Grace for Gaza 6-16-07

Good morning, Lord Jesus. There is peace in no place and no person but You. Draw me into Your presence and fill me with Your peace. Help me pray out of peace, not anxiety and out of love, not fear. ... "Gather together, gather, O shameless nation, before you are driven away like the drifting chaff, before there comes upon you the fierce anger of the Lord, before there comes upon you the day of the Lord's wrath. Seek the Lord, all you humble of the land, who do His commands; seek righteousness, seek humility; perhaps you may be hidden on the day of the Lord's wrath. For Gaza shall be deserted, and Ashkelon shall become a desolation; Ashdod's people shall be driven out at noon, and Ekron shall be uprooted" (Zephaniah 2:1-4). The nations and cities of the ancient prophecies of Your Word fill the headlines of our news today. You hold all time and space, past and future, presently in Your hands. To You all hearts are known, all choices that have been made and all that will ever be made are known to You now. And though You see the rebellion of human will and the hardness of human hearts, Your desire is always that we would turn to You in repentance, obedience, and faith. "For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone, says the Lord God. Turn, then, and live" (Ezekiel 18:32). Though there is a day of Your wrath, there are many days for repentance before that day -- yet, they are not days without end. Your Word will go forth and it will not return void; It will accomplish all that You have purposed (Isaiah 55:11). But You call us to pray for ourselves and for others, that souls may be saved even in the midst of the wrath of Your Word. Your ancient Word is going forth in the land of Gaza in these days. The blood of violence and vengeance soaks the land where the ancient Philistines seized their enemy Samson and gouged out his eyes in retaliation and hatred (Judges 16:21-22). Violence and vengeance have continued to soak the land in blood ever since. I join the prayers of people throughout the earth, praying for peace in the land of the Philistines, among the people now called Palestinians. True peace will come only as they truly turn to the One who is Peace (Isaiah 9:6). "Seek the Lord while He may be found, call upon Him while He is near; let the wicked forsake their way, and the unrighteous their thoughts; let them return to the Lord, that He may have mercy on them, and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon" (Isaiah 55:6-7). The same is true with those of the remnant and those of the rebellion in every tribe and tongue and nation. Gaza needs Your grace, and so do we all. We all need Peace -- the peace that comes only through the provision of Your grace and the power of Your love expressed through Your cross. "I have said this to you, so that in Me, you may have peace" (John 16:33). In Jesus' name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays To subscribe/unsubscribe, please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- MessiahMin@aol.com -- "Ministering the Healing Love of God ... Preparing the Way of the Lord." 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502 www.messiah-ministries.org Daily Archives: www.morningbymorning.injesus.com

Stairway of Heaven 6-15-07

Good morning, Lord Jesus. All creation declares Your glory. I praise Your name as I greet the new day. ... "The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit" (John 3:8). We've come west with our family for our summer visit to see Mom in the mountains of New Mexico. Yesterday we took the kids to see the spiral staircase in the Loretto Chapel in Sante Fe. They say the beautiful staircase was built in answer to prayer by the sisters who only had a ladder to go up into the choir loft to sing. One day a man no one knew came and began to build the spiral staircase with only a hammer and saw, with water to soak and bend the wood -- no nails and no supporting structure between the top and the bottom. In six months time, he left as suddenly as he came, not seeking any payment and not revealing his name, only leaving behind the gift of what the sisters called the miraculous staircase which still stands today. Your Holy Spirit comes into our lives, as a miraculous gift of God. Sometimes as silent as a breath of air and sometimes as mighty as the wind of a storm, yet always unseen except by the fruit of the gifts and blessings He brings. He "will not speak on His own, but will speak whatever He hears," not drawing attention to Himself, but always glorifying You (John 16:13-14). Like the carpenter who came to Loretto and the wind that comes and goes as it pleases, Your Spirit is always at work building the kingdom of heaven on earth -- bearing the miraculous marks of the gifts and glory of God in our hearts. Your Spirit is like a stairway to heaven and a stairway of heaven to us. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays To subscribe/unsubscribe, please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- MessiahMin@aol.com -- "Ministering the Healing Love of God ... Preparing the Way of the Lord." 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502 http://www.messiah-ministries.org/ Daily Archives: http://www.morningbymorning.injesus.com/

