Wednesday, July 31, 2019

Morning by Morning, July 31 - Words from the Heart
 
Good morning, Lord Jesus. I lift up my eyes and open up my heart to see what You're doing and hear what You're saying. You said Your sheep hear Your voice (John 10:3). I'm listening, Lord. ...
 
"What comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart" (Matthew 15:18).
 
My words reveal my heart. My words reveal my mood, my beliefs, my priorities. My words reveal my hopes and dreams, my fears and regrets. And my words reveal the measure of my faith in You and Your Word and Your will for my life. You judge us by our words because our words judge our hearts. As You said long ago, "Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.... I tell you, on the day of judgement you will have to give an account for every careless word you utter; for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned" (Matthew 12:34).
 
Lord, let my heart be right so my words will be right. Keep creating in me a clean heart and renewing a right spirit within me (Psalm 51:10).
 
Fill my heart with Your peace, love, and joy today so You can fill my mouth with Your words of spirit, life, and truth today. Your spiritual principles declare, "Death and life are in the power of the tongue" (Proverbs 18:21). So let the words that come off my tongue speak of the life in Christ that's in my heart.
 
You remind us to use our words wisely because they are an expression of Your nature being formed in our nature:  "Like good stewards of the manifold grace of God, serve one another with whatever gift each of you has received. Whoever speaks must do so as one speaking the very words of God ... so that God may be glorified in all things" (1 Peter 4:10-11). So let the nature of my words reflect the nature of my God.
 
I need more of Your nature in me (2 Peter 1:4). I need more of Your thoughts in my mind and Your desires in my heart, so that my ways become more like Your ways as I surrender more of my will to more of Your will. Then the words that proceed from my mouth will flow out of a heart more wholly surrendered to You.
 
You said Your words are "spirit and life" (John 6:63). As You make me more like You each day, let my words be the same -- for as You are, so am I to be in my world (1 John 4:17; Romans 8:29). By the power of Your grace at work within me, "Let the words of my mouth and the mediation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my strength and my Redeemer" (Psalm 19:14 NKJV). In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays

My Friend, may you speak words of spirit and life and truth because the One who is Spirit and Life and Truth lives in you, forming the nature of your heart into the nature of His heart more and more every day, in Jesus' name. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!

  


My Latest Book!
I'm excited we've recently published an updated version to my book Free to Be Like Jesus! -- Transforming Power of Inner Healing & Deliverance endorsed by Max Lucado, Andy Reese, and Randy Clark.

  

   
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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Tuesday, July 30, 2019

Morning by Morning, July 30 - Seeing the Father in the Eyes of Jesus
 
Good morning, Lord Jesus. Make me more like You today. ...
 
"Philip said to Him, 'Lord, show us the Father, and we will be satisfied.' Jesus said to him, 'Have I been with you all this time, Philip, and you still do not know Me? Whoever has seen Me has seen the Father. How can you say, 'Show us the Father'? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in Me? ... Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father is in Me'" (John 14:8-11)
 
Lord Jesus, You have Your Father's eyes. You have Your Father's heart. You and Your Father are One (John 10:30). You are "the exact Imprint of God's very Being" (Hebrews 1:3). You are "the Image of the invisible God" (Colossians 1:15). And in You, "all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell" (Colossians 1:19).
 
Everything You did on this earth was to reveal the Father heart of God. The words You spoke, the things You did, the way You were, all revealed the heart of the invisible God in the flesh -- Immanuel, God with us (Matthew 1:23). As You said to Philip, to see You is to see the Father. And You were helping him understand how important it is to know You in order to know the Father when You said to him, "No one comes to the Father except through Me" (John 14:6).
 
My Father God, AbbaFather, I come to You through Jesus Your Son. --the "Son of God" because He perfectly expresses and reveals the nature of God (Mark 1:1; Matthew 16:16). I come to You as I behold Jesus, as I see Your love in His eyes and Your voice in His words. In the mystery of faith and the nature of Your Being, You help my human mind begin to conceive the image of an invisible God by seeing You in the image of Christ. That's part of what it means to come to the Father through Jesus the Son (John 14:6).
 
Father, not only do You invite me to see You in the nature of Jesus, You also invite me to welcome You into my heart by Your Spirit. As You explained to Philip and the disciples through the words of Jesus, "This is the Spirit of truth, Whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him. You know Him, because He abides with you, and He will be in you... On that day you will know that I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you" (John 14:17-20).
 
