hide your anger or pain or
guilt so it doesn’t burden your child.” Her eyes shimmered. “Oh, the sleepless
nights.”
Buy Links:
Bio:
Erin was raised
in Illinois and has lived in many places in the U.S., including on both coasts,
but is a Midwest girl at heart. She spent many years as an educator from
pre-school through college levels, and currently works in training and internal
communications for a global corporation.
When she’s not
writing, Erin loves spending time with her children and grandchildren, and
playing in the garden (which equates to mostly pulling weeds) at her central
Iowa home. Her secret indulgence is plain M&Ms.
Questions:
1.
Why this book? What inspired you to write it? In November, 2019, I saw a post on social
media seeking prayers for a family in Texas who had been in a car accident. The
father and one child died, the mother and the other child survived. That
inspired me to write a short story about how the grieving family got through
their first holidays, and when I discovered the Christmas Extravaganza
opportunity, I expanded and modified it to fit. I love when real-life gives me
inspiration to write.
2.
What is your favourite Christmas carol/song and why? I was a church music director, music teacher,
and performer for many years and have known and loved a lot of Christmas music
that most people would probably not recognize if I called them out. Of the
traditional hymns, it would be “What Child is This?” and the popular songs, “White
Christmas.”
3.
What is the best Christmas present you ever received
and who was it from?
Wow…I’ve
had a lot of Christmases but honestly, nothing stands out other than the
original, best gift of God’s Son sent to Earth to save us from our sins.
Comments
Good luck and God's blessings
PamT