Turn Aside to See 6-22-09

Good morning, Lord Jesus. I steady my soul and focus my thoughts on You alone. ... "Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian; he led his flock beyond the wilderness, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of a bush; he looked and the bush was blazing, yet it was not consumed. Then Moses said, 'I must turn aside and look at this great sight, and see why the bush is not burned up.' When the Lord saw that he had turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, 'Moses! Moses!' And he said, 'Here I am' (Exodus 3:1-4). Moses got up one morning, like every morning, and went to work. He was going about his business, tending the flock and the things entrusted to his care. Yet he didn't know how close he was to "the mountain of God." He didn't know the Living Presence of the Living God was so near, even in his everyday life -- "though indeed He is not far from each one of us" (Acts 17:27). But it was as Moses "turned aside to see" that You spoke to him out of the flame of fire of the blazing bush. There You gave him eyes to see and ears to hear that You were present. And there in Your Presence, Moses stood on "holy ground" (Exodus 3:5). O God, You are "a consuming fire" (Hebrews 12:29). And You have poured the consuming fire of Your steadfast love and ever-abiding Presence into our hearts by Your Holy Spirit (Romans 5:5). Every day, Your Spirit longs to set our hearts ablaze with the fiery passion for Jesus and for the flocks and things entrusted to our care. By Your grace, we carry the fire of God wherever we go. We don't have to go to a mountain in the desert or to a temple downtown to turn aside to see You in our midst. You are always here, always abiding within us by Your Spirit -- the "Spirit of Christ" within us, the hope of glory (Romans 8:9; Colossians 1:27). Through the blood of the Lamb cleansing our sins and the purifying fire of the Holy Spirit consuming our hearts, we are Your sons and daughters. And wherever we go is Your holy ground, for You are with us and You are within us. In Christ we have become "the righteousness of God" (2 Corinthians 5:21). And like Moses and Isaiah and all who have eyes to see and ears to hear the truth of Your ever-abiding Presence, our right response to Your mercy and love is to turn aside to see and say, "Here I am, Lord. Send me" (Exodus 3:4; Isaiah 6:8). In Jesus' name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays Friends, please come join us if you can and pray for us if you can't at the annual Aldersgate Conference on Spirit-Filled Living, held this year in Greensboro, NC the first week of July: www.Aldersgate09.org I'm thrilled to be one of the Keynote Speakers this year with the Friday Night message on healing and also teaching two equipping sessions on healing of damaged emotions and healing prayer ministry. With deep, renewing worship and an atmosphere of people hungry for more of the Lord, Aldersgate is always a highlight of my year. Come if you can and make plans to join us next summer! We hope to have my new book in time to introduce it at Aldersgate called Free to Be Like Jesus -- Transforming Power of Healing & Deliverance. Please keep this in your prayers and I hope you'll want to be one of the first to order one. Please prayerfully consider joining with me in the vision and calling of Messiah Ministries as an Isaiah 35 Streams in the Desert Covenant Partner this year if it would bring you joy to stand with us in this way. I'll be glad to talk with you about this means of God's steady provision for the advance of His Kingdom through our ministry of proclaiming the coming of the Kingdom of God, binding up the brokenhearted and setting the captives free, in the love and power of God: MessiahMin@aol.com 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 our Ministry Resources or Contribute to our vision and calling: www.shop.messiah-ministries.org