Morning by Morning, January 12 - More like Him

Good morning, Lord Jesus. I call on Your name and welcome Your Spirit to draw every dimension of my being into deeper intimacy with every dimension of Your Being --Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  ...

"May the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be kept sound and blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The One who calls you is faithful, and He will do this" (1 Thessalonians 5:23-24).

Faithful One, do this in me. Sanctify me in "spirit and soul and body." Keep me sound --healthy, healed, whole, and secure. Keep me blameless --repentant of sin, cleansed by Your blood, embracing Your mercy and grace, forgiven and free. 

By the power of Your grace, I "have been chosen and destined by God the Father and sanctified by the Spirit to be obedient to Jesus Christ and to be sprinkled with His blood" (1 Peter 1:2). "For this is the will of God, (my) sanctification" (1 Thessalonians 4:30).

I can't do it. I can't deserve it, earn it, or make it happen. But I can willingly choose to humble myself to be desperately dependent upon You alone to be at work in me. Conform me into Your image. Align my heart with Your desires and my mind with Your thoughts to will what is right and to do what is right:  "For it is God who is at work in (me), enabling (me) both to will and to work for His good pleasure" (Philippians 2:13). 

So as best as I can and all by Your grace, I choose this day to embrace the standard of Your will and the work of Your Spirit. Make me more like You today (Romans 8:29). In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

 

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

My Friend,  I pray the Spirit of Christ will be at work in you to make You more like Jesus each day. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!

Friends, thank you for all your prayers for us as we had the honor and joy of teaching and ministering inner healing for he Oak Hills Church missionaries from around the world on a retreat at Horseshoe Bay. They came from Brazil, Haiti, El Salvador, Burkina Faso, Sudan, Mexico, and the United States (oakhillschurch.com/longtermmissions). We truly believe it was a powerful time in the Presence of the Lord with encouragement, healing, renewal and a fresh filling of the Holy Spirit for each of them and all of us. I pray the same for you!

  

Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries

Healing from the Inside Out

www.Messiah-Ministries.org 

  

Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries

4 Dominion Drive, Building 1

San Antonio, Texas 78257

www.RaphaGodMinistries.com 

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Morning by Morning, January 8 - Passionate Pursuit

Good morning, Lord Jesus. I put my heart in Your hands--Your nail-scarred hands that forever declare Your faithfulness, Your forgiveness, and unfailing love for me. ...

"Pursue peace with everyone, and the holiness without which no one will see the Lord" (Hebrew 12:14).

I want to see You, Lord. Not just when I get to heaven when I die, but in every moment of every day. I want to see what You're doing, hear what You're saying, go where You're leading. I want to live my moments fully alive to Your presence. 

So reawaken in me the passion to pursue peace and pursue holiness. Not the peace of the world that goes along to get along, compromising with truth, complacent and passive, settling for less than the fullness of the kingdom of God, but the peace of Christ that surpasses all understanding. Not the holiness that's determined by outward appearance or self-righteous religion, but the holiness of heart and life that flows out of a life seeking full surrender to the One who alone is holy and welcomed to be at work within my heart, conforming my thoughts and my desires to Yours, morning by morning and step by step.

Come, Holy Spirit. Rekindle the flame. Reawaken my spirit. Revive my soul. "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled" (Matthew 5:6). In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

 

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

My Friend,  I pray the Holy Spirit will rekindle the flame, reawaken your spirit, and revive your soul in the passionate pursuit of the Lord's true peace and holiness of heart and life in you this year. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!

Friends, please keep us in prayer the next two days as our team of prayer ministers from Rapha God Ministries have the blessing and honor of ministering to the Oak Hills Church missionaries from around the world on a retreat at Horseshoe Bay.They are coming in from Brazil, Haiti, El Salvador, Burkina Faso, North Africa, Mexico, and the United States (oakhillschurch.com/longtermmissions). We'll be ministering to them together and in personal prayer ministry on topics of spiritual alignment, spiritual warfare, forgiveness, and brokenness from trauma. May this be a time of healing, renewal and fresh filling of the Holy Spirit for each of them and all of us. I pray the same for you!

