Morning by Morning, May 6 - The Messenger to a Nation
Good morning, Lord Jesus. Let me hear Your voice in my heart and sense the leading of Your Spirit in these morning moments of communion with You -- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. ...
"See, I am sending My messenger to prepare the way before Me, and the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to His temple. The messenger of the covenant in whom you delight -- indeed, He is coming, says the Lord of hosts. But who can endure the day of His coming, and who can stand when He appears? For He is like a refiner's fire and like fullers' soap; He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and He will purify the descendants of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, until they present offering to the Lord in righteousness. Then the offering of Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasing to the Lord as in the days of old and as in former years.... For I the Lord do not change; therefore you, O children of Jacob, have not perished. Ever since the days of your ancestors you have turned aside from My statutes and have not kept them. Return to Me, and I will return to you, says the Lord of hosts" (Malachi 3:1-6).
People across our land joined in prayer for our nation yesterday on the National Day of Prayer. Since the first call to prayer by the Continental Congress in 1775, beseeching the people of the American colonies to seek You in humility and faith for wisdom and courage in the forming of our nation, prayer has been at the core of national identity. But like the nation of Israel before us, we've also so often "turned aside from (Your) statutes and have not kept them." We've so often compromised in our values of integrity and purity in the godly fear of the Lord. And as in the days of Israel, You "draw near to (us) for judgment" (v. 5).
But just as You sent Your Messenger to prepare the way of the Lord in the hearts of Israel, You continue to send Your Messenger to prepare the way of the Lord in the hearts of every people of every nation who will humble themselves to hear Your voice. You do not change (v. 6). And You heart is always to call us to repentance, crying out to us in Your mercy, "Return to Me, and I will return to you" (v. 7).
Come, Holy Spirit. You are the Messenger of God. You are the Messenger to our nation. Come turn our hearts. Return the heart of our nation back to You, O Lord, our God. Come refine us and purify us. Come burn in holy fire within us until we again "present offerings to the Lord in righteousness" (v. 3). Let our laws and our ways, what we value and what we defend, speak of the core values on integrity and purity You've sown into the soul of our nation -- "one nation under God."
May we yet fulfill our destiny, restored to our identity, with the fierce courage and power in obedience to the will of God, as with the "wings of the great eagle" (Revelation 12:14). "Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord" (Psalm 33:12 NKJV). By the mercy of God, may we embrace the call to prayer in revival for our land with the revival fire of faith that always begins in the repentant, praying hearts of those who are called by Your name: "If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land" (2 Chronicles 7:14). In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays
I join with you in praying for my nation and every nation to turn to God. May the revival fire of the Holy Spirit, the Messenger of God, burn in your heart. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!
From NationalDayOfPrayer.com
First Call of Prayer in 1775
Because of the faith of many of our founding fathers, public prayer and national days of prayer have a long-standing and significant history in American tradition. The Supreme Court affirmed the right of state legislatures to open their sessions with prayer in Marsh vs. Chambers (1983).
The National Day of Prayer is a vital part of our heritage. Since the first call to prayer in 1775, when the Continental Congress asked the colonies to pray for wisdom in forming a nation, the call to prayer has continued through our history, including President Lincoln's proclamation of a day of "humiliation, fasting, and prayer" in 1863. In 1952, a joint resolution by Congress, signed by President Truman, declared an annual national day of prayer. In 1988, the law was amended and signed by President Reagan, permanently setting the day as the first Thursday of every May. Each year, the president signs a proclamation, encouraging all Americans to pray on this day. Last year, all 50 state governors plus the governors of several U.S. territories signed similar proclamations.
Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries
Healing from the Inside Out
Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries
4 Dominion Drive, Building 1
San Antonio, Texas 78257
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