7th Day of Christmas Giveaway with Shannon Primicerio

Sorry to those of you who hopped on earlier and the comments were closed & half the post was missing!!! My WordPress has had gremlins lately and has done this to me three times now in a week. I had no idea and was away from my computer!!! Sorry!!!

Christmas Sale: If you’d like info on getting any of my books (tax-free & with no shipping costs!) for you or as a personalized gift for someone, click here.

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Welcome to the 7th Day of Christmas Giveaway!!

Each day, December 1-12th, I am featuring a fellow Proverbs 31sister and an aspect of Christmas. You’ll get to know her and she, in turn, will offer a fabulous giveaway! Simply leave a comment on her post to be entered in the drawing.

And, one soon-to-be-very-giddy gal who comments on all 12 posts will win the GRAND PRIZE! You may comment on all posts until Monday, December 13th at 5:00 pm EST when the winners will be announced. (to see the grand prize and get caught up on the posts click here)

Although all my guests this week are so dear to me, today’s holds a special place in my heart as she was in the speaker evaluation group I led at our P31 She Speaks writer’s & speakers conference two years ago. (That endearing truth cancels out the fact that through this post I find out she is a New York Yankees fan!!! This Detroit Tiger gal forgives her :-)) Now, here’s our seventh P31 gal……the engaging Shannon Primicerio !!

From the moment she learned to talk, author and speaker Shannon Primicerio has been engaging audiences with her wit and wisdom. For the last eight years she has traveled the world teaching teenage girls how to apply the Bible to the drama of real life.

An author of ten books to teens, Shannon began partnering with Proverbs 31 Ministries in 2009 and expanded her audience by helping them reach the 20-something woman through their She Seeks division.

Although not parents yet, Shannon and her husband Michael are proud sponsors of several children through Compassion International. In August they traveled to Bogota, Colombia to see Compassion’s work up close and meet one of their sponsor children. To read Shannon’s thoughts on the trip you can read her blog posts from Bogota here: http://beingagirlbooks.com/blog/my-trip-to-colombia-with-compassion/

When she isn’t writing or speaking, Shannon can be found relaxing at one of Southern California’s beautiful beaches or watching her beloved Yankees play baseball on TV. Or, in the wintertime, you can usually find her curled up by the fireplace with a good book and a chai latte in hand.

Favorite Christmas Memory

When people ask about my favorite Christmas memory I have an unusual answer. In 2005 I was getting ready to celebrate my first “married Christmas” and I couldn’t have been happier. My husband and I decorated our humble apartment with plenty of hand-me-down decorations and a few inexpensive new editions. But three weeks before Christmas my grandfather, whom I was very close to, was in a tragic accident.

Doctors asked my family to come and say their goodbyes as he laid there in a coma. For sixteen days he clung to life in the hospital unaware of our presence. My happy holiday had quickly become clouded with grief. December 2005 was one of the darkest months my family had ever known.

I was under deadline for a book at the time, and after taking a week off to stand vigil with my family, I decided to return to writing in an attempt to find some normalcy in the midst of the chaos. Several weeks prior, before the accident, I had finished a section on the names of God. The point was to teach teenage girls to examine who God said He was in the Bible and then to look for Him to show up in similar ways in their own lives.

There, on my list, was the name for Christ found in Isaiah: Immanuel which translates “God is with us.” When I looked at the words I had typed weeks before, waves of emotion washed over me. On the first Christmas Jesus Christ came to literally be God with us. Yet, thousands of years later—in the midst of a truly tragic Christmas—He wanted me to know He was specifically God with me.

I knew then that my family and I were not going to have to walk alone through the dark days ahead. That Christmas God showed Himself to me as Immanuel in an entirely new way. It was one of the most powerful experiences I’ve ever had in my walk with God. And for that, my first married Christmas did turn out to be merry after all.

If anyone reading this is experiencing a tragedy this December I offer this encouragement:

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever. Just as certainly as He came to be God with us on the first Christmas, He will reveal Himself to you as Immanuel this Christmas. He is with you. He will never leave you or forsake you. Even in the midst of tragedy you can know God—and He will carry you through.

If you have a specific prayer request, please leave it in the comments section below. I will stop by and pray through all of the requests. Today, December 7th, would have been my sweet grandfather’s birthday. I can think of no better way to spend it than praying for you.

Shannon’s Giveaway

Two signed copies of Shannon’s book for teens The Divine Dance and a $10 Starbucks gift card.

Moms of teen girls can use this gift to read through the book with their daughters and talk about it over a cup of coffee. Or teen girls can use this prize to read through the book and talk about it over coffee with a friend.

Simply leave a prayer request or comment telling us the best gift for a teen. Or, if time is tight, simply say, “I’m in!!”

Blessings,

188 Comments

  1. My family has been very blessed and even though we don’t have everything we want, we have more than we need. I would request prayers for families who are struggling and do not have everything they need especially during the holidays.

  2. As the giveaway is geared towards teens, I’ll keep my prayer request in that realm: I’ve been working with teen girls in our youth group for 7 years, and the girls I’ve been with since they were 7th graders are graduating this year. Please pray that I would be a positive, godly influence in their lives this year more than ever,and that I could be used to solidify their faith as they get ready to launch into “real” life.

  3. God is with me. What a precious reminder for me today and this Christmas. I am currently sitting sandwiched between hospital tests, and even have a biopsy scheduled on Dec.24th at 1:30pm. Don’t know what the results will be, but I don’t go in alone. God is with me.

    That would be my prayer request…just to know His peace and presence as I wait, that my faith would grow and whatever the results will be, I will give testimony and glory to the One who holds my life and my heart in His hands.

    His,
    Joy

  4. My dad died on Nov. 6th this year. I spent a month at his bed side while he was in 2 hospitals taking care of him. It was a long sad good bye as he got sicker and suffered from strokes that left him blind and near coma until his lungs gave out. I feel that pain, but your message is helpful today. I miss him terribly and I hope that I can find some peace in knowing he is in a better place. Thank you.

  5. My prayer request is that families that have been hurt through misunderstandings and unforgiveness will find healing this holiday season.

  6. Nice to meet you, Shannon!

    My friend’s little six year old girl passed away unexpectedly on December 16th. It was a very hard Christmas. This one is difficult, too.

    I have been thinking about the Lord’s name, “Emanuel” too. So thankful that He is with us!

    Merry Christmas!!!

  7. Thanks for sharing your story. God truly is with us through out our darkest times adn our happiest. Please pray for my brother in law who has cancer and is not a beleiver, nor is my sister. They are struggling as they cope with this possbily being thier last Christams together. Pray that they will recive His Love and how we can be a support.
    I have a teen daughter and a preteen daughter and would love to read your book.

  8. Your story is very touching. Thank you for sharing. I, too, was very close to my Papaw. He passed away several months ago & this will be my first Christmas without him. It’s very hard to be cheerful. I know he is with Jesus now & I will see him again someday, but that doesn’t make it any easier to face Christmas this year.

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