Good morning, Lord Jesus. I watch and wait for the leading of Your Spirit, as I begin my day in the communion of prayer with You. …
“The Lord spoke with you face to face at the mountain, out of the fire” (Deuteronomy 5:4).
You delivered Israel out of the bondage of Egypt. You led them through the wilderness on their way to the Promised Land. And at Your holy mountain in the desert, You expressed Your heart for their lives to Moses and all the people. Your heart was that “it might go well with them and their children forever” (v. 5:29). Yet it was hard for them to hear Your heart because they were so afraid of Your Presence (v. 5:23-27).
“Indeed our God is a consuming fire” (Hebrew 12:29). And You are a holy God Who is worthy of a healthy and holy fear of the Lord, but it’s not a fear to make us afraid and hold back from You. It’s a fear of honor and respect, that we would not try to hide our true heart, hopes, struggles, and sins from You, but willingly open all our heart and soul to You. It’s Your holy fire that purifies our hearts for the very purpose of drawing near to You with “clean hands and pure hearts” to “receive blessing from the Lord” as we “seek the face of the God of Jacob” (Psalm 24:3-6).
You want to speak to us “face to face”—personally, intimately. And You speak to us when we draw near to You in the mountain of Your Presence, in the high place of Your glory, when we lift up our hearts to You in prayer. But You also speak to us in the fire. Sometimes it’s the fire of the One Who is consuming everything in us that is not yet like You, that we may draw closer still. And sometimes it’s the fire of the challenges and circumstances we endure through this broken, fallen world, suffering under the burden of its “bondage to decay” and sin, not yet fully redeemed and restored to all it will be one day (Romans 8:18-23).
Thank You for speaking to me on the mountains. And thank You for speaking to me in the fires. Thank You for speaking to me when I feel enveloped by a cloud of the glory of Your Presence, face to face and heart to heart. And thank You for speaking to me when it seems everything in me and around me is being consumed in a fiery furnace, heated up seven times from the fires of hell (Daniel 3:19).
Thank You for speaking to me when I can clearly hear Your words in my heart; and thank You for speaking to me when it doesn’t seem I can hear You at all. No matter what, You’re always here, always near. And Your heart toward me is always the same—calling me to hear and trust and obey, that it may go well with me and my children forever. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.
Be encouraged today! in the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays
Friends, please keep our team in prayer as I give three talks on the Holy Spirit at the weekend retreat of my home church's Alpha Course this weekend ( www.AlphaUSA.org ). The topics are "Who is the Holy Spirit?", "What does the Holy Spirit do?", and "How can I be filled with the Holy Spirit?" This is one of our main evangelism ministries at my home church, and many with come to faith in Christ this weekend, and many will be filled with the Holy Spirit I believe (www.CentenaryLex.org ).
Friends, please keep my family and Messiah Minstries in mind, as the Lord leads you. We appreciate so much all your prayers, encouragement and support to fulfill our calling and vision of "Preparing the Way of the Lord ... Ministering the Healing Love of God" at home and abroad. Please let me know if I could ever talk with you or your church about our vision, our hopes, and our needs. Like a missionary, I raise my own support to fulfill what I believe the Lord has called me to do through Messiah Ministries: tommyhays@messiah-ministries.org These are challenging financial times, but our hope and trust is in the Lord Who will bring us through every fire and draw us near to Him in the mountain of His Presence! I pray that for you and thank you for praying that for me!
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