Michael Harrison's e-devotion

Life will throw you some curve balls.  If you haven't seen them yet, you will.   I was putting together my thoughts for a series of articles I am writing, and as I did there were some flash backs.  My mind went to some times that I remember being full of stress, anger, arguments, pain and more.  As I worked my way through a bit of that I had to think about why those situations have changed, where the stress went and how I found success.  Then it hit me. There is one resource we can count on.  It doesn't come from the government.  It doesn't come from your parents.  You can't get it in a pay check or in winning some kind of lottery.  Success comes from God.  Plain and simple.  God is the source of what we keep us, hold us, help us, heal us and push us on. Have you ever been in the place where you were ready to quit?  Ready to throw in the towel now?  Not sure how you are going to get through now?  It is time to wake up. Proverbs 30:5   (nlt) --- Ev...

1 Corinthians 11:1    (nlt) --- And you should  imitate  me, just as I  imitate   Christ . That is one of the boldest statements that you might find a Christian say.  Some would even say that is arrogant and self centered.  Yet, as we heard this Sunday in our last message in the One Prayer series, God's kids ought to be bold and strong. I've watched this example.  By the way, I'm getting a bit personal today.  The last 3 days I have had a great time with my brother Steve .  He is the father of 6 kids and the husband of a great lady.  I'm not just saying this cause he is my brother, but Steve is one of the finest men I know.  He walks the walk.  He loves Jesus and he loves his family. From where I sit and how I have experienced life, guys like me (pastors and those in ministry) need people who encourage us.  My brother does that for me.  Many, many times over the last 15 year and more years Steve has come to my rescue or to my side spiritually.  I'v...

2 Timothy 2:22   (nlt) --- Run from anything that stimulates youthful lusts. Instead, pursue righteous living, faithfulness, love, and peace. Enjoy the companionship of those who call on the Lord with pure hearts. I'm sure you have noticed this as well.  There are times when you get together with some people and time flies.  You talk and talk.  It doesn't seem to stop. A couple times that week that has happens, and those moments and conversations and people make that scripture come alive.  It is those relationships that build us up, make us strong, help us run from wrong, lift us when we are down and remind us of what life is about. Leave the wrong.  Paul wrote, "run from..."  How do you deal with the situations that tear you apart and pull you down?  Run.  Run to God and away from wrong.  Stand. Stand against what's wrong and stand up for what's right. Pursue the right.  Right stuff, being faithful, love and peace.  That word 'peac...

I am reading this article after coming across this cool looking logo that caught my attention.  In the following paragraphs are questions, concerns and heart about what it is to create art within the church. Not just the paintings on the wall, but the relevant and culture that we seek.  Read on from the article: "My theology leads me to believe that when God inspired the idea of the Church, He hoped we would live out our created design to produce new mediums of art that would awaken the soul of the world to understand life and how it is supposed to dance with faith. I believe God wants us to take art seriously and understand that every time the Church creates something, it reflects on Him personally." Why create are?  Why seek to change the culture?  Why be relevant?  Here are some thoughts from that article: > at the core lies a beautiful heart to reach people who are currently unreached outside of the Church > lovingly living God-inspired...

This is a really cool take off of another logo.  Think CREATIVE, people!

Mark 4:19   (nlt) --- But all too quickly the message is crowded out by the worries of this life, the lure of wealth, and the desire for other things, so no fruit is produced. I have heard this all my life.  "Use it or loose."  If we do not use what we have been given we will loose it.  Do you agree? That verse says a lot about what happens when we hear God's truth and don't do anything with it.  It literally gets beat out by the other things in our lives.  It could be pushed away by sin or busyness or hundreds of other things.  What is keeping you from using what you have?  The money you have.  The abilities you have.  The family you have and more. One question we may need to ask is what we really think is important in life and around us.  We will have lots of different answers.  But here is one truth that we can not dispute. Matthew 5:13   (nlt) --- You are the salt of the earth. But what good is salt if it has lost its flavor? Can you make i...

Last night two phone conversations sent this dad into another world.  Let me share just a little of where my heart is today. My girls left with our students for student camp yesterday that is taking place on the campus at Liberty University.  Talked to one daughter via phone last night and the other via text message.  The message I heard was this: "we are excited and already growing closer to Jesus."  Can't tell you what that does to a father's heart and mind and my excitement. The other phone call was from my 5 year old little boy as I was headed to a softball game.  He called to talk about Jesus.  And he is talking about Jesus and asking all kinds of questions (pray for Ryan as he does this).  It was one of those special moments I have been waiting for.  Here is why ... 3 John 1:4   (nlt) ---  I could have no greater joy than to hear that my children are following the truth. Yes, my kids are young.  But they are seeing God lived out in front of t...

