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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Tongue Talk!

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James 3:9  “With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God’s likeness.”  We have a decision to make right now!  Our tongue can be a destructive weapon for tearing down or a powerful tool for building up!  I cannot control your tongue!  The truth is:  I have a big enough battle with my own!  And if we are all honest, we would have to admit that we all have a very big battle that we need to engage in with our own tongue!

Be careful how you use you tongue!  Take some time today to listen to the conversations that are going on all around you.  Are the people that are talking – using their tongues to build up or tear down?  Don’t judge other people or their conversations – this is not your focus today!

Now take some time today to listen to your own conversations:  Is your tongue building up or tearing down?  Try to discipline your tongue to build up!  You will become a much more popular person – other people will actually want to listen to what you have to say.  God will be glorified and He deserves to be with our speech and actions.  And you will be blessed – more than you realize!

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Don’t Give Up!

During the past weekend I have been trying to update this blog!  I am trying to change the theme and I have to upload a file on-line and I am messing in an area that I have very little knowledge of.  I have read a lot about programming, file transfer protocol and I am – more lost now than when I started, but I will not give up, because I want to make this site better, so that it might be more of a blessing to more people!

While working on and through this challenge, I thought about how many times, so many of us give up and fail to follow through, when things get difficult!  Life is not easy and anything in life that is really worth anything is usually hard, but it is always worth the effort, if we will just follow through, stick with it and stay faithful!

Think for a moment about the calling that God has placed upon each of our lives!  Luke 4:18 puts it this way:  “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because He has anointed me to preach the good news to the poor.  He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

You don’t have to do this thing called life by yourself!  God is with you!  His Spirit is on you and in you!  You have His anointing and power flowing to and through your life so that you might preach the good news that there is hope and a future.  Our job is to proclaim that freedom is available for every man, woman, boy and girl – through a relationship with our amazing God, Who has an incredible plan for each of our lives.  Open your eyes and encourage others to open their eyes and see all that God has done, is doing and is going to do!

Don’t give up and don’t give in!  God has freedom and He wants this freedom to release you – so that you might tell everyone about the Lord’s favor and blessings!