enLIVEn Devotionals

Abiding in Jesus - Overflowing His Spirit

Parental Substitute

My mother passed away when I was one year’s old from a car accident. My Dad was young and overwhelmed by the thought of raising three children, so he gave us to his parents to raise. I can remember thinking when I was a child that my life was normal. Everyone had to know what it was like not to know your mother. As I started getting older, I realized that it wasn’t normal. All my friends had mothers and fathers and all lived together like one happy family. About 3rd grade, I can remember crying on Mother’s Day because I didn’t have a mom. My Grandparents would try to comfort me by telling ... Read the Post

Coming Home

My family and I recently moved back to our home town after being away for nine years. There was such an excitement to encounter new opportunities, to spend time with family again, to get back to our roots, and to see what God had in store for us. However being back home has brought a whole new array of insecurities that we weren’t prepared to handle. When we were in a city away from our hometown, my husband and I were able to establish a legacy all our own that did not revolve around family members. We love our families dearly; but living so close to them now, we have had to accept the ... Read the Post

Light's Aquarium

In the house I grew up, there were large skinny windows on either side of the front door. These windows allowed sunlight to shoot into the house like laser beams. One of these laser beams landed directly in the middle of the staircase that was located in front of the door. I used to sit on a wooden step and allow the heat and light of the sunbeam to penetrate me. I waved my hands through the sunbeam and exposed different parts of my skin – face, arms, legs, neck – to its light. I would stretch up on my toes and reach my hands up to the ceiling so I could drown my entire body in its warmth. ... Read the Post

For Such a Time as Jim

I am looking forward to a time of new beginnings. Our church has just elected a new pastor. I like him and his family already. They are going to be a great addition to our church and to our community. Our new pastor has compassion and vision. As he finished up the first sermon that he delivered at church on Sunday, he stood there and he looked around and then he asked us who was missing? Who had we decided to give up on? My mind wandered and so did my glance. I turned my eyes to Jim. He was sitting a couple of rows up from my husband and me, sitting with his mother – the same mother that ... Read the Post

Come, Let us Sing a Song

Sometimes I have short-term memory loss. I was telling one of my friends that I couldn’t remember what I had forgotten and we both laughed. I don’t get too concerned about my forgetfulness. My maternal grandmother was quite forgetful, and my own mother can get lost in the same town that she has lived in for years. Even my own daughter has her times of memory lapses. With this propensity to forget or confuse things, I’ve got my own way of keeping things straight in my mind – important things that is. Things like what kind of cake makes me a real life “Betty Crocker” and what kind of raisin ... Read the Post

Full Godly Potential

Whoever said loving God made life “easy” was completely mistaken. The closer I get to God, the more character flaws I find in myself, and the more He asks me to change. I feel like I am trapped in a hard exterior and God is showing me how to break my way out. Over the past few months, I constantly prayed for God to speak to me louder and give me the ears to hear Him better. Now I hear His voice loud and clear all the time! Every day He tells me things such as, “Change this character flaw,” “You are better than this,” “Spend more time with Me,” “Watch your words,” “Get your heart right,” and ... Read the Post