enLIVEn Devotionals

Abiding in Jesus - Overflowing His Spirit

Just a Few Minutes Alone Please

I just want a few minutes alone! I get up half an hour early to read my Bible and pray and here she is at my side, putting her feet all over me while I try and start my day with God. How am I supposed to have a meaningful conversation with the Creator while my three year old is staring at me with her feet on top of my Bible? I mention my frustration to my dad one early morning while we drink coffee. When I visit back home, I always get up extra early to be alone with my father before he goes to work. “Oh yes, I remember those days,” he says as he puts down his Bible. “Except you started ... Read the Post

The Judging Trap

God convicted me about judging others. A judging spirit is one of the most incognito sins out there. It feels natural to give your opinion about others. Sometimes it even feels like we have the right to speak our mind, but we don’t. The only person that ever lived who has the right to judge is Jesus Christ. God began to reveal my judgmental attitude, and I ardently began to stop myself. However, I still continued to judge those who have hurt me. It made the pain they caused more bearable to see that they had flaws and sins of their own. However, God quickly convicted me on that. He made it ... Read the Post

The King's Daughter

As my pastor began his series called “The Chosen One,” I was expecting to sit and listen to all the wonderful things God has done with men and women of the Bible. I wasn’t expecting to be hit over the head with the reality that I am also “The Chosen One.” My pastor said, “You are royalty, and you need to start believing it.” It makes me cry just writing those words. Why do I keep missing this point throughout my walk as a Christian? I tend to minimize the gifts and abilities God has given me. I always think to myself, “Well, God can certainly use so and so; he is such a talented person.” Or ... Read the Post

Laundry Room Humbling

It’s funny how God seems to speak to me in the oddest places. This time it was the laundry room. I was sorting laundry and pondering my relationship with a good friend; I'll call her Jane. I began by praying, "Thank You, Jesus, for giving me the opportunity to be close with Jane and the chance to show her what it means to have a personal relationship with you." Then I began to think about how giving Jane is and how she is always ready and willing to stop everything to help a friend including me. She is the kind of gal that accepts you just how you are. There is not a judging bone in her ... Read the Post

The Last Steps of Youth

  I stopped at the bathroom after work before heading home. I had just finished teaching a class, and I was drained but satisfied. I washed my hands and looked in the mirror before heading toward the door. As I glanced at my image, my reality snapped and my mind briefly froze. Something was wrong. I could feel the brain waves in my head scrambling to figure out what had changed. I turned my head slowly from side to side. My brain knew that the reflection was mine, yet it was having trouble believing it. Suddenly, it felt like all my understanding smacked into a wall and my eyes ... Read the Post

Lay it Down…and Leave it There

Recently I was presented with a possible job opportunity. It was not just an ordinary job. It was an “I can’t believe I could get to do this; pinch me I must be dreaming!” kind of job. I was about to discover just where “somewhere over the rainbow” existed! Or so I thought. My excitement quickly turned to disappointment when it became evident that this was not God’s timing, and I would not be able to pursue this opportunity any further. It didn’t make sense. For a week I swallowed tears wondering if I was making a terrible mistake, wondering if I was truly hearing the voice of my Father and ... Read the Post