Present with Power to Heal 10-17-09

Good morning, Lord Jesus. You are mighty to save, mighty to heal, mighty to move the mountains of our lives and cast them into the sea of surrender to Your will and Your kingdom. Be the Mighty One in my life today. ... “One day, while he was teaching, Pharisees and teachers of the law were sitting near by (they had come from every village of Galilee and Judea and from Jerusalem); and the power of the Lord was with Him to heal” (Luke 5:17). Thank You for those times when Your power is present to heal, when Your presence is so evident to all, when the love of God fills our hearts and saturates the spiritual atmosphere with longing hunger and thirst for more of You. Thank You for the times You touch the deepest hurts and needs of our souls, drawing out our pain and our shame and replacing it with Your love and Your peace. Like the woman at the well, You are the God who knows everything about us and still You love us and touch us in the healing power of Your mercy and love (John 4:29). And when You do, we can’t wait to go and tell everyone we know about the unfailing, steadfast love of our mighty God, who comes among us with the grace to forgive and the power to heal. We welcomed Your Word and Your Spirit at our healing service last night, praying ‘til long into the night in the atmosphere of Your abiding Presence. The tears and laughter were signs of Your healing hands touches the deepest parts of our souls, as You restored and renewed, healed and freed Your people who were hungry for Your Presence. Lord continue today, as You empower and equip Your people to be as Your hands and heart to minister Your healing love across this land. Impart to us Your Spirit and Your gifts, that You may love and heal through Your Body in You’re the authority and power of Your name (Romans 1:11; 1 Timothy 4:14). When we lift up Your name and expect You in faith, You are present with the power of heal. And our lives are forever changed. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays Friends, thank you for your covering our healing service at the Baltic Methodist Theological Seminary in Estonia last night. God was moving deeply in our hearts, ministering His healing love to spirit, soul, and body (1 Thessalonians 5:23). Please cover us in prayer today as we continue our conference on healing prayer ministry with pastors, students, and people hungry for the presence and power of God to move in their land from across the nation. May this be a strategic time of preparing the way of the Lord for all He desires to do in this land. Thank you for agreeing with me and our ministry in prayer for the people of Estonia and I agree with you in prayer for the people of your land and on your heart. God bless you! I'm excited to find out that Randy Clark of Global Awakening Ministries just wrote his endorsement for my new book on healing, Free to Be Like Jesus! (www.globalawakening.com). You can order it from our web site (www.messiah-ministries.org) or through www.amazon.com May it be an encouragement an inspiration to you in your own journey of healing and in the ministry of God's healing love to others in spirit, soul, and body. Subscribe free by email to me at Messiah Ministries --MessiahMin@aol.com-- "Preparing the Way of the Lord ... Ministering the Healing Love of God" www.messiah-ministries.org 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502Daily Archives at: www.morningbymorning.blogspot.com

Walking, Leaping, and Praising God 10-16-09

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Savior, Healer, Master, and Friend—You are Lord of my life, Lord of this day, and Lord of all. ... “But Peter said, ‘I have no silver or gold, but what I have I give you; in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, stand up and walk.’ And he took him by the right hand and raised him up; and immediately his feet and ankles were made strong. Jumping up, he stood up and began to walk, and he entered the temple with them, walking and leaping and praising God.... While he clung to Peter and John, all the people ran together to them in the portico called Solomon’s Portico, utterly astonished. When Peter saw it, he addressed the people, ‘You Israelites, why do you wonder at this, or why do you stare at us, as though by our own power or piety we had made him walk. The God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, the God of our ancestors has glorified His servant Jesus...’ ” (Acts 3:6-13). Lord Jesus, You are glorified when we speak in Your name and obey Your will to be as Your heart and Your hands in Your healing of the brokenhearted and freedom of the bound. And our Father in heaven, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, is glorified as well when we glorify Your name through our obedience and prayers to continue Your ministry of healing and love: “Very truly, I tell you, the one who believes in Me will also do the works that I do and, in fact, will do even greater works than these, because I am going to the Father. I will do whatever you ask in My name, so that the Father will be glorified in the Son. If in My name you ask Me for anything, I will do it” (John 14:12-14). For the next two days, You’ve called me here to teach Your Word and minister Your love at the Baltic Methodist Theological Seminary of Estonia. As stretch out Your voice to teach and stretch out Your hand to heal, for the students and others who come, may Your name and our Father be gloried. Release the power of Your healing love into their spirits and souls and bodies, as You prepare a people who are whole and free, filled with Your Spirit, to display Your glory throughout this land and everywhere You send them, until the day of Your coming in the fullness of Your Kingdom: “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). Lord, let there be an awakening and breakthrough of revival in our hearts and this land and throughout the nations of the earth. “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled” (Matthew 5:6). And blessed are those who humble themselves in the sight of the Lord, for they will be lifted up into Your arms, into the glory of Your presence, and in the power of Your love, as You heal the brokenhearted and set the captives free (James 4:10). It will be clear to all that it’s not by our own power or piety, but by the power of God and the authority of Your name that those You touch will be walking and leaping and praising God. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays Friends, please keep us in prayer for this conference on healing at the Baltic Methodist Theological Seminary in Estonia (www.emkts.ee). Many have been planning, praying, and fasting for these days for a long time. I'm thrilled and honored to be here and to join in what God is doing in this land. And I join you in praying for awakening and the breakthrough of revival in your heart and your land, as you pray for mine. God bless you! I'm excited to find out that Randy Clark of Global Awakening Ministries just wrote his endorsement for my new book on healing, Free to Be Like Jesus! (www.globalawakening.com). You can order it from our web site (www.messiah-ministries.org) or through www.amazon.com May it be an encouragement an inspiration to you in your own journey of healing and in the ministry of God's healing love to others in spirit, soul, and body. Come to The Fountain! tonight at our home ministry base in Lexington, Kentucky and 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. Pastor Linda Dulin will be leading in prayer. 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 or send a note to Marilyn at DirOfMinistries@aol.com Subscribe free by email to me at Messiah Ministries --MessiahMin@aol.com -- "Preparing the Way of the Lord ... Ministering the Healing Love of God" www.messiah-ministries.org 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502 Daily Archives at: www.morningbymorning.blogspot.com

Peace. Be Still. 10-15-09

Good morning, Lord Jesus. King of kings and Lord of lords, Your name be exalted throughout the earth and throughout my day. ... “On that day, when evening had come, He said to them, ‘Let us go across to the other side.’ After leaving the crowd behind, they took Him with them in the boat, just as He was. Other boats were with Him. A great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that the boat was already being swamped. But He was in the stern, asleep on the cushion; and they woke Him up and said to Him, ‘Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing? He woke up and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, ‘Peace! Be still!’ Then the wind ceased and there was a dead calm” (Mark 4:35-39). This has been a week full of adventure and ministry with You. In so many different settings of preaching, teaching, and praying among so many different people in so many different parts of this country to Estonia, I’ve seen You move in the power of Your love for these people and for me. It has been exciting and it has been exhausting. But thank You for the gift of an adjustment in my schedule to rest a couple of days away in the boat with You. And thank You for the friends along the way who also take some time to make me be still as they pray for me. Thank You for speaking Your word through their prayers, ‘Peace. Be still.’ Yesterday, in one of those unplanned moments not written into my schedule, You poured Your peace down deep into my soul in ways I didn’t even know I needed. You made my heart tender in a way I didn’t even know it had become harder, so that I could hardly bear to hear the worship music without weeping uncontrollably. You were cleansing me and healing me and touching me deep down in a place I don’t think I’ve ever allowed You to go before. You sent back the crowds and pushed back the storms and did not hold back from powering the gentle power of Your healing love down deep into my soul. And then, in an eruption of joy, Your Spirit came bubbling up out of me in a fountain of newness of life. “Restore unto me the joy of Thy salvation” (Psalm 51:12, KJV). I saw in my spirit the last dead leaves of the last season of my life falling to the ground to die—but only making room for the resurrection life of the next season to come. You do all things well, in Your perfect timing and in Your perfect way. And I can say still say this morning, after all the emotions of such an encounter with You have steadied and settled, ‘It is well with my soul.’ Today, my little boat will make it to the other side of this little country. And the next adventure will begin with You and the crowds You bring to touch in the power of Your love. But I will ministering out of a place of peace, tenderness of heart, and joy of life that I’ve not known before. Thank You that You never stop filling those who keep hungering and thirsting for more of You. Thank You for the gift of our time away to rest and be refreshed in these ways I’d never planned and never dreamed and now will never forget. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays Friends, please keep us in prayer this weekend as I speak and minister on inner healing at the Baltic Theological Seminary in Tallinn, Estonia. It will be a course for the students, but also open to the public, and people are planning to come from all over. We're expecting great things of God! Thank you for your prayers. I couldn't minister in this way without your covering of prayer. God bless you! Thank you for your prayers as I minister for 2 weeks in the nation of Estonia. I'll be preaching, teaching, and ministering the Lord's healing and freedom to His people in many places and a variety of settings throughout the country. I want to be part of the Lord's awakening and breakthrough revival in my own heart and in the nations of the earth. "And this good news of the Kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the world, as a testimony to all the nations; and then the end will come" (Matthew 24:14). Please send an email to Carol Arban if you're led to join our Intercessory Prayer Team praying in more detail for my ministry abroad this fall (Estonia in October; Pakistan in December): csarban2@gmail.com God bless you and I pray for God's Awakening and Breakthrough Revival in your heart and nation. Thank you for praying for mine! Order my new book Free to Be Like Jesus -- Transforming Power of Healing & Deliverance online at www.messiah-ministries.org or at www.amazon.com Proceeds go to support the vision and calling of the Lord through Messiah Ministries. Subscribe Free by email to me at Messiah Ministries --MessiahMin@aol.com -- "Preparing the Way of the Lord ... Ministering the Healing Love of God" www.messiah-ministries.org 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502