Abandoned to God 6-14-07

Good morning, Lord Jesus. I need You, Lord, to guide my thoughts and direct my desires. As best as I can and all by Your grace, I entrust and abandon myself to You. ... "I will most gladly spend and be spent for you" (2 Corinthians 12:15). I've been reading a biography of the life of Oswald Chambers, Abandoned to God. And so he was. Though he had a deep and intimate relationship with You almost all of the entirety of his life, he came to a place of full surrender, emptied of himself and filled with You -- he called it "baptized with the Holy Spirit" (Acts 1:5). From that day forward, though he continually grew in grace and maturity of spirit, his life was fully abandoned to You. Like Paul and the faithful remnant of Spirit-filled followers of Christ through the generations in between and since, he was willing to spend and be spent for Your purposes according to Your plans. Like Paul, he longed and labored to see Christ formed in the lives of all You touched through his writings and words and prayers (Galatians 4:19). Every where You sent him, he yearned to see Your people "saved, sanctified, and healed." So do I. Lord, bring me to that place of abandon and full surrender. I confess I still see too much of me and not enough of You in the motives of my heart. I still seek too much the approval of man instead of only the approval of God. I still tend to find my sense of security and significance in the opinions of others instead of only in the opinion of the One who matters most. Continue to uproot my pride, crucify my flesh, and deliver me from false humility. Give me the desire and the power to yield my life completely to You, that I may spend and be spent for You. Then my writings and words and prayers will have Your power and will accomplish Your purposes through my life. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays Friends, I have been sensing an increasing desire to devote a significant part of my time to writing and would appreciate your prayers. I have been working on a book about the spiritual principles I have been learning in prayer ministry for some time, but need to bring it to completion. Other have been helping me and encouraging me to put these devotional prayers into a book form. The thought has been coming to me to begin spending much of the summer months focused more on writing than prayer ministry. Please join me in praying for confirmation of the Lord's leading, the necessary provision of time and resources if it is, and the necessary correction and shift of focus and desire if it is not. Thank you for joining me in the journey, and I pray for clarity of your calling in this season of your ministry to the Lord as well! To subscribe/unsubscribe, please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- MessiahMin@aol.com -- "Ministering the Healing Love of God ... Preparing the Way of the Lord." 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502 www.messiah-ministries.org Daily Archives: www.morningbymorning.injesus.com

"Like a Bursting Flood" 6-13-07

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Like my electric razor, I want to be charged up, ready to be used, and ready to travel. These first moments of the morning with You alone are when You charge me up in the power of Your Spirit for the assignments and travels of each day. ... "So he went up to Baal-perazim, and David defeated them there. David said, 'God has burst out against my enemies by my hand like a bursting flood' " (1 Chronicles 14:11). Yesterday morning I went to pray at the Asbury House of Prayer, where students from the college and seminary gather in watches throughout the day and night to pray. Our little community of Wilmore is making preparations for the twenty thousand or so young people who converge here every year from across the nation for the Ichthus Christian music festival. Many lives will be forever changed and sent home to set fire to the lives they touch. As I prayed for Asbury and for Ichthus, You began to show me the image of a large dam holding back flood waters from a dry river bed. But there were cracks in the dam, widening as water began to trickle through from the pressure of the flood waters behind the dam ready to burst through. I sketched out the scene and wrote out this prayer and proclamation that came to my spirit: "Be broken, O dam, of all that would hold back the flow of the Spirit of God in power to touch a dry and thirsty land and a dry and thirsty people. Be broken, strongholds of religion and pride and control, that the river of God may flow freely and swiftly in a flood of God's love and grace." Through the victory of the cross, our spiritual enemies are defeated and You are bursting through their strongholds in our lives and our communities. Let our prayers continue to build the pressure of Your power to be released in a flood of Your Spirit. Let the River of Life break through the barriers and overflow the banks of our man-made attempts to try to control Your power and direct Your presence in our way instead of embracing Yours, leaving our souls and our land dry and thirsty. Come, Holy Spirit, like a bursting flood with the freedom to flow as You will in our lives and our land. The stones and rocks of our dry river beds are crying out for Your flood waters to come bursting forth. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays Friends, we will be leaving tomorrow to take our family out to spend a couple of weeks with my mom and family out west. I plan to keep up my devotional times and sending out my prayers as I am able. I would appreciate your prayers for a restful and joyful time, and I pray the same for you and your families. Thank you for joining me in the journey. God bless, Tommy To subscribe/unsubscribe, please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- MessiahMin@aol.com -- "Ministering the Healing Love of God ... Preparing the Way of the Lord." 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502 www.messiah-ministries.org Daily Archives: www.morningbymorning.injesus.com

Parables of Life 6-12-07

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Open the eyes of my heart and the ears of my spirit, as I watch and wait for You. ... "With many such parables He spoke the word to them, as they were able to hear it; He did not speak to them except in parables, but He explained everything in private to His disciples" (Mark 3:33-34). Though You created the heavens and the earth in the power of Your words, You humble Yourself to speak Your words to us in the ways we can hear it. As in the parables, You use the things we know to teach us the things we don't know. You use the ordinary things of this earthly realm to speak to us of the extraordinary things of the spiritual realm. These are the parables of life. But it's as we draw away with You in the privacy of our personal relationship with You, that You explain everything. In the communion of prayer, You open the eyes of our hearts and give us "a spirit of wisdom and revelation" as we come to know You (Ephesians 1:17-19). Let everything I see around me today speak Your word to me. Keep in a constant communion of prayer as You explain what I'm seeing and hear what You're saying. Reveal to me as much of Your truth and Your word as I am able to bear. And help me grow in grace to be able to bear a little more each day, as I choose live out Your words by Your power in my life. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays Just to remind everyone, The Fountain on Friday nights will not be meeting during the summer, but will resume in September. Come to The Mountain! on Monday Nights for our ministry's weekly prayer for the peace of Jerusalem led by Doris and Bob McCray. 7 pm in the upstairs Community Room at First Southern National Bank on Harrodsburg Rd. in Lexington. All are welcome. Call for details: 859-422-1794 To subscribe/unsubscribe, please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- MessiahMin@aol.com -- "Ministering the Healing Love of God ... Preparing the Way of the Lord." 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502 www.messiah-ministries.org Daily Archives: www.morningbymorning.injesus.com

