enLIVEn Devotionals

Abiding in Jesus - Overflowing His Spirit

Lazy River in the Desert

I saw a lazy river in the middle of the African desert. Let me tell you how it got there. My brother and his family are missionaries in Africa. This call came many years before they actually set foot in Mombasa, Kenya, where they now reside. The process of uprooting a family from western culture is a tediously lengthy one. We don’t realize how truly blessed we are until we have to sell every single thing we own. My sister-in-law had to not only let go of the comforts that we take for granted, she had to let go of family and personal items that held memories and sentimentality. ... Read the Post

The Beach

My family lives close to the Gulf of Mexico, so one day after church, we decided to head to the beach. We hadn't been in a while--the summer weeks have been racing past us--and our kids have been asking daily to go.  We finally relented. We reached the beach. I sprayed the kids down with sunblock, and they ran straight to the warm waves. I loved watching them smile and laugh as the splashed through the salty current. It was a perfect day--blue skies, slight breeze and smooth ripples. I couldn't help but thank God for our Texas coast and promise myself that I would not neglect this beautiful ... Read the Post

Formatting Life

There are many aspects to writing books. One of the final stages—besides publishing and marketing—is formatting the book. This can be one of the most tedious, laborious, frustrating and time-consuming aspects of writing. Trying to transfer a huge word document into publishing software creates havoc on almost every page of the book. Also, books in our current generation can’t just be words on a page. There needs to be pretty, little details at the start of the book and the beginning of every chapter. Some books even add details to every page! Having to add these details is also very tedious ... Read the Post

The Empty Fridge

We had just come back from a weeklong family vacation the night before, and I went into the kitchen the next morning, contemplating what I would cook for breakfast. All three of my kids sat at the table, waiting with anticipation for their morning meal. I opened the refrigerator and stared at the emptiness. I had made sure to use up most of our groceries before we left, so nothing would be wasted. The fridge looked bare without its usual occupants of milk, OJ, eggs, fruit and vegetables. Suddenly, I heard my 8-year old son cry out, “Mom! The refrigerator!” I looked over at the table ... Read the Post

The Sacrificial Leaf

It was a beautiful spring day in the southwest Florida ecological preserve. My sister, mom, my nephew, and my two boys and I walked leisurely along the preserve boardwalk, passing a bouquet of trees: oak, palm, Royal Palm, pine, and mangrove trees— black, white, and red. Spiders filled the empty spaces between foliage with silken threads and shimmering webs while birds squawked from high branches. Despite God's beautiful creation all around, heavy reverence filled my heart. It was the afternoon of Good Friday, the day a cross-shaped tree held my crucified Savior. "Surely He has borne ... Read the Post

Sticker Value

My local grocery store passes out little “Buddy Bucks” to the kids whenever we are in the checkout line. The kids can use these bucks to play a game located at the exit of the store. The game spins a big wheel, and when the kids push a button, the wheel slowly comes to a stop. Whatever number—from 1- 50— the wheel lands on, a sticker of the number comes out of the machine. The numbered stickers represent points. We then collect these stickers in books that the store provides. When we save up a certain amount of points, we can get something from the catalog. We have been collecting these ... Read the Post