His presence in the darkness

God is up to so many things around us. Are you seeing Him work? Keep watching and listening. His plan really is amazing.

We have a mission team in town working with us. Please pray for this team, our new campus, back2school and all the impact this team will have.

I continue sharing in this week’s e-devotion from Psalm 23. We have talked about God being our shepherd and pursuing us with His incredible love. Further, we talked about how God guides and leads us.

Today’s verse is one that we hear often, especially in the darkest of times. The hard fact of death brings us a reminder that God has a plan, God is with us and our need is for Him one and over. That is why we need the reminder that verse 4 gives us whether it is here are when the dark day comes our way.

Psalm 23:4 NLT

Even when I walk through the darkest valley, I will not be afraid, for you are close beside me. Your rod and your staff protect and comfort me.

Everyone goes through that dark day and deals with death. It might be a friend or family. It could be a child or a spouse, a parent or someone very close to us. It is in those days that we need to hear from God and claim His presence in our lives.

I do not need to be afraid when that day comes, and the biggest reason why fear doesn’t have to grip my life is the presence of God. He is with me. He is always with us. We might not feel Him. We might not even want Him with us, but He is near. He loves us.

It really feels like a valley when that darkness and pain hits. That is a place we have all been or will go. That is the place we find a huge need, and God knows that need very well.

His presence makes all the difference in the world. May we see the light in the darkness. It is His light and His presence that lightens our heaviness as well as makes the dark not so bad. And I need that. How about you?

Praise God for Psalm 23 reminding us of His presence and His pursuit of each and every one of us. Till the end of this week we will walk through the chapter of Psalm 23.

Francis Chan's "Forgotten God" (brand new book)

One of the most powerful preachers, writers and leaders of our time, in my opinion, is Francis Chan. His first book, Crazy Love , revolutionized my thoughts about God's love as well as my interacting with God. Now it is time for a brand new book from Chan being released tomorrow, September 1st. The book is Forgotten God . This is a phenomenal book about the power that Christians and the church can and must tap into. All of it is within the Holy Spirit. Francis talks about the power that was seen in the book of Acts when the Holy Spirit began to move among people. It is true that many have avoided or maybe forgotten what the Holy Spirit is all about. And like the Savior who poured out His life and blood so we have reason to rejoice, we were made to lay down our lives and give until it hurts. We are most alive when we are loving and actively giving of ourselves because we were made to do these things. It is when we live like this that the Spirit of God moves and ac...

inspiration from C.S. Lewis

There are many people, past and present, who get our attention by what they write or say or share. For me C.S. Lewis is one of those. He was a prolific writer who continues to grab the attention of thinkers from many different points of view. Lewis first grabbed my attention when I was in 5 th grader, and our teacher, Mrs. Foy, shared The Chronicles of Narnia with our class. It was a powerful time that this dreamer opened doors to thinking like I had never lived before. He wrote of faith, of far off places and of strong figures who found their character rooted deep in God. C.S. Lewis was born in 1898 and died in 1963, 7 years before I was born. It wasn’t until his 30’s that under the influence of his friend Tolkien that he came to be a Christian. He was raised in a traditional church going home, turned away from God as an Atheist in his teen years and through trying to stay away from God and faith returned to God with...

Catalyst ticket arrived

My ticket to the Catalyst Conference, in Atlanta Oct 8-10, just arrived. I'm excited!

Michael Harrison's e-devotion

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