Fountain of Newness of Life 8-16-08

Good morning, Lord Jesus. I surrender all again this day and every day, all by the power of Your grace. ... "Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? Therefore we have been buried with Him by baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life. So if we have been united with Him in a death like His, we will certainly be united with Him in a resurrection like His" (Romans 6:3-5). Last night at The Fountain, our ministry's monthly ecumenical gathering as an expression of the city-wide church in our community, a young woman celebrated the baptism of newness of life in You. I had the honor and the joy of baptizing and immersing Melanie in the fountain of Your living waters. As she came bursting up out of the waters with her hands and face lifted to heaven, literally trembling with delight, we all entered with her into a deeper surrender of newness of life. She wasn't baptized into our ministry or into any specific local church. Like each of us who have entered into the sacrament of these living waters as on outward sign of Your inward grace, Melanie was baptized into Christ. She's now dead to sin and self, and alive in Christ, filled with Your Spirit in resurrection power to walk in newness of life. As we remembered out baptism, many of us with the outward sign of those same living waters that washed over Melanie, we also renewed our surrender and commitment to live our lives for You. That by water and the Spirit, we might live and grow as faithful disciples of Christ. What a night at The Fountain. What a life in Your Fountain. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays Friends, I pray the blessing of newness of life in Christ for you today. I'm excited to be preaching at my home church at Centenary United Methodist in Lexington at two of our services, the 11:15 and 5:15 tomorrow, on trusting God, Proverbs 3:5-6 www.centenarylex.com I would appreciate your prayers. I'll be preaching at the First Methodist Church in Winchester, Kentucky next Sunday as part of our School of Spiritual Ministry there, Thursday through Sunday. Please contact Marilyn if you'd like to come DirOfMinistries@aol.com Order my book, Morning by Morning, and our Ministry Resources at: www.shop.messiah-ministries.org Come to The Fountain! on the 3rd Friday night of every month for our ministry's gathering of the body of Christ from every tradition and stream to worship the Lord in Sprit and in Truth. Come drink deeply from the Living Waters in the freedom of the Spirit. 7 pm in the chapel at Centenary. All are welcome. Call for details: 859-422-1794 Come to the Mountain! every Monday night at 7 pm to pray for Israel and the peace of Jerusalem led by Doris and Bob McCray of our ministry. Hosted in the upstairs community room of First Southern National Bank at 3060 Harrodsburg Rd in Lexington. Contact Doris at bndmccray@windstream.net All are welcome! Subscribe free by email to Messiah Ministries -- MessiahMin@aol.com -- "Preparing the Way of the Lord ... Ministering the Healing Love of God" www.messiah-ministries.org 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502