Same Pain, Same Savior 10-12-09

Good morning, Lord Jesus. I lift up Your name as I open up my heart and welcome Your Spirit into my day. ... “May those who sow in tears reap with shouts of joy” (Psalm 126:5). Pain is the same throughout all the earth. Circumstances and languages may be different, but the pain of wounded hearts and broken dreams is the same. As so is Your mighty right hand, mighty to save, to draw up the pain and pour in Your love. You give us courage to open up our hearts to Your healing hand. And there in the place of honesty and openness, admitting our need and trusting Your grace, You come in the gentleness and the power of Your healing love. Then You turn our sorrow into singing and our tears into joy. From the very young to the very old, we saw Your healing words release the power of Your healing love, as Your people gathered to pray and seek Your face. Pain is the same all over the world, but so is the Savior. No matter the nation or culture, You are the God who heals the brokenhearted and sets the captives free. And then there is no greater witness than the witness of joy that rises and flows from the fountain of a healed heart. The waters of tears become a fountain of life. “How precious is Your steadfast love, O God! All people may take refuge in the shadow of Your wings. They feast on the abundance of Your house, and You give them drink from the river of Your delights. For with You is the fountain of life; in Your life we see light” (Psalm 36:7-9). In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays Friends, thank you for your prayers as I minister for 2 weeks in the nation of Estonia. I'll be preaching, teaching, and ministering the Lord's healing and freedom to His people in many places and a variety of settings throughout the country. I want to be part of the Lord's awakening and breakthrough revival in my own heart and in the nations of the earth. "And this good news of the Kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the world, as a testimony to all the nations; and then the end will come" (Matthew 24:14). Please send an email to Carol Arban if you're led to join our Intercessory Prayer Team praying in more detail for my ministry abroad this fall (Estonia in October; Pakistan in December): csarban2@gmail.com God bless you and I pray for God's Awakening and Breakthrough Revival in your heart and nation. Thank you for praying for mine! Order my new book Free to Be Like Jesus -- Transforming Power of Healing & Deliverance online at www.messiah-ministries.org or at www.amazon.com Proceeds go to support the vision and calling of the Lord through Messiah Ministries. Subscribe Free by email to me at Messiah Ministries --MessiahMin@aol.com -- "Preparing the Way of the Lord ... Ministering the Healing Love of God" www.messiah-ministries.org 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502

Burning Words of Spirit and Life 10-11-09

Good morning, Lord Jesus. God of all creation, Lord of every nation, You are my Lord and my God – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. ... “The Lord has given me the tongue of a teacher, that I may know how to sustain the weary with a word. Morning by morning, He wakens—wakens my ear to listen as those who are taught” (Isaiah 50:4). Lord, thank You for the words of “spirit and life” You have spoken to me in so many ways through so many people (John 6:63). Thank You for giving me a heart to hear Your words and recognize Your voice. And forgive me for the times You were speaking and I didn’t hear or I didn’t recognize the words were Your words or I didn’t embrace the gift You’d given me and allowed the word to be snatched away. At the same time, I praise You for the ways You’ve chosen to speak to my heart so that I could speak into the hearts of others. Teach me how to be bold, but not presumptuous; to be encouraging, but not controlling; to be confident, but not prideful. Teach me how to be a good steward of all You have entrusted to me for others and to others for me. “Like good stewards of the manifold grace of God, serve one another with whatever gift each of you has received. Whoever speaks must do so as one speaking the very words of God; whoever serves must do so with the strength that God supplies, so that God may be glorified in all things through Jesus Christ. To Him belong the glory and the power forever and ever” (1 Peter 4:10-11). It’s just settling in to my spirit what grace You’ve given me in ministry these past few days. You brought me together in an incredibly beautiful setting tucked away in the woods and next to the lake in the Estonian Autumn with almost all the Methodist pastors of this nation. By Your grace and in the power of Your words, they encouraged me and I believe You used me to encourage them. We prayed for one another, exhorted one another, and now will remember one another as You disperse the glowing embers of our burning hearts to the people of this land. Lord let the fire of Your words of spirit and life keep burning in me, burning in them, and in all that they touch in the days to come. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays Friends, thank you for your prayers for all of us in Estonia! God bless you! Morning by Morning, Friday 10-9-09 – “The Spirit of the Lord God is Upon Me” Good morning, Lord Jesus. Your name is the name above every name. Lord, I lift high Your name in the praises of my heart. ... “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me; He has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed, to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and release to the prisoners; to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn in Zion—to give them a garland instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the mantle of praise instead of a faint spirit. They will be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, to display His glory. They shall build up the ancient ruins, they shall raise up the former devastations; they shall repair the ruined cities, the devastations of many generations” (Isaiah 61:1-4). You declared these words at the beginning of Your ministry as Son of Man, anointed by the Spirit of God, to display the Father’s heart to the people of a broken and fallen world. With both deep humility and also a secure sense of Your identity and destiny, You said these words of the prophet Isaiah were fulfilled in You (Luke 4:16-21). And then at the end of Your ministry of the Father’s heart on this earth as the Son of Man, after Your resurrection and before Your ascension, You prophetically declared the releasing of Your Holy Spirit upon Your disciples and sent them in Your power to continue Your ministry: “Jesus said to them again, ‘Peace be with you. As the Father has sent Me, so I send you.’ When He had said this, He breathed on them and said to them, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit...’ ” (John 20:21-22). This was a fulfillment of what You had already declared for Your first disciples and for all Your disciples to come: “Very truly I tell you, the one who believes in Me will do the works that I do and, in fact, will do even greater works than these, because I am going to the Father. I will do whatever you ask in My name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son” (John 14:12-13). You want to heal us and free us. You want to empty us of everything that is not like You, as Your fill us with Your Holy Spirit to make us more like You each day. You want to anoint us, equip us, and send us to be as the hands of Jesus with the heart of the Father in the power of Your Holy Spirit to the people of a broken and fallen world, longing to know the love of God poured into our hearts by Your Spirit (Romans 5:5). You want to first do that in us, so You can do that through us in the lives of others—each in the unique way that You’ve created us and strategically positioned us to display Your glory through our lives. When I declared these words of our calling as Your disciples—to teach what You taught, to do what You did, in the power You had—at Chapel in the Methodist Seminary of Estonia yesterday morning, one of the ministry students said, “That’s what I need.” And as we prayed through a deep cleansing of her soul, and a releasing of the pain and shame of her past, You set her free to be like Jesus. Before our eyes, You changed her sadness into joy and her torment into praise! You were comforting those who mourn, giving them beauty instead ashes, the garments of praise instead of the spirit of heaviness. Freely have You given to her, and now she will freely give to others (Matthew 10:7-8). What she has received, she will give to others in the authority of Your name and the power of Your Spirit. You are anointing her to bind up the brokenhearted and set the captives free, restoring the devastation of generations and repairing the ruined cities, because Your Kingdom is within her and will be advancing through her everywhere You send her. I believe that’s Your heart, according to Your Word, for all of us, in the unique way You desire to express Yourself through each of us. “For as in one body we have many members, and not all the members have the same function, so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually we are members of one another. We have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us: prophecy, in proportion to faith; ministry, in ministering; the teacher, in teaching; the exhorter, in exhortation; the giver, in generosity; the leader, in diligence; the compassionate, in cheerfulness” (Romans 12:4-8). So let us think of ourselves as You think of us; let us see ourselves as You see us—no more and no less. Then with both deep humility and a secure sense of our identity and destiny in Christ, let us go forth and proclaim the coming of Your Kingdom—in us first, and then everywhere You send us. “Here I am, Lord... Send me” (from Isaiah 6:8). In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays Friends, thank you for your prayers as I minister for 2 weeks in the nation of Estonia. I'll be preaching, teaching, and ministering the Lord's healing and freedom to His people in many places and a variety of settings throughout the country. I want to be part of the Lord's awakening and breakthrough revival in my own heart and in the nations of the earth. "And this good news of the Kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the world, as a testimony to all the nations; and then the end will come" (Matthew 24:14). Please send an email to Carol Arban if you're led to join our Intercessory Prayer Team praying in more detail for my ministry abroad this fall (Estonia in October; Pakistan in December): csarban2@gmail.com God bless you and I pray for God's Awakening and Breakthrough Revival in your heart and nation. Thank you for praying for mine! Order my new book Free to Be Like Jesus -- Transforming Power of Healing & Deliverance online at www.messiah-ministries.org or at www.amazon.com Proceeds go to support the vision and calling of the Lord through Messiah Ministries.Subscribe Free by email to me at Messiah Ministries --MessiahMin@aol.com -- "Preparing the Way of the Lord ... Ministering the Healing Love of God" www.messiah-ministries.org 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502

