Morning by Morning, April 23 - Destined to Be Like Jesus
Good morning, Lord Jesus. Put Your thoughts in my mind and Your desires in my heart. Make me more like You today. ...
"The Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words. And the Father who knows all hearts knows what the Spirit is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers in harmony with God's own will.... For God knew His people in advance, and He chose them to become like His Son, so that His Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. And having chosen them, He called them to come to Him. And having called them, he gave them right standing with Himself. And having given them right standing, He gave them His glory. What shall we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us?" (Romans 8:26-31 NLT)
No doubt I'll spend eternity growing in my understanding and awe of the mystery of Your Trinity -- that You are One God, yet expressing Your Being in perfect, relational love in three dimensions of Your Being as God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. And in the same way I'll spend eternity growing in my understanding and awe of the mystery of Your sovereignty and my free will -- that You know and have always known every choice I'll every freely make in my heart, even as Your Holy Spirit intercedes for my choices according to Your will. And no matter what choices I make or what choices are made by those who influence my life, whether now in my generation or in the generations before me, You are at work in it all, causing it all to work together for good. "We know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose for them" (Romans 8:28 NLT).
Even though I'm free to make wrong choices, Your Spirit is at work in prayer and at work in my heart to bring me back to right standing with You, as I choose to answer Your call to love You and allow You to be at work within me. "If we confess our sins, He who is faithful and just will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness" (1 John 1:9). That's how when sin abounds, grace abounds even more. "As people sinned more and more, God's wonderful grace became more abundant. So just as sin ruled over all people and brought them to death, now God's wonderful grace rules instead, giving us right standing with God and resulting in eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord" (Romans 5:20-21 NLT).
By the power of Your grace at work within me, make me more like You each day. Keep changing my heart to align with Your heart, changing my nature to align with Your nature, and changing my ways to align with Your ways. It's who I was created to be. It's who You're conforming me to be -- step by step, choice by choice, just as You've planned all along -- even "before the foundation of the world" (Ephesians 1:4). And if this is Your plan for me, every other plan will surely fail. If You are for me, who could ever stand against me and Your sovereign plan for me?
When I meditate on Your Word and embrace the work of Your Spirit in my heart, I get a feeling it's all going to work together for good, as I keep looking to You and loving You and allowing You to love me. I get a feeling You've destined me to be like Jesus -- as He is, so am I to be in this world. "So we have known and believe the love that God has for us.... because as He is, so are we in this world" (1 John 4:16-17). In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays
My friend, may you live into your destiny to be like Jesus -- conformed into the image of the Son of God by the Spirit of the One who is at work in you to make you more like Jesus every day, in Jesus' name. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!
Joy of the Lord by Greg Olsen
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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