EXCERPT FROM POTENTIAL PROJECT Knee Deep: Handwritten Letters to my Creator (KNEE DEEP: A 9-Month Whirlpool of Handwritten Letters to the Creator by Christina M. Eder, Paperback | Barnes & Noble® (barnesandnoble.com) was released in 2020. Knee Deep has been my least marketed, most sold book of the six I’ve had published. I believe there…
The price of a dog. The book of Deuteronomy was not written during a time when people raised dogs for money, breeding, or companionship. Dogs were considered unclean and kept outdoors. If dogs were allowed in a home, they were used as service dogs to eat scraps that may fall from a counter. They were…
I consider an optimist as someone who steps in a manure pile and sets off to search for the pony who left a natural trail. Paul represents optimism in 2 Timothy 3. He began this chapter with warnings about last day occurrences. Unforgiveness, abuse, pride, and misguided lovers. He chose to rise above the stench…
Use your superpower. People sometimes ask me, “Do you believe in God?” I hope they anticipate an affirmative based on how I practice life. Sometimes my example falls short. My typical comeback is, “Yes, because after taking more than 50 revolutions around the sun, I have yet to say, “Let there be light” and a…
I recently left a two-month mission field and was in between jobs. I needed a steady income plus a set schedule while I reestablished my professional speaking and life coaching businesses. A manufacturing company hired me immediately, not because of natural skill, but mostly because I passed a drug test and background check. Both parties…
Those on the rocky ground are the ones who receive the word with joy when they hear it, but they have no root. They believe for a while, but in the tie of testing, they fall away (Luke 8:13 NIV). Cringe factor? High! I spent this summer on a mission field to minister to oppressed…
I’m sometimes amused by which details authors include in their published content. One of my editors reminds me if any word doesn’t move the plot, delete it. I read the book of Chronicles and it’s heavily weighted with names and numbers. When I read Chronicles and Numbers in the bible, I typically skim much of…
Seven strikes and you’re out? Baseball regulations allow three missed swings before the batter takes the bench. Pilate sat at the governor’s throne when his people brought Jesus to him during festival time. Pilate’s custom was to release one prisoner based on crowd vote. There happened to be a well-known prisoner named Jesus Barabbas in…
Sometimes people say, “Give me the news. The good, the bad, the ugly.” I’ve begun to update this phrase. Instead of the good, bad, and ugly, I consider the good, different, and unexpected. I find this mental shift unshackles me from limited perceptions. Just because a situation turns out differently than I intended doesn’t make…
“Who are your competitors?” This was a question from my business’s new web designer. I was unsure how to answer his question. I’ve discovered how writing, life coaching, and speaking arenas can be highly competitive. I’ve also encountered rich loyalty for other’s lifework. Sometimes, I feel unqualified, unnoticed, or underestimated. However, this diminished sense of…