“The Spirit of the Lord God is Upon Me” 10-9-09

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Your name is the name above every name. Lord, I lift high Your name in the praises of my heart. ... “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me; He has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed, to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and release to the prisoners; to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn in Zion—to give them a garland instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the mantle of praise instead of a faint spirit. They will be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, to display His glory. They shall build up the ancient ruins, they shall raise up the former devastations; they shall repair the ruined cities, the devastations of many generations” (Isaiah 61:1-4). You declared these words at the beginning of Your ministry as Son of Man, anointed by the Spirit of God, to display the Father’s heart to the people of a broken and fallen world. With both deep humility and also a secure sense of Your identity and destiny, You said these words of the prophet Isaiah were fulfilled in You (Luke 4:16-21). And then at the end of Your ministry of the Father’s heart on this earth as the Son of Man, after Your resurrection and before Your ascension, You prophetically declared the releasing of Your Holy Spirit upon Your disciples and sent them in Your power to continue Your ministry: “Jesus said to them again, ‘Peace be with you. As the Father has sent Me, so I send you.’ When He had said this, He breathed on them and said to them, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit...’ ” (John 20:21-22). This was a fulfillment of what You had already declared for Your first disciples and for all Your disciples to come: “Very truly I tell you, the one who believes in Me will do the works that I do and, in fact, will do even greater works than these, because I am going to the Father. I will do whatever you ask in My name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son” (John 14:12-13). You want to heal us and free us. You want to empty us of everything that is not like You, as Your fill us with Your Holy Spirit to make us more like You each day. You want to anoint us, equip us, and send us to be as the hands of Jesus with the heart of the Father in the power of Your Holy Spirit to the people of a broken and fallen world, longing to know the love of God poured into our hearts by Your Spirit (Romans 5:5). You want to first do that in us, so You can do that through us in the lives of others—each in the unique way that You’ve created us and strategically positioned us to display Your glory through our lives. When I declared these words of our calling as Your disciples—to teach what You taught, to do what You did, in the power You had—at Chapel in the Methodist Seminary of Estonia yesterday morning, one of the ministry students said, “That’s what I need.” And as we prayed through a deep cleansing of her soul, and a releasing of the pain and shame of her past, You set her free to be like Jesus. Before our eyes, You changed her sadness into joy and her torment into praise! You were comforting those who mourn, giving them beauty instead ashes, the garments of praise instead of the spirit of heaviness. Freely have You given to her, and now she will freely give to others (Matthew 10:7-8). What she has received, she will give to others in the authority of Your name and the power of Your Spirit. You are anointing her to bind up the brokenhearted and set the captives free, restoring the devastation of generations and repairing the ruined cities, because Your Kingdom is within her and will be advancing through her everywhere You send her. I believe that’s Your heart, according to Your Word, for all of us, in the unique way You desire to express Yourself through each of us. “For as in one body we have many members, and not all the members have the same function, so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually we are members of one another. We have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us: prophecy, in proportion to faith; ministry, in ministering; the teacher, in teaching; the exhorter, in exhortation; the giver, in generosity; the leader, in diligence; the compassionate, in cheerfulness” (Romans 12:4-8). So let us think of ourselves as You think of us; let us see ourselves as You see us—no more and no less. Then with both deep humility and a secure sense of our identity and destiny in Christ, let us go forth and proclaim the coming of Your Kingdom—in us first, and then everywhere You send us. “Here I am, Lord... Send me” (from Isaiah 6:8). In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays Friends, thank you for your prayers as I minister for 2 weeks in the nation of Estonia. I'll be preaching, teaching, and ministering the Lord's healing and freedom to His people in many places and a variety of settings throughout the country. I want to be part of the Lord's awakening and breakthrough revival in my own heart and in the nations of the earth. "And this good news of the Kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the world, as a testimony to all the nations; and then the end will come" (Matthew 24:14). Please send an email to Carol Arban if you're led to join our Intercessory Prayer Team praying in more detail for my ministry abroad this fall (Estonia in October; Pakistan in December): csarban2@gmail.com God bless you and I pray for God's Awakening and Breakthrough Revival in your heart and nation. Thank you for praying for mine! Order my new book Free to Be Like Jesus -- Transforming Power of Healing & Deliverance online at www.messiah-ministries.org or at www.amazon.com Proceeds go to support the vision and calling of the Lord through Messiah Ministries. Subscribe Free by email to me at Messiah Ministries --MessiahMin@aol.com -- "Preparing the Way of the Lord ... Ministering the Healing Love of God" www.messiah-ministries.org 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502

Aglow Int'l Conf in Louisville, KY October: Mike Bickle, Graham Cooke, Asher Intrater

Dear Friends, We are extremely excited and honored in Kentucky that the World Conference of Aglow International will be in Louisville, Kentucky this year, October 22-25, 2009! www.aglow.org World-renown speakers will be: Mike Bickle, Director International House of Prayer; Graham Cooke, Internationally Known Prophetic Voice; Asher Intrater, Director Revive Israel Ministries; and Jane Hansen Hoyt, President of Aglow. I'm honored to serve as an Area Advisor for our region and hope you'll join us. Pastors and their spouses receive free registration, so please let your pastor know and spread the word. I'll include a note below from the Pastors Liason Committee. The Lord is bringing the world to Kentucky this year through this International Conference, the World Equestrian Games, and so much more in this season. Let's be in prayer together for the great Awakening Revival and Breakthrough which is coming in our midst! Please forward this information on to everyone you know. See you in Louisville, Kentucky this fall! God bless, Tommy Hays www.messiah-ministries.org For More Information, please contact Chris Henderson in Lexington with our Aglow Area Leadership Team: hende2000@aol.com Dear Pastor, You and your spouse are invited to attend the Aglow International 2009 Worldwide Conference, October 22nd through the 25th at the Kentucky International Convention Center in Louisville, Kentucky. Thousands of men and women from all around the world are coming together with one purpose: to worship Jesus Christ. In addition to Aglow International’s President, Jane Hansen Hoyt, speakers include: Mike Bickle, Director International House of Prayer; Graham Cooke, Internationally Known Prophetic Voice; and Asher Intrater, Director Revive Israel Ministries. Thursday night the festivities begin with a Worship Encounter featuring Julie Meyer, International House of Prayer worship leader, with Brian Ming and Charles Barnett. We would consider it an honor for you to join us as our guest. Complimentary passes will be provided to you upon request. (These passes are available to pastors in Kentucky as the hosting state of this year’s conference, and also those in the same area as Committee Chairs and Co-Chairs.) Please contact me as soon as possible via U.S. mail, phone, or email to advise me of your decision. I am enclosing a conference flyer for your information. Aglow began in 1967 with 4 women who expressed a desire to meet together without denominational boundaries. Forty-two years later, it has grown into one of the largest Christian women movements in the United States. Aglow is in nearly 170 nations around the world and is made up of over 5,200 fellowships. Many women have been touched through these fellowships as they focus on prayer, evangelism, relationships and reconciliation. For additional information about Aglow, visit www.aglow.org. I sincerely hope and pray that you will be able to join us as we come together to celebrate Jesus Christ and His ministry through Aglow International over the past 42 years.