Miracle of New Life 6-11-07

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Let my life be hidden in Your life today. ... "For as the earth brings forth its shoots, and as a garden causes what is sown in it to spring up, so the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise to spring up before all nations" (Isaiah 61:11). Tricia's family always had a little vegetable garden in their back yard, so she was teaching Elijah how to start one in ours. They tilled a little spot of ground and planted some seeds. Every day Elijah has been watching and waiting for something to happen. The other day, he came running into the house shouting, "It's a miracle! It's a miracle!" Tender bean plants are starting to break through the soil. There is the green of new life now where there was only the brown of preparation and waiting before. What was sown in anticipation and hope is now springing up in fulfillment of faith. Throughout my life, You have sown seeds of truth and life into my soul. Throughout the earth, You have sown seeds of revival and harvest into the souls of all nations in all generations. With great anticipation and eager longing, we pray for the day when new life springs up. Morning by morning, we look to see if this is the day that righteousness and praise will spring up before all nations. "For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the children of God" (Romans 8:20). In Your perfect timing, the seeds of revival will break through as shoots of new life where Your Spirit has tilled the soil of our souls, rising up and growing out into the final harvest to come. And all You have planted in the hearts of Your people throughout the generations of the nations of the earth "shall flourish as a garden; they shall blossom like the vine" (Hosea 14:7). And we will run to each other and shout with joy, "It's a miracle!" In Jesus' name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy HaysCome to The Mountain! on Monday Nights for our ministry's weekly prayer for the peace of Jerusalem led by Doris and Bob McCray. 7 pm in the upstairs Community Room at First Southern National Bank on Harrodsburg Rd. in Lexington. All are welcome. Call for details: 859-422-1794 Just to remind everyone, The Fountain on Friday nights will not be meeting during the summer, but will resume in September. To subscribe/unsubscribe, please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- MessiahMin@aol.com -- "Ministering the Healing Love of God ... Preparing the Way of the Lord." 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502 www.messiah-ministries.org Daily Archives: www.morningbymorning.injesus.com

Of Noble Birth 6-10-07

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Open my heart to hear what You would speak to me today. ... "Consider your own call, brothers and sisters: not many of you were wise by human standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, things that are not, to reduce to nothing the things that are, so that no one might boast in the presence of God. He is the source of your life in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification and redemption, in order that, as it is written, 'Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord' " (1 Corinthians 1:26-31). Forty-six years ago today, I was born in a small town on the dusty plains of west Texas. Born to two teenagers, who had not even finished high school yet, I suppose by human standards, it was not a noble birth. Yet, I don't judge my birth or the birth of anyone by human standards. We are each created by Your hands and created for Your purpose. "For it was You who formed my inward parts; You knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made" (Psalm 139:13-14). Though my earthly mother and father made their choices that led to my conception, You alone had the power to choose whether life would be created in that moment or not. So You chose with deliberate intention and creative design to gather in Your hands the dust of the earth from my mother and father, and to breath into existence my human spirit. By Your breath of life, I became a living soul. Though You knew all the challenges and obstacles to be faced and overcome in the journey before me to be conformed to the image of Christ in the crucible of a broken, fallen world, You said, "Let there be life." I was conceived in humility, but destined for nobility. "But to all who received Him, who believed in His name, He gave power to become children of God, who were born, not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of God" (John 1:12-13). "When we cry, 'Abba! Father!' it is that that very Spirit bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ -- if, in fact, we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him" (Romans 8:15-17). Through the new birth of the Spirit of Christ living in me, I am a child of God; I am a son of the King; I am of noble birth. And by Your grace, I will live my life to fulfill my noble destiny. "In Christ we have also obtained an inheritance, having been destined according to the promise of Him who accomplishes all things according to His counsel and will, so that we, who are the first to set our hope on Christ, might live for the praise of His glory" (Ephesians 1:11-12). It seems I hear You say, "My son, you are of noble birth -- not the nobility of human blood, but the nobility of the blood of My Son. Hold your head high, for I am your glory and the lifter of Your head. You are an heir of God and a joint heir with Christ. You will spend all eternity growing in your understanding of all that means. Choose to believe and live your life as if it were true -- for it is." Yes, Lord. I thank Your for the gift of Your words of truth and life this day and every day. "You, O Lord, are a shield about me, my glory, and the One who lifts my head" (Psalm 3:3). Thank You for creating me and calling me, for being patient to conform me into the image of Your Son. By Your grace and in Your power, I choose to live my life for the praise of Your glory. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays To subscribe/unsubscribe, please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- MessiahMin@aol.com -- "Ministering the Healing Love of God ... Preparing the Way of the Lord." 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502 www.messiah-ministries.org Daily Archives: www.morningbymorning.injesus.com

