Michael Harrison's e-devotion

Matthew 1:21   NLT And she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sin s. Christmas is more than a day out of our calendar year.   I have heard as long as I can remember that for the Christian we ought to have Christmas every day of the year.   Yet if we take a survey of the people around us, there will be as many memories, as many definitions, as many traditions as the amount of people you ask. The only thing that changes the celebration and tradition of Christmas for me is the understanding I have of who Jesus is and what Jesus did.   Does that make sense?   In 7 days we will celebrate a day, a special day. But wait.   When we had kids, things changed for our Christmas.   I love the look on our kid’s faces when they open a present.   Their hearts and minds seem to be wide open.   That again is what happens when we come face to face, or better yet heart to heart, with Jesus. ...

God knows that when we are alone that we are afraid.   God knows that when darkness is around us and we are alone that we are capable of great fear and anxiety, but having someone with us makes all the difference in the world. We need to learn the power of presence.  The presence of God is a big deal, and there are times when simply having some one with us makes all the difference in the world.  This is seen in the change a parent’s presence makes when their child is scared.  It is seen in the change when you go from feeling alone to having confidence because your protector and encourager showed up.  I am sure there are people in your life that bring you a sense of security, confidence and stability.  We ought to know the presence of God does that and so much more. Let’s step forward.  Take it to another level with the last words while on the planet.  He had already gone to the cross and the pain of death.  Jesus had been in the ...