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Tuesday, January 28, 2014
Monday, January 27, 2014
Morning by Morning, January 27 - Set in Place by Unshakeable Love
Good morning, Lord Jesus. Cleanse me in Your blood and fill me with Your Spirit, as I begin my day in the communion of prayer with the Lord my God -- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. ...
"Adam knew his wife again, and she bore a son and named him Seth, for she said, 'God has appointed for me another child instead of Abel, because Cain killed him.' To Seth also a son was born, and he named him Enosh. At that time people began to invoke the name of the Lord" (Genesis 4:25-26).
The name Seth means to set in place, to settle, to establish. Though the enemy of our souls came to steal and kill and destroy through Cain to murder his bother Abel, destruction, death, and sin would not have the final say. You redeemed Abel's death into newness of life through Seth.
Your plans were set in place, Your heart to redeem and restore despite the sin of our broken, fallen world was settled, and Your divine purposes to bring good out of every evil was firmly established in Your unshakeable love and sovereign grace. Out of the bloodline of Seth would come Noah and Abraham and David. And in the fullness of time, our Messiah and Savior, Jesus Christ, would come through the bloodline of Seth as the ultimate expression of Your redemption and grace.
Thank You, Lord, for taking the places of death and turning them into life. Thank Your for restoring and redeeming everything the enemy of my soul has ever intended for evil and turning it into good. Your plans will come to pass and Your purposes will be fulfilled for my life by Your grace (Jeremiah 29:11). I am forever set in place, settled, and established in the redeeming power of Your unshakeable love (Psalm 139:16). In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays
My Friend, I pray you would know the unshakable love of our God whose plans and purposes for your life are set in place to come to pass, no matter what the enemy of our souls may try to destroy. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!
Praying for you,
Tommy
Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries
Healing from the Inside Out
Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries
4 Dominion Drive, Building 1
San Antonio, Texas 78257
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Thursday, January 23, 2014
Morning by Morning, January 23 - "The Roundabout Way of the Wilderness"
Good morning, Lord Jesus. I willingly choose to completely yield to Your Lordship in every area of my life, as best as I can and all by Your grace. Help me start off my day with the right heart and live it out all day in the power and by the leading of Your Spirit abiding within me. ...
"When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them by way of the land of the Philistines, although that was nearer; for God thought, 'If the people face war, they may change their minds and return to Egypt.' So God led the people by the roundabout way of the wilderness toward the Red Sea. The Israelites went up out of the land of Egypt prepared for battle" (Exodus 13:17).
Just as You knew the heart of the people of Israel when You brought them up out of their bondage in Egypt, through the wilderness, and all along their journey to the Promise Land, You know my heart. You know my every weakness and every desire; You know my every struggle and every hope. You know me infinitely better than I think I know myself.
And You also know my enemy -- the enemy of my soul who comes to steal and kill and destroy (John 10:10). You already see every one of his plans and schemes get me to turn back or turn away from the fullness of Your promises and abundance of the life You have for me, both now in this age and in the age to come. So sometimes You lead me "by the roundabout way of the wilderness" -- all the while preparing me for battle and preparing me to appreciate and embrace all the promises You long to fulfill in my life.
God, Give me grace to embrace Your map for the journey of my life. Help me never get stranded and stuck in the valley of doubt and unbelief, doubting Your goodness and not believing Your faithfulness to bring me though every challenge and even using every battle to grow me up into spiritual maturity. That's the very purpose of this roundabout journey -- that I would be conformed into the image of the Son of God (Romans 8:29).
It may seem like there's a better way, a shorter way, a more direct way than the way You're leading me. But even if I made it, to whatever destination I thought was the goal of my journey, I wouldn't be like Jesus when I got there. I would have missed the whole point -- "because as He is, so are we in this world" (1 John 4:17).
It's on the journey of "the roundabout way of the wilderness" that "all of us come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to maturity, to the measure of the full stature of Christ.... (where) we must grow up in every way into Him who is the head, into Christ" (Ephesians 4:13-15). So as best as I can and all by Your grace, I give myself to the journey You've chosen for me. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays
My Friend, I pray for God's grace to stir in your heart to embrace the journey of spiritual maturity He has planned for you -- especially through the times that seem like a longer way or a harder way into the promises He's spoken by His Word and into your spirit. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!