“One New Man” 10-6-09

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Lord of all the earth, be Lord of all I am. ... “Many peoples and strong nations shall come to seek the Lord of hosts in Jerusalem, and to entreat the favor of the Lord. Thus says the Lord of hosts: In those days ten men from nations of every language shall take hold of a Jew, grasping his garment and saying, ‘Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you’ ” (Zechariah 8:22-23). I love divine appointments. As left Lexington this morning for Chicago and on to Tallinn, Estonia for my ministry engagements there the next two weeks, I had no idea what a great blessing You had arranged for me. The businessman next to me was a Jew, who came to believe in Jesus of Nazareth as the Messiah, in a little church in our city many years ago. He’s now in full time ministry, arranging financing to the poor and oppressed in the nations of the world, not just giving them fish, but teaching them how to fish, in their own small businesses—breaking the curse of poverty and finding the security and peace of Your provision as they grown in their sense of self-worth and dignity as children of God. As we shared one another’s stories, I discovered that he fought in Six Day War of 1967 and the liberation of Jerusalem. Then I learned that his father, now a ninety-nine year old citizen of Lexington, and his mother were Jewish survivors of the Nazi holocaust in Poland during World War II. His father also is now a completed Jew—one who has received Jesus as Messiah, fulfilling the Hebrew Scriptures. I was thrilled to hold his Hebrew Bible as he read from passages, declaring the promises of God and the fulfillment of prophecies declaring the coming of Christ, such as Isaiah 61 and Psalm 2. As my new friend and I went our ways, I sensed Your overwhelming favor and goodness to me to arrange this time of such encouragement and joy. Something stirred deeply in my spirit as my friend spoke the words, “I’ll be praying for you and your ministry, Tommy. God bless you.” I said, “Thank you for that blessing. I don’t take that lightly,” thinking of the time to come when people of all nations will eagerly look for a Jew who has come to know You, and take them by the sleeve to go up to Mount Zion to seek Your face and Your ways (Zechariah 8:23). “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; that He may teach us His ways and that we may walk in His paths” (Isaiah 2:3; Micah 4:2). What an honor I had, as I said to him, just to sit next to him and talk of the glories and favor of God. And as I hurried on to my next flight, I thought of what a prophetic picture we were of Gentile and Jew united in Christ as “the one new man” (Ephesians 2:15, NKJV). Thank You, Lord, for letting me go up to the mountain of Your Presence and know the favor of Your grace upon my life through this divine appointment You arranged for me today. Now as best as I can and all by Your grace, let me live in Your ways and walk in Your paths. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays I have two ministry trips abroad by year's end (Estonia in October and Pakistan in December), where I'll be sharing my teaching and my heart for prayer and healing. If you'd like to join our intercessory prayer team, connected by email, please let me know. We have great anticipation for my time in Estonia. And since this will be my first ministry engagement sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ and ministering the healing love of God in the Muslim nation of Pakistan, I'm sensing the need for an especially strong and committed covering of prayer: TommyHays@aol.com (Please copy Carol Arban arbansc@yahoo.com on your note, who will help coordinate updates while I'm away). I would be thrilled for you to order my new book for yourself or someone who may enjoy it with my perspective on healing and God's heart for restoration in the process of the journey, with mighty breakthroughs along the way: Free to Be Like Jesus -- Transforming Power of Healing & Deliverance: www.messiah-ministries.org or at www.amazon.com Proceeds go to support the vision and calling of the Lord through Messiah Ministries. Subscribe Free by email to me at Messiah Ministries --MessiahMin@aol.com -- "Preparing the Way of the Lord ... Ministering the Healing Love of God" www.messiah-ministries.org 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502

Going with God's Heart and Power 10-5-09

Good morning, Lord Jesus. As I start this new day, let me start it well -- centered in Christ, embraced by the Father, filled afresh with the Holy Spirit. No as I worship You and wait on You, help me listen for Your leading. ... "When I came to you, brothers and sisters, I did not come proclaiming the mystery of God to you with lofty words or wisdom. For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified. And I came to you in weakness and in fear and in much trembling. My speech and my proclamation were not with plausible words of wisdom, but with a demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith might not rest on human wisdom but on the power of God" (1 Corinthians 2:1-5). Today is a preparation day, to pack and prepare to go out in ministry to the people of the nation of Estonia tomorrow. No doubt I'll need warm clothes to venture into a land bordering northwest Russia and just across the Baltic Sea from Sweden and Finland. But above all, I'll need Your warm heart, burning with a passion for Jesus and love for Your people. I'm excited to be invited by the Superintendent of the United Methodist Church, who oversees the spiritual life and churches of the people of Estonia, to be teaching and preaching at their seminary, a pastor's conference, a student retreat, the university, and at churches and homes throughout the country on prayer, spiritual life, and healing. And as much as You will use me to pour into them, I know You will be using them to pour into me -- sharing the love of God, the grace of Christ, and communion of the Holy Spirit with one another in our bond of the Body of Christ that knows no borders. And I'm especially looking forward to the warm embrace and bond of prayer with old friends from my earlier ministry journey there. Lord, let me not be filled with knowledge, but filled with Your Spirit. Let me not go with lofty words to impress their minds, but with the depth of Your Spirit to encourage their hearts. May You move in power to encourage, inspire, comfort, heal, and free. May we all be changed as we encounter You together, so that none of us are ever the same. Let revival and awakening be released in their spirits and in mine, "with a demonstration of the Spirit and of power" -- "the power of God," made perfect through our weakness and Your wisdom (v. 2:6-16). In Jesus' name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays Friends, thank you for your prayers for us at the Healing Day Apart this past weekend in Tennessee at the Aldersgate Renewal Center. We heard wonderful testimonies of God's healing grace in spirit, soul, and body. And I just heard last night of a man's physical healing of his knees. Consider registering on-line now for a 30% discount for next summer's National Conference on Spirit-filled Living: http://www.aldersgate2010.org/ I'll be there teaching equipping sessions on emotional healing. Randy Clark of Global Awakening will be the Keynote Speaker, along with Terry Teykl and Tom Albin of the UMC. I have two ministry trips abroad coming up (Estonia in October and Pakistan in December), where I'll be sharing my teaching and my heart for prayer and healing. If you'd like to join our intercessory prayer team, connected by email, please let me know. We have great anticipation for my time in Estonia. And since this will be my first ministry engagement sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ and ministering the healing love of God in the Muslim nation of Pakistan, I'm sensing the need for an especially strong and committed covering of prayer: TommyHays@aol.com I would be thrilled for you to order my new book for yourself or someone who may enjoy it with my perspective on healing and God's heart for restoration in the process of the journey, with mighty breakthroughs along the way: Free to Be Like Jesus -- Transforming Power of Healing & Deliverance: www.messiah-ministries.org or at www.amazon.com Proceeds go to support the vision and calling of the Lord through Messiah Ministries. Subscribe Free by email to me at Messiah Ministries --MessiahMin@aol.com -- "Preparing the Way of the Lord ... Ministering the Healing Love of God" www.messiah-ministries.org 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502

Healing of Namaan, Inside and Outside 10-2-09

Good morning, Lord Jesus. As I wait before You in the first moments of a new day, speak to my heart and lead my mind. ... "Naaman, commander of the army of the king of Aram, was a great man and in high favor with his master, because by him the Lord had given victory to Aram. The man, though a mighty warrior, suffered from leprosy.... So Naaman came with his horses and chariots, and halted at the entrance of Elisha's house. Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, 'Go, wash in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall be restored and you shall be clean' " (2 Kings 5:1-10). You can be the best at what you do and still need healing. You can be a great man, a mighty warrior in the battles of this world, full of favor and fame, and still have the sickness and sin of a broken, fallen world eating away at you -- whether on the inside or the outside. But it's hard to ask for help; it's hard to slay our pride. It's hard to admit we need it, even if it's so obvious to everyone around us. We often prefer to suffer in silence rather than admit we can't heal ourselves. We often give in to the lie that "time heals all wounds," when only the power of the blood of Jesus heals all wounds (1 Peter 2:24). And even when we come to the place of admitting our need and that we are powerless in ourselves to do anything about it, with any lasting value, out of our own self will and self help, it's still hard to humble our pride before God and Your timing and ways. When Naaman heard Your plans for his healing, he "became angry and went away.... He turned and went away in a rage" (2 Kings 5:11-12). He literally wanted someone who knew God better than he did to simply "wave his hand over the spot, and cure the leprosy" (v. 5:11). It's true that sometimes, in Your sovereign mercy and grace, You stretch out Your mighty right hand through the hands of Your disciples to release Your power for an instantaneous miracle though "signs and wonders" (Acts 4:30). And it seems You are increasing Your miracles throughout the earth in our day. But at the same time, healing is more than the miraculous. Healing is wholeness. It's Your process of restoration, bringing all things back into alignment with Your will for our lives through the redemption of Christ. We're created by God to long for the "restoration of all things" -- in our own lives and in all creation (Acts 3:21, NKJV). This is Your will, revealed by Your Word, made available through the sacrifice and sufferings of Christ for each of us: "Surely He was borne our infirmities and carried our diseases; yet we accounted Him stricken, struck down by God and afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions, crushed for our iniquities; upon Him was the punishment that made us whole, and by His bruises we are healed" (Isaiah 53:4-5, fulfilled in Christ, Matthew 8:17). Naaman's disease in his body was only a manifestation of a disease in his soul -- the sickness of self-centered, self-sufficient pride. And though You were compassionate to heal his body, You were passionate to heal his soul. So You spoke to him again, even as he turned away in rage from the word, the will, and the ways of God, through the voice of those who cared about him (2 Kings 5:13). Through their words of encouragement and compassion, You gave him the grace he needed to be able to repent, to turn back to You and Your will for his healing. He humbled himself in the sight of the Lord. He allowed himself to be washed in Your living waters. And he rose up out of those waters a new man -- healed of his pride and his shame, healed of his sickness both on the inside and the outside (v. 5:14). Namaan came to know the one, true God that day, that there was "no God in all the earth" but You (v 5:15). The day of Naaman's humility was the day of his healing and salvation, the day of redemption and restoration for his "spirit and soul and body" (1 Thessalonians 5:23). It was the day of fulfillment of Your Word to him and to us all: "Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up" (James 4:10, NKJV). Lord, let it be so in my heart and in the hearts of all Your people in all the earth. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays Friends, please keep us in prayer at Aldersgate Renewal Ministries' Day Apart for Healing tomorrow and the community healing service I'll lead tonight at their "ARC" (Aldersgate Renewal Center) in Goodlettsville, TN near Nashville (www.aldersgaterenewal.org). I have two ministry trips abroad coming up (Estonia in October and Pakistan in December), where I'll be sharing my teaching and my heart for prayer and healing. If you'd like to join our intercessory prayer team, connected by email, please let me know. Since this will be my first ministry engagement sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ and ministering the healing love of God in a Muslim nation, I'm sensing the need for an especially strong and committed covering of prayer: TommyHays@aol.com I would be thrilled for you to order my new book for yourself or someone who may enjoy it with my perspective on healing and God's heart for restoration in the process of the journey, with mighty breakthroughs along the way: Free to Be Like Jesus -- Transforming Power of Healing & Deliverance: http://www.messiah-ministries.org/ or at http://www.amazon.com/ Proceeds go to support the vision and calling of the Lord through Messiah Ministries. Subscribe Free by email to me at Messiah Ministries -- MessiahMin@aol.com -- "Preparing the Way of the Lord ... Ministering the Healing Love of God" www.messiah-ministries.org 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502

