Morning by Morning&#8212;Daily Prayer Journey with Tommy Hays

Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries

4 Dominion Drive, Building 1

San Antonio, Texas 78257

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Tuesday, August 20, 2013

Morning by Morning, August 20 - "The Fountain of the Water of Life"

Good morning, Lord Jesus. You are the Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End and Everything in between (Revelation 1:8). Be with me this day and every day, from beginning to end and every moment in between. ...

"And He said to me, 'It is done! I Am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. I will give of the fountain of the water of life freely to him who thirsts. He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be My son. But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death" (Revelation 21:6-8, NKJ).

Lord, I thirst.... I thirst for the water of life that flows freely from Your fountain. I thirst for Your "living water" (John 4:10). Let me drink deeply every day -- drinking in Your Word, drinking in Your Spirit, drinking in the Presence of God here in my heart, mind, soul and strength. You are the Fountain of the Water of Life. You are "the Fountain of Living Waters" (Jeremiah 2:13). "For with You is the fountain of life; in Your light we see light" (Psalm 36:9). So as I open wide my spirit to You, let Your water of life "become in (me) a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life" (John 4:14).

Lord, refresh my soul and renew my faith with the fullness of Your life. Put Your thoughts in my mind and Your desires in my heart so that I desire and choose the things that lead to life and not to death. Empower me to overcome. Align my heart and soul to "inherit all things" You've prepared for me and for all love You and honor You by embracing Your grace to give You our hearts (Revelation 21:7). In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

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

My Friend, I pray you will be filled to overflowing with the living waters from the One who is the Fountain of the Water of Life, bringing life to all the Lord touches through you today. 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, August 19, 2013

Morning by Morning, August 19 - Know and Be Known

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Be at the center of my thoughts, my desires and my day. ...

"Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of My Father in heaven. On that day many will say to Me, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and cast out demons in Your name, and do many deeds of power in Your name?' Then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; go away from Me, you evildoers' " (Matthew 7:21-23).

Father God, let me know Your will for my life today. Then let me do it. Let me hear what You're saying, see what You're doing, then follow the leading of Your Spirit in my heart to live out the kingdom of heaven throughout the moments of my day.

If I prophesy, let it be because I'm hearing the word of the Lord and sharing it by the leading of Your Spirit (1 Corinthians 14:3). If I cast out demons in the authority of the name of Jesus as a child of the living God, let it be because You are healing the brokenhearted and setting the captives free by the leading of Your Spirit (Mark 16:17). If I do many deeds of power in Your name, all by Your strength and all by Your grace, let it be because You are displaying Your kingdom and Your power and Your glory by the leading of Your Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:10).

Let me do all things by Your leading from the place of intimacy with You in my heart. Apart from You, I can do nothing; so never let me be apart from You (John 15:5).

Lord Jesus, I want to know You. And I want You to know me. I don't want to just have a religion; I want a relationship with God. I don't want to just have right doctrine in my head; I want to have a right heart. And I don't want to just escape from the fires of hell, I want to live out the fullness of the kingdom of heaven in my life every day, here on earth as it is in heaven. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

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

My Friend, I pray you will grow in ever-increasing intimacy with our God, knowing and doing the will of God by the leading of His Spirit in your heart every day. 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

Share this word to encourage a friend!

Friday, August 16, 2013

Morning by Morning, August 16 - Let the Dry Bones Live!

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Lord God Almighty -- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit -- You are One and You are holy, mysterious and mighty, faithful and true, full of mercy and love, worthy of all honor and praise. I worship You and entrust myself to You as Lord of my life and every moment of my day. ...

"The hand of the Lord came upon me and brought me out in the Spirit of the Lord, and set me down in the midst of the valley; and it was full of bones.... And He said to me, 'Son of man, can these bones?" (Ezekiel 37:1-3, NKJ)

Lord, open my eyes to see the dry bones around me today. Let me see what is dead and lifeless, who is weary and discouraged, the ones whose lives seem scattered and strewn down in the midst of the valleys they were never about to get through.

You showed Ezekiel those bones. You wanted him to see the truth as it was -- dead, dry bones, down in a valley. You didn't want him to ignore them or give up on them. You didn't want him to merely accept them for what they were. You wanted him to see them both for what they were but also for what they were to become.

