Daily Offering by Fire 5-9-05

Good morning, Lord Jesus. These moments in the morning set the tone for my day. I can start each day with thoughts of myself and what I need to do, or I can start each day thinking of You. I choose You. ... You were teaching us about patterns of worship and prayer to be lived out in our hearts through the offerings and sacrifices of the Old Covenant. What they did in the flesh, we are to be in the spirit. They were called to be obedient and focused, persisting in times of worship and prayer through the times of offering that seemed to form the center of their lives. "The Lord spoke to Moses, saying: Command the Israelites and say to them: My offering, the food for my offering by fire, my pleasing odor, you shall take care to offer Me at its appointed time. And you shall say to them, This is the offering by fire that you shall offer to the Lord: two male lambs without blemish, daily as a regular offering. One lamb you shall offering in the morning, and the other lamb you shall offer at twilight..." (Numbers 28.1-4). Our "offering by fire" is the offering of ourselves to You each day. Let us come at the "appointed time" to seek You first thing in the morning and to seek You as the last thing at twilight. Let our focus be on the Lamb without blemish, Who is our sacrifice, so that we may freely choose to sacrifice our time and lives for You. Let the surrender of our hearts in these moments of prayer be a pleasing aroma lifted up to You. Let this become our daily and regular offering, as we learn to live a lifestyle of prayer in the fire of Your presence. In Jesus' name we pray, Amen. Be encouraged this day! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays To subscribe/unsubscribe/reply please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- "preparing the way of the Lord" -- MessiahMin@aol.com Our mailing address: 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502. God bless you!

The Cup of Fire 5-8-05

Good morning, Lord Jesus. You are the all-consuming Fire of God. Fan the flame of Your presence You have placed in my heart. ... We gathered yesterday for our final day of teaching, impartation, and commissioning for healing prayer ministry. During worship, one of the pastors had a vision. He saw the heavens opened above us and the torn veil of the temple. But it was not torn in one tear down the middle. The veil was torn in shreds, and the shreds were falling down on us as flames of fire. Then he saw a cup and heard You say, "the cup of fire." As we tested the vision and prayed about what this meant and what to do, Scriptures that refer to the fire and the cup came to mind. As we sent for a cup, another pastor reminded us of the passage where You asked James and John, "Are you able to drink my cup that I am about to drink?" (Matthew 20.22). Then we were reminded of the cup You chose to receive from our Father in Gethsemane before laying down Your life for us all at the cross (Matthew 26.39). To share in Your ministry is not only to share in the joy of Your glory but also to share in the persecutions and rejections of those who will not understand and will not receive. As You have taught us, "Servants are not greater than their master. If they persecuted Me, they will persecute you" (John 15.20). "Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that is taking place among you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice insofar as you are sharing Christ's sufferings, so that you may be glad and shout for joy when His glory is revealed. If you are reviled for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the spirit of glory, which is the Spirit of God, is resting on you" (1 Peter 4.12-14). John the Baptist proclaimed the coming of the kingdom of God, saying, "I baptize you with water for repentance, but One Who is more powerful than I is coming after me; I am not worthy to carry His sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire" (Matthew 3.11). As You spoke to our hearts of what You were setting before us, one by one, we chose to drink of the cup of fire. Let the fire of God purify and cleanse our souls as You send us forth in Your power. You have set our hearts ablaze with a passion for Your living presence in us, to pray for others and continue Your ministry on earth as Your Spirit leads. As the Father sent You, so You have sent us (John 20.21). In Jesus' name we pray, Amen. Be encouarged this day! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays To subscribe/unsubscribe/reply please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- "preparing the way of the Lord" -- MessiahMin@aol.com Our mailing address: 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502. God bless you!

Revelations of Your Glory 5-7-05

Good morning, Lord Jesus. I bow low in my soul and lift You high in my life. ... A television series called "Revelations" implies that according to Scripture, You will return to earth as a child, born of a virgin, in Your second coming as in Your first. That's not true. When You return, You will "descend from heaven" in the fullness of Your glory, and we "will be caught up in the clouds" to greet You "in the air" (1 Thessalonians 4.15-18). As the angels told Your first disciples at Your ascension to heaven, "This Jesus, Who has been taken up from you to heaven into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw Him go into heaven" (Acts 1.11). Today, You are at the right hand of the Father and Your Holy Spirit has been poured out upon Your church. Your church is Your body on earth, filled with Your Spirit on earth, eagerly awaiting Your coming but called to faithfully continue Your ministry until Your return. Let us not become passive in waiting for Your return, but active in obedience to Your commission with the Sprit of Christ in us, the hope of glory (Colossians 1.27). "And just as it is appointed for mortals to die once, and after that the judgment, so Christ, having been offered once to bear sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin, but to save those who are eagerly waiting for Him" (Hebrews 9.27-28). Come, Lord Jesus, come. In Jesus' name we pray, Amen. Be encouraged this day! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays Friends, please keep us in prayer this weekend as I lead another teaching retreat in a series for equipping others in healing and deliverance prayer ministry with the churches of the Madisonville, KY District of the United Methodist Church. God is doing amazing things here and I pray the same for you. To subscribe/unsubscribe/reply please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- "preparing the way of the Lord" -- MessiahMin@aol.com Our mailing address: 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502. God bless you!