"It is Alright"--All is Well with My Soul 10-1-09

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Your name is my first word of this new day -- the name above all names (Philippians 2:9). ... "When the man of God saw her coming, (Elisha) said to Gehazi his servant, 'Look, there is the Shunammite woman; run at once to meet her, and say to her, Are you alright? Is your husband alright? Is your child alright?' She answered, 'It is alright.' When she came to the man of God at the mountain, she caught hold of his feet. Gehazi approached to push her away. But the man of God said, 'Let her alone, for she is in bitter distress; the Lord has hidden it from me and has not told me' " (2 Kings 4:25-27). The woman's child was not alright; he was dead. And she was in bitter distress, beside herself in overwhelming floods of grief and loss. But not despair. Fully alive to all her emotions of anguish and pain, she knew she had to get to God. And for her, that meant getting with someone she knew believed God and the power of His love, His mercy, and His word. Even as she left her dead son at home and pushed past the doubt of her husband, she declared the faith that filled her heart as much as her pain -- "It will be alright" (v. 4:23). When she came to Elisha's servant, still reeling in the wake of shock and sorrow, she continued to declare in faith, "It is alright." What was "alright?" What would "be alright?" Was she in denial? Or was she so full of faith that she knew God would raise her son from the dead? I'm not sure. But I do know she was persistent and tenacious in her pursuit of God and in her pursuit of someone to stand with her who believed in the goodness and power of God. Something rose up in her that wasn't willing to take no for an answer (v. 4:30). But even in the midst of all she was going through, that felt so far from the will and the heart of God, she knew down inside "It will be alright." Maybe she had faith for a miracle. Or maybe she just knew deep down inside, "It is well with my soul." Maybe it was her way of saying to everyone around her, to all of the spiritual realm, and to her own soul, "I'm trusting God to get me through this, one way or the other." As my spiritual mother and mentor in prayer, Margaret Therkelsen, likes to say in a flourish of her Kentucky wit and faith, "Come hell or high water, I'm goin' on with God!" I think of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego about to go through the fiery furnace, trusting God whether You delivered them from the fire or not, knowing You would go with them through the fire no matter what (Daniel 3:17). I remember Job's words, "Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him" (Job 13:15, NKJV). And I hold fast to Your promise through Isaiah, "Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are Mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the waters, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you" (Isaiah 43:1-2). With the faith of David, I declare with the faith of this grieving mother, "Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for Thou art with me; Thy rod and Thy staff they comfort me" (Psalm 23:4, KJV). You heal in many ways: Sometimes instantaneously in the miracle of a moment; sometimes in the process of restoration, little by little, step by step, and day by day; sometimes through the help of others and truths You've given us in the science and truths of Your creation; sometimes by the grace to persevere until the day Your Kingdom comes in its fullness and all are healed all the time; and sometimes through the healing of the resurrection when we pass through death into the fullness of eternal life in Christ. I don't know if the Shunammite woman knew by faith how You would heal her son and her heart. But I believe she knew she wasn't about to try to go that that grief alone. I believe she had come to know the God who never leaves us nor forsakes us, who is always redeeming us and all things, even the things that break our heart and Yours (Hebrews 13:5). And it's clear that that kind of persevering faith, in the midst of such heartbreak and loss, moved the heart of the man of God and moved the heart of the God of man (2 Kings 4:35). It was alright, just as she had said, just as she believed, because her heart was right with You. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays Friends, I join with you in the agreement of prayer for healing and breakthrough in the things that bring grief and sorrow to your life. Thank you for praying in faith and agreement for me. We know our Redeemer lives, and will cause all things to work together for good in its season, in due time. Our part is to trust Him through it all. I would be thrilled for you to order my new book for yourself or someone who may enjoy it with my perspective on healing and God's heart for restoration in the process of the journey, with mighty breakthroughs along the way: Free to Be Like Jesus -- Transforming Power of Healing & Deliverance: http://www.messiah-ministries.org/ or at http://www.amazon.com/ I have two ministry trips abroad coming up (Estonia in October and Pakistan in December), where I'll be sharing my teaching and my heart for prayer and healing. If you'd like to join our intercessory prayer team, connected by email, please let me know. Since this will be my first ministry engagement sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ and ministering the healing love of God in a Muslim nation, I'm sensing the need for an especially strong and committed covering of prayer: TommyHays@aol.com Subscribe Free by email to me at Messiah Ministries --mailto:--MessiahMin@aol.com-- "Preparing the Way of the Lord ... Ministering the Healing Love of God" www.messiah-ministries.org 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502

"In Due Time" 9-30-09

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Draw me near, fill my soul with the fullness of Your Spirit today and every day. ... "(Elisha) said, 'At this season, in due time, you shall embrace a son.' She replied, 'No, my lord, O man of God, do not deceive your servant.' The woman conceived and bore a son at that season, in due time, as Elisha had declared to her" (2 Kings 4:16-17). The Shunammite woman longed for a son, but thought the time had passed for the desires of her heart to be fulfilled. But those desires were Your desires. And You are the God who loves to give us the desires of our heart when entrust our hearts to You. "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" (Psalm 34:4-5). But those desires, even when expressed fervently in prayer, are not always immediately fulfilled. The answer comes in its "season" and "in due time," according to Your word and Your plans. Lord, as best as I can and all by Your grace, I entrust my heart and my desires to You. Align my thoughts and my desires with Yours. Conform my will to Your will, and set my feet on the path of Your purposes for my life. Fill my hopes and dreams with Your plans. And give me the grace of patience to persevere in faith through each season until they come to pass in due time, in Your time. As a good friend of mine says, "In His way, in His time, by His power, and for His glory!" In Jesus' name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays Friends, I'll be joining Jonathan Dow to lead A Day Apart for Healing at the Aldersgate Renewal Ministries home base near Nashaville, Tennessee this weekend www.aldersgaterenewal.org/events/arc/day_Apart_09_Healing.html Please come join us if you can and spread the word! Subscribe by email to me at Messiah Ministries --MessiahMin@aol.com Order our Ministry Resources or Contribute to our vision and calling: "Messiah Ministries -- Preparing the Way of the Lord ... Ministering the Healing Love of God" www.messiah-ministries.org 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502 Devotional Archives at: www.morningbymorning.blogspot.com

Here's My Heart 9-29-09

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Here's my heart; here's my mind. Here's control of my life. ... Here's my heart; here's my mind Here's control of all my life Lead me on; lead me far Lead me there wherever You are Help me let go; help me to yield Help me flow like a river in Your perfect will Yes, Lord. As these new words of this new song of Your Spirit rise up in my heart this morning, let them be more than words. Let them be a declaration of trusting surrender of my thoughts and my desires into Your hands and Your plan for my day and my life. "Those who love their life lose it, and those who hate their life in this world will keep it for eternal life. Whoever serves Me must follow Me, and where I am, there My servant will be also. Whoever serves Me, the Father will honor" (John 12:25-26). This is not a call to be miserable in life. You came that I "may have life and have it abundantly" (John 10:10). This is a call to know the joy of living my life in Your will. "I have said these things to you so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete" (John 15:11). In Your will, I am free. In trusting surrender to Your perfect will, I will know the fullness of Your joy and flow in the river of Your life (Revelation 22:1-5). In Jesus' name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays Friends, I'll be joining Jonathan Dow to lead A Day Apart for Healing at the Aldersgate Renewal Ministries home base near Nashaville, Tennessee this weekend www.aldersgaterenewal.org/events/arc/day_Apart_09_Healing.html Please come join us if you can and spread the word! Subscribe by email to me at Messiah Ministries --MessiahMin@aol.com Order our Ministry Resources or Contribute to our vision and calling: "Messiah Ministries -- Preparing the Way of the Lord ... Ministering the Healing Love of God" www.messiah-ministries.org 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502Devotional Archives at: www.morningbymorning.blogspot.com