Lord God -- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit of God -- abide in me as I abide in You (John 15:4). Help me know You more deeply, more fully, more intimately every day in every dimension of Your Being. Along with the Apostle Paul, "I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give (me) a spirit of wisdom and revelation as (I) come to know (You), so that, with the eyes of (my) heart enlightened, (I) may know what is the hope to which (You) have called (me)..." (Ephesians 1:17-19). "And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding so that we may know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life" (1 John 5:20). In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

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

My Friend, may you see your Heavenly Father in the eyes of Jesus as you come to the Father through Jesus His Son, in Jesus' name. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!

 

  
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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Monday, July 29, 2019

Morning by Morning, July 29 - The Prayers God Answers Every Time
 
Good morning, Lord Jesus. I welcome You here in my heart and every moment of my day -- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit of God. Bring Your words to my heart, as I watch and wait for You and Your leading, here in the communion of prayer. ...
 
"Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but the very Spirt intercedes with sighs too deep for words. And God, who searches the heart, knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God" (Romans 8:26-27).
 
Help me, Holy Spirit. As best as I can and all by Your grace, I humble myself before You to say in my heart I don't know how to pray "according to the will of God." But You do. You know the heart of the Father for me today, for "the saints" today, for everyone You're giving me a burden in my heart to pray for today, for everyone and everything You already know I'll encounter today. 
 
So come, Holy Spirit.  Pray through me according to the will of God. The children of God are led by the Spirit of God (Romans 8:14). Come put Your thoughts in my mind, Your desires in my heart, and Your words in my mouth. Use words if You have to. Use "sighs too deep for words" if that would be even better. Keep my own thoughts, my own desires, and my own words out of the way of Your intercession according to the will of God through my prayers. ...
 
As I pray -- as I allow You to pray through me -- the peace and assurance of this promise of Your Word floods my heart:  "This is the boldness we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have obtained the requests made of Him" (1 John 5:14-15). 
 
Thank You, Lord. Thank You for allowing me to pray the prayers You answer every time. Let it be so -- here on earth as it is in heaven, here in me, and here in everyone and everything for whom I'll be praying for now and throughout the moments of my day by the leading of Your Spirit -- because that's how it is in my Father's heart. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

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

My Friend, may you see the answers to your prayers, as you're led to pray by the Spirit of God according to the will of God, in Jesus' name. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!

 

Preaching in Pakistan Praise Report. Friends, thank you so much for all your prayers and support for our outdoor evangelistic meetings in Pakistan through our Skype Internet Ministry. Each month, I am preaching in different villages around Lahore, Pakistan in the Punjab Region with an interpreter, a big screen and projector, and follow-up team. We are Praising God for this report and photos from Pastor Fazal from the Saturday Night Meeting:  "Dear Pastor Tommy, I am very sorry for Laptop Problem but Thanks Lord 296 Souls are saved and 85 Persons are healed from different things. Thank you to share Powerful Sermon!"
 
Amen!! Thank you to all my friends who pray for us and support us to make this ministry possible! God bless you!
 
"And the Good News about the Kingdom will be preached throughout the whole world, so that all nations will hear it; and then the end will come!" (Matthew 24:14).

My Latest Book!

My Friend, I'm excited we've recently published an updated revision to my book Free to Be Like Jesus! -- Transforming Power of Inner Healing & Deliveranceendorsed by Max Lucado, Andy Reese, and Randy Clark.

 

   
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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Friday, July 26, 2019

Morning by Morning, July 26 - The Battle is Shifting!
 
Good morning, Lord Jesus. I seek You with all my heart -- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit of God -- and wait expectantly for Your leading. ...
 
"Likewise all the men of Israel who had hidden in the mountains of Ephraim, when they heard that the Philistines fled, they also followed hard after them in battle. So the Lord saved Israel that day, and the battle shifted..." (1 Samuel 14:22-23 NKJV).
 
We're in a war ever day. Every believer is in battle. But our true enemies are not human flesh and blood, even though human flesh and blood in their weaknesses and sinfulness may be used by our enemies. "For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places" (Ephesians 6:12).
 