But instead of sending him on a mission to go gather them up, count them and organize them, try to fit them into some image of them he had formed in his own mind out of his own desires for them, You were teaching Ezekiel not to rely upon his power or plans for the transformation of those dry bones at all. Instead, You told him, "Prophesy to these bones, and say to them, 'O dry bones, here the word of the Lord!"

To prophesy is simply to hear and speak the word of the Lord. And as Ezekiel obeyed Your command with Your words in his mouth and Your compassion in his heart, the word of God went forth, carrying with it the breath of the very Spirit of God (v. 7-10). There was not only transformation, but resurrection into newness of life. Those dry bones became "an exceedingly great army" (v. 10). Then You promised to fill them with Your Spirit and establish them in the inheritance of their destiny for the glory of Your name (v. 14).

Lord, let me see with Your eyes what You want to transform and resurrect in my life and my world around me. Let me see what You're doing, hear what You're saying and speak it forth. Let me recognize the truth of things as they are, but also declare the truth of what they are to become. "Death and life are in the power of the tongue;" and You want our tongues and our words sanctified and submitted to Your will and Your ways, available for Your purposes to establish Your Kingdom by Your power through our lives on earth as it is in heaven (Proverbs 18:21).

Spirit of the Living God, fill my mouth with Your words so I can breathe life everywhere You send me today. Let me speak Your words of "edification and exhortation and comfort" into the valleys and the places of dry bones You want to transform into a different destiny today. Let that exceedingly great army of lovers of the Lord, filled with Spirit of the Lord, changed by the power of the Lord from the inside out rise up and fulfill her destiny. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

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

My Friend, I pray the Spirit of the Living God will fill you with His breath and His words to speak life everywhere He sends you today. May you see that army of the lovers of the Lord rise up around you! 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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Thursday, August 15, 2013

Morning by Morning, August 15 - Fire and Hammer of the Word of God

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Let Your Spirit fill my heart and Your Word feed my spirit. ...

"Is not My word like fire, says the Lord, and like a hammer that breaks a rock in pieces?" (Jeremiah 23:29)

Lord, let Your word burn in me like fire. Consume me. Purify me. Burn out of me everything within me that is not yet like You.

Lord, let Your word break like a hammer every idol I've made with my own hands, built up in my own image, bowed before and worshipped with my time, my attention, or my resources that I've wrongfully allowed to have the place in my life that belongs only to You.

Lord, let Your word be my authority and my guide, the standard of my life. "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path" (Psalm 119:105). Convict me when I stray; correct me when I'm wrong; remind me when I forget. Then bring my heart back into alignment with Your heart, so that I desire what is right and then do what is right because it truly seems right to me in agreement with You. Your word is always right and Your will is always the right thing to do. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

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

My Friend, I pray God's word will burn in your heart and break down your idols until you are consumed with a passion for Him and empowered to live your life for Him alone. 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

Share this word to encourage a friend!

Wednesday, August 14, 2013

Morning by Morning, August 14 - Final Decree, Everlasting Dominion

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Put Your thoughts in my mind and Your desires in my heart. Order my steps and lead the way, as I seek to follow You through the adventures of my day. ...

"As I watched, thrones were set in place, and an Ancient One took His throne.... The court sat in judgment, and the books were opened.... I saw One like a human being coming with the clouds of heaven. And He came to the Ancient One and was presented before Him. To Him was given dominion and glory and kingship, that all peoples, nations, and languages should server Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that shall not pass away, and His kingship is one that shall never be destroyed" (Daniel 7:9-14).

There is a heavenly court and a righteous Judge. There is an eternal judgment and an everlasting dominion. There is One who is the King of kings and Lord of lords whose kingdom shall not pass away. And despite every injustice and evil we endure for a time in our journey through this broken, fallen world, there will come a day when You set all things right. "Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your throne; steadfast love and faithfulness go before You" (Psalm 89:14).

Your verdict will be true and Your decree will be final. Then all heaven and earth will declare, "The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Messiah, and He will reign forever and ever" (Revelation 11:15).

Give us grace to endure to that day (Matthew 24:13). Let us not doubt Your wisdom nor Your sovereignty. The enemy of our souls may have his day, but You will have the last say. You showed Your prophet Daniel the vision of the battle for the souls of men and the dominion of the earth. He said, "As I looked, (the evil one) made war with the holy ones and was prevailing over them, until the Ancient One came; then judgment was given for the holy ones of the Most High, and the time arrived when the holy ones gained possession of the kingdom" (Daniel 7:21-22).

