Jen Avellaneda
About the Author

Jen is a freelance writer/blogger at Rich Faith Rising, married twenty-one years, with two older bio kids and an adopted seven-year-old daughter. Jen writes from her five-acre parcel overlooking their pond, a grassy field, and one lonely weeping willow. Foster parents for ten years, her and her husband have helped...

(in)side DaySpring: things we love
& you will too!
Find more at DaySpring.com
(in)side DaySpring:
things we love
& you will too!
Find more at
DaySpring.com
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Comments

  1. Jen,
    I typed a whole comment and then accidentally deleted it…long story short, when I/we feel like we are somehow not enough (which is a lie of the enemy) we need to immediately turn to God because this is the red flag that the enemy is coming after us. God in his goodness reminds me that I am a daughter of the King, chosen, delighted in, loved. This is the time I need to sit at His feet in prayer and discern what He would have me embark on next. Maybe it’s just a season of rest after a season of busyness. If we wait upon the Lord we can hear His whisper…You are more than enough. Thank you for a great reminder this am.!
    Blessings,
    Bev

    • Bev – Oh yes friend, that place where “the lies” become foreign, unfitting, so unfamiliar to our identity that it is like a red flag waving violently shouting, “Don’t accept any other whisper than what God says about you”! That’s the place I want to live from…don’t you?

  2. I am always surprised to hear other people feel the way I do a lot of the time, why would God want me? I am not good enough and so on but your reminder to trust in his words and not my own emotions is what I need to focus on. Thank you:)

  3. YES! This is definitely something we can all relate too, and it’s good to read about other’s experiences and thoughts. Helps us know we’re not alone. I’ve been walking with Jesus 30 years, and still feel much like your sweet, tattoed friend did.

    • Oh friend, I get you! Depending on our background and even just in relation to society’s “conditions” of acceptance…it can be hard to believe, understand, or accept that in grace alone we can walk in our full identity, accepted! Praying this morning HIS love overshadows the lies and grace reveals to all of us that we are enough, just the way we are.

  4. Such a beautiful reminder, Jen. Thank you. “I am learning to trust not my fluctuating emotions, but Scripture that promises us His love is sufficient.” Amen. On this same journey with you.

  5. I get this struggle of not feeling enough, of wondering what my worth and my purpose truly are. On the days when I get it, when I remember to fix my eyes on Him, those struggles have a way of disappearing. I just need to work on keeping my eyes on Him more often.

    • Andrea – Great instruction friend! Like a ship trying to stay the course in a the seas of affliction…may ours eyes be fixed on the Keeper of our Faith, the one who IS The Way, the one and leads us gently saying, “This is the way, walk in it”.

  6. Yes, Jen, I ask those questions a lot: Who am I? Am I enough?

    I am greatly consoled by the fact that Jesus does not judge me the way I judge myself. Not only does He tell me that HE is enough, He tells me that I am enough, and worth the cost of His sacrifice. His gift of salvation is the cord of self-worth that anchors me to Him forever.

    GOD BLESS!

    • Aaaww….I love that Sharon… “Anchored to Him forever!” Such an amazing thought friend…There is nothing we can do to make Him love us less and that we can rest on His free gift of grace and righteousness! Well said!

  7. I have to wonder sometimes…. I never had kids and I’m beyond the age to have them physically now. I believe that God felt that I was needed elsewhere. I haven’t found where that is yet but I find that so much that I read is directed at women with kids and I just can’t often relate to the stories. I’ve been told that life isn’t complete without kids, so does that mean I’m not complete? It makes me sad..

    • Susan – Oh friend…if I could reach my arms through this computer right now and wrap them around you, I would look you straight in the eyes and assure you…”You are enough”! Nothing we attain or possess, nothing we gain, or earn, or acquire can fill us like Jesus can! And today friend, I pray that His hand comforts you in your time of hurting, directs you to those you are to minister to, and protects you from the lies of the enemy that wants to rob you from walking confidently in all you were created to be! Will be praying for you friend, sincerely, in the days to come.

  8. Thank you Jen for your blog. Until my former spouse divorced me since he did not believe I was ‘enough’ for him…and I signed up for a Christ-centered, DivorceCare support group…I never knew that I was enough or could be loved for who I was as an individual person. I am 38 yrs old and recently divorced and I grew up in a very abusive home and I had been ‘scapegoated’ as so many negative terms and so I pushed and pushed myself to gain love, acceptance, approval, etc. Thankfully, in DivorceCare, I learned that I am loved, accepted, worthy and forgiven by the only person that matters and that is our Saviour. So, now…I am replacing all those destructive and defeating thoughts that I heard for the majority of my life with what God’s word tells me and it is slowly making a difference in my life.

  9. Sometimes it is SO HARD to get that TRUTH that we are enough because of Christ from our HEAD into our HEART, that is where my battle is, always. My head knows the truth, but my heart is confused and easily deceived. I relate to the chameleon description you wrote about so much. I work full-time, have two kids, a great husband, good friends, good church life- lots of great things going on and yet in those quiet moments in my car I hear that- is it really enough? When something around me seems “off” my mood plummets and I feel depressed and I worry about the what if’s and I see all of the negative and wonder when things will fall apart. So I push myself harder and I don’t believe that I am enough… BUT…BUT… I am learning…this year has been a new year for me- where I am seeing God in the smallest details and moments, thanking Him constantly (thank you Anne Voskamp!) and I am also loving myself despite my weirdness (thank you Laurie Wallin!) and I am learning to take what is in my head and wrap it around my heart tight enough to knock down some of those walls.