Praying for you,
Tommy
Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries
Healing from the Inside Out
Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries
4 Dominion Drive, Building 1
San Antonio, Texas 78257
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Wednesday, January 22, 2014
Morning by Morning, January 22 - "Rain Down Righteousness" in My Heart
Good morning, Lord Jesus. You are my Lord and Savior, One with the Father and One with the Holy Spirit. Be One within me as I open my heart to the fullness of Your Presence in the communion of prayer. ...
"Shower, O heavens, from above, and let the skies rain down righteousness; let the earth open, that salvation may spring up, and let it cause righteousness to sprout up also; I the Lord have created it.... I am the Lord, and there is no other.... I the Lord speak truth, I declare what is right" (Isaiah 45:8-19).
Lord, rain down righteousness in my heart. You speak the truth and declare what is right. Speak Your truth into my spirit; set things right within me. Renew my mind and direct my desires in alignment with Your paths of righteousness. From the inside out, by Your Spirit at work within my heart, empower me to both will what is right and then do what is right (Philippians 2:13).
By the power of Your mercy and grace, make me right with You, right with others, and right within myself in the righteousness of God. Sanctify me by the washing of the water of Your Word (Ephesians 5:26). Then cause the right thoughts and right desires of Your righteousness to sprout up within to display Your glory through my life each day. "They will be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, to display His glory" (Isaiah 61:3). In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays
My Friend, may the Spirit of God empower you to will and do what is right, causing His thoughts and desires to sprout up with you, as He rains down righteousness upon your life. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!
Praying for you,
Tommy
Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries
Healing from the Inside Out
Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries
4 Dominion Drive, Building 1
San Antonio, Texas 78257
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Tuesday, January 21, 2014
Morning by Morning, January 21 - Leaning In to Listen and Live
Good morning, Lord Jesus. As best as I can and all by Your grace, I entrust my life and this day to You. ...
"Ho, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and you that have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy? Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good, and delight yourself in rich food. Incline your, and come to Me; listen, so that you may live" (Isaiah 55:1-3).
I'm thirsty, Lord. Make me thirstier still. I'm leaning in to listen and live into the fullness of Your guidance and Your purpose for my life today and every day. Only You truly know what will truly satisfy my longings and fulfill my desires.
As I listen, let me hear. As I lean in more closely, let me hear more specifically. Lead me by Your Spirit. "And when (I) turn to the right or when (I) turn to the left, (my) ears shall hear (Your) word behind (me), saying, 'This is the way; walk in it'" (Isaiah 30:21). What could be more satisfying and fulfilling than that depth of relationship with You throughout the daily journey of my life? Lord, let it be so. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays
My Friend, I pray you will hear the voice of God and sense the leading of His Spirit to live into the fullness of all He has for you. May God satisfy your longings and fulfill your desires, all in His time and all in His way. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!
In the Love of Jesus,
Tommy Hays
Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries
Healing from the Inside Out
Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries
4 Dominion Drive, Building 1
San Antonio, Texas 78257
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Monday, January 20, 2014
Morning by Morning, January 20 - Transfiguration and Transformation
Good morning, Lord Jesus. Open up Your heavens as I open up my heart in the morning communion of contemplative prayer, here in the intimacy of Your Presence. ...
"... Jesus took with Him Peter and John and James, and went up on the mountain to pray. And while He was praying, the appearance of His face changed, and His clothes became dazzling white.... a cloud came and overshadowed them; and they were terrified as they entered the cloud. Then from the cloud came a voice that said, 'This is My Son, My Chosen; listen to Him!' When the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. And they kept silent... " (Luke 9:28-36).
Lord, draw me up into the high place of prayer. Open up the heavenly dimension of Your spiritual realm and surround me in the cloud of Your Presence. Be high and lifted up, until I see You alone as You truly are and hear only Your voice. Put to silence everything else and everything less that would distract me from listening.
Let Your words wash over me. Let Your Presence envelop me. Let Your Spirit possess me. ...