"Be Filled with the Spirit" 7-26-05

Good morning, Lord Jesus. I surrender as much of me as I can to You, and I receive as much of You as I can. Help me surrender and receive more tomorrow and every day after that. You must increase and I must decrease. Let this be more than words and more than an event, let this be my life. ... You have commanded us to "be filled with the Spirit" (Ephesians 5.18).Your Holy Spirit fills us to the degree that we are emptied of ourselves. You are not replacing us, You are changing us. And our flesh resists the change. Our flesh is "at war" with the move of Your Spirit to put our flesh to death, that we may live to Christ, in the process of being conformed to the image of Christ (Romans 7.22-23). You strip away our flesh as You cleanse our soul -- our mind, will, and emotions -- and fill us with Your Holy Spirit. Our "flesh" is the part of our soul that is not yet sanctified by Your Holy Spirit, the part of us that is not yet like Jesus, the part of us that needs to die to self and be crucified to Christ. You increase and we decrease in this way, as we choose to submit every area of our lives to You, layer by layer and day by day. By Your grace, we choose "to abstain from the desires of the flesh that wage war against the soul" (1 Peter 2.11). "And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also be guided by the Spirit" (Galatians 5.24-25). Give us the grace and the desire to embrace this process. Though it is painful, it is worth it, because it brings deeper measures of Your love and peace and joy with deeper measures of Your Spirit filling our soul. In Jesus' name we pray, Amen. Be encouraged this day! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays To subscribe/unsubscribe/reply please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- "preparing the way of the Lord" -- MessiahMin@aol.com Our mailing address: 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502. God bless you!

National Day of Prayer 5-5-05

Good morning, Lord Jesus. I love You, Lord, and long for Your coming in the fullness of Your glory -- here in my heart, here in our nation, and here in the earth. ... Today is the National Day of Prayer in America. You have blessed our nation beyond belief since our birth. Let us remember to humble ourselves in Your sight on the knees of our nation, that You may bless us still and let Your "grace be shed on thee." Let it not only be this day, but every day, as we exercise the freedom You have give us to freely call upon Your name in humility and prayer. Pride in Your blessing becomes the enemy of continued blessing. To the very degree we believe we have earned Your blessing or that our blessings come from our own efforts, we become the hindrance to Your continued blessings. Pour out Your Spirit of humility upon our hearts and upon our land this day. Convict us where we have allowed our blessing of independence from tyranny become a curse of independence from You. Forgive us as a people and a nation where we have grown to depend upon ourselves and take pride in ourselves -- relying upon our monetary wealth and our military might rather than our merciful and mighty God. Let it be by willing hearts that we humble ourselves on our knees before You. One way or another, every knee will bow and every tongue will confess "the name that is above every name" and proclaim "that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father" (Philippians 2.9-11). In writing this Scripture from verses 9-11 of chapter 2, it reminds us of a humbling day not long ago when we bowed the knees of our nation in brokenness and grief to call upon Your name from sea to shining sea. Let us willingly and prayerfully bow our knees today in humility before You. May Your people from every tongue and tribe and nation set aside their judgments for our obvious sins of pride and bow their knees in humility with us this day. Today is May 5th, and the 5-5 of the date brings this Scripture of 1 Peter 5.5 to mind: "... And all of you must clothe yourselves with humility in your dealings with one another, for 'God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.' " Thank You for Your promise, which we receive for our nation on this day of prayer: "If My people who are called by My name humble themselves, pray, seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land" (2 Chronicles 7.14). In Jesus' name we pray, Amen. Be encouraged this day! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays To subscribe/unsubscribe/reply please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- "preparing the way of the Lord" -- MessiahMin@aol.com Our mailing address: 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502. God bless you!

