Wiser Still 3-24-09

Good morning, Lord Jesus. You are my lifeline. So I take a firm grip with these first thoughts and words of prayer, as You pull me up and out of my slumber and into my day. … "Give instruction to the wise, and they will become wiser still; teach the righteous and they will gain in learning. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight" (Proverbs 9:9-10). I was so honored and excited to be welcomed by the leaders of the Healing Academy of Asbury Theological Seminary to speak with their students of healing prayer ministry yesterday. Eager minds and hearts gathered around to hear of stories and lessons learned along my own journey of learning to minister the healing love of God, to bind up the brokenhearted, and set the captives free in the name of Jesus and the power of the Holy Spirit to the glory of our Father (Isaiah 61, fulfilled in Christ and being fulfilled through the Body of Christ). I thank You for their humility to hear from my perspective and approach to ministry, as You are teaching, training, equipping, and empowering them to grow into their own, all by Your grace. And of all the things I taught or shared, I'm sure the most important was the necessity of absolute dependence upon You. Depth of prayer life determines the power of ministry life. We have no power apart from the power of Your Holy Spirit (Acts 1:8). We have no wisdom or counsel apart from the One who is the Wonderful Counselor (Isaiah 9:6). We have no Father's blessing to speak or pray apart from the blessing of communion in prayer with our Father in heaven, who is One with the Son and One with the Holy Spirit (Matthew 6:9). You are the source of anything good we have to give. Freely we have received from You so that freely we may give to others. "And as you go, preach, saying, 'The kingdom of heaven is at hand.' Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons. Freely you have received, freely give" (Matthew 10:8, NKJV). Thank You, Lord, for the gift of allowing me to give away to these passionate students of Your healing ministry a measure of all You have so freely given me. May we all continue to grow wiser still as we gain in learning Your wisdom, Your ways, and Your power in our generation and pass it on to the next. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays Friends, please Save the Date of Friday Night, April 24th for our annual Messiah Ministries Celebration Dinner in Lexington to celebrate all the Lord is doing through our ministry and share our vision and calling with all our supporters and friends. You are invited! Please make plans to come and bring some friends who may have a heart for what we are doing. More details to follow soon. For planning, we will need an RSVP to Marilyn or a table host: DirOfMinistries@aol.com We always need lots of volunteers to help also, so please send us a note if you'd like to help in that way. Subscribe by email to me at 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 Order My Book, Morning by Morning, and our Ministry Resources or Contribute to our vision and calling: www.shop.messiah-ministries.org