Believe Jesus and Be Saved 9-28-09

Good morning, Lord Jesus. I surrender all -- all that I am and all that I have, I surrender and entrust to You, my Lord and my God. ... "When the jailor woke up and saw the prison doors wide open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself, since he supposed that the prisoners had escaped. But Paul shouted in a loud voice, 'Do not harm yourself, for we are all here.' The jailor called for lights, and rushing in, he fell down trembling before Paul and Silas. Then he bought them outside and said, 'Sirs, what must I do to be saved?' They answered, 'believe on the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.' " (Acts 16:27-31). I've been away speaking and sharing at a men's retreat for a few days with men from across north Georgia, getting away to go deeper together in their spiritual journey with You. This year, former NFL football player and prison ministry leader Bill Glass was our main speaker, with an emphasis on father and son relationships. In over thirty-nine years of prison ministry, he's found that fathers not loving and blessing their sons is the number one common denominator among all those bound in prison -- physically and spiritually. He's been to see the men and share the gospel with many men many times on every death row in America. He's never met one who didn't hate his father. He challenged us as men -- fathers and step fathers of sons and daughters -- to love and bless the children God has entrusted to us. With the father heart of God, he exhorted us to not just show it, but also to say it, and not just our natural children, but our spiritual children as well. Love is the power of God, revealed in Jesus Christ our Lord (1 John 4:7-12). And sons and daughters need the love of a father's blessing. And along the way of our weekend, You gave me so many opportunities to teach and to pray with so many men whose hearts were softened and opened to the love of God in Jesus Christ. I knew it was going to be another great weekend when a man opened up to me after my first teaching workshop on healing and deliverance. His son had brought him to our Rock Eagle Methodist Men's retreat. He was telling me about all his problems -- full of worry, frustration, and a good measure of anger. And then he said, "I don't know this Jesus you're talking about. I've never been saved." I asked if he wanted to give over all these problems and worries and anger over to You, turning his heart away from all his pain and shame and sin and turning his heart to You -- "to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ," knowing that he would "be saved" by the God who is love, the God who loves him more than he could imagine. We got down on our knees right there, trembling before God, to call on Your name and welcome Your Spirit into his heart and every area of his life. What could be better than that! I pray for him and his son, and every man who was moved to tears by the thick presence of Your Holy Spirit in all the trusting prayers and honest talks that took place out in the Georgia woods this weekend. Thank You for speaking to me and loving me through so many of them, and thank You for speaking and loving through me to them in that kind of atmosphere where men were free to be honest and real in our need for You and for the fellowship of one another in the journey of faith. More, Lord. More of that, throughout the earth, in the great harvest of souls to come in these days of Your Presence. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays Friends, thank you so much for joining with me in the journey of faith and prayer. One of the places where I've shared much of my personal testimony in on my teaching cd, The Father's Blessing through Our Brokenness, taped from a night of ministry to young people studying for ministry at Christ for the Nations in Dallas, Texas (www.cfni.org). It's available through our web site if you'd be interested: www.messiah-ministries.org The rest of my teaching that week at Christ for the Nations on Spiritual Warfare is also available, with our other books, cd's, and dvd's for healing and spiritual ministry. Please keep in prayer Bill Glass and Champions for Life Ministries (www.billglasscfl.org) and the North Georgia United Methodist Men (www.ngumm.com). Subscribe by email to me at Messiah Ministries --MessiahMin@aol.com Order our Ministry Resources or Contribute to our vision and calling: "Messiah Ministries -- Preparing the Way of the Lord ... Ministering the Healing Love of God" www.messiah-ministries.org 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502Devotional Archives at: www.morningbymorning.blogspot.com

"A Holy Man of God" 9-23-09

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Let Your name be my first word and Your praise be my first thought, as I begin this new day with You. ... "One day Elisha was passing through Shunem, where a wealthy woman lived, who urged him to have a meal. So whenever he passed that way, he would stop there for a meal. She said to her husband, 'Look, I am sure that this man who regularly passes our way is a holy man of God. Let us make a small roof chamber with walls, and put there for him a bed, a table, a chair, and a lamp, so that he can stay there whenever he comes to us' " (2 Kings 4:8-10). Lord Jesus, You are the perfect fulfillment of every "holy man of God," of every prophet, priest, and king. You are the perfect prophet -- the eternal Word of God made flesh (John 1:1-14). You are the perfect priest -- our "Great High Priest" (Hebrews 4:14). You are the perfect king -- the "King of kings and Lord of lords" (Revelation 19:16). And like the wealthy woman and her husband, I want to make room for You to come and stay with me, here in the upper chamber of my spirit and in the welcome home of my heart. As the hold hymn says, "Pass me not, O gentle Savior." And I thank You that You dwell now, by Your Holy Spirit, in the hearts and homes of all who believe in You, who make room for You, and welcome You into our lives. Whatever wealth or gifts or graces we have is Yours, to use as You will in the proclaiming of Your Word to the people of all nations and in the coming of Your Kingdom on earth as it is in heaven. For whatever riches we have in this world can never compare with the "gold refined by fire" of the glory of Your Presence in our hearts, now and forever, through the gift of Your salvation of our souls (Revelation 3:18). These are our "true riches" (Luke 16:11). "In (You) we have redemption through (Your) blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of (Your) grace lavished on us" (Ephesians 1:7-8). Now in the mercy and mystery of Your grace, You have made each of us holy -- holy men and women of God -- "cleansing (us) by the washing of water by the Word ... holy and without blemish" (Ephesians 5:25-27). You have "saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works but according to (Your) own purposes and grace" (2 Timothy 1:9). Embraced by our Father, through the blood of Jesus our Savior, and the ever-indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit, we are now "holy partners in a heavenly calling" (Hebrews 3:1). "Since we have these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body and spirit, making holiness perfect in the fear of God" (2 Corinthians 7:1). In Christ, we are now "God's chosen ones, holy and beloved" (Colossians 3:12). And as we pass by others on our way, about the work of Your kingdom and sharing the good news of Your gospel to the nations and in our neighborhoods, may others see You in us. May they say that they are sure we are holy men of God or holy women of God, because they are sure they see Christ in us. That's what I want to become. Lord Jesus, make me more like You each day. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays Friends, please keep me in your prayers as I prepare and go to share the Gospel of the Kingdom at home and abroad throughout the fall season: Men's Retreat in Georgia; Day Apart for Healing in Tennessee; Renewal Conference in Pennsylvania; preaching, teaching, healing ministry to the nations of Estonia and Pakistan; spiritual direction, equipping spiritual leaders, and healing prayer ministry at home in Kentucky. I welcome your prayers for protection, provision, and anointing for my family, ministry, and all the Lord will touch through us. Thank you for your partnership in ministry with us, fulfilling the vision the Lord gave us for Messiah Ministries for these past 12 years of full time ministry -- "Preparing the Way of the Lord ... Ministering the Healing Love of God." www.Messiah-Ministries.org Subscribe by email to me at Messiah Ministries --MessiahMin@aol.com Order our Ministry Resources or Contribute to our vision and calling: www.messiah-ministries.org 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502 Devotional Archives at: www.morningbymorning.blogspot.com

Nothing but Oil 9-22-09

Good morning, Lord Jesus. In spirit and truth, I worship You and welcome You and wait on You -- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. ... "Now the wife of a member of the company of prophets cried to Elisha, 'Your servant my husband is dead; and you know that your servant feared the Lord, but a creditor has come to take my two sons as slaves.' Elisha said, 'What shall I do for you? Tell me, what do you have in the house?' She answered, 'Your servant has nothing in the house, except of a jar of oil...' " (2 Kings 4:1-2). The prophet's widow was in a place of brokenness and desperation. She'd lost her husband; she feared she'd lost her sons. Maybe she even feared she'd lost the favor and grace of God. She felt she had "nothing" left, only the pain in heart and the fear in her soul. Things had not gone as she had hoped and expected for a family committed to serving the Lord. But You spoke to her through Elisha. You led her to stop looking at what she had lost but at what she had left, to take her focus off what she didn't have and direct her focus to what she did have. She still had a jar of oil. And that jar of oil, entrusted to You in obedience and faith, became the source of all she needed (v. 4:3-7). Most of all, it became a means of Your grace, an anchor of hope for her soul, to see her through those troubled times. She gave what she had, and You multiplied it into an abundance of blessings. "And God is able to provide you with every blessing in abundance, so that by always having enough of everything, you many share abundantly in every good work" (2 Corinthians 9:8). You are the God who fills our desperation with Your abundance, who takes our brokenness and makes us whole. "When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears, and rescues them from all their troubles. The Lord is near to the brokenhearted, and saves the crushed in spirit. Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord rescues them from them all" (Psalm 34:17-19). Lord, give me eyes to see all that You've given me. Keep the eyes of my heart lifted to You and the fullness of Your provision for all I need. Keep giving me a thankful heart to celebrate Your goodness with the oil of gladness You keep pouring into my spirit. "Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones that You have crushed rejoice" (Psalm 51:8). By the life of Your Spirit abundantly filling the vessel of my heart, I "shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away" (Isaiah 35:10). "And my God will satisfy every need of (mine) according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus. To our God and Father be glory forever and ever" (Philippians 4:19). In Jesus' name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays Subscribe by email to me at Messiah Ministries --MessiahMin@aol.com -- "Preparing the Way of the Lord ... Ministering the Healing Love of God" To Order our Ministry Resources and Contribute to our vision and calling: www.messiah-ministries.org 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502 Devotional Archives at: www.morningbymorning.blogspot.com

