Michael Harrison's e-devotion

  It is a new week, and Easter is only a few weeks away.  In fact there are lots of opportunities in front of us. Take some time this week and ask God to speak to you, guide you, prepare you for celebrating Easter and seeking what God desires for you.   In this e-devotion I am simply going to share some verses from yesterday’s sermon.  Something from each verse stands out and speaks about faith in God alone.  It strengthens us and helps us lean on God even more. Ephesians 2:4  NLT   But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much, Facts.  Our God desires to give His mercy and to show His love. Mark 13:31  NLT   Heaven and earth will disappear, but my words will never disappear. The words God shares are eternal and trust worthy. Mark 8:35  NLT   If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake and for the sake of the Good News, you will save it. In John 12 Jesus is quoted to say...

  Yesterday I encouraged us to embrace moments of growth.  There are lots of opportunities, even daily, to learn and grow. Growth is something that should be natural an even desired.  Yet what keeps us from growing can be many things.  It could be thinking too little of yourself.  It could be thinking too much of yourself.  It could be that you think you have already grown enough. It is my understanding that God desires us to grow and learn all the way to the moment that we have no more life in us.  Desire to grow.  Desire to be more like Jesus.   Ephesians 4:15-16  NLT   Then we will no longer be immature like children. We won’t be tossed and blown about by every wind of new teaching. We will not be influenced when people try to trick us with lies so clever they sound like the truth.  Instead, we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church.  Those v...

  1 Peter 3:17-18  NLT   You already know these things, dear friends. So be on guard; then you will not be carried away by the errors of these wicked people and lose your own secure footing.  Rather, you must grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. All glory to him, both now and forever! Amen. The opportunities really are endless.  But do we take them?  Each day there are growth moments that we either taken in or we push away.  It is great to grow and let God work in our lives. These can be moments with God.  And we need these.  Times in the Bible, praying, seeking God and thinking about all He has done. This is opportunities to hear how others are growing in their faith.  Listen to stories, music, sermons and have conversations about what God is doing, how He works and the wonderful ways God moves. Go on that trip.  Read that book.  Check out what gets you moving in the way of faith.  Those ar...

  May we get this, hold this, believe this and tell others about this!   Hebrews 12:1-2  NLT  Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. 2 We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne.   Be encouraged.  You are not alone.   Not only is God with us but others are with us.  So many have been through what we are going through.  Like a huge stadium (see verse 1 above) many are cheering us on.   Be encouraged.  Throw away what slows you down and tripps you up.   Some times it is sin.  Deal with it.  Ask forgiveness and move on. ...

  This past Sunday I shared a message with our church in our series “prepare me” as we get ready for Easter.  I challenged us to take God at His work and ask for Wisdom.  But when we ask there may be a problem, and that problem is fueled by doubting. James 1:5-8  NLT   If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking. 6 But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind. 7 Such people should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. 8 Their loyalty is divided between God and the world, and they are unstable in everything they do. That is the Scripture I shared.  It is also, verse 5, my life verse.  We should ask God for wisdom and not doubt.  Doubting as these verses share note that our attention and lives are divided between the world and God...

  It really does break my heart to see people going through difficult times.  That is why I want to give you just a few thoughts about this kind of stuff. Psalm 34:18  NLT   The Lord is close to the brokenhearted; he rescues those whose spirits are crushed. There is the first thing to know and remember.  God is close to those who are hurting and positioned to help, rescue, provide and more.  And so often he does those things that others.  That is people, His children, like you and me. Late last week I got several notes from my dear friend Alex in Cuba.  He shared the declining situation and how hard the people of Cuba are having to work to have what is needed for their families.  The failure of systems in Cuba makes it hard not just for the ministry to happen but for the needed things like food, gasoline and electricity to be found. I got a message from another friend who is having surgery and her husband continues to have critical medical ne...