Michael Harrison's e-devotion

  Today’s devotion is a thought, and a powerful thought at that, from Henri Nouwen.  He was one of the greatest authors I have read.  His writing makes me stop and think. And this topic in particular is extremely powerful if we get it.  So, spend some time going deeper and hearing what Jesus meant by giving us more when He left.  We need to know that Christ lives in us, and nothing can change that fact. Read on and keep applying the truth of God. Matthew 28: 20  “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”   Jesus says, “It is good for you that I go, so that I can send you my breath, so that you can breathe my life in you.”  We start seeing what it means when Jesus finally says, “I will be with you always until the end of time.”  He means, “I will be so intimately with you that you and I are one.  You can breathe my breath and you can say, 'Not I live anymore, but Christ lives in me.'”

  Today’s devotion is from one of my favorite authors, Henri Nouwen.  May we find ourselves moving even more toward the life God gives us.  Read on… Moving From Death Toward Life Jesus is able to move around in the most difficult situations, not only physically and emotionally, but spiritually. He can explore new ways of loving because he is rooted in God. He breaks right through routines when they become rigid and no longer serve God. He criticizes the Pharisees who were stuck in routines. Jesus also warns people about living rootless lives. He says, “Remain in me as I remain in you. I love you with the same love that the Father loves me.” He is speaking about the inner connectedness of life. Life-giving connectedness is what allows Jesus to move out of the places of death toward life. The experience of joy that Jesus offers is not happiness. It is not just feeling “up.” Joy is something else. The joy of Jesus is never disconnected from sorrow. Luke 6: 22, 23  Bless...

  You most likely have heard this verse before and even quoted it and thought about it and tried to practice it before.  There are so many good things that happen when we seek to be still. Psalm 46:10  NLT  “Be still, and know that I am God! I will be honored by every nation. I will be honored throughout the world.” I’d like to share with you today once again from one of my favorite authors, Henri Nouwen.  I receive his daily devotional thought, and this one came today.  It hit for me.  Therefore I share with you. As you read I pray God speaks to you and encourages you as you seek to walk with Him. The Careful Balance Somewhere we know that without a lonely place, our lives are in danger. Somewhere we know that without silence, words lose their meaning; that without listening, speaking no longer heals; that without distance, closeness cannot cure. Somewhere we know that without a solitary place, our actions quickly become empty gestures. The careful ba...

  Today’s e-devotion is from one of my favorites, Henri Nouwen, and his daily email devotion.  This is a powerful word. Joy Flows from Communication with God The joy that Jesus offers his disciples is his own joy, which flows from his intimate communion with the One who sent him.  It is a joy that does not separate happy days from sad days, successful moments from moments of failure, experiences of honor from experiences of dishonor, passion from resurrection.  This joy is a divine gift that does not leave us during times of illness, poverty, oppression, or persecution.  It is present even when the world laughs or tortures, robs or maims, fights or kills.  It is truly ecstatic, always moving us away from the house of fear into the house of love, and always proclaiming that death no longer has the final say, though its noise remains loud and its devastation visible.  The joy of Jesus lifts up life to be celebrated. JOHN 17:13 NIV "I am coming to you now...

  Today’s devotion is from one of my favorite authors, Henri Nouwen, and the devotion email from yesterday.  It reenforces much of what we have been sharing about prayer at our church. Read on.  Check out more from Nouwen at https://henrinouwen.org/meditation/ Imagining Christ Contemplative prayer can be described as an imagining of God’s Son, Jesus, a letting him enter fully into our consciousness so that he becomes the icon always present in the inner room of our hearts.  By gazing at Jesus, walking on the earth, we give him loving attention and we “see” with our minds and hearts how he is the way to the Father.  Jesus’ life and work is an uninterrupted union with and contemplation of his Father.  We, as followers of Jesus, try to enter into the same disposition.  We welcome the discipline of contemplation, taking time regularly to enter into the life of Jesus to contemplate the incredible bond between Jesus and the Father.  And we trust that in...

  Today’s devotion is from one of my favorite authors, Henri Nouwen.  I pray this will encourage you to keep on giving what is most valuable to the people you encounter. Our Lives Multiply by Giving Them Away The fruitfulness of our little life, once we recognize it and live it as the life of the Beloved, is beyond anything we can imagine.  One of the greatest acts of faith is to believe that the few years we live on this earth are like a little seed planted in very rich soil.  For this seed to bear fruit, it must die.  We often see or feel only the dying, but the harvest will be abundant even when we ourselves are the harvesters. How different would our life be were we truly able to trust that it multiplied in being given away!  How different would our life be if we could believe that every little act of faithfulness, every gesture of love, every word of forgiveness, every little bit of joy and peace will multiply and multiply as long as there are people t...

  One of my favorite authors is Henri Nouwen.  Insightful and pointing… just a couple of words that describes what happens in my heart when I spend a little time reading what He wrote. I shared recently how I have been encouraged and even challenged by a book on praying through Psalms.  That is why what I share today is so good.  It hit me, and I had to share with you. The following is from a newsletter from Henry Nouwen from June30, 2022: A Prayer O Lord, who else or what else can I desire but you? You are my Lord, Lord of my heart, mind, and soul. You know me through and through. In and through you everything that is finds its origin and goal. You embrace all that exists and care for it with divine love and compassion. Why, then, do I keep expecting happiness and satisfaction outside of you? Why do I keep relating to you as one of my many relationships, instead of my only relationship, in which all other ones are grounded? Why do I keep looking for popularity, resp...

Here is a devotion from Henri Nouwen that spoke to me big time.  As you read this I pray that we believe the fact that we belong to God. You Belong to God At issue here is the question: “To whom do I belong? God or to the world?” Many of my daily preoccupations suggest that I belong more to the world than to God. A little criticism makes me angry, and a little rejection makes me depressed. A little praise raises my spirits, and a little success excites me. It takes very little to raise me up or thrust me down. Often I am like a small boat on the ocean, completely at the mercy of its waves. All the time and energy I spend in keeping some kind of balance and preventing myself from being tipped over and drowning shows that my life is mostly a struggle for survival: not a holy struggle, but an anxious struggle resulting from the mistaken idea that it is the world that defines me. . . . As long as we belong to this world, we will remain subject to its competitive wa...

Today’s devotion is from Henri Nouwen and his daily meditations.  It is titled “Keeping Close to the Word of God”.  I pray we are all encouraged to stay in the word of God and encourage others to do the same! The words of Jesus can keep us erect and confident in the midst of the turmoil of the end-time. They can support us,  encourage  us, and give us life even when everything around us speaks of death. Jesus' words are food for eternal life. They do much more than give us ideas and inspiration. They lead us into the eternal life while we are still being clothed in mortal flesh. When we keep close to the word of Jesus, reflecting on it, "chewing" on it, eating it as food for the soul, we will enter even more deeply into the everlasting love of God. John 17:26  NIV I have made you   known to them,   and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in them   and that I myself may be in th...

Ephesians 5:2 (NASB) and walk in love, just as Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma. One of the most difficult things we do in life is to deal with difficult people with love.   It is easier to avoid someone or even to be mean rather than to show love or even to forgive.   When we choose to step up and show the love of God, we choose to act outside of the natural, or what feels natural, and to do what is supernatural. This kind of action doesn’t make us a superhero or make us better than someone else.   Often what showing love, being kind of offering forgiveness does is open the opportunity for God to be seen and heard by the people you encounter.   Who are the people in your life that need to see love?   Who are some of the people in your life that rarely have someone show genuine concern for?   I believe that there are people all around us who are kind of falling through...