Friday, April 29, 2011

“In Him, We Live and Move and Have Our Being” - April 29

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Lead me, love me, live in me and through me. I give my life and this day to You. …

“The God Who made the world and everything in it, He Who is Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in shrines made by human hands, nor is He served by human hands, as though He needed anything, since He Himself gives to all mortals life and breath and all things. From one ancestor He made all nations to inhabit the whole earth, and He allotted the times of their existence and the boundaries of the places where they would live, so that they would search for God and perhaps grope for Him and find Him—though indeed He is not far from each one of us. For ‘In Him we live and move and have our being…. For we too are His offspring’” (Acts 17:24-28).

I’m a child of God. I’m created by God with life and breath to live and love in relationship with You. And You’re never far from me. You’re always with me. In fact, You’re always within me by Your Spirit who abides in me as I abide in You. You’re constantly speaking to me, constantly leading me, constantly living in me and through me. You are conforming me into Your image so that we may become one, as I live and move and have my being in You alone.

But how often do we tend to see our lives with You so differently? How often do we think so though You live off in heaven somewhere, far and distant from our everyday lives—just listening in on our morning prayers, just looking in on our daily failures, just leaning in to hear our confessions at night before we go to sleep? How often do we act though You live off in a temple or a church building somewhere, waiting for us to enshrine Your memory or pay homage to what You did for some other people long ago and beg us to do it for us again today, but of course, in some much smaller scale than the epics and encounters of “the Bible days”?

Forgive us, Lord. You’re right here with us. You never leave us nor forsake us. Every breath we breathe in is the very breath of God. You know every moment, hear every word, discern every thought. And yet You love us still. Yet You love to live within us and express Yourself through us (1 Peter 4:10-11). You are our Father and we are Your children. You are our Head and we are Your body (1 Corinthians 12:12). Your hands are our hands and Your feet are our feet, as You impart Your heart and pour Your Spirit into ours. “God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us” (Romans 5:5).

Teach me how to think that way, to live that way. Show me how to live my life as though this were true—because it is. Everywhere I go, so do You. You live in me, You abide in me, and I in You (John 15:4-5). In You, I live and move and have my being. Let the reality of that truth sink into my soul. Let the course of my day reflect my faith in that truth. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.

Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays

Friends, it's always good to make it back home to Texas for a little while. Please keep us in prayer here, as I lead the Clergy Retreat this weekend with 50 pastors and my great friend Eradio Valverde, District Superintendent of the Corpus Christi District of the United Methodist Church in Southwest Texas (www.ccdistrictumc.org ). I've been asked to speak and minister on The Pastor as Prayer Coach and I'm very excited for this incredible opportunity to be an encouragement and blessing to these pastors in their ministries. Thank you for all the ways you cover me and our ministry in prayer to be able to make a difference in the Kingdom of God through our Resurrected Christ at home and abroad!

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