Morning by Morning—Daily Prayer Journey with Tommy Hays: Pursuing the Lord "Face to Face"

Friday, September 04, 2020

Pursuing the Lord "Face to Face" - September 4, 2020

Morning by Morning, September 4 - Pursuing the Lord "Face to Face"

Good morning, Lord Jesus. In worship and prayer, I wait you're your leading as I seek Your face and listen for Your voice -- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. ...

"For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then we will see face to face. Now I know only in part; then I will know fully, even as I have been fully known" (1 Corinthians 13:12).

I look forward to the day when I will see You "face to face." Not just a fleeting glimpse, not just a reflection in the corner of my eye, not just an indirect glance as though looking through a dark mirror dimly, but "face to face." My eyes looking directly into Your eyes and Your eyes looking directly into mine. My heart completely unveiled to Your heart and Your heart completely unveiled to mine. Nothing between us, nothing of the sin or shame, the fears or failures, the doubt or unbelief -- but fully present in Your presence. "Face to face."

That day will come. "Se we are always confident; even though we know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord -- for we walk by faith, not by sight. Yes, we do have confidence and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord. So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please Him. For all must appear before the judgment seat of Christ" (2 Corinthians 5:6-10).

But before that day comes, You've given us Your Spirit, who moves in our hearts to long for a deeper, more intimate experience of Your presence now. "He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee" (2 Corinthians 5:5). Your Holy Spirit stirs in our human spirits with a longing, yearning hunger for more, "longing to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling" as we're longing to encounter Your heavenly embrace.

You've created us to seek You, to pursue You, to be willing to settle for nothing less than You drawing us near to experience You as closely as we possibly can in the place we are in our hearts. Moses did. "The Lord spoke to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to a friend" (Exodus 33:11). Abraham did. "When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to Abram, and said to him, 'I am God Almighty, walk before Me, and be blameless" (Genesis 17:1). Jacob did, even as he sought to wrestle You until You blessed him, saying, "I have seen God face to face, and yet my life is preserved" (Genesis 32:30). Doubting Thomas did, as You changed his doubts into faith in his deeply personal encounter when he cried out the highest declaration of Your Deity in all the Scripture, "My Lord and my God!" (John 20:28). Paul did, when You confronted his hardened heart to forever change his life on his Road to Damascus experience (Acts 9:5).

You've put it in our hearts to pursue You and seek You, even to seek Your face, even knowing "No man can see (God) and live" (Exodus 33:2). There's something in us that must die, for us to see You. And there's something You're speaking to us about pursing Your presence when You say, "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God" (Matthew 5:8). "Who will ascend the hill of the Lord? And who will stand in His holy place? Those who have clean hands and pure hearts.... They will receive blessing from the Lord.... Such is the company of those who seek Him, who seek the face of the God of Jacob" (Psalm 24:3-6).

I don't yet understand how it all fits together -- how I'm stirred to seek Your face and pursue Your presence, as those before me have, while yet no one can see God and live. Right now, on the one hand, I can only know in part (1 Corinthian 13:9) and "see in a mirror, dimly" (1 Corinthians 13:12). But on the other hand, at the same time, I'm moved to passionately pursue You as deeply, as personally, as intimately as I can on this side of heaven, as with the heart of David: "One thing I have desired of the Lord, that will I seek: That I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to inquire in His temple... I believe that I shall see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living" (Psalm 27:4-13). By the grace of God, I will settle for nothing less. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

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

My friend, may you settle for nothing less in your passionately pursuit of the Lord than the most intimate encounter you can have with Him on this side of heaven, in Jesus name. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!

Thursday Night, October 1st. Save the Date!

I'm excited to be the Keynote Speaker at the Central Texas Area Aglow Meeting at the Kendall Inn of Boerne, Texas next to Peggys-on-the-Green. My wife Rocio and I will be ministering the healing love of God after the message, in a deep atmosphere of worship and prayer. Come join us at 7:00 pm and spread the word! More details to follow.

Free to Be Like Jesus!

--Transforming Power

of Inner Healing & Deliverance