read this!
meet authors Kimberly Knowle-Zeller & Erin Strybis
Motherhood was never something I set my sights on as a young girl.
I wanted to be a writer, a nurse, a teacher, an astronaut. A cruise ship director, a broadcast journalist, and even, for a short time, a foreign diplomat.
I was all over the place in my professional dreams, none of which included visions of littles runnings around, grabbing at my ankles.
But when I met my husband, it was like, oh, it’s you. Suddenly, I could see myself having kids; I could see myself being a mother.
In a way, though, I felt wholly unprepared for parenthood, perhaps because it’d never been a part of my thinking or dreaming or visualizing when it came to the future.
The point of this is simple: I only wish I’d had a book like this as a parent of littles.
Kimberly Knowle-Zeller and Erin Strybis are co-authors of The Beauty of Motherhood: Grace-Filled Devotions for the Early Years. It’s certainly written toward a Christian audience, so if you’re not of the tradition, it may not be the best reading fit for you.
But if this does seem to fit the mold, meet these two writers (and head to Instagram to win a copy of the book). They’re fantastic human beings and I’m glad to share today’s space with them!
Cara: How are you coloring outside of the lines, all over again, when it comes to your writing and this book in particular?
Erin: After I became a mother, I searched for a devotional to help me navigate the seismic identity shift I was experiencing. Motherhood changed my body, my purpose, my perspective, my faith and my routines, offering more beauty and challenge than I ever imagined. I needed words of encouragement to anchor me in Christ during this transition, and though there are several devotionals for moms, I couldn’t find one that reflected the grace-centered, Lutheran theology I knew and loved. Some writings for Chrisitan moms even left me feeling worse than when I started reading them, espousing an unrealistic portrait of the Ideal Christian Mom. I wanted a judgment-free devotional that provided encouragement and hope.
Years later, with my friend Kim, I colored outside the lines by offering a devotional that showcases a more realistic, nuanced picture of Christian motherhood. In The Beauty of Motherhood: Grace-Centered Devotions for the Early Years, Kim and I share our honest stories of pain, wonder, heartache and joy. We remind our reader that no matter what, God’s grace will be there for her, and that God created her to be the ideal mother for her children. We hope our words help readers see motherhood as a sacred calling, one that each mom answers differently according to her spiritual gifts.
Kim: I watch my five-year-old son color gripping crayons, all his fingers wrapped around the bright colors. Technically, he’s not holding the crayons the way they teach him in school, but for all intents and purposes, he’s coloring and creating beautiful works of art. He draws pictures of ninjas, monkeys, our family, and zoos and tapes them to the walls throughout our home. His delight in creating brings me delight.
Writing The Beauty of Motherhood felt a lot like how my son creates — Erin and I wrote from a place of sheer joy in telling God’s story in our lives. We wrote a devotional book in a market that is saturated with devotions, we wrote as co-authors, we wrote as writers with a small platform, we wrote primarily stories. All of which felt like we were going against the grain of traditional publishing best-practices. Yet, the entire process was filled with delight and an abundance of grace.
Cara: Putting ourselves out there when it comes to storytelling always feels a little scary. How was publishing scary and perhaps even vulnerable for you?
Kim: The stories in The Beauty of Motherhood are my stories, but they also are stories of my children and husband. They tell of our life right now in a specific community with a specific group of people. My husband and I are both pastors and we’re living in a town of 1,000 where he serves a Lutheran church. I’m used to being vulnerable in preaching and teaching, but to have a book in the world that will continue to be placed in the hands of mothers feels weightier, more permanent. I pray our words will help others claim their stories and share honestly in their own communities.
Erin: For over a decade, I’ve written and edited for print and online publications. While writing this devotional, I knew the stories I shared here would be more permanent, and that definitely intimidated me. I’m the type of writer who could edit, edit, edit and still not be satisfied, but given deadlines, I eventually had to surrender our manuscript to the work of the Spirit, trusting that we would reach our readers through perfectly imperfect prose.