Heaven is Just a Prayer Away 9-21-09

Good morning, Lord Jesus. As I lift up my spirit, speak out Your name, and open up my heart, help me begin this day and every day in You -- centered in Jesus Christ as Lord, embraced by my heavenly Father in the love of God, and filled afresh with the Holy Spirit abiding continually with me and within me. ... "Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your Presence? If I ascend to heaven, You are there; if I make my bed in Sheol, You are there. If I take the wings of the morning and settle in the farthest limits of the sea, even there Your hand shall lead me, and Your right hand shall hold me fast. If I say, 'Surely the darkness shall cover me, and the light around me become night,' even the darkness is not dark to You; the night is as bright as the day, for darkness is as light to You" (Psalm 139:7-12). My seven year old son, Elijah, was spending the weekend with me. We were watching my younger son, Josiah, playing on the playground for a minute while we could just sit on the grass and talk awhile. We've gone through a difficult and painful time in our family this year. Then all of a sudden, Elijah turned to me and said: "Dad, I'm just remembering a dream the Lord gave me last night! I was in this deep, dark place, like a big crack or a cave down in the earth. I was feeling sad and afraid. Then I remembered that God is always with me. As soon as I did, there was this bright light everywhere, brighter than the sun. I felt like I was going straight to heaven. I never died; I just went straight to heaven. It was like everybody was waiting for me and we were at this table together, like a big feast, with fish and bread and lobster -- everything I like to eat. I was so happy! So was everybody! I remember now that when I woke up, I felt really full. And I was really surprised that I wasn't still in heaven. I think God is really saying something to me in my dream." Wow! What a dream! And all in vivid color too, he said. As we talked this through, I asked him what he felt like the Lord was saying to him in his dream. And I never want to forget the words my young son had to say: "Dad, I don't ever have to be afraid of anything. No matter what, God is always with me." As we pondered all this and what it might mean, Elijah said, "Dad, can you believe the Lord would give a little boy, just seven years old, a dream like that?" We laughed as I reminded him about the time when he was much younger and You were showing him what he called "see dreams", because he was seeing his dreams while he was awake. The Bible calls those "visions" (Acts 2:17). And as I told him, I do believe You are speaking to us all, young and old alike, longing for us to see what You're showing and hear what You're saying. And especially in these days that can seem dark and hard, fearful and lonely at times, like the earth has caved in and swallowed us up in a pit, we need not fear. For the Lord our God is with us. You never leave us and never forsake us. All the glory of heaven is just a prayer away -- as soon as we remember this eternal, but profoundly simple truth, spoken from the mouth of babes in ever-trusting, unwavering, child-like faith, "God is always with me." One day when we die -- if we die and aren't part of that generation that will never die and only see the glory of Your coming -- we'll go to heaven. But every day right now, we can receive heaven in us. And whether we go to the highest heaven or the depths of Sheol, whether we're soaring in the joy of a good day at the park or struggling through a dark day in our emotions, heaven is just a prayer away. You are always with us. "For He has said, 'I will never leave you or forsake you.' So we can say with confidence, 'The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can anyone do to me?' " (Hebrews 13:5-6). Hearing my son's dream and the meaning You gave him through it reminds me of the last words and prayer of John Wesley. They say he could hardly speak in the final moments, but his hands were in the air, his face was full of peace, and he spoke out these words, "The best of all, God is with us!" ... And so You are. You always are. You are "Emmanuel ... God is with us" (Matthew 1:23). I don't know all that Elijah's dream means. Maybe it speaks of those who will never die, like another Elijah we know (2 Kings 2:11). Maybe it speaks of the moment of the rapture, when the light of the glory of Your coming will fill this dark earth (1 Thessalonians 5:17). For there will be a generation in a day to come who will never taste of death but be caught up into the brilliant light of the glory of Your Presence with Your holy angels (Luke 9:27; 1 Corinthians 15:21). Maybe it speaks of Your abiding Presence with us now, no matter what, that heaven comes to earth every moment that we remember that You are always in our heart, and that already God "has (already) blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places" (Ephesians 1:3). Like Mary, I'll keep pondering all of these things in my heart. But I am encouraged today. And I am blessed to be a father with a son who hears God in his dreams. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays You can order my books on-line from our web site, Free to be Like Jesus -- Transforming Power of Healing & Deliverance and Morning by Morning: http://www.messiah-ministries.org/ or from http://www.amazon.com/ All proceeds go to support the vision and calling of Messiah Ministries -- "Preparing the Way of the Lord ... Ministering the Healing Love of God". If you would like a copy of our recent Messiah Ministries Newsletter, Messiah's Messenger, in hard copy or by email, please send me a note at MessiahMin@aol.com Subscribe by email to me at Messiah Ministries --mailto:--MessiahMin@aol.com -- "Preparing the Way of the Lord ... Ministering the Healing Love of God" http://www.messiah-ministries.org/ 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502 Devotional Archives at: http://www.morningbymorning.blogspot.com/

Sacrifice for Breakthrough 9-18-09

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Be high and lifted up in my heart and life today. ... "When the king of Moab saw that the battle was going against him, he took with him seven hundred swordsmen to break through, opposite the king of Edom; but they could not. Then he took his firstborn son who was to succeed him, and offered him as a burnt offering on the wall. And great wrath came upon Israel, so that they withdrew from him and returned to their own land" (2 Kings 3:27). The wrath released against Israel from the murderous and cruel sacrifice of a father's own son was not the wrath of God. "Whoever sacrifices to any god, other than the Lord alone, shall be devoted to destruction" (Exodus 22:20). The power released was the power of witchcraft -- the use of spiritual means for selfish control, manipulation, and influence. According to Your Word, "witchcraft" is one of "the works of the flesh" and "those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God" (Galatians 5:20-21, KJV). We are to worship You alone, "in spirit and truth" (John 4:23). And the sacrifice You desire is a willing heart, yielded to You, out of love and not fear, faithfully entrusting control of our lives to You. "I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship" (Romans 12:1). The sacrifice acceptable to God is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise" (Psalm 51:17). The king of Moab was willing to sacrifice for "break through" in his circumstances to accomplish his will and have his way. So he sacrificed his son to a false god, to "the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil" (Hebrews 2:14). He offered a life and released death in his act of worship to "the god of the world (who) has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God" (2 Corinthians 4:4). Like the king of Moab, we all want "break through" in our circumstances. But You call us to willingly trust Your will and Your way, to offer ourselves as living sacrifices, to freely worship the one true God, who is love and who releases the power of Your love into our lives, no matter the circumstances (1 John 4:8). You are our Sacrifice for Breakthrough. "God's love was revealed among us in this way: God sent His only Son into the world so that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins" (1 John 4:9-10). God our Father, humbling Yourself in the nature of God the Son, You are the God who died for us that we may live in You through God the Holy Spirit (2 Corinthians 5:15). Lord, forgive us when we've turned to false gods in our own will to get our own way. Forgive us as a people and a culture for every time we've sacrificed our own children in the sin of abortion and the sins of neglect. Forgive us for releasing the power of death and destruction in our hearts and our land, instead of choosing life and releasing the power of love. "The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. (You) came that (we) may have life, and have it abundantly" (John 10:10). As we come to worship You in the humility of brokenness, a broken spirit and a contrite heart You will not despise. But You will hear from heaven, and forgive our sins, and heal our land (2 Chronicles 7:14). And as we grow in knowing the God who is love, we will know the God of break through. All that was "devoted to destruction" shall be redeemed into "newness of life" (Romans 6:4). In Jesus' name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the love of Jesus, Tommy Hays Friends, please Come to The Fountain Tonight, Friday, September 18th at 7pm. The Fountain is a monthly gathering our ministry (Messiah Ministries) leads on the 3rd Friday Night of every month in the unity of the city-wide church for praise and healing worship. Come drink deeply the Living Waters of the One who wants to fill our hearts and flow through our lives by His Holy Spirit. This month, Jeff Green will be leading in worship and I will be leading in prayer. Hosted in the Chapel of Centenary United Methodist Church, 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, Kentucky. Contact Marilyn Walker, our Messiah Ministries Director of Ministries at DirOfMinistries@aol.com or 859-422-1794. All are welcome! Please come and spread the word! You can order my books on-line, Free to be Like Jesus -- Transforming Power of Healing & Deliverance and Morning by Morning: www.shop.messiah-ministries.org or from www.amazon.com All proceeds go to support the vision and calling of Messiah Ministries -- "Preparing the Way of the Lord ... Ministering the Healing Love of God". If you would like a copy of our recent Messiah Ministries Newsletter, Messiah's Messenger, in hard copy or by email, please send me a note at MessiahMin@aol.com Subscribe by email to me at Messiah Ministries --MessiahMin@aol.com -- "Preparing the Way of the Lord ... Ministering the Healing Love of God" www.messiah-ministries.org 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502 Devotional Archives at: www.morningbymorning.blogspot.com