Speaking in the Power of the Spirit 6-8-07

Good morning, Lord Jesus. I choose to begin my day with You, as You set the foundation for the unfolding of my day. ... "While Peter was still speaking, the Holy Spirit fell upon all who heard the word" (Acts 10:44). After You baptized Peter in Your Holy Spirit, he was never the same. You forgave his sins, healed him from his brokenness, and freed him from his bondage. Then You filled him with Your Spirit and entrusted him with Your word. And he knew "God shows no impartiality" (v. 10:34). What You did for him, You will do for each of us. What You did in Peter's day, You will do in our day. "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever" (Hebrews 13:8). Lord, You did in Peter all that was necessary to give him unflinching faith in You, speaking the words You gave him with power and authority. By the inspiration of Your Holy Spirit, he taught the generations to follow to minister to others with both deep humility and profound faith: "Whoever speaks must do so as one speaking the very words of God; whoever serves must do so with the strength God supplies, so that God may be glorified in all things through Jesus Christ" (1 Peter 4:11). As You did in Peter, do also in me. Give me courage to embrace the process of conviction and repentance, brokenness and healing, humility and faith. Crucify my flesh and purify my soul. Infuse my human spirit with Your Holy Spirit. Cause my heart to be more like Your heart, my thoughts more like Your thoughts, my words to be more like Your words, my actions to be more like Your actions. Convict me when they are not; lead me to repentance; and restore me to the path to pursue holiness of heart and life (Hebrews 12:14). Though I have so far to go, I ask You to take me there -- all by Your grace, all in Your power, in Your perfect timing, in Your perfect way. I want to see the day, when I speak Your word in Your way, that Your Holy Spirit falls upon all who hear it, and their lives are changed forever -- just like mine. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays To subscribe/unsubscribe, please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- MessiahMin@aol.com -- "Ministering the Healing Love of God ... Preparing the Way of the Lord." 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502 www.messiah-ministries.org Daily Archives: www.morningbymorning.injesus.com

Never Passed This Way Before 6-7-07

Good morning, Lord Jesus. This is a new day and Your mercies are new every morning, so I've never been this way before. As best as I can and all by Your grace, I want to walk this way this day with You. ... "Early in the morning Joshua rose and set out from Shittim with all the Israelites, and they came to the Jordan. They camped there before crossing over. At the end of three days, the officers went through the camp and commanded the people, 'When you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God being carried by the levitical priests, then you shall set out from your place. Follow it, so that you may know the way you should go, for you have not passed this way before ...' " (Joshua 3:1-4). I hear You writing a new song in my spirit: This is a new day Not like any other day I've never been this way before. Would You come with me? Would You come lead me? I've never been this way before. I will not fear I know You're near I've never been this way before. Without You I'd be frightened But with You I'm excited I've never been this way before. This morning, it seems something has shifted in the heavenly realm, and I eagerly anticipate it's manifestation in the earthly realm. I want to camp and rest, waiting patiently and faithfully for Your command to rise and go in these few days of transition. I want to watch and wait for the ark of Your presence to lead me across the Jordan of this season into the fulfillment of the promises of Your covenant. I want to follow You along with the others You have joined with me. Thank You for the joy of the journey and the excitement of the adventure along this way we've never been before. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays To subscribe/unsubscribe, please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- MessiahMin@aol.com -- "Ministering the Healing Love of God ... Preparing the Way of the Lord." 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502 www.messiah-ministries.org Daily Archives: www.morningbymorning.injesus.com

Invasion of the Glory of Heaven 6-6-07

Good morning, Lord Jesus. An especially thick cloud of fog covers the land this morning. May the cloud of Your glory fill my heart and cover our land with Your presence. As the morning dew covers the Kentucky bluegrass, may Your glory cover the earth as the waters cover the sea. ... "The voice of the Lord is over the waters; the God of glory thunders, the Lord over mighty waters. The voice of the Lord is powerful; the voice of the Lord is full of majesty. ... The Lord sits enthroned over the flood; the Lord sits enthroned as king forever. May the Lord give strength to His people! May the Lord bless His people with peace!" (Psalm 29:3-11). God of glory, Your voice is thundering in the heavens and releasing Your power in the earth. As the rains of Your mighty waters break the drought on our land, let the rains of Your Spirit break the drought in our souls. Invade the earth with Your glory. Be enthroned as king forever in our hearts and our lands. Strengthen us and encourage us by the word of Your voice to know Your peace. You are the God of peace who crushes the enemy of our souls under our feet (Romans 16:20). You are the God of breakthrough who breaks through the droughts of our souls to revive us and renew us with the living waters of Your Spirit (Isaiah 35:1-10). Today is June 6. On this day in 1944, the largest military invasion of history took place on the beaches of Normandy, France to liberate Europe from Hitler. Let this day be our D-Day. Deliver us and liberate us from the enemy of our souls as You invade the earth with Your glory. Open up Your heavens and send forth Your Word. Anoint Your people to display Your power and proclaim the coming of Your kingdom (Isaiah 61:1-4). Let Your glory cover the earth as the waters cover the sea (Habakkuk 2:14). "For waters shall break forth in the wilderness and streams in the desert.... And the ransomed of the Lord and return, and come to Zion with singing; everlasting joy shall be upon their heads; they shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away" (Isaiah 35:6-10). Yes, Lord. Let the earth see an invasion of the glory of heaven this day. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays To subscribe/unsubscribe, please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- MessiahMin@aol.com -- "Ministering the Healing Love of God ... Preparing the Way of the Lord." 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502 www.messiah-ministries.org Daily Archives: www.morningbymorning.injesus.com