  

Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries

Healing from the Inside Out

www.Messiah-Ministries.org 

  

Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries

4 Dominion Drive, Building 1

San Antonio, Texas 78257

www.RaphaGodMinistries.com 

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Morning by Morning, January 7 - Thank God for Good Friends

Good morning, Lord Jesus. You are my Lord and Savior, my Master and King, and my faithful Friend forever.  ...

"As for us, we can't help but thank God for you, dear brothers and sisters loved by the Lord" (2 Thessalonians 2:13 NLT).

Thank You, God, for all Your goodness. And thank You for the gift of every faithful friend You've brought into my life. Though they knew my faults, they loved me anyway. Though I went through troubling times, they stood by me anyway. Though they didn't always agree with every choice I ever made, they still believed I was trying my best to follow Your leading even when I misunderstood or missed the mark. I can't help but thank You for each one of them.

Lord, empower me by Your grace to be a faithful friend too. Let me be free to share my thoughts even when I may be wrong, to speak the truth as I understand it to be, to take time to listen, to make time to present, sometimes to patiently endure and always to love. Let me be one who first assumes the best intentions, who easily forgives, who makes no record of wrongs, who's quick to admit my mistakes, and always believes You're always at work to redeem all things we entrust to You with humility in prayer.

Good friends are an expression of the nature and character of our good God (Exodus 33:11; James 2:23). I thank You that You are my Friend and I am Yours (John 15:15). And I thank You for the one You have chosen to journey with me as my best friend for the rest of my life. In Jesus' name I pray.

 

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

My Friend,  I pray God will grant you the gift of good friends and empower you to be a good friend with the nature of His Spirit in your heart. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!

Friends, if you're in the area, you're welcome to come join us this afternoon between 4-7:00 at our ministry office in San Antonio for wedding cake and coffee to celebrate the marriage of Tommy & Rocio Hays. Thank you for all the good wishes, prayers, and blessings!

  

Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries

Healing from the Inside Out

www.Messiah-Ministries.org 

  

Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries

4 Dominion Drive, Building 1

San Antonio, Texas 78257

www.RaphaGodMinistries.com 

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Morning by Morning, January 6 - "Oil of Gladness"

Good morning, Lord Jesus. In this communion of prayer, make me one with You, one with the body of Christ, one in ministry wherever You send me, to the ends of the earth, until I feast with You at Your heavenly banquet in final victory. ...

"But of the Son He says, 'Your throne, O God, is forever and ever, and the righteous scepter is the scepter of Your kingdom. You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness; therefore God, Your God, has anointed You with the oil of gladness beyond Your companions'" (Hebrews 1:8-9).

Holy Spirit, anoint me with the oil of gladness. Let the joy of the Lord be my strength (Nehemiah 8:10). "In Your presence there is fullness of joy" (Psalm 16:11).

My heart is glad that You are so good to me. You are a good God who loves to give good gifts to Your children (Luke 11:13). And one of Your best gifts is Your joy. "For You, O Lord, have made me glad by Your work; at the works of Your hands I sing for joy!" (Psalm 92:4) Joy is such a vibrant expression of the kingdom of God abiding in us by the anointing of Your Holy Spirit (Romans 14:17).

Thank You, O Lord, for restoring my joy--the joy of my salvation (Psalm 51:12). Thank You for anointing me with "the oil of gladness" (Isaiah 61:3). Give me Your grace to share Your joy in the anointing of Your Spirit everywhere You send me today. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

 

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

My Friend,  I pray you the Holy Spirit will anoint you with the oil of gladness and let the joy of the Lord flow out of your spirit today in Jesus' name. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!

 

Friends, if you're in the area, you're welcome to come join us this Wednesday afternoon between 4-7:00 at our ministry office in San Antonio for wedding cake and coffee to celebrate the marriage of Tommy & Rocio Hays.