    • Woo Hoo! Liz…your comment makes me want to shout out, AMEN! I love that you choose not to be content with outward representations of “good enough”, and that you dig deeper to uncover those core lies that keep plaguing you in the quiet moments in the car! Let’s make some noise and break those walls down together today friend!

  10. Jen, this brought tears to my eyes. I needed to be reminded of this beautiful and powerful truth today. Thank you so much for sharing with us!

  11. To truly believe that nothing I can do will make Him love me more and that nothing I could do will make Him love me less. The security and peace that would bring…..
    I am enough when I remember that He is enough, His grace is sufficient.
    That’s where I’m at right now. Aware of my
    horrendous lack and learning to depend on
    His all sufficient grace, that I might know
    myself to be enough in Him.
    With love and thanks from a grace learner xx

  12. Thanks for this post Jen! As a single woman, I feel this so often. Just the other day a friend said to me, “You are enough…more than enough.” I say them back to you today! And you are right God shouts that to us by sending his Son for us! Sometimes though I have a hard time hearing him say them to me! Loved this post!! Thanks again!!

    • Hhmm…the fish multiplier, wine out of water maker, the one who satisfies the wells of our thirsty souls! Yes, that’s the kind of God I want to serve! Not a scarce or greedy God…but a God who supplies more than enough for each of us! Let’s chase Him down together today, shall we?

  13. Understanding and knowing our Identity IN Christ will help us to realize we are worthy – because He has made us worthy, righteous and holy in His sight. Memorizing scripture that reminds us of this and saying it to ourselves will keep us in tune.

  14. Jen,

    This post spoke straight to my heart. My identity waffles a lot & not always on the good side. Work makes me feel “stupid, dumb, not good enough, not smart enough”. Why do I believe the lies that say those things about me? 🙁
    I should know that God would not put me anywhere that I would fail. He is watching over me and lovingly taking care of me–His precious child!! 🙂

    Blessings 🙂

  15. Jen,
    How wonderful to see you here at (in)courage and what a powerful message filled with encouragement. I truly love the way you write and share your heart and was so blessed by this post.
    Thank you. Blessings.

  16. BUT…. I’ve never been enough……. for my mother, for my husband….for my daughter…. being enough for Jesus is just SO WONDERFUL !!!!

    tHANKS FOR THIS ENCOURAGING WORD dear Jen. I needed reminding after feeling that I filed my daughter again this week!!

    Love your words of wisdom.

    Many many blessings,

    Mary

    • Mary – Oh when the world finds all our failures, He points to His blessed creation and says in full acceptance, “It is good”. May you bask in His delight in you like never before Mary and may His mercy regenerate you, each and every morning.

  17. I struggle with this daily. My husband divorced me after 30 years. All I’ve ever been or thought I would be in a wife and mom. I know God lives me but figuring out who And what I am supposed to be is killing me slowly.

    • Dede – Oh friend, praying for you today….that you do not lose heart, and that your inner “man” (or woman) would be strengthened day by day (2 Cor 4:16). Praying also that He would strengthen you with power through His Spirit in your inner “women”. (Eph 3:16). Will continue to keep you on my my mind and heart in days to come. Thanks for your comment!

  18. Thank you for this post. I struggle so often with trying to remember that my identity is a child of God, a daughter of the King, and not in what I do (or fail to do) or what I’ve accomplished (or, again, failed to accomplish). I’m so grateful that Christ loved and intentionally sought out those the world had deemed not good enough – the Samaritan woman, the adulteress, the tax collector. I pray that we will all be able to dwell in the confidence that we don’t have to be good enough to be loved by God. He loves us just because we are His, and in Him we are enough. I’m so thankful for you and other (in)Courage bloggers and authors who continue to remind me of this, as I seem to fight this battle daily.

    • Amy – You are not alone. Some days we all struggle with “waffling faith”. I love the list of “chosen ones”. Such a great reminder that all of us have fallen short, and none of us are good enough to “earn” His love! Linking arms, standing tall, and finishing this race TOGETHER!

  19. “I am learning to trust not my fluctuating emotions, but Scripture that promises us His love is sufficient.” That is a truth I needed to hear today. This has been my life lately, and hearing this puts my heart and mind back on track with what is solid and what is truth.

  20. Thank you Jen. I had often wondered who and where is that little voice that I listen to every now and then that makes me feel bad. It’s that same voice that tells me what I did was wrong and how I could have done it better. This voice tells me I did not do enough or it should have been better.

    Thankfully, as a rule today, I have the faith and trust to know that God loves me just as I am. I had to make a deal with myself. I won’t listen to cruel unkind or discouraging dialogue, either internal or external but instead trust my journey we can work together in harmony for the greater good to help others.

  21. Oh my can I identify! I’m struggling with that so much tight now and yet though I know all the “right” answers to that, somehow I don’t have the energy…..it’s so tough sometimes and such a dark place.

  22. Cheryl – I wish I could reach through this computer and give you a great big hug! Oh how I have been there. A place where pat answers and joyful wisdom falls short of reaching us in the valley we are going through! But friend, I encourage you today! We are of those who do not lose hope! We have a God bigger, a faith stronger, His Spirit alive in us…that as we walk through this valley….we are never without a living God who makes a doorway where there seems to be none! Shutting off my computer to pray for you right now…