Our One Prayer series has been a great time already.  Yesterday we heard from Dino Rizzo , pastor of   Healing Place Church  in Baton Rouge, LA, as he talked about "God is ... Here & Anything Can Happen".  This was a powerful message.  Just want to pass on a couple of parts that really touched my heart. Mark 7:32-35  (niv) ---  There some people brought to him a man who was deaf and could hardly talk, and they begged him to place his hand on the man.  After he took him aside, away from the crowd, Jesus put his fingers into the man's ears. Then he spit and touched the man's tongue.   He looked up to heaven and with a deep sigh said to him, "Ephphatha!" (which means, "Be opened!" ).   At this, the man's ears were opened, his tongue was loosened and he began to speak plainly. Jesus took time to touch this man.  He pulled the dude aside and met his need.  It was a personal touch.  This shows how personal our God can get will get. ...

Great word for the weekend as I get ready for Sunday.  This ought to inspire our socks off and spur on our faith in GOD: Then Jesus told them, "I tell you the truth, if you have faith and don't doubt, you can do things like this and much more. You can even say to this mountain, 'May you be lifted up and thrown into the sea,' and it will happen."  Matthew 21:21 , NLT

Allow me a day to get personal.  Thank you. Ephesians 6:4   (nlt) --- Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger by the way you treat them. Rather, bring them up with the discipline and instruction that comes from the Lord. Proverbs 23:22   (nlt) ---  Listen to your father, who gave you life... I am a blessed man.  Not only do I have 3 of the world's greatest kids, but my dad is world class.  He really is.  I have known this for years. I have a dad that prays for me, shares with me and helps me these past 38 years.  I have watched him grow closer and closer to God the last 30 years.  What an honor that has been.  Often his words are what I need to hear though I may not want to hear them at the time.  He is wise and an advisor.  He is full of comfort and really cares.  He sees beyond where I am and what I am to what I can be.  He provides not just some of the stuff of life.  My dad has provided life. He was the best man at my wedding almost 16 years ago, an...

"We wrap our identity and self-esteem in many things, but God cares more about who we are than what we do for a living. " (page 177) Jud Wilhite addresses issues that hit close to home for all of us.  He talks openly about our need for grace and the real truth of God in our lives.  Why are those things so needed?  It is because many of us are living based on what we see, what we think and what seems common sense to us.  Yet the truth is we need to have our 'eyes wide open' to see as God sees.  We need God.  It is that simple. "Circumstances change. But hope overcomes. God has loved us before the creation of the world.  He created us to do good works that He already prepare in advance for us to do.  He sees us very differently from the way we're naturally inclined to see ourselves. " (page 180) God has given us a new identity.  He sees us so differently than we see ourselves, and it is not until we grasp that truth that will live in the victory and wor...

I came across an old blog post today from Mark Batterson .  He may have written the most instrumental leadership book I have read other than the Bible in his In A Pit With A Lion On A Snowy Day  which is a must read.  But here is a post that leaders need to think through: A Gut Check for Growing Churches Just thought I'd share the  ten reminders  I shared at  Healing Place  in their staff meeting. Think of them as  a gut check for growing churches . These are personal reflections on  our journey @ NCC.  The more we grow... 1)  ...the greater the PRIVILEGE I never want myself or anyone on our staff to have a  sense of entitlement . We're  only servants --I Cor. 3:5. 2)  ...the more COMPLICATED things get Sin complicates your life in  negative  ways. Growth complicates your life in  positive  ways. Learn to thank God for complications! 3)  ...the harder it is to maintain UNITY Vision is the key to unity ! The larger you get the  more frequently  you need to cast vision. Unit...

Psalms 18:25-28  (gw) ---   In dealing with faithful people you are faithful, with innocent people you are innocent, with pure people you are pure.  In dealing with devious people you are clever.  You save humble people, but you bring down a conceited look.  O Lord, you light my lamp.  My God turns my darkness into light.   You have been there before and experienced what I have.  When you told a lie, you h ad to tell another one to cover up the first.  That doesn't just hurt you it hurts everyone around you.  We've learned that the hard way many time.   To deal with this we need to be straight and tell the truth.  Own your junk.  Be honest.  Yet many people are too scared for people to see how they have messed up, made mistakes or gone the wrong direction.  God uses those things when we are honest about them.  Think about it.   I said it before, but one of our care values at The Community Fellowship is  authenticity  that talks about be open, honest and transparen...