 

Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries

Healing from the Inside Out

www.Messiah-Ministries.org 

  

Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries

4 Dominion Drive, Building 1

San Antonio, Texas 78257

www.RaphaGodMinistries.com 

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Morning by Morning, January 5 - "The Beginning and the End"

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Good Shepherd, let me hear Your voice and sense the leading of Your Spirit.  ...

"See, I am coming soon; My reward is with Me, to repay according to everyone's work. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end" (Revelation 22:12-13).

As I set my face to turn toward this new year, I set my heart to turn toward You, the One who already holds all my days in Your hands. You are the first and the last, the beginning and the end. You are the One who already sees all that will come into my life this year, "declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, 'My purpose shall stand and I will fulfill My intention... I have spoken, and I will bring it to pass; I have planned, and I will do it'" (Isaiah 46:10-11).

In the mystery of faith, the freedom of love, and the sovereignty of God, You already see every choice I'll ever make every day of this year, yet fully empower me with the freedom to make every choice in the freedom of my will: "See, I have set before you today life and prosperity, death and adversity... I call heaven and earth to witness against you today that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Choose life..." (Deuteronomy 30:15-30).

So as best as I can and all by Your grace, I willingly choose to follow You on this journey of this new year (John 10:27). You said, "Whoever serves Me must follow Me" (John 12:26). And every day, You invite each one to "choose this day whom (we) will serve" (Joshua 24:15). 

Lord, I want the works of my hands and the choices of my heart to honor You, as I serve You and follow You. So align my will with Your will and my desires with Your desires, that You may fulfill Your intentions and bring to pass all You have planned for my life this year. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen. 

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

My Friend,  I pray you will choose to allow God's Spirit to move in your heart with His desires to embrace His will for your life this year. May you prosper in Christ in every way in Jesus' name. Happy New Year! God bless you, my friend!

 

 

Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries

Healing from the Inside Out

www.Messiah-Ministries.org 

  

Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries

4 Dominion Drive, Building 1

San Antonio, Texas 78257

www.RaphaGodMinistries.com 

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Morning by Morning, January 2 - Go in Faith into this New Year

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Be Thou my Vision, O Lord of my heart. ...

"Now the Lord had said to Abram, 'Go from your country and your kindred and your father's house to the land that I will show you. I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.' So Abram went, as the Lord told him..." (Genesis 12:1-4).

Abraham began his journey in faith. And his faith in You guided his steps all along the way. Sometimes he faltered, sometimes he failed; but his faith remained. And you honored his faith. "Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness,' and he was called the friend of God" (James 2:23).

I'm excited to begin the journey of this new year trusting in You with all the faith You've established in me. Sometimes I literally cry when I think of Your tender mercies, Your unfailing love, and Your relentless grace for me through every time I've faltered or failed. Yet You strengthen my faith every time You pick me up and hold me close and set me back on the path of the journey You've destined for me. "For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable" (Romans 11:29).

Lord, fill my spirit with expectant faith. Through faith, I am a spiritual descendant of Abraham. "Just as Abraham 'believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness,' so, you see, those who believe are the descendants of Abraham" (Galatians 3:6). And I believe by faith, as I begin this journey of this new year, You will continue to pour out Your blessings upon me and through me everywhere You send me, in ways I could never deserve and never earn--all for the glory of Your name, expressing the nature of Your mercy and love. "For this reason, those who believe are blessed with Abraham who believed" (Galatians 3:9). To God be the glory. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

 

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

My Friend,  I pray you will go in faith into this new year the Lord has set apart for You to bless you and bless others through you, all for the glory of His name. In the name of Jesus, be forgiven and freed of every failure of your past to move forward into the fullness of your God-given destiny in Christ. Happy New Year! God bless you, my friend!

 

Friends, Thank You so much for joining with me in this journey of faith, seeking God and seeking to follow the leading of His Holy Spirit morning by morning in prayer. God bless you!

 

 

Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries

Healing from the Inside Out

www.Messiah-Ministries.org 

  

Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries

4 Dominion Drive, Building 1

San Antonio, Texas 78257

www.RaphaGodMinistries.com 

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Morning by Morning, January 1 - "First"

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Come into my heart and every moment of my day. On this first morning of this first day of this new year, I worship You and welcome You, O God--Father, Son, and Holy Spirit--into the center and at the foundation of all I am and all I will be.  ...

