Michael Harrison's e-devotion

  Life isn’t always fair.  Agree?  I recently heard someone share this… the only “control” God told us to have in the Bible is self-control.  We can not control other people or situations.  But we can seek to control ourselves. When things are out of your control, stop and pray.  That is a great response. When you get a message or information and you are too far away to do anything, stop and pray.   A friend shares there is a need, a struggle or heart ache, stop and pray.   It is an honor to be the intercessor that lifts them to God.  stop and pray.   This might seem simple, but the most profound thing we can do is acknowledge where the real power is, who is in control and what will make a difference.  That person is God.  He has connected to us.  He called us to pray.  Stop and pray   Matthew 7:7-11  NLT   Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep o...

  I am so grateful for what we have learned from Psalms.  Each chapter digs in to the heart of what God is doing in our lives.  It leads us to see that God is worthy and we need Him.  That is the reality.   Psalm 100  NLT   Shout with joy to the Lord, all the earth! 2  Worship the Lord with gladness. Come before him, singing with joy. 3 Acknowledge that the Lord is God! He made us, and we are his.  We are his people, the sheep of his pasture. 4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving; go into his courts with praise. Give thanks to him and praise his name. 5 For the Lord is good. His unfailing love continues forever, and his faithfulness continues to each generation. Lift these truths from that chapter … God made us and we are His.  God is good.  His love and faithfulness endure forever The overflow of our prayers and our walk with God should lead us to be thankful as this Psalm encouraged, and it seems that every this we do...

  Don’t stop praying! That is a line from a song boy Matthew West, and I love the song and lyrics.  But what I really love is what it reminds me of. Prayer is essentially to connecting us to God and keeping God’s purpose as a priority in our lives.  Let’s choose to have prayer as part of our lives each day. There are several things or truths that help me make prayer a priority. - Choose to spend time with God each morning. - Lead where you have the ability in prayer.  Be an example. - When you see a need, stop and pray at that moment. - One way to connect with people is to ask how you can pray for them. Luke 11:1  NLT   Once Jesus was in a certain place praying. As he finished, one of his disciples came to him and said, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.” The disciples asked Jesus to teach them to pray, and that is when he gave them the pattern of the Lord’s prayer … “our father who is in heaven”. Jeremiah 33:3  NLT   Ask ...

  There are so many things we can and should pray for.  My heart often goes out to people in need, and that is when prayer is needed and becomes active.  Yet one of the things I want to remind us to not miss is praying for those who do not know Jesus as savior. My heart goes out to many… the dad having major cancer surgery, the teenager going through brain surgery, the man recovering from a horrible accident at work, the friend battling cancer and her husband having other severe medical issues, the family in financial crisis… and the list goes on and on. Isaiah 53:5  NIV   But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed. James 5:16  NLT   Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results. But let us be reminded to pray in bi...

  Ways to pray as we continue to move through summer and into this weekend… Let’s spend some time over the next couple days praying for some things where people, some of us, are working through and needing a touch of the hand of God. Pray for the back2school outreach.  Registration begins tomorrow.  Pray for students and their families. Matthew 19:13  NLT   One day some parents brought their children to Jesus so he could lay his hands on them and pray for them. But the disciples scolded the parents for bothering him. Pray for those whose lives have been touched by tragedy in recent days.  This could be from a family who has lost a loved one to those impacted by the devastating storms of recent days. 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. Pray for those who do not know Jesus and need t...

  Hello, how are you? It's so typical of me to talk about myself, I'm sorry I hope that you're well Did you ever make it out of that town where nothing ever happened? It's no secret that the both of us Are running out of time So hello from the other side  Those are just part of the lyrics from Adele’s song Hello , but that might sum up some of our prayer life.   Disconnected.  Confused.  Struggling.  If we are honest, that is.  Yet that is not what God intends for us when we connect with Him.  In fact the thing that He wants most is for us to connect. It was in the Garden of Eden after He created Adam and Eve that God desired to have a relationship with those He loved.  God still desires that.  We have the blessing and opportunity to connect with, be loved by and walk with God.  Think about it. Jeremiah 33:3  NLT   Ask me and I will tell you remarkable secrets you do not know about things to come. Matthew 6:6  NLT ...

  Luke 22:32  NASB   but I have prayed for you, that your faith will not fail; and you, when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.”   Who are you praying for?  That is a good question because many people are non my mind. Do you ever wake up and aren’t able to go back to sleep?  When that happens to me, I begin to pray for whoever is on my mind.  At times there is a reason I learn later.  Sometimes there isn’t.  But pray!   How can I pray for you?   Stop and pray for those who come across your mind.  in the middle of the night or in the middle of the day… those are great times to pray.  When someone is on your mind, stop and pray for them.  Someone drives by you on the road or you see them down the aisle at the grocery story.  Pray for them.   Honestly I believe that God is asking His children to be spiritually sensitive to pray for others.  Be a person of prayer!   I am praying for many p...