God loves you just like you are.  You and I don't have to work for or buy His love.  His love is not based on our performance or our goodness or our worth.  It is based on His endless love for us.  Just believe it.  That is faith.  He loves you and me just like we are. 1 John 4:16   (nlt) ---  We know how much God loves us, and we have put our trust in his love. God is love, and all who live in love live in God, and God lives in them. I'm reading a new book and want to share just a little of what I digested this past Thursday while I was sitting on the beach, soaking up the sun and listening to the waves (yeah, I know you are jealous ... and we had a great time).  But read what I read now: "I finally saw what had been there all along.  What I saw flipped my faith experience right-side up ... I surrender my view of myself and embraced God's view of me.  I'd had it all backward.  I was putting so much pressure on myself to earn God's love, but i...

Our family just returned from a great time of vacation at the beach.  This and I love the water (my bride likes to look at the water).  We noticed the beauty of the breaking waves.  Yeah, they often push us, crash against us, draw us underwater and the like.  But as we stood out in the deep part (as the kids like to call it) we could often see next to us the awesome sight of a breaking wave, the curl it makes on top and the scene of before and after the break. You have to catch it fast.  You cannot enjoy it long.  But it is gorgeous.  Sometimes you have to stop, focus on something, block out some things around you and just take in what you get and see. Life is a lot like that.  Take in what God provides.  Here is my point: Proverbs 16:33   (nlt) --- We may  throw  the  dice , but the Lord determines how they fall. We are out there fighting waves.  And all the sudden there is a beautiful scene.  My middle daughter and I watched for what seemed like hours.  We wer...

First Baptist in Hattiesburg, MS did … a take off of the Real Men of Genius Bud Light commercials…  (CLICK. WATCH. LAUGH. Be Creative.) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A1HNuqR3cxE       http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nhd-40L5Lx0&feature=related  

Clay NeSmith. Barefoot Community Church. June 13, 2009 "Potential" (part of the DNA series and one of Barefoot's values) Run after your God given potential... The church is called (our calling) is to pull out of you what God has put in you. (Message centered around the story of Jesus inteaecting with Peter.) To find your potential, take these steps: Step 1 --- look for something If we aren't looking for something, we will never find it. John 1:36-42, why would Peter follow Andrew, his brother? Usually we don't do what our brothers tell us to do. But Peter (formerly known as Simon) was looking for something. Looking for better life or success means we have dreams to achieve. Step 2 --- hear something (We were given a crayon and paper and asked to write <1> what we are looking for today and draw <2> where we see ourselves in 5 years) John 1:42, Jesus told Peter "I see more potential in you than you see in yourself.". --/// (that is a huge ...

Latitude:   33.8158333 33° 48' 56" N 33 degrees, 48 minutes, 56 seconds North Longitude:   -78.6802778 78° 40' 49" W 78 degrees, 40 minutes, 49 seconds West

NOTE: This will be the last devotion for the week as my family will be taking some vacation.  Pray for us as we travel and enjoy time together.  E-Devotions will resume on Tuesday, June 16th. I have watched over the years the difference in people who have hope from those who don't have hope.  I'm talking about people who see God not as an option but as the only option.  This is about faith put into practice, believing God when all else fails or when everything is alright.  Do you have hope? 1 Thessalonians 4:13   (nlt) ---  And now, dear brothers and sisters, we want you to know what will happen to the believers who have died so you will not grieve like people who have no hope. It may be a situation of death or heal problems or relationship issues or thousands of other things.  When you have no hope, there is little left to believe in, to hang on to or really to live for.  Hope is a person, and His name is Jesus.  Have you met the people that I have?  Many ca...

Psalm 147:3   (nlt) ---  He heals the broken hearted and bandages their wounds. I am so excited about our ONE PRAYER series and that now 1,753 other churches have chosen to partner and see lives change for Jesus.  As I was soaking in all God was doing, I read THIS blog post and was wrecked with hurt.  Gary is a great pastor who has lead his church to big things and to see many, many lives change.  Perry Noble wrote THIS blog post about the situation. When a pastor fails and falls, it not only hurts his family but the results hurt the church, both that local body and the global church.  Those who look for failure and pain will use situations like this to throw stones and to cast doubt on what we do.  Honestly, my first thought was hurt and pain, but it was never in judgement of Gary.  In fact over the last few years I have been put off by his ways numerous time and in turn been big time encouraged by his leadership.  This is a time to see God work in a family, in a church...