Michael Harrison's e-devotion

  Proverbs 3:25-26  NLT   You need not be afraid of sudden disaster or the destruction that comes upon the wicked, 26 for the Lord is your security.  He will keep your foot from being caught in a trap. Sitting my desk 24 years ago I got a phone call.  On the other end of the phone was a friend, church member and father whose son was missing due to some kind of accident at the Pentagon where his son worked. Over the next several hours I watched the news, and there wasn’t one accident.  There were four accidents that are now known as 9/11.  The terror of that day really was the fact that things happened in our country that rarely are seen or heard of.  So many lives were lost. That night there was a gathering at our church where lots of people joined to pray.  Our country has not been the same since, and we continue to pray for those impacted by the horrific events of September 11, 2021. Turn to the news of this week where a man was murder...

  As I look through some old e-devotions I found some thoughts that are powerful.  These are random quotes from e-devotions over the last 7 years.  Read on, and may we be inspired to walk even closer to Jesus. — It really is a sure thing.  God’s promises are sure, fool proof, strong and so much more.  — Think about weakness.  Does some weakness have no answer?  I subscribe to a theory that there is weakness that we cannot overcome, but we know someone who can and will overcome our weakness.   That would be God. In our relationship with Christ we find strength. — David Platt said this:  in the church we spend lots of hours working and only minutes praying .  That fact pierced my heart.  I ask you to think through it. — Jesus said that people were on His heart because they needed a shepherd to guide and love them.  That is what God wants to do for each and every one of us.  He is guide and ...

  Let’s consider truth.  I am not talking about what the law books or the science books might suggest.  What I am talking about what God, our guide, friend and Savior puts forth about us. Through seeking the truth in His word, there are so many places we can go and things we can name.  For this time of considering I point us only to one chapter, Colossians 1, and what God says about His kids. Colossians 1:4-5  NLT    For we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and your love for all of God’s people, 5 which come from your confident hope of what God has reserved for you in heaven. You have had this expectation ever since you first heard the truth of the Good News. Love the way Paul reminds us that others are watching and need to see an example of faith and hope.  Fact is we can be confident with our hope because of who God is and what He has done. On to more of that truth from Colossians 1… Colossians 1:15-20  NLT   Christ is the ...

  You most likely have heard this verse before and even quoted it and thought about it and tried to practice it before.  There are so many good things that happen when we seek to be still. Psalm 46:10  NLT  “Be still, and know that I am God! I will be honored by every nation. I will be honored throughout the world.” I’d like to share with you today once again from one of my favorite authors, Henri Nouwen.  I receive his daily devotional thought, and this one came today.  It hit for me.  Therefore I share with you. As you read I pray God speaks to you and encourages you as you seek to walk with Him. The Careful Balance Somewhere we know that without a lonely place, our lives are in danger. Somewhere we know that without silence, words lose their meaning; that without listening, speaking no longer heals; that without distance, closeness cannot cure. Somewhere we know that without a solitary place, our actions quickly become empty gestures. The careful ba...

  We are continuing our study through the book of Romans at our church, and yesterday we began walking through the 14th chapter.  It is a great look at and a challenging word on how we deal with people that we have differences with. What I walked about with, not the entire sermon but an important piece, was that we need to make sure we major on what is important and not on things that really don’t matter in the grand scheme of things. It is a big deal to keep God has central in our faith and in all we do.  Remember the problem others had. Romans 1:25  NLT   They traded the truth about God for a lie. So they worshiped and served the things God created instead of the Creator himself, who is worthy of eternal praise! Amen. Don’t spin your wheels on this one, but do examine how you worship, what you worship and even what makes you passionate about life.  It is things created by God or is it God? 2 Corinthians 12:9-10  NLT   Each time he said, “My grac...

  Lets take a simple journey together.  It has been a good week in so many ways, but what I don’t do in these e-devotion is simply share some of the things that happen or are shared during the days of the week.  Here we go. As I shared yesterday was our anniversary.  I am grateful for Julie, but what I am most grateful for is a local restaurant that wasn’t too full where we could sit over in the corner to eat and talk.  It was so good, and I am so blessed. On Wednesday I drove a good ways to a men’s Bible study.  It happens each week at a fast food restaurant in North Carolina (Dario has locations where they give men a free breakfast who come to the weekly study).  It was awesome walking in the room where more than 60 men gathered to study the Bible, and Stu opened Daniel 4 in awesome ways.  Read that chapter.  God is so good. So on with the journey.  Here are just a few of the things that came across my reading this week: Proverbs 31:8-...