"Who has performed and done this, calling the generations from the beginning? I, the Lord, am first, and will be with the last" (Isaiah 41:4).

Be first in my life, my Lord.

Let Your name be the first word from my mouth every morning. Let Your face be the first thing I seek as I begin each day in the communion of prayer and the fellowship of Your Spirit. Let Your will be my first desire and Your ways be my first choice. Let everything else come second, as I seek first the Kingdom of God, for then I can truly embrace and enjoy every abundant and beautiful blessing You've poured into my life (Matthew 6:33). In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

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

My Friend,  I pray you will draw more deeply into the Presence of the Lord, giving Him first place in your life throughout every day of this new year. May you know the abundance of all His beautiful blessings He will be pouring into your life out of His extravagant love for you. Happy New Year!

Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!

Friends, thank you for all your prayers and blessings for me and my beautiful bride, Rocio Caballero Hays. On December 19th at a small, simple wedding with our families at Horseshoe Bay, Texas, we were so honored for Max Lucado to lead us in our vows and embrace the Lord's great gift of unfailing love for us and for one another.

 We'll be having a simple celebration of coffee and wedding cake with friends at our prayer ministry office in San Antonio on the afternoon of January 7th. You're welcome to join us if you're in town! Please keep us in prayer as we begin this exciting journey of life together as one! Love and blessings to you, my friends, from Tommy & Rocio Hays!

 

 

 

Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries

Healing from the Inside Out

www.Messiah-Ministries.org 

  

Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries

4 Dominion Drive, Building 1

San Antonio, Texas 78257

www.RaphaGodMinistries.com 

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Morning by Morning, December 19 - "I Found the One I Love"

Good morning, Lord Jesus. I love you, Lord. And I am overwhelmed everyday by Your overflowing, unfailing love for me.  ...

"I found the one I love" (Song of Solomon 3:4 NKJV).

On this day, I will entrust my heart in the covenant of marriage to the one I believe with all my heart You have chosen for me. 

I found the one I love. And You have caused her to find me.

Abraham sent his servant to find a bride for his son (Genesis 24:4). He was confident You would send Your angel before his servant to guide the journey and find the one You had chosen for Isaac (v. 7). His servant found Rebekah and brought her home to Isaac. "She became his wife" and Isaac "love her deeply" (v. 67 NLT). He found the one he loved.

As Abraham sent his servant, I believe You've sent Your Holy Spirit to find Your bride for me. I love her deeply and she loves me. And by the grace and power of Your love, may we always and forever "love one another deeply from the heart" (1 Peter 1:22). Thank You for loving me and leading me to find the one I love. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

 

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

My Friend,  I pray you will find the one love and be found by them, always and forever loving one another deeply from the heart in Jesus' name. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!

 

Friends, my beautiful bride who loves Jesus with all her heart, Rocio Caballero, will be united with me in marriage today in a small, simple wedding with our families. We are so honored that Max Lucado will lead us in our vows of love to the Lord and one another. We'll be having a simple celebration of coffee and wedding cake with friends at our prayer ministry office in San Antonio on the afternoon of January 7th. You're welcome to join us if you're in town! Please keep us in prayer as we begin this exciting journey of life together as one! Love and blessings to you, my friends!

 

 

Tommy & Rocio at the Courthouse with our Marriage License

 from the State of Texas

Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries

Healing from the Inside Out

www.Messiah-Ministries.org 

  

Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries

4 Dominion Drive, Building 1

San Antonio, Texas 78257

www.RaphaGodMinistries.com 

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Morning by Morning, December 18 - "The Time Came"

Good morning, Lord Jesus. All that I am and all that I have, I entrust to You, the One that I love and the One that I serve.  ...

"While they were there, the time came for (Mary) to deliver her Child. And she gave birth to her firstborn Son and wrapped Him in bands of cloth, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn" (Luke 2:6-7).

