All posts by mjharvell

Welcome, friend—I’m glad you’ve pulled up a chair on the front porch of my little corner of the internet. My name is Michael Joe Harvell, and I live my life with one simple mission: to glorify God, encourage people, and leave this world a little better than I found it. I’m a husband, father, pastor, writer, Jeep enthusiast, and front-porch thinker who believes that life is best lived on purpose. I serve as pastor of Eureka Baptist Church in Anderson, South Carolina, where I get the joy of preaching, teaching, and walking with people through the ups and downs of everyday life. Over the years, I’ve discovered that faith isn’t just about Sunday mornings—it’s about living every single day in the presence and power of God. I’m also an author. My books—including The Grace Exchange: How Forgiven People Forgive People and The Word Works—grow out of the sermons, stories, and lessons I’ve learned on this journey. I write in a style that’s conversational, a little front-porch-rocking-chair, and full of stories, quotes, and Scripture that point us back to the goodness of God’s Word. When I’m not writing or preaching, you might find me sitting outside with my Bible and journal, cruising the backroads in my Jeep Gladiator, or sharing a meal and some laughs with the good folks God has put in my life. I love helping people find peace in their spirit, strength in their body, and encouragement in their soul. This blog is simply an extension of that mission. Here you’ll find devotions, encouragement, reflections, and practical insights for living a life of purpose, peace, and joy. So grab a cup of coffee, pull up a rocking chair, and stay awhile—I’d be honored to walk this road of faith with you.

Give Me A Reason!

Created For Something Special!

We often need a reason to do or be something.  Almost everyday, we are looking for something or someone to give us purpose for our existence.  If we can find a reason that is compelling enough, then it will move us into action.

This is not necessarily a bad thing in and of itself, but it becomes a bad thing when it causes us to focus on the wrong thing.  I was thinking this past week about all of the things that I allow to take my focus off of what and who it should be on.  I was thinking about how we all get caught up in this game of trying to create purpose for ourselves.  We will take, grab and latch onto it anywhere and in anyway that we can.

We don’t need to create a reason.  We don’t need anyone to give us a reason.  The fact is:  We already have a reason for living.  There is a reason and purpose for our existence, but we miss it because of our need to create something for ourselves.

Romans 8:1 says:  “Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”

Our reason, our purpose is found in one place:  Jesus!  This past week the Spirit kept this one question rattling around my head:  “WHAT ABOUT JESUS?”  This question once asked causes us to shift our focus off of self and onto Jesus – which gives us real and meaningful reason/purpose.  You see, this life we are living is not about us, it’s about Jesus!

To shift your focus start to speak and believe this phrase:  “This is not about me, this is about God!”

Eternal Stuff!

Does This Get On Your Nerves?

I sometimes get to thinking about how easily distracted I am and then before I can figure out what that means, I get distracted.  So much of the stuff that I spend energy on is wasted, because it is often stuff that really does not matter in the “grand scheme of things!”

Let’s face it – compared to eternity – life is very short.  We are all going to spend eternity somewhere.  Hopefully it is with our Creator in a place that He has created especially for us.  I want to live my life more intentionally.  A big mistake I have made in the first half of my life is trading too much of it for temporary things.

Someone asked the question:  What will it matter a year from now?  Good question, and if it does not matter a year from now, then is it really worthy of our valuable time.  If it does matter a year from now, then it deserves our best attention.

The Scripture in 2 Corinthians 4:18 give us some good advice:  “While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.” 

It is a battle to focus on what really matters, and this is a battle worth fighting.  The battle is learning to look past our natural vision, so that we can see life with our supernatural vision.  When you see and believe the supernatural things of God, it has the ability to change everything by helping you to not waste, but get the most out of life here and now by overcoming the distractions.