Date: April 13, 2026 Podcast Show Notes: Interview with Laurie Devernoe Story Highlights: In this warm and deeply encouraging episode of The Women Behind the Words, Debbie Dufek welcomes back Laurie Devernoe for a conversation that feels less like an interview and more like a breath of fresh air, honest, grounded, and full of grace. Laurie opens with a story that has become something of a legend in her household: the day she called 911 to report her seven-year-old son Caleb missing at the gym, only to find him moments later in the coach's office, deep in a conversation about Minecraft. Her teenagers dubbed her a "SWAT team mom," and the name stuck. But beneath the laughter is something genuinely important: Laurie's vigilance that day led her to speak a simple but powerful truth to the facility's manager. Children should never be alone in a closed room with an adult, no matter who that adult is. It is the kind of wisdom that flows naturally from a mother who pays attention. From there, the conversation turns to Laurie's extraordinary early years of motherhood, triplet daughters followed by a fourth baby just eighteen months later, and eventually a fifth child eight years after that. She describes managing her household the only way she knew how coming from a corporate background: with color-coded spreadsheets, matching outfits, and a schedule for everything. Beneath all that beautiful organization, however, Laurie was quietly battling what she now recognizes as high-functioning anxiety, a relentless internal scanning that, when pushed past its limits, came out as anger. She speaks with remarkable honesty about what it took to finally name that struggle and begin to address it. Debbie and Laurie explore the intersection of faith and mental health with particular tenderness. Drawing from the story of Elijah, who after calling down fire from heaven fled in despair and asked to die, Laurie reminds listeners that having a relationship with God is not an insurance policy against mental health struggles. It is the place we return to when those struggles come. She shares how her own mother suffered with clinical depression and seasonal affective disorder for years, never receiving the help she needed because seeking it was once considered a sign of weak faith. The church, Laurie notes with gratitude, is in a far better place today, embracing therapy, outside support, and even medication as gifts rather than failures. The episode also takes a practical turn toward screen time, technology, and the ever-present challenge of raising children in a digital world. Laurie and Debbie, referencing insights from a previous episode with Barb Winters, discuss the importance of parental controls, phone baskets during family time, and the power of modeling the behavior we hope to see in our children. Laurie shares how she leaned on her older children to help evaluate what her youngest was playing and watching, turning awareness into a family-wide effort rather than a solo burden. At the heart of everything Laurie shares is a concept she encountered early in her parenting journey through a cassette tape series called Spirit Beings, the idea that our children are not just physical beings to be fed and bathed and put to bed, but spiritual ones who need to be nourished in their souls. That conviction shaped how she raised her five children: with worship music in the home, age-appropriate Bibles, family devotional time even when it happened in two cars calling each other on the way home from sports, and a daily rhythm of prayer and Scripture that, decades later, her grown children carry with them still. This conversation is a reminder that the years that feel the most overwhelming often turn out to be the ones that leave the deepest mark, and that apart from Jesus, as Laurie and Debbie agree, we truly can do nothing. But with Him, we can do far more than we imagine. About Our Guest: Laurie Devernoe is a Christian speaker and mental health coach known for bringing faith to life through engaging, down-to-earth teaching. She helps individuals and families move beyond surviving daily routines to living impactful, faith-centered lives that support mental health and strengthen families. As a mother of five, including triplets, Laurie understands real life and connects with others by blending Scripture with relatable stories and simple, doable practices that help faith take root in everyday moments. Laurie is the author of Coffee House Parenting, inspired by decades of conversations with other moms, and the award-winning memoir Seeing Through the Darkness: The Incredible Story of How Losing My Sight Taught Me to See. Her latest book, You Are the Mom, is a 40-day devotional written for anyone who has ever loved and raised a child, to replace exhaustion and self-doubt with Scripture, grace, and the quiet confidence that God equipped you exactly for this. Book Spotlight: You Are the Mom by Laurie Devernoe Today's mothers are carrying more than any spreadsheet can track, and beneath the schedules, the meal plans, and the matching outfits, many are quietly wondering whether they are enough. You Are the Mom is a 40-day devotional that speaks directly into that exhaustion and self-doubt, offering Scripture, grace, and the gentle reassurance that God did not assign you your children by accident. He equipped you, exactly as you are, for exactly them. Drawing from her own journey through triplets, high-functioning anxiety, a mother's quiet suffering, and the slow, faithful work of building a Christ-centered home, Laurie writes with the warmth of someone who has sat in the hard places and found God faithful there. This devotional is for the mom who needs permission to stop striving and start abiding, and a reminder that everything she needs, she already has access to through Jesus. Connect with Laurie: Website: https://lauriedevernoe.com Facebook and Instagram: Coffee House Parenting Her Book: You Are the Mom: A 40-Day Devotional Closing Thought: Parenting is not a performance. It is a daily returning, to grace, to Scripture, to the One who gives us everything we need for life and godliness. As Laurie reminds us, the legacy we leave is not found in perfectly matched outfits or color-coded spreadsheets. It is found in the quiet, faithful patterns we model for our children: where we go when we struggle, what we say when we are afraid, and how we return again and again to the heart of God.
