Morning by Morning, July 23 - God Fills Our Empty Jars with the Oil of Hope
Good morning, Lord Jesus. You're the Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End, so turn my eyes and my heart to You at the beginning of my day so I can go through my day and end my day well -- as best as I can and all by Your grace. ...
This morning in prayer, I'm also listening for a fresh word from Your heart to share with the people in Pakistan, where I'll be preaching through the internet in a couple of hours. This message of hope in the midst of hard times comes to mind:
"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 children as slaves.' Elisha said to her, '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 a jar of oil.' He said, 'Go outside, borrow vessels from all your neighbors, empty vessels and not just a few. Then go in and shut the door behind you and your children, and start pouring into all these vessels; when each is full, set it aside.' So she left him and shut the door behind her and her children; they kept bringing vessels to her, and she kept pouring. When the vessels were full, she said to her son, 'Bring me another vessel.' But he said to her, 'There are no more.' Then the oil stopped flowing. She came and told the man of God, and he said, 'Go sell the oil and pay your debts, and you and your children can live on the rest'" (2 Kings 4:1-7).
This woman and her husband and her family loved the Lord and served the Lord. But even so, they're weren't immune to the struggles and heartbreaks of life in a broken, fallen world where sickness and death, where fears and debt, came pounding on the door to take away even what they had left.
But she was not alone. Her pain was not unseen and her cries were not unheard. You sent Your servant Elisha to hear her cries of grief but also to turn her heart to You in hope. She felt she had nothing left, but in speaking out her thoughts and feelings with the man of God, she discovered she still had something to offer -- a jar of oil.
And as she offered up what she had, as she stepped out in obedience and faith at the word of the Lord, You began to multiply what she had. She didn't do it alone. By Your leading and at Your word, she reached out for help from her neighbors around her, she gathered her family to join with her in this adventure of faith, and she kept pursuing what she knew to do by the leading of Your word until there was nothing left to do.
Through obedience and faith, even in the midst of her grief and fear, You filled her jars with oil to pay all her debts and provide for all her needs.
Help us trust You, Lord. You see us and hear us; You care about us and all we're going through. We're not alone. And You'll bring us through, just as You always do.
Thank You for the grace to speak out our needs and even our hurts and disappointments. And thank You for the grace to help us not stay stuck in that place. Thank You for sending Your word of hope, Your words of Spirit and Life and Truth that lift us up and show us the way.
In a way, our hearts are the jar of oil that we have. In way, our hearts are really all we have to offer -- a heart surrendered to You, trusting in You, willing to hear and obey You, even when we feel empty and forgotten and alone. But if we're willing, You're so ready to fill our jars with Your oil -- the Oil of Your Spirit poured into our hearts. You fill our hearts with hope -- a living hope in the Lord our God who sees us and hears us and helps us through whatever we face.
"May the God of hope fill (us) with all joy and peace in believing, so that (we) may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit!" (Romans 15:13) And You fill our hearts with Your love. "And hope does not disappoint us, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us" (Romans 5:5). Lord, let it be so in our hearts today! In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays
My friend, may you be filled with the Oil of Hope in your heart, fully surrendered and trusting in the One who sees you and hears you and brings you through all that you face, in Jesus name. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!
Preaching in Pakistan Today through our Skype Internet Ministry.
Friends, please keep us in prayer as I preach in Lahore, Pakistan through our Skype Internet Ministry in a new ministry partnership pastor and evangelist Haroon Masih of Power Prayer Ministry of Pakistan, in addition our monthly evangelistic crusades with Pastor Rizwan Fazal. We are praying for a mighty move of the Holy Spirit for salvation, healing, deliverance, and revival! We praise God for these open doors to preach the Gospel of the Kingdom of God at home and abroad to the nations! Thank you for all your encouragement and support for this evangelistic dimension of our ministry to be possible and continue!
PraySA --Prayer for Revival in San Antonio! www.PraySA.org
I'm excited to be part of a group of prayer warriors in our community plannin
g times of prayer for awakening and revival in our community and beyond, being led by Max Lucado in San Antonio.
g times of prayer for awakening and revival in our community and beyond, being led by Max Lucado in San Antonio.
Plans are coming together for a citywide prayer for revival gathering in the parking lot where the San Antonio Spurs play basketball and our city holds the San Antonio Rodeo at the Freeman Coliseum/AT&T Center. This will be a Solemn Assembly and Holy Convocation of heartfelt humility and repentance through citywide prayer for ourselves and our land on Sunday Nights, August 9th and 16th. Please keep us in prayer to follow the Holy Spirit's leading. If you would like to be involved and help spread the word, please send me a note: tommyhays@messiah-ministries.org
New Mailing Address for Messiah Ministries:
Tommy & Rocio Hays
Messiah Ministries
17503 La Cantera Parkway, Suite 104407
San Antonio, Texas 78257
Tommy & Rocio Hays | Messiah Ministries
Please share this word to encourage a friend!