When "the time came" for the birth of Mary's Son, we might have said "Surely this can't be the time; surely this can't be God's will. We're not at home in Nazareth, but away on a trip. We can't let our baby be born away in a manger, surrounded by cattle, no crib for a bed, having to sleep on the hay." We might have said, "How would they ever be able to write beautiful Christmas songs out of a God-forsaken setting like this?"

But it was Your time. From before the foundations of the earth, You had already determined, eternally determined, that this would be the time that You would come and redeem Your creation through the birth of Christ. "When the fullness of time had come, God sent His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, in order to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as children" (Galatians 4:4-5).

Lord, give me grace to more fully trust Your timing and Your ways. No doubt, it will not always be in my time or in my way. Though You are in the process of changing me into Your image, Your thoughts are not yet always my thoughts and Your ways are yet always my ways; I still have a long way to go to be like Jesus (Isaiah 55:8). But by the grace of God, that is my desire and I'm on that journey (2 Corinthians 3:18). And You are the God who makes all things beautiful in Your time (Romans 8:28). In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

 

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

My Friend,  I pray you will know the Lord is making all things beautiful for you in His time. in Jesus' name. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!

Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries

Healing from the Inside Out

www.Messiah-Ministries.org 

  

Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries

4 Dominion Drive, Building 1

San Antonio, Texas 78257

www.RaphaGodMinistries.com 

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Morning by Morning, December 16 - What Love is This?

Good morning, Lord Jesus. You are One with the Father and One with the Holy Spirit; would You be One within me as I entrust my life and this day completely to You.  ...

"All this took place to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet:  'Look, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and they shall name Him Emmanuel,' which means, 'God is with us'" (Matthew 1:22-23).

What love is this? What God is this? That You would set aside the glory of heaven to humble Yourself in the likeness of human flesh and blood? That the Word that spoke the world into existence would become flesh to live and die at the hands of those You created? That in all Your sovereignty and self-sufficiency You would desire to not only watch over us from heaven but to come here to earth and here in our hearts to be with us?

My mind can't fully understand it. But with all my heart, I choose to fully embrace it. That You are Emmanuel, God with us. And that in this mystery of faith and unfailing love, You are God within us, as we open our hearts and welcome Your Spirit to live and love in us.

Come, Holy Spirit--Spirit of the Living God, Spirit of Christ, Spirit of Emmanuel, Spirit of God with us. I receive Your gift of love for me. "See what love the Father has given us" (1 John 3:1). In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

 

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

My Friend,  I pray the Holy Spirit will stir in your spirit with expectant faith, expecting the fullness and the fulfillment of every word of the Lord for your life you've come to believe in Jesus' name. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!

 

Friends, we'll be coming together today with all our prayer ministers at Rapha God Ministries to celebrate Christ and all the Lord has done in us and through us this year. Thank you so much for all your prayers for me and for Rapha God Ministries and Messiah Ministries! Merry Christmas and God bless you!

Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries

Healing from the Inside Out

www.Messiah-Ministries.org 

  

Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries

4 Dominion Drive, Building 1

San Antonio, Texas 78257

www.RaphaGodMinistries.com 

Share this word to encourage a friend!  

Morning by Morning, December 16 - What Love is This?

Good morning, Lord Jesus. You are One with the Father and One with the Holy Spirit; would You be One within me as I entrust my life and this day completely to You.  ...

"All this took place to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet:  'Look, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and they shall name Him Emmanuel,' which means, 'God is with us'" (Matthew 1:22-23).

What love is this? What God is this? That You would set aside the glory of heaven to humble Yourself in the likeness of human flesh and blood? That the Word that spoke the world into existence would become flesh to live and die at the hands of those You created? That in all Your sovereignty and self-sufficiency You would desire to not only watch over us from heaven but to come here to earth and here in our hearts to be with us?

My mind can't fully understand it. But with all my heart, I choose to fully embrace it. That You are Emmanuel, God with us. And that in this mystery of faith and unfailing love, You are God within us, as we open our hearts and welcome Your Spirit to live and love in us.