Trust God; Do Good 6-5-07

Good morning, Lord Jesus. I awake and arise to pursue Your presence. I know You are always with me, but I also know that You reward those who seek You (Hebrews 11:6). I seek You and the reward of knowing You are pleased that I have come to seek Your face, to sense Your presence, and to listen for Your voice. ... "Trust in the Lord and do good; so you will live in the land and enjoy security. Take delight in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord, trust in Him, and He will act. He will make your vindication shine like the light, and the justice of your cause like the noonday" (Psalm 37:3-6). My part is to trust; Your part is to act. My part is to do good; Your part is to be great. My part is to commit my way to You; Your part is preserve my life in the promise of security. My part is delight in You; Your part is to delight in giving me the desires You have placed on my heart. I could never do my part, if You had not eternally done Your part. By Your grace, You give me the desire and the power to entrust my life to You and to believe by faith You have received my offering. In Your timing and in Your way, Your Word will come to pass and Your promises will be fulfilled. Forgive me for the times I have lost my patience and lost my focus. Keep lifting my face to Your face and opening my heart to Your heart. Keep reminding me of Your faithfulness and forgiving me for my unfaithfulness. Keep empowering me to do good by Your grace for Your glory, despite the evil remaining to be cleansed from my soul and purged from our broken and fallen world. Teach me to "overcome evil with good" (Romans 12:21). "Depart from evil, and do good; so you shall abide forever. For the Lord loves justice; and He will not forsake His faithful ones" (Psalm 37:27-28). For my part -- all by Your grace and all in Your power -- I choose to be one of Your faithful ones. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays To subscribe/unsubscribe, please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- MessiahMin@aol.com -- "Ministering the Healing Love of God ... Preparing the Way of the Lord." 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502 www.messiah-ministries.org Daily Archives: www.morningbymorning.injesus.com

Prayer Evangelism 6-4-07

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Increase, as I decrease. Lead, as I follow. Speak, as I listen. ... "On the Sabbath day we went outside the gate by the river, where we supposed there was a place of prayer; and we sat down and spoke to the women who had gathered there. A certain woman named Lydia, a worshiper of God, was listening to us; she was from the city of Thyatira and a dealer in purple cloth. The Lord opened her heart to listen eagerly to what was said by Paul" (Acts 16:13-14). As I come to the place of prayer, You open my heart to listen eagerly to what You are speaking to me. And at the same time, You are opening the hearts of those You will speak to through me. In the mystery of faith and communion with Your Spirit in the partnership of ministry You have given us, You fill our mouths with Your words and open ears to hear them. "So we are ambassadors for Christ, since God is making His appeal through us" (2 Corinthians 5:20). This is prayer evangelism. As we seek You in the place of prayer, You commission us as Your ambassadors and entrust us with Your words. You go before us and prepare the way for Your words of truth and life to find fertile soil in hearts that are waiting and eager to hear. Draw me near to You in prayer each day, as You commission me and empower me as Your ambassador to share Your hope with those who are desperate and hungry to hear. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays Friends, we will resume The Fountain meetings in September, but will not be meeting this summer. Thank you for all who have come and all who have covered us in prayer in one of the Lord's expressions of His city-wide church in our community across the walls of denominations and traditions. To subscribe/unsubscribe, please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- MessiahMin@aol.com -- "Ministering the Healing Love of God ... Preparing the Way of the Lord." 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502 www.messiah-ministries.org Daily Archives: www.morningbymorning.injesus.com

Name Above Every Name 6-1-07

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Your name is above every name. So I speak Your name this morning before any other name and any other thing. Jesus. ... "Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father" (Philippians 2:9-11, NKJV). Yeshua in Hebrew, Iesous in Greek -- Your name means "The Salvation of Yahweh." And "everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved" (Acts 2:21). You are the fullness of the salvation of God for me and for all. "There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among mortals by which we must be saved" (Acts 4:12). You are the answer and the provision and the power for everything I need. You are my eternal life, my healing and deliverance, my peace and joy, my faith and hope and love. You are my "all in all" (Ephesians 1:23). So I speak Your name first. I speak Your name throughout my day. I speak Your name forever. ... Jesus. ... And the Word of God goes forth. For You are the Word of God (John 1:1, 14). And the angels come. And the demons flee. And hope rises up. And I press on in the faith and power of the name that is above every name -- Jesus. No wonder the demons of hell fear Your name (Matthew 8:29). No wonder controlling men who would try to stand in the power and authority that belong to You alone would forbid the speaking of Your name in their intimidation and fear (Acts 4:17-18; 5:40). From the first days of Your Church, Your disciples have dared to declare Your name with boldness and courage and faith (Acts 4:19-20; 9:28). And as they did, "everyone was awestruck, and the name of the Lord Jesus was praised" (Acts 19:17). Give us boldness and courage and faith to speak Your name and give You praise every day -- unafraid and unashamed. Forgive us for giving in to timidity and fear. When we speak Your name, the name above every name, the power of God goes forth and the purposes of God are established. To the glory of God the Father, in the power of the Holy Spirit, I praise Your holy name, Lord Jesus Christ. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays To subscribe/unsubscribe, please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- MessiahMin@aol.com -- "Ministering the Healing Love of God ... Preparing the Way of the Lord." 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502 www.messiah-ministries.org Daily Archives: www.morningbymorning.injesus.com

