"Jesus answered them,
'The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Very truly, I tell you,
unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains just a single
grain; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. Those who love their life, lose it,
and those who hate their life in this world will keep it for eternal life.
Whoever serves Me must follow Me, and where I am, there will My servant be also.
Whoever serves Me, the Father will honor" (John 12:23-26).
A valley stream runs by
the Breakthrough Church at the foot of the mountain in Juneau, Alaska where we
were speaking last night. And right before the meeting we saw several huge
salmon, who had swam upstream from the ocean to spawn and to die. It's the last
act of their life cycle-to return to the stream where they were born and lay
down their lives to give birth to the next generation. In these sacred moments,
having grown into fully maturity, they are consumed with this passion and
service of self-sacrifice.
How beautiful. How sad
if we see it through self-centered eyes. And yet, how humbling is this prophetic
picture of Your call to us to lay down our lives for the sake of others, just as
You laid down Your life for us. This is truly the test of our spiritual
maturity. And this is truly the way we find our way home, being conformed into
the image of the One we're called to follow.
Lord, help me find my
way home. Help me grow up into spiritual maturity, following You and Your
example of sacrificial love. Help me willingly choose every day to lay down my
life for Your sake and Your calling for the purposes You've chosen for my life
to bear much fruit. May it no longer be I who live, but Christ who lives in me
(Galatians 2:20). In Jesus' name I pray.
Be encouraged today! In
the Love of Jesus, Tommy
Hays
Friends, please keep us in prayer as Sylvia and I
speak and minister this week at Breakthrough
Church in Juneau, Alaska (http://breakthroughalaska.com) Next week,
we'll be ministering at Cowboy Church in Whitehorse, Yukon,
Canada. We praise God for our great friend and intercessor,
Linda Coulter who provided the way for us to come and minister
in Alaska! And we praise God for you and all who cover us in prayer and support
us in ministry that allow us to go where the Lord sends us.
If you would like to be part of
our Interactive Intercessory Prayer Team, please send a note to
Heather Butler, our Pastor of Prayer Ministries, who lives in
Wales but coordinates our team through the internet: PrayerLead@Messiah-Ministries.org
Be empowered, equipped,
and encouraged to fulfill your destiny in Christ!
Tommy & Sylvia Hays
| Messiah Ministries
Healing from the
Inside Out