Come, Holy Spirit--Spirit of the Living God, Spirit of Christ, Spirit of Emmanuel, Spirit of God with us. I receive Your gift of love for me. "See what love the Father has given us" (1 John 3:1). In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

 

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

My Friend,  I pray you fully embrace all the love  our God has for you and and all of us in Jesus' name. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!

Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries

Healing from the Inside Out

www.Messiah-Ministries.org 

  

Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries

4 Dominion Drive, Building 1

San Antonio, Texas 78257

www.RaphaGodMinistries.com 

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Morning by Morning, December 15 - Fear Not What's "from the Holy Spirit"

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

"'Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a Son, and you are to name Him Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins'" (Matthew 1:20-21).

Sometimes the hardest things to embrace are the things "from the Holy Spirit." They can make us afraid or uncomfortable because they often lead us in a direction we weren't planning or come at a time we didn't choose. But everything from the Holy Spirit is from Your heart and for our good.

So You invite us to listen for Your leading and trust in Your goodness. You call us to believe that the plans You have for our lives will fill our future with Your hope. Joseph did. "When Joseph awoke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him; he took her as his wife but had no marital relations with her until she had borne a Son; and he named Him Jesus" (v. 1:23-25).

Lord, help me listen for the leading of Your Holy Spirit. And help me trust that everything that comes from Your Spirit is for my good. Free me from fear and doubt. Give me confidence and peace to rest in Your purposes and Your provision. All in Your time and all in Your way, something good is always sure to come. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

 

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

My Friend,  I pray God's grace to embrace everything for your life from the Holy Spirit in Jesus' name. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!

Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries

Healing from the Inside Out

www.Messiah-Ministries.org 

  

Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries

4 Dominion Drive, Building 1

San Antonio, Texas 78257

www.RaphaGodMinistries.com 

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Morning by Morning, December 12 - Crooked Paths Can Still Lead Us Home by God's Grace

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Your name is the first word I speak today, as I entrust my heart and this day into Your hands.  ...

"An account of the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham. Abraham was the father of Isaac, and Isaac the father of Jacob ... and Salmon the father of Boaz by Rahab ... and David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah ... and Josiah the father of Jechoniah and his brothers, at the time of the deportation to Babylon ... and Jacob the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born, who is called the Messiah" (Matthew 1:1-16).

It helps me see the power of the grace of God when I see the genealogy of Jesus. Among all the heroes and saints of the faith in the family tree of Jesus were also many who were not so heroic and not so saintly. And some who were famously both saint and sinner, like King David, who was both the giant-slayer, passionate psalmist after God's own heart, and popular king but also an adulterer and murderer.

Jacob was a liar who stole his brother's birthright. Rahab was a prostitute. The wife of Uriah was David's adulteress. And the whole nation of men and women rebelled against God until judgment couldn't be withheld any longer and they were all deported in exile to Bablyon for seventy years.

Yet You, O Lord, redeemed it all. In the power of Your grace, You caused that crooked path to lead home to Jesus.

Thank You, Father. You still send Your Holy Spirit to take all our crooked paths and all our broken lives and lead us to Jesus. You still redeem it all to cause all things to work together for good when we love You and allow You to forgive us and fulfill us in the plans and calling You have for our lives (Romans 8:28).

Thank You for forgiving me of my sins, for healing me of my brokenness, for choosing to use my life in Your plans, despite every crooked path of my life. Thank You for causing all my crooked paths to lead me home to You. Thank You for this eternal truth of Your unfailing love:  "The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness" (Lamentations 3:22-23). In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

 

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

My Friend,  I pray the Holy Spirit will keep leading you home to Jesus, redeeming any brokenness or failures in your life, as He uses it all and empowers you to fulfill your calling in Jesus' name. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!

Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries

Healing from the Inside Out

www.Messiah-Ministries.org 

  

Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries

4 Dominion Drive, Building 1

San Antonio, Texas 78257

www.RaphaGodMinistries.com 

Share this word to encourage a friend!  