Let us embrace Your encouragement and command: "Be alert at all times, praying that you many have the strength to escape all these things that will take place, and to stand before the Son of Man" (Luke 21:36). One day we will stand before You, from every tongue and tribe and nation throughout all generations. "For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God" and "each of us will be accountable to God" (Romans 14:1012). But in Christ, we will be declared innocent by Your blood and victorious by Your cross -- not guilty, set free, restored to righteousness and the everlasting dominion of the Kingdom of God (Colossians 1:20).

As for the arrogant and wicked enemy of our souls, "his dominion shall be taken away, to be consumed and totally destroyed" (Daniel 7:26). And at the same time, in the Kingdom of our God and decree of Your judgment, "the kingship and dominion and the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven shall be given to the people of the holy ones of the Most High; their kingdom shall be an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey them" (Daniel 7:27). "Thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ" (1 Corinthians 15:57). In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

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

My Friend, I pray God will give you grace to endure through every injustice and battle until the day we see Him fully establish the righteousness and justice of His dominion in all the earth. 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

Share this word to encourage a friend!

Tuesday, August 13, 2013

Morning by Morning, August 13 - My Vision and Voice

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Be Thou my Vision, O Lord of my heart. Let me see what You're doing and hear what You're saying as I wait upon You in the communion of prayer. ...

"Call to Me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known" (Jeremiah 33:3).

Lord, I receive Your invitation to call to You -- to call on Your name, to pour out my heart, to ask my questions, to hear Your voice, to be taught by Your Spirit. Remove every blinder from my eyes, every barrier from my heart. Remove every distraction and distortion that would keep me from hearing Your heart and knowing Your truth. Help me be humble and hungry, teachable and true to Your revelation and guidance as Lord of my life. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

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

My Friend, I pray you would see what the Lord is doing and hear what He is saying, with no barriers or distractions or distortions, as you call on His name, seek His face, and listen for His voice. May He show you great and hidden things you have not known, as you journey in ever-increasing depths of intimacy with our God. 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, August 12, 2013

Morning by Morning, August 12 - "Tear Open the Heavens and Come Down!"

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Here I am, Lord -- watching and waiting for Your leading, as I join my spirit with Your Spirit in the morning embrace of my Father. ...

"O that You would tear open the heavens and come down, so that the mountains would quake at Your Presence ... When You did awesome deeds that we did not expect, You came down, the mountains quaked at Your Presence. From ages past no one has heard, no ear has perceived, no eye has seen any God besides You, who works for those who wait for Him" (Isaiah 64:1-4).

As I open up my heart, would You tear open Your heavens? As I draw near to You, would You draw near to me? As I humble myself in the fear of the Lord, would You cause the mountains of my soul to quake in Your Presence until nothing stands between You and me?

You are the God "who works for those who wait for Him" (v. 4). We have no idea all that You do for us every day as we walk out our lives through the valleys and over the mountains, through the fiery trials and along the peaceful streams. Our ears can't fully hear, our eyes can't fully see, our minds can fully perceive all that You're doing on our behalf as we wait on You to go before us, come alongside us, and rise up within us.

You do awesome deeds we don't expect -- healing hurts we don't even know we have, breaking chains we're blinded from seeing, working miracles we'll never know until the day we see You face to Face in the heavenly places (v. 3). But every day heaven comes down; every day our God is at work. So I give You thanks and praise for all the ways You're moving in the power of Your Presence in my life -- all the ways I know, but also for all the ways I don't yet know. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

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

M Friend, I pray you would experience the power of the Presence of the God of Heaven coming down into your heart and every circumstance of your life today and every day. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!

Friends, thank you so much for your prayers for us Sunday at the ATT&T Center Gathering with Steven Curtis Chapman and Max Lucado. The arena (home of the Spurs!) was filled to overflowing with worship, as we all sensed the Presence of God moving in our hearts and our city. Our prayer ministry team from Rapha God Ministries joined the Oak Hills Prayer Team to cover the arena in prayer. One of our Spanish-speaking teams led eight people to the Lord as soon as they walked in the gates! And so many countless others experienced the love and power of God as we worshiped Him in spirit and truth. I pray for an outpouring of God's Spirit and Presence in your heart and your city! God bless you!