"Prepare the Way of the Lord" 5-31-07

Good morning, Lord Jesus. You are my hope and my strength. I choose to be desperately dependent and wholly submitted to You. ... "A voice cries out: 'In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain. Then the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all people shall see it together, for the mouth of the Lord has spoken' " (Isaiah 40:3-5). Lord, why does it seem to be in the wilderness, in the desert places that we "prepare the way of the Lord?" It seems I hear You say, "In the wilderness, you know your need and admit you are lost without Me. In the desert, you know your thirst and admit you are dependent upon Me for the waters of life. The self-sufficiency of pride resists My grace, but the humility of desperate dependence upon Me opens wide your soul for the glory of My presence to come in." Yes, Lord. Thank You for the blessing of the wilderness times that cause me to seek You more intensely. Thank You for the blessings of the desert times that cause me to yearn and thirst for more of presence. Forgive me for the sin of pride and self-sufficiency, depending upon myself to any degree instead of being wholly and desperately dependent on You. Pull down the mountains of my pride and lift up the valleys of my discouragement. Set Your straight path before me and give me the wisdom and grace to walk in it with You. This is the path that prepares the way of the Lord. Give me the humility to hear and the courage to obey the voice of Your Spirit crying out to me, "This is the way, walk in it" (Isaiah 30:21). In Jesus' name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays To subscribe/unsubscribe, please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- MessiahMin@aol.com -- "Ministering the Healing Love of God ... Preparing the Way of the Lord." 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502 www.messiah-ministries.org Daily Archives: www.morningbymorning.injesus.com

Re-Digging the Ancient Wells 5-30-07

Good morning, Lord Jesus. I lift up my head and open up my heart, that the King of Glory may come in (Psalm 24). ... "Isaac dug again the wells of water that had been dug in the days of his father Abraham; for the Philistines had stopped them up after the death of Abraham; and he gave them the names that his father had given them" (Genesis 26:18). Like ancient wells, there are places on the earth where the springs of revival have poured out rivers of living water, bringing life and healing to all they touch. And like the enemies of Israel, the enemy of our souls does all he can to stop up the wells and shut down the flow until only a trickle of life remains. Eventually, the vibrant experience of the presence of Your glory blows away like a desert wind in a dry and thirsty land. The well becomes dry and the land becomes barren, groaning for those of courage to come and fight and those of faith to come and restore hope. The land and the people long for the day that their ancient names are remembered and their eternal identity and destiny is restored. "The wilderness and the dry land shall be glad, the desert shall rejoice and blossom; like the crocus it shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice with joy and singing" (Isaiah 35:1). I saw the re-digging of one of Your ancient wells last weekend. I stayed over an extra day on my trip to England, not knowing exactly why. During the week, my friend Heather Butler from Wales sent word to me she was leading a women's retreat on Saturday and preaching on Pentecost Sunday at an Anglican Church in the south of London. You have gifted her to sing prophetic songs over the people and places where You send her. She invited me to come and it turned out to be a thrilling day of joining in ministry to the women. This church was an ancient well of revival with an incredible history of Your glory and presence. John Wesley preached there on the site of the church when it was only a meadow in the village. William Wilberforce preached against slavery there in the abolition of slavery movement. William Seymour, who led the prayer meetings at Azusa Street came there to preach. The building was bombed by the Nazis in the war, but a persistent parish priest insisted that it be rebuilt. Then this church was a site of many signs and wonders of God during the charismatic renewal of the 1970's, heavily influenced by John Wimber's meetings on the Holy Spirit at Holy Trinity Brompton in London, which would become the womb of the Alpha movement that I was attending the past week. In recent history, Graham Cook had prophesied there of the move of Your Spirit to come. And just a months before, the Archbishop of Canterbury had come there to lead a commemorative march to celebrate the 200 year anniversary of the abolition of slavery in Britain. What a history! What an ancient well of revival! Yet with all this history, it seemed to be a tired old church, and its people seemed to be living in a dry and thirsty land. The ancient well had been stopped up. The Philistines of the world, the flesh, and the devil seemed to have conspired to bury the spirit of life and renewal. Apparently the morning worship was now restrained and less than vibrant, and I spoke with an elderly woman who had tasted of the waters of Your glory from this ancient well who longed for more. So we prayed and ministered Your healing and life. We interceded and identified in confession and repentance for allowing the blockage of Your Spirit and prayed for the breaking of barriers to the flow of Your river of life. We were preparing the way of the Lord. Heather sang the song of the Lord over the people and the land. "Then Israel sang this song: 'Spring up, O well! -- Sing to it!' " (Numbers 21:17). And the living waters began to flow again! Heather sent word that You poured out Your Holy Spirit in power as they worshiped and prayed on Pentecost Sunday. One of the ladies who received such healing from weariness at the retreat on Saturday was literally dancing in the aisles on Sunday! "Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom" (2 Corinthians 3:17). Praise You, Lord! Let Your song continue to go forth; let Your living waters continue to flow! Let Your river bring life to all that it touches (Ezekiel 47:9). Heather was led to give me a key to remember to pray for the people of this church and of this land. I covenanted with You and with them to pray. Thank You for the keys of Your kingdom You have given to Your church; the gates of hell cannot prevail against it (Matthew 16:18-19).Thank You for these amazing answers to the prayers prayed throughout the centuries we are already beginning to see. May this ancient well and all Your wells of Spirit and Life begin to spring up again and flow. May Your glory cover the earth as the waters cover the sea (Habakkuk 2:14). Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays To subscribe/unsubscribe, please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- MessiahMin@aol.com -- "Ministering the Healing Love of God ... Preparing the Way of the Lord." 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502 www.messiah-ministries.org Daily Archives: www.morningbymorning.injesus.com See what's free at AOL.com.