Morning by Morning, December 11 - Royal Bloodline

Good morning, Lord Jesus. I seek Your face and listen for Your voice.  ...

"Now the birth of Jesus the Messiah took place in this way. When His mother Mary had been engaged to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found to be with Child from the Holy Spirit. Her husband Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace, planned to dismiss her quietly. But just when he had resolved to do this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, 'Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the Child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a Son, and you are to name Him Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.' All this took place to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet:  'Look, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall name Him Emmanuel,' which means, 'God is with us'" (Matthew 1:18:23).

Before the angel of the Lord spoke to Joseph of his destiny, the angel reminded him of his identity. Joseph was a "son of David." He came from the royal bloodline of the King of Israel. Though he was carpenter and probably a very simple man, living a very simple life, he was also a royal son.

Then, secure in his identity, Joseph could fulfill his destiny. "When Joseph awoke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him; he took her as his wife, but had no marital relations with her until she had borne a Son; and he named Him Jesus" (v. 1:24-25).

Like Joseph, I am also a royal son with a royal bloodline. Through Christ, I am a son of God, a child of the one true King, "for in Christ (we) are all children of God through faith" (Galatians 3:26). Through Christ, I am also a rightful heir according to the promises of God (Galatians 3:29). 

Through Jesus the Messiah, who came and saved me from all my sins, I am cleansed by His royal blood and can take my place in His royal bloodline (1 John 1:9). I can rest secure in my identity and fulfill my destiny as a part of "a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God's own people, in order that (I) may proclaim the mighty acts of Him who called (me) out of darkness into His marvelous light" (1 Peter 2:9). In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

 

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

My Friend,  I pray you will know the security of your identity as a child of God in the royal bloodline of Jesus Christ and live out your destiny serving and glorifying Him with your life today in Jesus' name. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!

Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries

Healing from the Inside Out

www.Messiah-Ministries.org 

  

Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries

4 Dominion Drive, Building 1

San Antonio, Texas 78257

www.RaphaGodMinistries.com 

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Morning by Morning, December 10 - Sovereignty and Freedom in the Purposes of God

Good morning, Lord Jesus. I lift up my spirit and open up my heart to welcome in to every moment of my day.  ...

"In those days a decree went out from Emperor Augustus that the world should be registered.... All went to their own towns to be registered. Joseph also went from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of David called Bethlehem, because he was descended form the house and family of David. He went to be registered with Mary, to whom he was engaged and who was expecting a Child" (Luke 2:1-5).

Father God, You are sovereign, yet we are free. You are at work in all the details and choices of our lives. You know every choice we will ever make in the freedom that a relationship of love requires; and at the same time, You are at work in every detail of every choice, causing all things to work together for our good and for Your purposes.

Long before the birth of Jesus of Nazareth, You spoke through Your prophet that Your Messiah would be born in Bethlehem:  "But you, O Bethlehem of Ephrathah, who are one of the little clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for Me One who is to rule in Israel, whose origin is from of old, from ancient days ... and He shall be the One of peace" (Micah 5:2-5).

So Emperor August chose to call every family Israel to their ancestral home. Joseph chose to take his pregnant wife Mary on the long journey from Nazareth to Bethlehem. And Mary chose to go with him. Each made their choice at exactly the time You sovereignly chose to bring forth Your Messiah into our world--Jesus of Nazareth who would be born in Bethlehem.

Father, thank You for Your sovereignty and my freedom. In Your sovereignty, You created me for a relationship of love; and a true relationship of love requires that I have the freedom to trust You, to love You, to follow You or not. Otherwise it wouldn't be freedom and it wouldn't be love. You've created me in Your image, and Your image is love (1 John 3:8). You've chosen to love me and I've chosen to love You.  And I can feely love You because You sovereignly chose to first love me (1 John 4:19).

Lord, I trust You to be at work in me and every detail of every decision of my life--even the bad ones that You always redeem when I finally give them to You, causing them all to work together for good (Romans 8:28). I trust You to move in my heart and guide my steps along the long journey of Your will for my life. "Let it be with me according to Your word" (Luke 1:38).