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, August 09, 2013

Morning by Morning, August 9 - Forever Steadfast in Unfailing Love

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Make me more like You today. ...

"My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast; I will sing and make melody. Awake, my soul! ... For Your steadfast love is higher than the heavens, and Your faithfulness reaches to the clouds" (Psalm 108:1-4).

You know every need and every desire. You know everything that brings me low and everything that lifts my spirit high. You know my darkest sins and every selfless sacrifice. You know it all. You know me and everything about me. And yet You still love me, You're still for me, You're still at work within me and still at work through me. Your steadfast heart for me makes my heart steadfast in You. You're faithfulness toward me makes me long to be faithful to You.

So I will sing!

And I will shout!

Awake my soul in praise!

So I will run!

And I will dance!

Awake my soul in praise!

Forever faithful

Forever graceful

You're forever steadfast in Your unfailing love for me!

Yes, Lord. Thank You for this song You're singing in my spirit. "I will give thanks to You, O Lord, among the peoples, and I will sing praises to You among the nations" (Psalm 108:3). In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

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

My Friend, I pray you would know deeply in your heart the steadfast, faithful, and unfailing love our Father God always has for you. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!

Friends, I'm excited to be sharing the morning devotional this Sunday morning with the prayer teams prior to the service at theATT&T Center Gathering with Steven Curtis Chapman and Max Lucado. This is the annual gathering in San Antonio of all the Oak Hills Church campuses, and the whole community is invited to join. Our prayer ministry team from Rapha God Ministries has been partnering with Oak Hills Church and was invited to join their prayer team to pray for salvation, healing, and any need for the people who come for prayer or respond to the worship and message. Everyone in the city is welcome this Sunday, August 11 beginning at 9:00 am. Please keep us in prayer for an outpouring of God's Spirit in our city, and I pray the same for yours (www.oakhillschurch.com/att2013) God bless you!

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, August 08, 2013

Morning by Morning, August 8 - More than Enough for Me

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Awaken my soul with a hunger for God. ...

"I am my Beloved's, and His desire is for me" (Song of Solomon 7:10).

Purify my soul

Come and make me whole

So fill me with Your love

You're more than enough

Be all that I need

And all that I seek

You're more than enough for me

Lord I need to know

That You love me so

So fill me with Your love

You're more than enough

Be all that I need

And all that I seek

You're more than enough for me

For I am Yours

And You are mine

Nothing that there is

In all of this world

Is as real as Your love for me

Hear my hungry cry

Thirsting for Your life

So fill me with Your love

You're more than enough

Be all that I need

And all that I seek

You're more than enough for me

Lord I yearn for You

Nothing else will do

So fill me with Your love

You're more than enough

Be all that I need

And all that I seek

You're more than enough for me

For I am Yours

And You are mine

Nothing that there is

In all of this world

Is as real as Your love for me

Holy Spirit, thank You for waking me up to write this song from a hungry heart for the love of God. "God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us" (Romans 5:5).

Now I can rest in my soul because my heart is full. "For He satisfies the thirsty, and the hungry He fills with good things" (Psalm 107:9). In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

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

My Friend, may your soul hunger and thirst for our God who longs to fill you with His Spirit and His love and let you know He is more than enough for you. 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

Share this word to encourage a friend!

Tuesday, August 06, 2013

Morning by Morning, August 6 - "Lord of All"

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Let Your name be the first word from my mouth and the first prayer from my heart, as I begin my day in worship and the communion of prayer with You, O Lord, my God -- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. ...

"Then Peter began to speak to them: 'I truly understand that God shows no partiality, but in every nation anyone who fears Him and does what is right is acceptable to Him. You know the message He sent to the people of Israel, preaching peace by Jesus Christ -- He is Lord of all" (Acts 10:34).

Jesus, You are Lord of all. Be Lord of all of me. ...