As You are transfigured before me, let my heart be transformed within me. In both the fear of the Lord in humility before Your and also the intimacy of the Lord surrounding me in prayer, let me be "transformed by the renewing of (my mind), so that (I) may discern what is the will of God -- what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God (for me)" (Romans 12:2). In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays
My Friend, may you be transformed in the Presence of God as Jesus is exalted and transfigured before you. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!
In the Love of Jesus,
Tommy Hays
Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries
Healing from the Inside Out
Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries
4 Dominion Drive, Building 1
San Antonio, Texas 78257
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Friday, January 17, 2014
Morning by Morning, January 17 - The Name of Jesus
Good morning, Lord Jesus. Your name is the name above every name. I declare Your name over every moment of my day and every dimension of my life. ...
"And by faith in His name, His name itself has made this man strong, who you see and know; and the faith that is through Jesus has given him perfect health in the presence of you all" (Acts 3:16).
Jesus, Your name declares Your nature -- Jesus, the salvation of God. You forgive us from our sins, heal us from our hurts, and free us from our chains to fill us with Your Spirit, that we might personally know the fullness of the unfailing love of God. At sound of Your name, every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord (Philippians 2:9-11).
Increase my faith in Your name, in Your nature, in Your heart to see everything that would be any hindrance to the fullness of Your salvation in my life. Help me want all that You want for me. Help me not hold out and not hold back, but give You all I have and all I am. And like Your first disciples who were consumed with Your Spirit, let my days be filled "proclaiming the good news about the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ" (Acts 8:12). In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays
My Friend, may the power of the name of Jesus be made manifest in every dimension of your life. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!
In the Love of Jesus,
Tommy Hays
Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries
Healing from the Inside Out
Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries
4 Dominion Drive, Building 1
San Antonio, Texas 78257
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Thursday, January 16, 2014
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Tuesday, January 14, 2014
Morning by Morning, January 14 - Favor to Walk with God
Good morning, Lord Jesus. You are my Father and Friend, my Savior and Lord, my God and King, my Counselor and Advocate, my All in All. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, I worship You and welcome You into every moment of my day. ...
"The Lord saw that the wickedness of humankind was great in the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of their hearts was only evil continually.... But Noah found favor in the sight of the Lord.... Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his generation; Noah walked with God" (Genesis 6:5-9).
The blood of Jesus has the power to change the thoughts and hearts of men. And only the blood of Jesus can make wicked men righteous and blameless before God. "You know that (we) were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from (our) ancestors, not with perishable things like silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without defect or blemish" (1 Peter 1:18-19).
Through the blood of Jesus that cleanses our souls from sin, we each have the honor to walk with God. We have the blessing to be called "children of God" (John 1:12). We have the outrageous fulfillment of Your promise to cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9). And we have the astounding truth of Your earth-shattering, divine decree that in Christ, we become the righteousness of God -- all by the power of the blood of Jesus (2 Corinthians 5:21).
Noah found favor and walked with God, blameless in Your sight. And now through Christ, we have "a better covenant" with ever "better promises" (Hebrews 8:6). We have favor because You have chosen in the sovereignty of Your mercy and grace to favor us with forgiveness so we can walk with You in relationship.
Lord, let me never take for granted the blessings and promises I have in You through the power of the blood of Jesus. Every day, cleanses me in Your blood and fill me with Your Spirit. Let me walk with You throughout the moments of my day, being forgiven of my sin and freed from the wicked nature that would consume me apart the ever-abiding Presence of Your holy nature within me by Your Spirit (Colossians 1:19-23). In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays
My Friend, I pray you would walk in favor with God today and every day. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!
In the Love of Jesus,
Tommy Hays
Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries
Healing from the Inside Out
Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries
4 Dominion Drive, Building 1
San Antonio, Texas 78257
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Monday, January 13, 2014
Morning by Morning, January 13 - Boundary Lines in Pleasant Places
Good morning, Lord Jesus. You are the King of kings and the Lord of lords, the Word of God made Flesh. Be King and Lord of my day. By Your Presence and power and grace, let Your Word be made flesh through my life yielded to Your Life today. ...