God's Power through Our Worship 9-16-09

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Welcome into my heart and into my day. ... "But Jehoshaphat said, 'Is there no prophet of the Lord here, through whom we may inquire of the Lord?' Then one of the servants of the king of Israel (Jehoram) answered, 'Elisha son of Shaphat, who used to pour water on the hands of Elijah is here.' Jehoshaphat said, 'The word of the Lord is with him.' So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat and the king of Edom when down to him.... Elisha said, '.... get me a musician.' And then, while the musician was playing, the power of the Lord came on him" (2 Kings 3:11-15). Our praises go up and Your blessings come down. As we lift our hearts to You, You turn Your heart to us. Worship is a means of Your grace that aligns our hearts and minds with Yours, in the holy communion of prayer and praise. You open our ears and change our hearts as we behold Your glory. "And all of us, with unveiled faces, seeing the glory of the Lord as though reflected in a mirror, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another; for this comes from the Lord, the Spirit" (2 Corinthians 3:18). In worship, the power of the Lord came upon Elisha. In worship, the prophet of God heard Your voice in order to know Your will. "Let me hear what the Lord will speak, for He will speak peace to His people, to His faithful, to those who turn to Him in their hearts" (Psalm 85:8). "O come, let us worship and bow down, let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker! For He is our God, and we are the people of His pasture, and the sheep of His hand. O that today you would listen to His voice!" (Psalm 95:6-7). We worship You because You are worthy of all praise. We worship You because we honor You and love You, because we give our hearts and our lives to You. In worship we humble ourselves to admit we need You and put our hope and trust in something infinitely greater than ourselves. And something happens to us as we worship. You equip us and empower us to lead us into victory over whatever would seek to overcome us: "Praise the Lord! Sing to the Lord a new song, His praise in the assembly of the faithful.... For the Lord takes pleasure in His people; He adorns the humble with victory.... Let the high praises of God be in their throats and two edged-swords in their hands.... Praise the Lord!" (Psalm 149:1-9). Lord, I worship You today. Let the music of heaven rise in my spirit throughout my day. As I come to You in praise, would You come to me in power through my life and in Your world today. "Worship the Lord in holy splendor; tremble before Him all the earth. Say among the nations, 'The Lord is king! The world is firmly established; it shall never be moved. He will judge the peoples with equity.' Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice; let the sea roar, and all that fills it; let the field exult, and everything in it. Then shall all the forest of the trees sing for joy before the Lord, for He is coming, for He is coming to judge the earth. He will judge the world with righteousness, and the peoples with all His truth" (Psalm 96:9-13). Come, Lord Jesus, come (Revelation 22:20). In Jesus' name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays Friends, please Come to The Fountain this Friday Night, September 18th at 7pm. The Fountain is a monthly gathering our ministry leads on the 3rd Friday Night of every month in the unity of the city-wide church for praise and healing worship. Come drink deeply the Living Waters of the One who wants to fill our hearts and flow through our lives by His Holy Spirit. This month, Jeff Green will be leading in worship and I will be leading in prayer. Hosted in the Chapel of Centenary United Methodist Church, 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, Kentucky. Contact Marilyn Walker, our Messiah Ministries Director of Ministries at DirOfMinistries@aol.com or 859-422-1794. All are welcome! Please come and spread the word! You can order my books on-line, Free to be Like Jesus -- Transforming Power of Healing & Deliverance and Morning by Morning: www.shop.messiah-ministries.org or from www.amazon.com All proceeds go to support the vision and calling of Messiah Ministries -- "Preparing the Way of the Lord ... Ministering the Healing Love of God". If you would like a copy of our recent Messiah Ministries Newsletter, Messiah's Messenger, in hard copy or by email, please send me a note at MessiahMin@aol.com Subscribe by email to me at Messiah Ministries --MessiahMin@aol.com -- "Preparing the Way of the Lord ... Ministering the Healing Love of God" www.messiah-ministries.org 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502 Devotional Archives at: www.morningbymorning.blogspot.com

The Gift of Powerful Words 9-15-09

Good morning, Lord Jesus. I simply, but deliberately look to You alone in these first moments of my morning. ... "(Elisha) went up from there to Bethel; and while he was going up on the way, some small boys came of the city and jeered at him, saying, 'Go away, baldhead! Go away, baldhead!' When he turned around and saw them, he cursed them in the name of the Lord. Then two she-bears came out of the woods and mauled forty-two of the boys" (2 Kings 2:23-24). Lord, this is one of those stories that I wish weren't in the Bible. Though I know it's just as true as all the other stories, and teachings, and principles of Your Word. The man of God, anointed by Your Spirit as Your prophet had just been an instrument of Your grace to bring great healing to the land (v. 2:19-22). And then, almost in his very next breath, he lost his temper; and with that same authority You entrusted to him to speak words of blessing to bring life, he spoke words of cursing to bring death. Yet all that the people of Israel did and experienced under the Old Covenant are written in Scripture "to serve as an example" for us, to teach us and convict us of the nature we see in our own souls, even as we try by Your grace to lead lives that honor You under the blessings of our New Covenant in Christ (1 Corinthians 10:11). So Elisha's sin, between one mighty experience of kingdom ministry and the next, teaches us much: Even men and women of God, anointed by God and moving faithfully in their gifting and calling and destiny, can still sin. Even their spiritual gifts, given sovereignly by God, can be tainted and distorted to be used for evil instead of good, out of the free will of a human heart and out of the sinful nature of human flesh. None are righteous, apart from You, and all of us always continually need the mercy of our Savior and the leading of Your Spirit (Romans 3:10). And whenever we first turn to our own will and ways in self-centered pride, instead of first turning to You in God-centered humility, we are likely to sin in our flesh rather than following the leading of Your Spirit. Then even our God-given gifts can be used against us and others, releasing the kingdom of darkness on earth instead of the kingdom of heaven, "for the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable" (Romans 11:29). One of the gifts You've given us is the power of our words. "Death and life are in the power of the tongue" (Proverbs 18:21). It's one of the ways, in a sense, You created us "in the image of God" (Genesis 1:27). But You call us to continually allow You to sanctify this gift You've given us as we allow You to continually purify this new nature and new heart You've given us in Christ. "But no one can tame the tongue -- a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless the Lord and Father, and with it we curse those who were made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this ought not to be so" (James 3:8-10). Only You can tame our tongues, as we entrust our hearts and words to You. Then the words we speak can be led by Your Holy Spirit -- for building up and not tearing down, for encouragement and not discouragement, for comfort and not torment, for godly edification and not ungodly destruction (1 Corinthians 14:3). It's true that You are our ultimate example, as You walked this earth as Son of Man, in perfect relationship with the Father and perfect submission to the leading of the Holy Spirit. We are to follow "in (Your) steps" (1 Peter 2:21). And without sin, You cursed the fig tree that did not bear fruit, using it an example to teach Your disciples the power of their words spoken in faith (Matthew 21:18-22). Perhaps Your words were a confirmation of what was already true -- that what is unfruitful is already cursed, failing to embrace all the blessings of God to be a blessing for others. And we all need Your grace to change our curses into blessings. But You only did what You saw the Father doing (John 5:19); and You only spoke the words the Father gave You to speak (John 8:28). That way, Your words were always "spirit and life" according to the purposes of our Father (John 6:63). And so should ours. Lord, thank You for the gifts of God You've given me. As with each of us, You want us to discover the gifts You've given us to live into the purpose and calling and destiny for which You have created us. But I admit my need for You to convict me of my sin when I misuse the gifts You've me out of my flesh instead of Your Spirit, for my purposes instead of Your kingdom. Keep purifying my heart and sanctifying my tongue, that my words may be more and more like Your words and my nature may be more and more like Your nature. "His divine power has given us everything needed for life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and goodness. Thus He has given us, through these things, His precious and very great promises, so that through Him (we) may escape from the corruption that is in the world because of lust, and may become participants of the divine nature.... For in this way, entry into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be richly provided for (us)" (2 Peter 1:3-11). You've given us the gift of powerful words. Let us use them well as You lead to live fruitful lives for the glory of Your kingdom, speaking abundant blessings into the lives of those created in Your image. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays Friends, please Come to The Fountain this Friday Night, September 18th at 7pm. The Fountain is a monthly gathering our ministry leads on the 3rd Friday Night of every month in the unity of the city-wide church for praise and healing worship. Come drink deeply the Living Waters of the One who wants to fill our hearts and flow through our lives by His Holy Spirit. This month, Jeff Green will be leading in worship and I will be leading in prayer. Hosted in the Chapel of Centenary United Methodist Church, 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, Kentucky. Contact Marilyn Walker, our Messiah Ministries Director of Ministries at DirOfMinistries@aol.com or 859-422-1794. All are welcome! Please come and spread the word! If you would like a copy of our recent Messiah Ministries Newsletter, Messiah's Messenger, in hard copy or by email, please send me a note at MessiahMin@aol.com Subscribe by email to me at Messiah Ministries --MessiahMin@aol.com -- "Preparing the Way of the Lord ... Ministering the Healing Love of God" www.messiah-ministries.org 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502 Devotional Archives at: www.morningbymorning.blogspot.com