And in this war, as we fight every battle in the strength of the Lord and the power of the Spirit, we're not to run and hide in the mountains of fear or passivity or appeasement. We're to charge "hard after them in battle." We're to "take up the whole armor of God" and withstand them, as we enforce the victory of the cross in the mighty name of Jesus" (Ephesians 6:13). We're to run to the sound of the battle! (Nehemiah 4:20) "And the God of peace will crush Satan under (our) feet!" (Romans 16:20)
 
The battle is shifting! Our enemies are on the run! There's still a war to be waged and battles to fight, but the victory is won! Through the Sacrifice of Your Blood at the victory of Your cross, You forever defeated the enemy of our souls, "having disarmed principalities and powers, (You) made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it!" (Colossians 2:15)
 
As we agree with Your victory and come into alignment with Your truth, Your truth is marching on! Glory, glory, hallelujah! The Battle Hymn of the Republic is the Battle Hymn of Heaven!
 
Every time we humble ourselves to be desperately dependent on You alone, the battle shifts. Every time we repent of our sins and receive the grace of Your mercy and love, the battle shifts. Every time we embrace the truth and come out of agreement with the lies, the battle shifts. Every time we let go of the past and press on toward the goal of the prize of the heavenly calling of God in Christ, the battle shifts. Every time we enter Your gates with thanksgiving and come into Your courts with praise, the battle shifts. Every time we come boldly before Your throne of grace, forgiven of our sins and filled with Your Spirit, the battle shifts. Every time we go into the secret place and shut the door to hear what You're saying and see what You're doing so we can go out to obey Your word in the power of Your love, the battle shifts. And every time we pray and proclaim from the place of victory in Christ for Your Kingdom to come and Your will to be done on earth as it is in heaven, the battle shifts. These are the mighty "weapons of our warfare!" (2 Corinthians 10:4)
 
As I'm praying right now, the battle is shifting! In my spirit I'm running to the battle to look and see what You have done! 
 
"For by You I can run against a troop, by my God I can leap over a wall.... He is a shield to all who trust in Him. For who is God, except the Lord? And who is a rock, except our God? It is God who arms me with strength, and make my way perfect. He makes my feet like the feet of a deer, and sets me on my high places. He teaches my hands to make war, so that my arms can bend a bow of bronze. You have also given me the shield of Your salvation.... I have pursued my enemies and overtaken them; neither did I turn back again till they were destroyed. I have wounded them, so that they could not rise; they have fallen under my feet. For You have armed me with strength for the battle!" (Psalm 18:29-39)
 
The battle is shifting and this war is won! This is the victory I have in Jesus! In Jesus' name I pray. Amen. 
Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays

My Friend, may you live into the fullness of the victory you have in Jesus, with every battle shifting for you today, in Jesus' name. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!
   
Sculpture of The Coming King at the Cross at Kerrville, Texas


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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Thursday, July 25, 2019

Morning by Morning, July 25 - "Expecting to Receive" - The Power of Expectant Faith
 
Good morning, Lord Jesus. You are One with my Father, One with the Holy Spirit. Be One within me as I entrust my heart and my day to You (John 17:23). ...
 
"One day Peter and John were going up to the temple at the hour of prayer, at three o'clock in the afternoon. And a man lame from birth was being carried in. People would lay him daily at the gate of the temple called the Beautiful Gate so that he could ask for alms from those entering the temple. When he saw Peter and John about to go into the temple, he asked them for alms. Peter looked intently at him, as did John, and said, 'Look at us.' And he fixed his attention on them, expecting to receive something from them" (Acts 3:1-5).
 
The lame man at the temple gate was "expecting to receive." And there's something about that spirit of expectation that Your Spirit is highlighting in my spirit today. ...
 
He asked them for alms, like I'm sure he asked people for alms every day. But along with his asking he was also expecting. Expecting what? Expecting that his asking would be answered.
 
What made this difference this time? What made the difference with these men he was asking of?
 
When he asked of Peter and John, they "looked intently at him" and invited him to "look" back at them. And that's when expectation arose in the lame man's heart.
 
Peter and John were filled with Your Spirit (Acts 2:4). And when their attention was drawn to the lame man, that was You drawing their attention to him. When they looked at him, that was You looking at him through their eyes. When they were speaking to him, that was You speaking to him through their words. As Peter would later say, under the inspiration of Your Spirit, "Serve one another with whatever gift each of you has received. Whoever speaks must do so as one speaking the very words of God ... so that God may be glorified in all things through Jesus Christ. To Him belong the glory and the power forever and ever" (1 Peter 4:10-11).
 