Publishing devotions about TTC, miscarriage and mom rage — all tender experiences that can even be hard to even talk about — left me feeling a bit exposed. Nevertheless, because I’ve been moved by the vulnerable writings of others, and because I’ve had previous experience sharing vulnerably on such topics, I knew God was calling me to steward these stories for the benefit of our readers. I pray that I handle my truths in such a way that helps other mamas feel seen and loved.
Cara: What is your heart, your intention, the real push behind writing this book?
Erin: I’ve said this before in a dozen other places but here is the heart of our book: Kim and I want our reader to know she is a good mom and that God loves her — no matter what. Unfortunately, moms receive many conflicting, upsetting messages about earning our worth through selfless service. We pray our words uplift, inspire and comfort readers, drenching them in grace and hope.
Kim: My biggest prayer for readers of The Beauty of Motherhood is that our stories help them know that God is with them. Whether it’s the sleepless nights or the hundredth time they’ve chopped grapes or cleaned up spills or changed a diaper or dropped their child at daycare, we want mothers to see their work is valued and seen by God.
Cara: Okay. We talk so much about audience when it comes to book-writing, but what did you learn about yourself along the way?
Kim: Throughout the writing process I relied heavily on prayer and remembering that the message of our book was for me too: I am loved and God is with me. Writing my prayers and journaling helped process the emotions and feelings of writing a book. I worked at clearing my heart and mind of comparison, imposter syndrome, and overwhelm by trusting God’s faithfulness and turning to the page to offer my prayers.
Erin: Well, I learned that I’m stronger than I think, and what I mean by that is, if you told me in 2020 that the year I’d write my first book I would be tending to a newborn, I would have laughed. And yet, that’s what I did: I took care of my second baby and wrote a devotional in the summer of 2022. What abundance, and also, what a hard season! Even the strongest friendship can be shaken by a crazy project like a book, but thankfully we survived this call, working together, and still feel so grateful for each other.
Oh, and I learned, I need little treats along the way to stay motivated. Starbucks became my second office for a while as I finessed my final set of devotions.
Finally, in the midst of sleepless nights with my second where mental and physical exhaustion weighed me down, I learned my need to be reminded that God was with me, caring for me as I tended to my vocations, was still strong. Indeed it turns out it was a gift that I had my second baby while writing this book — it put me close to our ideal reader.
Cara: Anything else from your ordinary, everyday life you want to share with us?
Kim: I love to walk! Any good friend and family member knows this about me: if I invite you for a walk, be prepared to walk. “Are we talking a “Kim - far” or everyone else’s definition of far?” That’s the question they ask. Because they know that when I walk, I go and explore and look and see and keep walking. I don’t think about how far I’ve walked or what it will mean to have to go back to where we came from. I just walk. Rather than measuring the distance walked, I have the chance to measure the sound of birds, the different shades of green in the leaves, the cadence of conversations, the prayers rising up like incense, and the changing seasons. Walking is one way I can listen for God’s voice and clear my head for inspiration.
Erin: People often ask mother-artists, “How do you do it all?” When I worked outside the home, sometimes I'd hear the variation “I don't know you do it all” — and the comment didn’t offend me but does carry its own set of assumptions about motherhood and work, perhaps that work should come second to mothering, or that working moms can’t be good moms. I reject both of those ideas, and employ a different understanding vocation in our devotional, one that honors women’s multifaceted callings, each worthwhile and holy. Now that I'm home full-time with my kids and pursuing work as a writer part-time, the answer to that question is even more complex. So, I want to answer it: How do I write?
Sometimes I write after bedtime during a silent Zoom accountability session with my writing group. Other days I scrawl ideas on the white board on my refrigerator in between feeding the kids breakfast and unloading the dishwasher. Twice a week I have childcare for four hours and I use that time to answer emails, do book promotions, workout and write. The childcare is key. Right now I'm pulling back from a heavy season of book marketing to feast on others' words: I recently enjoyed You Could Make This Place Beautiful and have been slowly working my way through Poetry Unbound. This is a time in which I'm intentionally doing less with my writing and honing in more on parenting. The other day my oldest son and I even created a summer vision board!
In order to write beautiful stories, we have to first live beautiful stories, you know?