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.
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3 Steps To An Amazing Life!

What Do You Expect?

1. Expectation!  We all have desires, what we want, what we wish, but we need to learn that there is a very big difference between what we desire and what we expect.  Desire can be a good and powerful thing, but only if we learn to fix our expectation, so that it rewards our desires.  If your expectation is wrong, then everything else in your life will be thrown in the wrong direction.  Desire is the spark, but expectation is the fire.  Expectation gets it’s power from faith.  God created you, loves you and has an amazing plan for your life.  Expect great and miraculous things and your faith will manifest the incredible.  Set your heart on the things of God and expect His blessings to flow and they most certainly will!

What He Has Is Best!

2.  Acceptance!  When God begins to move in and through your life, it is an incredible and amazing thing.  God plants a desire in your heart and gives you the faith the expect that desire to become a reality, but you still have to do your part.  Many times in life, we cannot possess what our Creator has for us, because we do not accept what our Creator is offering us.  The heart of expectation created by God will lead the soul to accept the mighty and amazing things of God.  Spiritual blessing is yours, but you have to receive it, take it and use it!

A Leap Of Faith!

3.  Trust!  Our Creator is the great promise maker and the great promise keeper!  As we learn to live in obedient surrender to Him, He gives us a life abundant and everlasting that is greater than anything that we could dream or imagine.  When we learn to live a life of trust, God gets glory.  Our glorified God is worthy of our trust.  Sometimes in order to trust Him, I have to get myself and my will out-of-the-way.  Sometimes the choice is between me and Him!  Do I trust myself or do I trust Him?  It should be a no brainer, but it’s not always so simple.  Trusting in Him is an act of faith, which allows me to say with my actions and reactions that His will is better than mine!

Expect, Accept and Trust!  These three steps will begin a wonderful and amazing journey, which will allow you to live an amazing life, not just for today, but for all eternity!

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Want Less Worry And More Peace?

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Do Not Worry!

Worry is a lack of trust in the God who loves you with an unconditional and amazing love.  He has promised that as we love Him, He will work all things together for our good.  When we allow worry or fear to consume us, then we are making the choice to believe the false information brought about by the lies of the enemy.

When we allow ourselves to be consumed by worry and overtaken by fear, then we express that our real belief is that our problem is too big for God to take care of.   We would never say this out loud, but the actions and reactions of our lives and living say it for us again and again. Fear causes us to think that our sin is so great that even God can’t forgive us.

God does forgive and God has forgiven.  Lay your anxiety, sadness and fear aside.  Your life out of control will never get bigger than God’s power to bring order, direction and purpose to your life. Worry steals the gift of joy that God wants to fill your life with.  Peace flows into and through a Believer’s life as we trust God.

Can you trust Him?  Sure you can!  Will you trust Him?  It starts right now in this moment.  Shout it out loud:  “Jesus, I trust you will all of my heart, because part just want do!”  Nothing is impossible with God, Who has “better than good” plans for your life!

Stop listening to all of the negativity of the world.  Instead saturate your mind and soul with the Word of God and enjoy the freedom that He brings!  When you really believe and genuinely confess Who God is and what He is able to accomplish in your life, worry and fear will disappear.  Joy will begin to grow and you will start to be who you were created to be!

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Compelled!

Your love compels me!

I looked into their eyes and saw they had no hope.

You gave me grace and told me to share.

I obeyed with the help of my friends and You amazed us.

We look into each other’s eyes and now we see hope and so much more.

You give us grace and we share with one another and even others.

We obey and the stuff of God flows through our lives like a mighty river.

Thank You for love, hope and grace.  Thank You for opportunity to receive, share and give!

Thank You that we can thank you!