Michael Harrison's e-devotion

  What happens at the speedway stays at the speedway. Nah.  That is not true.  In fact the people that partner with Raceway Ministries are ready to do some awesome things and have some great conversations.  Please pray for this team. 2 Corinthians 13:14  NLT   May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.  We get to help people see and know the love of God.  Through acts of kindness and conversations, we will talk about life and how God’s love has impacted our lives. Galatians 5:13  NLT   For you have been called to live in freedom, my brothers and sisters. But don’t use your freedom to satisfy your sinful nature. Instead, use your freedom to serve one another in love. This group will give of their time to serve others.  Through golf cart rides for those with mobility issues, giving away coffee and lemonade and snacks, through worship services and more we get to help ...

  We get to serve.   It all began in 2001 after we moved to Virginia.  There were lots of opportunities to serve where our church and I could be a part.  There are always opportunities.  There is always a list.   One of those was through Raceway Ministries at the speedway in Martinsville where NASCAR comes to town every year.  And as Paul Harvey would say, “that’s the rest of the story”.   Not sure how many races I have been to, but I can tell you that I have only watched a few laps of some race.  In these years I have met thousands of race fans from all over the country and some foreign countries. It has been full of conversations.  Full of praying for people.  Full of talking about life, sharing snacks and coffee, giving golf cart rides from one place to another and so much more.   But the best part …  We get to talk about Jesus.  Not only does our team host worship services at the speedway before the big race, but ...

  We are back at the speedway serving along side some of the greatest team members in all the world.  Raceway Ministries in Martinsville offers refreshments, worship services, ADA guest assistance and lots of conversations about Jesus.  It is an honor to serve at our local speedway. Romans 1:10  NLT   One of the things I always pray for is the opportunity, God willing, to come at last to see you.   We all have opportunities.  Do we take them?   There are opportunities around us.  Do we see them?   And even more, do we care about the opportunities given to us?   Paul prayed for opportunities as the verse above says.  His eyes were open, and he was asking for a chance to use his story to help others.  We have the same kind of opportunities.   This week is just one more of those for the team I get to serve with.  It is time for the work of Raceway Ministries at Martinsville Speedway.  When the world comes to ou...

  It was over 222 years ago that I first had the opportunity to serve with the Raceway Ministries Martinsville team, and it is an incredible opportunity.  Since then I have had the honor of serving with Raceway Ministries in various ways.  It is an honor to share Jesus with race fans at the speedway.   This stuff happens at races all over the world.  There are men and women giving their time to serve the racing community.  They offer worship services, counseling, refreshments, Jesus conversations and more.  I have met so many people committed to making a difference in a place where few others will go.     In Martinsville our team offers several different things, and it is also a blessing to work along side the leaders and team of Martinsville Speedway.  Sunday morning before the race this weekend there will be a worship service for race fans.  We will have a team of cart drivers helping fans w...

Some of my favorite things … this week I have been able to enjoy some of my favorite things in all the world.  You know, I believe that God intends for us to enjoy life.  That is part of the abundance part we heard about in John 10:10. Remember that our enemy is ready to steal from us all that joy God has given, but God intends for us to know His abundance and His blessings.  That does not say God gives us happiness or gives us all we want.  He gives joy and abundance. James 4:6  NASB   But He gives a greater grace. Therefore it says, “God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” Last weekend I was part of the Raceway Ministries team serving at the Martinsville Speedway.  I enjoy interacting with race fans, but some of the greatest conversations aren’t about racing or the weather.  Those conversations are about Jesus. The outcome of some those conversations have been huge.  I talked with a pastor in Indiana who serves Jewish p...

Look around you.  This week we have talked about opportunities that God gives us as well as the principles of recovery ministry.  The people we are around are going through so many things that we don’t know about. There are no tags on their shirts or signs over their heads that tell us they lost a loved one, they are struggling with addiction or depression, they don’t tell us their life’s story as we walk by.  But what we do have is the opportunity to make a difference in the lives of people who cross our path. It could be as simple as a smile and head nod.  It might be as time consuming as a long conversation or a drive across town.  What is need is for us to look around, see the opportunities God gives, notice the people who cross our path, and do something about it.  Speak up.  Share something.  Give value to others. Psalm 121:1-2  NASB   I will raise my eyes to the mountains; From where will my help come? 2 My help comes from th...

Romans 1:10  NLT   One of the things I always pray for is the opportunity, God willing, to come at last to see you. We all have opportunities.  Do we take them? There are opportunities around us.  Do we see them? And even more, do we care about the opportunities? Paul prayed for opportunities, as the verse above states.  He had his eyes open and was asking for a chance to use his story to help others.  We have the same opportunities. This week is just one of those for me.  It is time for the work of Raceway Ministries at Martinsville Speedway.  When the world comes to our town, I believe Jesus wold have us in the mix of things taking opportunities to share about Him. Colossians 4:5  NLT   Live wisely among those who are not believers, and make the most of every opportunity. The way we live often opens opportunities.  When people see our faith, doors will open, conversations will start, questions will be asked, ears will be open to h...

Psalm 86:12  NLT   With all my heart I will praise you, O Lord my God. I will give glory to your name forever, Simply today is the overflow of what is on my mind coming out of a busy and fruitful weekend.  God really is good. Our team serving at Martinsville Speedway has been able to help race fans during Nascar events for more than 30 years, and I have been part of it for 22 of those years.  What an amazing and blessed time each race. This weekend was the same.  There seems to always be difficult weather, but we got through it.  Friday evening brought a pretty bad storm, but God watched over the property and all the people.  I am thankful for His protection over our team. There is no telling how many people we have been able to serve with refreshments, guest services and were a part of the worship service.  Each conversation that included talking about Jesus.  There were lots of those conversations, and that is what we prayed for.  I am...

  Once again our team has the honor of serving at Martinsville Speedway this weekend through Raceway Ministry Martinsville.  We are committed to loved people because of a few important reasons. First, God loves people.  Second, people matter to God, and third, lots of people are coming to our community.  We have been blessed with an opportunity to share. Did you hear that?  We have an opportunity to share about Jesus.  And it is the Gospel, the Good News about Jesus, that we get to share this weekend. Mark 8:35 NASB For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it.   Have we accepted what God has given us?  The GOSPEL is the single most important part of our faith.  This is a very simple truth that we get to share with others.   Easter was this past weekend, and it we learned about Him … Jesus is the son of God sent to the world to deal wi...