Michael Harrison's e-devotion

No matter where you are your feelings and memories of Christmas are almost surreal.   The memories flood your mind as the music begins and as the days draw close, but one of the things that rarely hits us is the pain that is very near to those who have experienced lose in the past year.   This is the first Christmas without that special person. Last Christmas was the first without my mom’s mom, grandma Bobbie.   My wife and kids spent that Christmas in Oklahoma with my family.   It was a great time, and we will miss being with them this year.   But it was different as grandma Bobbie was always there.   She moved into our home when I was young.   This year would be different. I think about the young father of three children whose wife died this month.   They haven’t been married many years, but he is alone this Christmas.   My mind goes to some close friends.   Her mom died this fall, and his mom died a few weeks ago.   T...

Joshua 1:7   NLT Be strong and very courageous.   Be careful to obey all the instructions Moses gave you.   Do not deviate from them, turn ing either to the right or to the left.   Then you will be successful in everything you do. The story of Christmas is full of people that had to live by faith.   They had to make choices, and God honored their right choices and their living by faith.   Elizabeth and Zechariah lived by faith believing that in their old age they would have a child that would point people to Jesus.   Further Mary and Joseph had to accept and act on what the angel of the Lord said to them about their baby being the Savior.   The shepherds and wise men had to not listen to the people around them and press on to see the Messiah. Here is my point: obstacles aren’t barriers but opportunities for faith to trust God.   When some kind of barrier presents itself to us or if someone opposes us, the natural response i...

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. ...

You are invited to be part of our  5:05 PRAYER time  at The Community Fellowship's new campus each Monday, Wednesday and Friday.  We've chosen this time to pray for the future impact of The Community Fellowship and Dream Center.  It is also a great time to see what God has given us and what He is going to do in the future. 2013 is almost gone, but the blessings of this year have literally been incredible.  We must not minimize them or forget them.  Furthermore, it is time to tell others.  So here is what's happening now through January 1st. Joshua chapter 6 talks about the time when God's people were given the city of Jericho.  They were to walk around the city for 7 days.  The first 6 times they were to walk around the city in silence, but on the 7th day they were to walk around the city and shout.  Remember it?  The walls fell as the people shouted. God has already given us the property and building.  We now come to the Lo...

Our family continues to be committed to having our devotion time together each night before we go to bed.   One of the best resources we’ve found so far is from YouVersion.com and is the Bible reading plans.   YouVersion.com will help you read through the Bible and get stronger in your faith. Our current reading plan is about Christmas, and I’d like to share what we read tonight.   We are off track on the days, but Day 11 I found fascinating and full of truth.   Read the following devotion and continue celebrating the real reason for Christmas: _____ Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery.   (Hebrews 2:14–15) Hebrews 2:14–15 is worth more than two minutes in an Advent devotional.   These verses connect th...

Lamentations 5:21   NLT Restore us, O Lord, and bring us back to you again!   Give us back the joy s we once had! Let me give us some ways to keep our joy fresh.   I understand that we aren’t always going to be up and excited.   We can put in place truth that we let us see through situations.   In the Christmas story each player had to make a choice.   From Elizabeth and Zechariah a choice had to be made to believe that their son would be the prophet of the coming messiah.   With Mary and Joseph had to come radical faith to not divorce but to live by what God said.   From the shepherds and the wise men had to come determination because many people will question what they said they saw. The same is true for us.   Here are 5 ways to keep your joy. 1. Know who you are. You are a child of God.   You have been chosen by God and forgiven.   He loves you where you are and how you are.   Much like the people w...

Pray for our own AMANDA ELGIN as she travels with a group of students to Haiti on a mission trip.  This is the first time she will fly.  The group leaves Sunday, December 15th, and the group will return the following Sunday, December 22nd.  This is a trip with the Virginia Baptist Mission Board.   Early in December Amanda shared with us how excited she is about this trip and how God has provided the resources for her to be able to go.  The Community Fellowship is just one of the sponsors helping her with her first international mission trip.  We are so proud of Amanda and will be praying for her this coming week.  Cannot wait to hear a report from the trip? Will you pray for Amanda?  If so write her an  email .