Rev. Matthew C. Harrison Has Done It Again!!

As Executive Director of LCMS World Relief and Human Care, Rev. Matthew C. Harrison is coordinating the LCMS response efforts in Haiti. If you check out Rev. Harrison's blog, you will find frequent updates from the ground in Haiti, including pictures and video.

Rev. Harrison is serving the church in other ways as well...

In 2008, Rev. Harrison's book entitled Christ Have Mercy: How to Put Your Faith in Action, was published by CPH. I started reading this book while on vacation this past summer, and then later finished it when CPH made it available as an audio book. In my first encounter with Rev. Harrison's writing I was floored. Not only is Rev. Harrison clearly a scholar and faithful theologian, but he has avoided the trap of getting bogged down in minutia. His book is a wonderful example of the best of Lutheran theology: Grounded in a clear confession of the Gospel and all its articles, on the one hand, but Evangelical in the very best sense of the word, on the other hand.

In 2009, Rev. Harrison followed up his debut release with a one-of-a-kind publication, At Home in the House of My Fathers: Presidential Sermons, Essays, Letters, and Addresses from the Missouri Synod's Great Era of Unity and Growth. Over 800 pages worth of writings which had never before been available in the English language are now in the hands of pastors, seminary students, and laymen across the country because of the work of Rev. Harrison. The writing and thoughts of C.F.W. Walther, Friedrich Wyneken, Heinrich C. Schwan, Francis Piper, Friedrich Pfotenhauer and others can now be accessed by church leaders who endeavor to make a faithful confession in the unprecedented times of the 21st Century.

Finally, just recently, Rev. Harrison has done it again. Released by Lutheran Legacy, and available from Logia.org Rev. Harrison's latest offering is another unique contribution. A Little Book on Joy: The Secret of Living a Good News Life in a Bad News World will once again display Rev. Harrison's scholarly and theological expertise, but it will offer a wealth of devotional material for any reader. Arranged in 20 brief chapters, each revealing joy in the Scriptures, this is the perfect book for husband and wife to explore together. I must confess, I preordered my copy and had been anxiously awaiting its arrival. I hope you will order one for yourself! But don't wait. because Rev. Harrison has included a unique addition to the back of his book: a 90-day devotional perfect for Lent-Pentecost.

So, are you wondering just who this Rev. Matthew C. Harrison is? I hope the next President of the LCMS! But for now, this bio taken from his book on joy will have to do:

Pastor Matthew Harrison was baptized in a small, rural parish, raised in a large, suburban church, was a missionary to native Canadians in Ontario, served as a graduate assistant at the seminary, studied in Australia, vicared in Texas, and served as pastor in rural Iowa and inner city Fort Wayne, Indiana. After co-founding a nationally recognized neighborhood renewal project in what was the poorest census tract in Indiana, he became the Executive Director of World Relief and Human Care for the Lutheran Church--Missouri Synod and had administered nearly $100 million of charitable giving worldwide. He writes, translates, and speaks extensively. He delights in his wife, Kathy, and two boys, Matthew and Mark. He is an avid bluegrass banjo player and lutheir, and finds joy in it all.