The Surest Seat: Helping Your Kids Grow, Find Belonging, and Trust Jesus, Conversations with Heather Holleman Episode 9 – Finding Your Seat: Introducing the Elita Brown Series with Heather Holleman
What if the most important thing a young person could learn before navigating the challenges of middle school is this: You already have a seat at the table with Jesus.
In this episode of The Sublime Soiree Podcast, we welcome back our friend and mentor, author, and professor Heather Holleman, for the beginning of a special five-part conversation about her young reader fiction books, The Elita Brown Series.
Heather shares how a story that began with her own experiences of jealousy, comparison, and feeling left out eventually became a series designed to help young readers understand their identity in Christ. After women responded deeply to Heather’s story about her daughter’s experience of exclusion at the middle school lunch table, many moms expressed a desire to help their daughters understand these truths before they entered middle school. Heather’s daughter Kate suggested she write something different than another Bible study—a novel. That idea became the beginning of Elita Brown.
At the heart of the entire series is Ephesians 2:6: “God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus.” Heather explains why the image of a seat is so powerful for young people. It communicates belonging, provision, identity, and the truth that we don’t have to earn our place with Jesus.
We get to know Elita as she prepares to enter seventh grade—a time when it can feel as though everyone else is growing up faster, fitting in better, and knowing exactly where they belong. Elita’s family lives simply while she has friends from very different socioeconomic circumstances, creating another layer of complexity as she learns to navigate friendships, comparison, and belonging.
Heather also explains the spiritual thread woven through all four books: God is an ever-present help in times of need. Through Elita’s experiences, young readers are invited to discover that Jesus is present, hears them, knows what to do, and can be trusted. They also learn to understand God’s Word, apply it to their lives, and recognize that they are already seated at the best table—with Jesus.
In This Episode:
- How Heather Holleman transitioned from writing adult nonfiction to fiction for young readers
- The story behind the creation of the Elita Brown Series
- Why Ephesians 2:6 and the image of a “seat” are central to the series
- How Elita navigates seventh grade, friendships, comparison, and belonging
- The importance of helping young people understand their identity in Christ
- Why the series is meaningful for adults as well as young readers
- How parents, grandparents, and mentors can use the books to spark meaningful conversations
- Why reading together can be a valuable family practice
Reflection Questions:
- Where have I looked for belonging or identity outside of Christ?
- What might change if I truly lived from the understanding that I am already “seated with Christ”?
- How can I help a child or young person in my life understand that their worth isn’t determined by popularity, possessions, friendships, or fitting in?
- What difficult conversations could I begin by discussing a fictional character’s experiences rather than asking direct questions?
If this episode encouraged you:
- Follow The Sublime Soiree Podcast for more conversations designed to help you slow down, feel seen, and draw closer to God.
- Share this episode with a parent, grandparent, teacher, mentor, or young reader who could benefit from the message of belonging and identity in Christ. You can find discussion questions for each book here.
- Continue the conversation by joining us for the next four episodes as we explore each book in Heather Holleman’s Elita Brown Series, beginning with This Seat’s Saved.
- Visit Heather Holleman’s website here to learn more about her books and her ministry.
- Visit our website, You’re Invited Ministries, here to learn more about our book.
