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.
How’s your life? Are you happy with where you are and where you are going? If you are not happy, then what can you do about it? If you are happy, then what can you do to appreciate your blessings and grow them to share with others?
The key to happiness is fulfillment! If you can figure out what it is that fulfills you and head toward that, then you will experience happiness, regardless of your life circumstances. God is real! God loves you and He has a plan for your life! His plan is to help you to live a fulfilled life!
You cannot live according to this amazing plan by accident. You have to make a decision that you are going to live your life on purpose, according to His purpose! When we figure this out and get this right, our life begins to travel along this amazing path that God has marked out for us. As we learn to listen to Him and as we yield to His ways, we begin to see, hear and experience things in a brand new and amazing way!
What do you need to do today to yield to God and His plan? What can you do? What will you do? Do it!
There are some things that I love to do and there are some things that I hate to do and there are some things that fall some where in between! The things that I love to do are never a problem. I get up, jump in and get it accomplished. The things that I don’t like to do are some times a problem, but most of the time are not, because I just suck it up and get it done, because I know it has to be done. The real challenge for me or those things that fall in between!
I don’t love it and I don’t hate it, I am just indifferent! Indifference is a killer! If I love something, then there is great potential for growth and a future. If I hate something, then at least I know where I need to go to make progress. But when I am indifferent, I just tend to sit there with no motion forward or backward and this is very dangerous.
The truth for many of us is that we have grown indifferent toward a lot of things and the result is that there is much in our lives that needs to be accomplished, but it can’t and it won’t because of our indifference.
Take a little time today to think about what or who you are indifferent about and then decide to do something about it – you will be glad you did!
I am a minister because this is what God has called and gifted me to do with my life! I am a minister because I love God and want in some way to try and express love back to Him through the service of my life lived for Him and His Kingdom! I am a minister because I love people and really do care about their living the incredible and amazing life that God has for them!
There are days that being a minister gets to be more than I can handle, but I get up the next day and can think of nothing else that I can do with my life that would satisfy or fulfill me. God calling me to serve as His minister is not optional for me! Even though there are brief moments where I might think about hanging up the ministerial robes, it is nothing more than a thought of the flesh passing through my life to try and cause me to miss out on the great blessing of a God. Remember: Some of God’s greatest blessing flows through challenge!
Loving God and loving people present me with plenty of challenges as I live my life in this world, but with every challenge comes a greater opportunity to be used by God for His glory and man’s blessing. You love God and you love people – how does God want to use this in your life to help you accomplish glory for Him and blessing for others? Think about it – you’ll be glad you did!
Michael Joe Harvell 