Author Erin Stevenson shares about life while she was writing A Dream for Christmas.
When I was asked to write a devotional about my 2022 Christmas book, A Dream of Christmas, this page sat blank for a long time. I wrote the book about a year ago when I was in a different place in life. The past several months have brought some major changes, and in my recent personal time with God, I’m discovering that I’m too driven, too focused on planning out all the details, and too lacking in trust. He has allowed some pretty significant boulders to land in my path. I’m praying for wisdom on whether and how much to change course. Above everything, I want His will.
In A Dream of Christmas, the main female character, Charity, is in much the same boat. She made some mistakes in her past, but once she became a mother, her laser focus became doing whatever was best for her children—which is why she took the bold, risky decision to go on the run with them. But she continually second-guesses herself. She’s a relatively new believer, learning how to seek God’s will and how to recognize when He’s working in her life.
All my books, while different, center on a few common themes: the love between a man and a woman as God intended it, the family as He designed it (including blended families), forgiveness, second chances, and grappling with life’s problems according to scriptural guidelines.
If you’re by nature a planner, I invite you to sit back, close your eyes, take a deep breath, and just rest. Our world is filled with noise 24/7. You’ll hear God’s voice in the silence. Trust that He will take care of the details of your life. He’s promised it in His Word (Matthew 6:29-34).
When Finn Donovan answers a late-night knock at the door, there stands Charity Sullivan, the only woman he’s ever loved. He hasn’t seen her since the night nearly seventeen years ago when they shared a magical kiss after a months-long friendship.
But Charity isn’t alone, and her last name is no longer Sullivan. Her four children are with her, and she’s looking for a place to hide. Her marriage just ended, and her former father-in-law, a powerful, dangerous underworld boss, will stop at nothing to keep her from leaving with his grandchildren.
As Finn and Charity’s friendship rekindles, Finn’s protective instincts go on high alert. He’s never stopped loving her, but as an upright, God-fearing man, doesn’t want to take advantage of her vulnerability. Charity is drawn to Finn. She dreams of a future for them, but unanswered questions from the past stand between them.
When Charity receives a phone call telling her that her former father-in-law has discovered her whereabouts, she decides to go on the run again. But Finn isn’t having any of it. He has a Christmas dream of his own, and it won’t come true without Charity and her children.