"The Lord is my chosen portion and my cup; You hold my lot. The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; I have a goodly heritage.... Therefore my heart is glad, and my soul rejoices.... You show me the path of life. In Your Presence there is fullness of joy; in Your right hand are pleasures forevermore" (Psalm 16:5-11).
Lord, I choose to trust You to know what's best for me. I trust You to set my boundaries, to order my steps, to put Your desires in my heart and Your thoughts in my mind. I trust You to arrange the divine appointments and hold alignments that will bring the fullness of Your joy into my life by Your Presence and guidance.
Let the pleasures of God be the pleasures I seek. Let me experience and embrace the pleasant places that only obedience to Your boundaries can bring. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays
My Friend, I pray for the fullness of joy in the Presence of God, as you trust Him to set your boundaries in pleasant places. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!
In the Love of Jesus,
Tommy Hays
Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries
Healing from the Inside Out
Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries
4 Dominion Drive, Building 1
San Antonio, Texas 78257
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Friday, January 10, 2014
Morning by Morning, January 10 - "The Unfolding"
Good morning, Lord Jesus. Put Your thoughts in my mind and Your desires in my heart. Fill me with Your Spirit and make me more like You today. ...
"The unfolding of Your words gives light; it imparts understanding to the simple.... Keep my steps steady according to Your promise, and never let iniquity have dominion over me.... Your righteousness is an everlasting righteousness, and Your law is the truth.... The sum of Your word is truth; and every one of Your righteous ordinances endures forever" (Psalm 119:130-160).
Unfold Your Word to me. Open up the Word of God and give me deeper understanding of Your truth. Through the progressive revelation of Your Word, help me learn more of You and Your truth and Your ways every day.
Even more, give me a love for Your Word and a longing for Your ways. Give me with a deep desire for the honest and simple pursuit of a life fully entrusted and yielded to You. When "Your Word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path," I know I will walk more confidently through every challenge along the journey of my life. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays
My Friend, may You see the unfolding of God's words and plans in your life, as He empowers You to trust and walk in His ways. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!
In the Love of Jesus,
Tommy Hays
Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries
Healing from the Inside Out
Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries
4 Dominion Drive, Building 1
San Antonio, Texas 78257
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Thursday, January 09, 2014
Morning by Morning, January 9 - Come to Me
Good morning, Lord Jesus. You are One with the Father, One with the Holy Spirit. And You invite me to be one with You in the communion of prayer and the complete surrender of my life into the fullness of Your Life. Here I am, Lord. ... Make me one with You, one with Your Body of Christ, one in ministry to all the world, until I feast with You at Your heavenly banquet in final victory. ...
I hear Your Spirit sing to my spirit:
Come to Me
Be one in Me
In the communion of prayer
I'll take You there
That wherever I Am you will be
Yes, Lord. I do come to You. I do surrender to You in trusting faith, embracing Your Life to be expressed through my life today. As You invited Your first followers to come and trust and believe, so You continue to invited me and to all who would be drawn to You: "Everything that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and anyone who comes to Me I will never drive away; for I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of the Him who sent Me. And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that I should lose nothing of all that He has given Me, but raise it up on the last day. This is indeed the will of My Father, that all who see the Son and believe in Him may have eternal life; and I will raise them up on the last day... Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to Me" (John 6:37-45).
Thank You for loving me and singing over me. Thank You for inviting me into the fullness of life I can only live in communion with You --Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (John 17:21-23). In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays
My Friend, I pray you would drawn by the Holy Spirit into a deeper place of surrender and communion with God this year, that you may live the fullness of the life He has for you. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!
In the Love of Jesus,
Tommy Hays
Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries
Healing from the Inside Out
Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries
4 Dominion Drive, Building 1
San Antonio, Texas 78257
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Wednesday, January 08, 2014
Morning by Morning, January 8 - Treasure in My Heart
Good morning, Lord Jesus. I lift up my face, open up my heart, and speak out Your name to begin my day in the Presence of God. ...
"How can young people keep their way pure? By guarding it according to Your word. With my whole heart I seek You; do not let me stray from Your commandments. I treasure Your word in my heart, to that I may not sin against You" (Psalm 119:9-11).
