Michael Harrison's e-devotion

  Colossians 2:7  NLT   Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness. It is that time of year once again.  November and thanksgiving.  Just over one week away is the holiday where many will gather to celebrate what we are grateful for.  That is why I step aside for a bit to say a few of the things I am grateful for. I’ll ask you too.  What are you grateful for you?   Being grateful is actually something that points to the fact that you are healthy spiritually and emotionally.  it is easy to be centered on yourself, feeling entitled and even depressed because of what you do not have. Every one can be grateful. I am grateful for God, His salvation and forgiveness, His work in my life and family and the church. I am grateful for my wife, our children, the precious grand children and all of our family, both close by and...

  Recognizing who God is essential for those who choose to follow Him.  There are so many places where God shows up, where we see Him work and how much He loves us. During the sermon yesterday at The Community Fellowship I shared a story within a story that has really gripped my heart and reminded me of how much our God loves us and wants to work in our lives.  Check out this Scripture and story. Luke 9:37-43a  NLT  The next day, after they had come down the mountain, a large crowd met Jesus. 38 A man in the crowd called out to him, “Teacher, I beg you to look at my son, my only child. 39 An evil spirit keeps seizing him, making him scream. It throws him into convulsions so that he foams at the mouth. It batters him and hardly ever leaves him alone. 40 I begged your disciples to cast out the spirit, but they couldn’t do it.” 41 Jesus said, “You faithless and corrupt people! How long must I be with you and put up with you?” Then he said to the...

  1 Thessalonians 5:11  NLT   So encourage each other and build each other up, just as you are already doing. I am grateful for the people who encourage me and make me a stronger person.  Please pray for our family as today is my uncle’s funeral.  Pray for my uncle Frank’s wife, son and family as they face challenges ahead as well as go through the funeral today. There are plenty of other people in and around my life that need your prayers.  Pray for the family and friends of one of our local men that passed away on Wednesday.  And another lady in our church that has been one of my mission partners deals with her brother in law’s funeral and her sister continues to battle cancer. And there are many more who need our prayers and encouragement.  Make a difference today with your words and encouragement! I sat last night listening to another uncle share so many stories.  He is full of information and stories and history or our family.  It w...

  Proverbs 20:7   NLT The godly walk with integrity; blessed are their children who follow them.   We are blessed so that we can bless others.  It is overwhelming to see how blessed we really are.   C ount those blessings.   I recognize the blessings and the people who have impacted my life.  Stop again, or at least slow down, and realize that God made me to be a blessing to others.   Claim those blessings by giving to others, loving others and making a difference in the lives of others.  I challenge you and me to look at your blessings and turn those toward others.    Thanksgiving is a couple weeks away.  There will most likely be opportunities to serve and to share with others.  Then Christmas is not long after that.  With all that is going on in the world there are people in need and places to serve.  Watch for opportunities and go after them.   Be a blessing!  We were made for this. Ephesians 1...

  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 ...

  Have you been given advise that ended up being something that changed your life? I think we all have had conversations that led us to be stronger and better.  These things might have even strengthened our faith and brought us closer to Jesus. In the reading of Scripture I often come across verses that speak to my heart.  That is why I share some thing that might just change our thinking or serving or maybe even our walk with God.  My desire is not to be a better person or a better Christian.  My desire is simply to obey what Jesus says. Check out what Paul had to say to some of the people closest to him. Galatians 2:9-10  NLT   In fact, James, Peter, and John, who were known as pillars of the church, recognized the gift God had given me, and they accepted Barnabas and me as their co-workers. They encouraged us to keep preaching to the Gentiles, while they continued their work with the Jews. 10 Their only suggestion was that we keep on helping th...