Wholly Devoted to You 5-29-07

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Be the center of my thoughts, always welcome in my heart. I deliberately devote my thoughts and desires to You alone, my Lord and my God -- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. ... "Blessed by the Lord, who has given rest to His people Israel according to all that He has promised; not one word has failed of all His good promise, which He spoke through His servant Moses. The Lord our God be with us, as He was with our ancestors; may He not leave us or abandon us, but incline our hearts to Him, to walk in all His ways, and to keep His commandments, His statutes, and His ordinances, which He commanded our ancestors. ... Therefore devote yourselves completely to the Lord our God, walking in His statutes and keeping His commandments, as at this day" (1 Kings 8:56-61). As I wait on You this morning, Your Holy Spirit is forming new words of worship in my heart. ... Be the center of my thoughts, Always welcome in my heart. Come and lead me by Your hand, In Your strength I stand. Come, Lord Jesus, I am Yours, Wholly devoted to You. Lead me in Your ways Through the moments of my day. Sensitive to the hearing of Your voice, Responsive to the nudging of Your Spirit. Come, Lord Jesus, I am Yours, Wholly devoted to You. Yes, Lord. Your promises are true and so are You. You have promised to draw near to me as I draw near to You (James 4:8). As I entrust my day to You, You will never leave me or abandon me. You will lead me and empower me to walk in Your ways, all by Your grace and all in Your power. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays To subscribe/unsubscribe, please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- MessiahMin@aol.com -- "Ministering the Healing Love of God ... Preparing the Way of the Lord." 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502 www.messiah-ministries.org Daily Archives: www.morningbymorning.injesus.com

Personal Pentecost 5-28-07

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Let Your Word and Your Spirit fill my soul. Help me be quiet now, as I wait in the silence of surrender, watching for Your coming and waiting for Your leading. ... "When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages as the Spirit gave them ability" (Acts 2:1-4). Before catching my plane home from London yesterday, I slipped into the airport chapel for the ecumenical service of Holy Communion to celebrate Pentecost Sunday. The Anglican priest who led us chose this passage of Your Word to prepare our hearts for Communion. As the cup was passed among us, I began to realize that this promise was continually being fulfilled, as we came together in one place as one body from many different nations and languages. Though none of us knew one another, we all exchanged the blessing of the peace of Christ to one another and as one family of our One Father bound together by One Spirit, praying the Lord's Prayer and eating the Lord's Supper together. Since the Anglicans use real wine in their Communion, we even sensed in our bodies physically the fire of Your Holy Spirit burning in our hearts spiritually. And all last week at the International Alpha Conference, we came together in worship and prayer to learn from Your Word and be equipped for Your ministry with over a thousand delegates from over seventy nations of the world. Then at the end of the week, I was invited to join my friend Heather Butler from Wales to minister Your healing to women of different races and generations, but joined together in one heart by one Spirit. What a week of preparation for Pentecost! Lord, let Your wind blow, let Your fire fall -- in our hearts and in our lands throughout the earth. May we be the body of Christ, filled with the Holy Spirit of Christ, proclaiming Your Word and singing Your praise to display Your glory in every tribe and tongue and nation, and throughout every generation. Let us hunger and thirst for more of You, emptied of ourselves and filled with Your Spirit, as we seek and embrace our personal Pentecost of Your presence and power in our lives every day. May the glory of Your presence filling Your people cover the earth with Your glory as the waters cover the sea (Habakkuk 2:14). In Jesus' name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays Friends, thank you for covering us in your prayers last week while I was away. I'm sorry I was not able to send out my devotional but I pray the Lord will impart to You all I received of Him (Romans 1:11). God bless you and thank you for joining with me in the journey of prayer! To subscribe/unsubscribe, please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- MessiahMin@aol.com -- "Ministering the Healing Love of God ... Preparing the Way of the Lord." 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502 www.messiah-ministries.org Daily Archives: www.morningbymorning.injesus.com