Lord, let Your word be treasure in my heart. Let Your word be the guiding principle of my life. Give me a deep desire to read Your word, hear Your word, honor Your word, obey Your word.
As I grow in knowing You, I grow in knowing Your word. As I grow in knowing Your word, I grow in knowing You. You are the Word of God -- the Word made Flesh (John 1:1-14). And You are my Treasure. So I seek You, my Treasure, the Word of God, and hold You in my heart.
Let Your Word change my heart. Let Your ways become my ways and Your desires become my desires. Let me be like the man who found treasure hidden in a field, who went and sold all he had to buy that field and have his treasure (Matthew 13:44). I have found You and the treasure of Your Word and Your Presence abiding in me. Let me treasure it and treasure You more than anything else in all my life. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays
My Friend, I pray the Word of God will be Treasure in your heart. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!
In the Love of Jesus,
Tommy Hays
Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries
Healing from the Inside Out
Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries
4 Dominion Drive, Building 1
San Antonio, Texas 78257
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Tuesday, January 07, 2014
Morning by Morning, January 7 - "Created in Christ"
Good morning, Lord Jesus. I worship You in spirit and truth -- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. ...
"For we are what He has made us, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand to be our way of life" (Ephesians 2:10).
Show me who I am and what I am to do. Let me know my identity and fulfill my destiny. By Your good grace, prepare me and empower me to live out Your good works as my way of life. I'm created in Christ, now living each day by the Spirit of Christ living through me (Romans 8:9). Come live through me today, as I grow up to become all I was created to be. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays
My Friend, I pray you will know your identity and fulfill your destiny -- created in Christ for the good works of God through your life. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!
In the Love of Jesus,
Tommy Hays
Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries
Healing from the Inside Out
Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries
4 Dominion Drive, Building 1
San Antonio, Texas 78257
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Monday, January 06, 2014
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Friday, December 20, 2013
Morning by Morning, December 20 - Pondering the Promises, Shouting Our Praises
Good morning, Lord Jesus. You are my focus and my foundation, as I begin my day seeking Your face and listening for Your voice. ...
"So (the shepherds) went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the Child lying in the manger. When they saw this, they made know what had been told them about this Child; and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them. But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them" (Luke 2:16-20).
The angels told the shepherds that Mary's Baby Child was the Messiah, the One who was born to be Savior and Lord of all (v. 2:10-11). And then the shepherds told Mary. The shepherds were shouting their praises, while Mary was pondering the promises.
In this Christmas season where we prepare our hearts with expectant faith to celebrate the birth of Christ, I thank You for the times of praise and joy. Like the shepherds, we are moved with Your good news of great joy, as we are glorifying and praising God for all we hear and see of Your great love for us. But at the same time, we are also moved, like Mary, to take time to ponder these things in our hearts, to let the deeper meaning of all You have done and all that this means settle deeply into our hearts.
Through the birth of Christ, God came near. You not only created us, You are with us. You not only watch over and care for us from Heaven, You abide with us and within us here on earth in our hearts. You not only forgive us of our sins, You also fill us with Your Spirit. You not only see us as servants, You love us as sons and daughters of God. And none of that would ever be possible if You had not come to this earth to be born as a Child who would die for our sins so we could live with You, now and forever (John 3:16). As we ponder that truth in our hearts, we can't help but shout our praises, glorifying and praising God.
Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays
My Friend, in this Christmas season, I pray you'll ponder the promises of all God has done for us through Jesus Christ and shout His praises, glorifying and praising God with all your heart. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!
Friends, I'll be away with family for the next couple of weeks. I wish you a Merry Christmas and pray all the joy of Jesus Christ will fill your heart! Thank you so much for joining with me in this journey of prayer for another year. I hope you'll continue to the journey with me next year! Thank you so much for all your prayers, encouragement, and support for me and our ministry! God bless you!
In the Love of Jesus,
Tommy Hays
Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries
Healing from the Inside Out
Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries
4 Dominion Drive, Building 1
San Antonio, Texas 78257
Share this word to encourage a friend!
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