 

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

My friend,  I pray you will be know God's love for and trust God's purposes for you in every decision you make in the freedom you have as a gift of God in Jesus' name. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!

Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries

Healing from the Inside Out

www.Messiah-Ministries.org 

  

Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries

4 Dominion Drive, Building 1

San Antonio, Texas 78257

www.RaphaGodMinistries.com 

Share this word to encourage a friend!  

Morning by Morning, December 9 - "Mighty Savior"

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

"Then (John's) father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke this prophecy:  'Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for He has looked favorably on His people and redeemed them. He has raised up a mighty Savior for us in the house of David, as He spoke through the mouth of His holy prophets from of old, that we would be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us. Thus He has shown the mercy promised to our ancestors, and has remembered His holy covenant, the oath that He swore to our ancestor Abraham, to grant us the we, being rescued from the hands of our enemies, might serve Him without fear, in holiness and righteousness before Him all our days" (Luke 1:67-75).

Lord Jesus, You are our mighty Savior. You save us from our enemies and from our sins. You deliver us from darkness. You heal our wounded hearts and restore our weary souls.

You fill us with Your Holy Spirit to prophesy and proclaim the goodness of our God, the faithfulness of our Father. You remind us of the covenants that cannot be broken and the hope of heaven to come, here in our hearts and for all eternity.

Father. Son, and Holy Spirit--You are the Lord our God. And in the mystery of faith through the incarnation of Christ, You humbled Yourself to come as Child and show us the heart of God as Immanuel, God with us (Matthew 1:23). Through the gift of Your birth and the glory of Your resurrection, we can love and serve You without fear, in holiness and righteousness before our God all our days. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

 

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

My Friend,  I pray you will be filled with the Holy Spirit to prophesy and proclaim the love of God lavished upon us through our mighty Savior in Jesus' name. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!

Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries

Healing from the Inside Out

www.Messiah-Ministries.org 

  

Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries

4 Dominion Drive, Building 1

San Antonio, Texas 78257

www.RaphaGodMinistries.com 

Share this word to encourage a friend!  

Morning by Morning, December 8 - Prepared in Our Hearts for the Coming of Christ

Good morning, Lord Jesus. I prepare room for You in the manger of my heart and the moments of my day.  ...

"Now the time came for Elizabeth to give birth, and she bore a son. Her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown His great mercy to her, and they rejoiced with her.... All who heard (of God's miraculous signs and mercy concerning the conception and birth of John the Baptist) pondered them and said, 'What then will this child become?' For, indeed, the hand of the Lord was with him" (Luke 1:57-66).

Zechariah was too old and Elizabeth was too barren to have a child. But You spoke to their hearts and moved in Your power to give them a child who would be named John (Luke 1:13). As Your words came to pass, all were amazed and moved with expectant faith for what was to come.

John would grow up to "be great in the sight of the Lord" and "turn the hearts of the people of Israel to the Lord their God" (v. 1:14-16). "With the spirit and power of Elijah ... (he would) turn the hearts of the parents to their children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord," fulfilling the promises You prophesied would come (v. 1:17).

Father God, before Your Holy Spirit conceived Jesus in the womb of Mary, Your Spirit conceived John in the womb of Elizabeth. John was divinely destined to "prepare the way of the Lord" for Jesus (v. 3:4). And as his birth and life began to unfold, the people were excited and expectant for how this great story would be told.

In this season when we celebrate the coming of Christ, send Your Spirit and power to first prepare the way of the Lord in our hearts. Turn our hearts again to You. Let us ponder Your miraculous signs and mercy all around us every day. And may we be excited and expectant for how Your great story will unfold and be told in our time. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

 

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

My Friend,  I pray the Holy Spirit will come and prepare the way of the Lord in your heart for the coming of Christ every moment of every day in Jesus' name. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!

Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries

Healing from the Inside Out

www.Messiah-Ministries.org 

  

Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries

4 Dominion Drive, Building 1

San Antonio, Texas 78257

www.RaphaGodMinistries.com 

Share this word to encourage a friend!