Thank You, Lord, that You hear me ask for what I need. But not only do You hear, You also respond. You look at me. You see me. You see my every need. And You invite me to look to You. And what I hear You emphasizing in my spirit this morning is that I am to look to You expectantly -- "expecting to receive."
 
Many ask in prayer, but do they expect to receive? Many times I ask in prayer, but do I expect to receive? ...
 
Lord, take away any disappoint from the past. Take away anything that try to steal my hope or dampen my expectations or cripple my faith like a lame man full of doubt, unbelief, and mistrust to just settle for something far less than all You desire for me.
 
Come, Holy Spirit. Fill me afresh with expectant faith -- faith that's "expecting to receive" all the goodness of God my good God has for me in the abundant life You will for me according to Your Word to (John 10:10). Deliver me from disappoint and doubt, as I submit my heart and my faith to You to be infused with fresh faith, with expectant faith, to look and see that You are good and You hear and You respond (James 4:7).
 
That lame man received so much more than he was asking for that day! You did "exceedingly abundantly" more than he could ever ask or imagine! (Ephesians 3:20) And I believe You're inviting me to expect more, "exceedingly abundantly" more, with a heart full of expectant faith. 
 
Lord, fill my heart afresh with expectant faith today! Like that lame man You healed in the mighty name of Jesus (Acts 3:6-7), I'll go "walking and leaping and praising God" to shout Your praise everywhere I go! (Acts 3:9) In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays

My Friend, may you be delivered from disappointment and doubt and filled afresh with expectant faith today, in Jesus' name. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!
   


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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Wednesday, July 24, 2019

Morning by Morning, July 24  - At Perfect Peace in the "Prince of Peace"
 
Good morning, Lord Jesus. Your name is above every name. So as I speak out Your name and listen for Your voice, I yield to Your authority to rule and reign in my heart and every moment of my day. ...
 
"Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid" (John 14:27 NKJV).
 
Thank You for Your peace that endures. Thank You for Your peace that steadies my heart and calms my fears, that hushes the winds and stills the waters, that doesn't flee away in the face of whatever comes. Your peace endures through it all. You are my "Prince of Peace" -- just as You are my "Wonderful Counselor," my "Mighty God," and my "Everlasting Father" (Isaiah 9:6).
 
So by the power of Your grace always at work within me, my heart will not be troubled, neither will I be afraid. "You will keep (me) in perfect peace (as my) mind is stayed on You, because (I) trust in You" (Isaiah 26:3 NKJV). "Whenever I am afraid, I will trust in You" (Psalm 56:3).
 
How do I keep my mind stayed on You, Lord? ...
 
It seems I hear You speaking in my heart with the words that are coming to my mind:  "Deliberately choose to look up to me with the eyes of Your heart. Seek My face with your spirit. When you seek Me with all your heart, you will find me. And you will find that I have hold of you, that I see you, that I know all about you and every need you have. Choose to trust in Me. Decide to rest in Me. Be still and know that I am God and I am good and I am at work as you wait for Me. I go before you to make a way where there seems to be no way. I fight for you in ways you do not see. And I am working out things around you and within you that you do not know. But trust in Me. And I will put My peace in you. To trust in My peace that I give you is not detached or delusional, it's not sticking your head in the sand or denying the reality of the very real battles and storms you face. No, My peace is the fruit that naturally grows forth from the heart of one who has deliberately decided to trust in Me no matter what. This is My peace I give to you. This is My peace I bring forth from you."  ...
 
Yes, Lord. Thank You for Your peace and for "the fruit of the Spirit" of "peace" that You're cultivating in me through every battle and storm I face (Galatians 5:22). By the power of Your grace, I deliberately decide to trust in You  -- trusting You to keep me in Your perfect peace as I keep my heart and mind stayed on You, no matter what. Prince of Peace, let Your perfect peace rise up within me to steady my heart as I trust you to go before me. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays

My Friend, may you be at perfect peace in the Prince of Peace who sees you and knows you and is at work on your behalf in every need you have as you deliberately decide to trust in Him, in Jesus' name. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!
   


Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries
Healing from the Inside Out
  
Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries
4 Dominion Drive, Building 1
San Antonio, Texas 78257

Please share this word to encourage a friend!
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