The Fear and Friendship of the Lord 5-19-07

Good morning, Lord Jesus. I want to take some time with You before giving my time to anything else this day. ... "Who are they that fear the Lord? He will teach them the way that they should choose. They will abide in prosperity, and their children shall possess the land. The friendship of the Lord is for those who fear Him, and He makes His covenant know to them" (Psalm 25:12-14). Godly fear is to put You first. It is to honor and respect You and Your above all else. You are God and You are Lord of every are of my life -- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. It is seeking to trust in Your wisdom, to walk in Your ways, and to depend upon Your grace. This is the humble heart and trusting faith that touches Your heart and moves Your hand. What loving father's heart is not moved to give all he has when the eyes of his children turn to him in tenderness and honor to say, "Daddy, I love you" or "Daddy, I need you." This is both the fatherhood and the friendship of the Lord. The fear of the Lord is not slavery but sonship, not the oppression of domination but the freedom of friendship. And this is the relationship I desire, with all my heart, to have with You, Daddy Abba, my Father God. "And because you are children, God has sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, 'Abba, Father!' So that you are no longer a slave but a child, and if a child then also an heir of God through Christ" (Galatians 4:6-7). Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays Friends, I will be traveling with a team from my church to the International Alpha Conference for evangelism in London this week. I may not have easy access to send out my prayers but I would appreciate yours for our team and families. God bless you! To subscribe/unsubscribe, please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- MessiahMin@aol.com -- "Ministering the Healing Love of God ... Preparing the Way of the Lord." 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502 www.messiah-ministries.org Daily Archives: www.morningbymorning.injesus.com

Graduation Day 5-18-07

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Fill my heart with Your spirit and fill my mind with Your thoughts. ... "Hear, my child, and accept my words, that the years of your life may be many. I have taught you the way of wisdom; I have led you in the paths of uprightness. When you walk, your step will not be hampered; and if you run, you will not stumble. Keep hold of instruction; do not let go; guard her, for she is your life" (Proverbs 4:10-14). My little girl has grown up to be a big girl. Elizabeth graduates high school today. And we are all very proud of her. She's beautiful, inside and out. You've made her compassionate, creative, tender-hearted, and kind. I pray You will guard her heart as she goes out into the world, keeping her faith alive and her heart always open to You. There will be days of testing and temptation ahead in a world that doesn't understand the power of Your love, the wisdom of Your ways, or gift of Your grace. So may the Your words of truth and seeds of life in her heart guide her in Your ways and bring honor to her life. You will always be with her when I can't be. But I entrust her to You. I know You'll always love her with Your Father's heart. And so will I. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays Come to The Fountain! Tonight -- on the 3rd Friday night of every month for our ministry's gathering of the body of Christ from every tradition and stream to worship the Lord in Sprit and in Truth. Come drink deeply from the Living Waters in the freedom of the Spirit. 7 pm in the chapel at Centenary. Sandra White of Bethlehem Farm Ministries will lead in prayer and Paul Cooper from Liberty Worship Center will lead in worship. All are welcome. Call for details: 859-422-1794 Come to The Mountain! on Monday Nights for our ministry's weekly prayer for the peace of Jerusalem led by Doris and Bob McCray. 7 pm in the upstairs Community Room at First Southern National Bank on Harrodsburg Rd. in Lexington. All are welcome. Call for details: 859-422-1794 To subscribe/unsubscribe, please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- MessiahMin@aol.com -- "Ministering the Healing Love of God ... Preparing the Way of the Lord." 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502 www.messiah-ministries.org Daily Archives: www.morningbymorning.injesus.com

"Pray in the Spirit" 5-17-07

Good morning, Lord Jesus. All authority in heaven and earth has been given to You by our Father. I trust in You and submit to Your authority in my life -- as best as I can and all by Your grace. ... "Pray in the spirit at all times in every prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert and always persevere in supplication for all the saints. Pray also for me, so that when I speak, a message may be given to me to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel" (Ephesians 6:18-19). We are to pray for the people of God and we are to pray for godly leaders -- not just prayers, but the prayers of the Spirit; not just praying until the answers come quickly, but prayers of perseverance in faith. The answers You bring through the means of our prayers are important, but so is the character You form in our souls as we pray. To "pray in the spirit" means to pray as Your Holy Spirit leads our human spirit, rather than how we would choose to pray out of the soul of our own mind and will and emotions apart from the leading of Your Spirit. Whether we pray in words we know or unknown words You give us as yield our spirit to Your Spirit in prayer, we pray as You lead in line with Your will. "Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but that very Spirit 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). Paul asked for these kinds of prayers for all the saints -- all the people of God, because we are all "called to be saints" and all called to be "sanctified in Christ Jesus" (1 Corinthians 1:2). And Paul asked for these kinds of prayers for himself. So do I. Holy Spirit, move upon my heart to always "pray in the spirit" as I persevere in prayer for Your people in the ways You lead. And move upon their hearts to pray for me in accordance with Your perfect will and timing and way. Give me the grace of patience to wait for Your answers to come as the saints persevere and pray in the power of the Spirit. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays Come to The Fountain! this Friday Night -- on the 3rd Friday night of every month for our ministry's gathering of the body of Christ from every tradition and stream to worship the Lord in Sprit and in Truth. Come drink deeply from the Living Waters in the freedom of the Spirit. 7 pm in the chapel at Centenary. All are welcome. Call for details: 859-422-1794

Come to The Mountain! on Monday Nights for our ministry's weekly prayer for the peace of Jerusalem led by Doris and Bob McCray. 7 pm in the upstairs Community Room at First Southern National Bank on Harrodsburg Rd. in Lexington. All are welcome. Call for details: 859-422-1794

To subscribe/unsubscribe, please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- MessiahMin@aol.com -- "Ministering the Healing Love of God ... Preparing the Way of the Lord." 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502 www.messiah-ministries.org Daily Archives: www.morningbymorning.injesus.com