Be Lord of my spirit and soul and body. Be Lord of my mind and will and emotions. Be Lord of my past and present and future. Be Lord of my relationship with You and with all others. Be Lord of my identity and my destiny. Be Lord of my gifting and my calling. Be Lord of all my thoughts and all my desires. Be Lord of all my hopes and all my plans. Be Lord of my protection and my provision. Be Lord of all my successes and all my failures, all my victories and all my defeats. Be Lord of the words I speak, the words spoken to me, and the words spoken about me. Be Lord of my rising up and my lying down, Lord of every moment I'm awake and every moment I rest. Be Lord of every dimension of my life throughout every dimension of all eternity. Be Lord of all.

As best as I can and all by Your grace, I willingly choose to be desperately dependent upon You alone. By the grace of God, I choose to hold nothing back from You, but entrust all to You, my Lord, my Savior, and my God. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

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

My Friend, by the power of the grace of God, may Jesus be Lord of all of you. 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

Share this word to encourage a friend!

Monday, August 05, 2013

Morning by Morning, August 5 - "Full of Gladness with Your Presence"

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Help me start this day embraced by my Father, centered in Christ, and filled with Your Holy Spirit. Then help me live this out throughout the moments of my day. ...

"For David says concerning Him, 'I saw the Lord always before me, for He is at my right hand so that I will not be shaken; therefore my heart was glad, and my tongue rejoiced; moreover my flesh will live in hope. For you will not abandon my soul to Hades, or let your Holy One experience corruption. You have made known to me the ways of life; You will make me full of gladness with Your Presence" (Acts 2:25-28).

You're always before me and always at my right hand. You always see where I'm going and always know where I've been. You're always with me, always guiding me, always making known to me Your ways of life. You make me full of gladness with Your Presence.

Always in Your Presence, I'm never alone, even through the moments and seasons when no one else is around. Wherever I've been, You've been there with me; wherever I'm going, You'll go there with me (Psalm 139:1-7-12). Nothing "in all creation will be able to separate (me) from the love of God in Christ Jesus (my) Lord" (Romans 8:35-39).

What a mighty, loving, ever-present God You are. I love You, Lord; and I thank You for always loving me. That makes me secure in peace and full of gladness. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

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

My Friend, may you be full of gladness in the Presence of our God who's always with you and always loving you. 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

Share this word to encourage a friend!

Friday, August 02, 2013

Morning by Morning, August 2 - Hands, Knees, and Feet

Good morning, Lord Jesus. I open the door of my heart in the deep communion of prayer and welcome Your Holy Spirit into my thoughts and desires and every moment of my day. ...

"Therefore lift your drooping hands and strengthen your weak knees, and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be put out of joint, but rather be healed" (Hebrews 12:12-13).

I lift high my hands in praise; I bow low my knees in humility; and I set my feet on the path of Your righteousness. Let the posture of my body reflect the posture of my heart. I welcome You to be at work in me to align all that's out of order and heal all that's not yet whole. Lord Jesus, make me more like You today. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

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

My Friend, may you be aligned and empowered in body and spirit to live your life to honor God today. 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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Thursday, August 01, 2013

Morning by Morning, August 1 - "Be Imitators of God"

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Be high and lifted up in my life today. ...

"Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children, and live in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God" (Ephesians 5:1-2).

Abba! Father! You are my Daddy Abba, my Father God; and I am Your child, a son of God, through the blood of Christ (Romans 8:15). I want to grow up to be like You. Sometimes I think too much coffee or something has stunted my growth. But I do desire to answer Your call to each one of us to "be imitators of God." And I know that's Your desire for me as well, "to be conformed to the image of (Your) Son" (Romans 8:29).

In Your mercy and love, by the power of Your grace, cleanse my soul and purify my heart "by the washing of water by Your word" (Ephesians 5:26). I have no power, or even desire, in my flesh alone apart from the leading of Your Spirit moving in my spirit to cause me to seek Your nature as my goal. "For it is God who is at work in (me), enabling (me) both to will and to work for (Your) good pleasure" (Philippians 2:13). But I am not alone; and Your Spirit is within me to enable me with the desire and the power to grow up in spiritual maturity toward the image of Christ.

Like a good Father, who wants the best for his children, You'll correct me and encourage me, as You direct me and empower me to live into Your purpose for my life (Hebrews 12:5-6). And Your purpose is to make me more like You. Lord, let it be so, all in Your time, all in Your way, all by Your grace. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

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

My Friend, may the Holy Spirit of God living in you enable you with the desire and the power to be conformed to the image of Christ, growing up in spiritual maturity as an imitator of God. 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