Crowns of Glory 5-4-05

Good morning, Lord Jesus. As the worship song goes, "We fall down; we lay our crowns at feet of Jesus. ... We cry holy, holy, holy is the Lamb." ... It is important to know who we are in Christ and that we wear the crowns You have given us. In Christ, we are "a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God's own people" (1 Peter 2.9). Yet it is much more important to know who You are in us. The gifts and graces that these crowns of glory represent are all from You. We've not earned them and not deserved them. They are a gift from our Father because we have been received as royal sons and daughters of God our King. All that we are and all that we have is from You, so that there is no room for pride or glory in ourselves but only thanksgiving that You have crowned us with the glory of Your presence. "Every generous act of giving, with every perfect gift, is from above, coming down from the Father of lights" (James 1.17). So that becomes a test of our pride. Are we willing to lay down our crowns at Your feet? Have we come to see ourselves by our gifts rather than seeing ourselves as Your people? Any crown of glory we wear is because You have worn the crown of suffering for us. Let us glory in You alone. Let us lead others to You and minister Your love to them -- not so much because we know who we are in Christ as much as we know who Christ is in us. Both are important, but if we emphasis the one over the other, we can subtly slip into religious pride. Continually convict us of any sin that creeps in, that we may be continually restored to the intimacy of the presence of Your glory, through our repentance and Your forgiveness. As we do, we receive Your gifts and graces, pure and undefiled: "And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will win the crown of glory that never fades away" (1 Peter 5.4). In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen. Be encouraged this day! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays To subscribe/unsubscribe/reply please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- "preparing the way of the Lord" -- MessiahMin@aol.com Our mailing address: 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502. God bless you!

Humility and Faith 5-3-05

Good morning, Lord Jesus. I bow down at Your feet, so that You may lift me to Your face. Cleanse me of sin, so that I may enter in. Humility before You is the path to intimacy with You. As You taught us through the heart of John the Baptist, "He must increase, but I must decrease" (John 3.30). Increase, Lord Jesus. ... Your Word teaches us humility: "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. ... Humble yourselves before the Lord, and He will exalt you" (James 4.6-10). And at the same time, Your Word teaches us faith: "And without faith it is impossible to please God, for whoever would approach Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who seek Him" (Hebrews 11.6). Your Word teaches us to not doubt, as You said to Peter, "You of little faith, why did you doubt?" (Matthew 14.31). Yet, at the same time, Your Word teaches us to "test everything" (1 Thessalonians 5.21). Lord, as we listen for the leading of Your voice, how do we hear with both faith and humility, not doubting yet testing everything? How do we grow in intimacy with You, trusting the voice of our Good Shepherd, without growing too proud to know that we can be confused or deceived if we do not test what we hear? Teach us how to walk in the path of faith without falling into the ditch of pride and how to walk in the path of discernment without falling into the ditch of doubt. Teach us how to be the "led by the Spirit of God" (Romans 8.14), but not be deceived by the spirit who subtly "disguises himself as an angel of light" (2 Corinthians 11.14). ... You seem to be bringing this Scripture to mind: "So faith comes from what is heard, and what is heard comes from the word of Christ" (Romans 10.17). It seems You are saying: "All things must be in their proper order. It is first the word and then the faith, not first the faith and then the word." When we hear what we believe is Your word to us, we must test it against Your written Word because Your living word cannot contradict Your written Word. We must also test it against the witness of our spirit -- does it ring true? We must allow room to test it in the counsel of others, lest we become isolated and unaccountable. In this way, Your word brings faith and in the intimacy of relationship with You, You build our faith to receive and affirm Your word. Then, discernment is not doubt and our faith is not pride. Humility is the path to intimacy, and intimacy builds our faith -- faith to believe Your words are true and they can be trusted. Thank You for being our Teacher, Lord. Help us never stop learning from You and never come to place of thinking we have no more to learn. In Jesus' name we, pray. Amen. Be encouraged this day! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays To subscribe/unsubscribe/reply please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- "preparing the way of the Lord" -- MessiahMin@aol.com Our mailing address: 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502. God bless you!

Detours of Destiny 5-2-05

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Lead me in the way that leads to life. ... Traveling home from ministry with my friends from Wales yesterday, we made a wrong turn. As we talked and prayed, laughed and cried, we didn't know we made a wrong turn for a long time. Our detour added many hours to our journey, and I felt very embarrassed when we realized we were as far away from home then as at the beginning of our journey. But You redeem all things. As we looked back on our journey, we saw all the ways You touched our lives and the lives of others in ways that would have never happened if we had gone the way we planned. You take our wrong turns and make them right. You lead us in Your way even in the detours. You love to cause all things to work together for our good, even our mistakes. "The human mind may devise many plans, but it is the purpose of God that will be established" (Proverbs 19.21). So in the end, there are really no detours with God for the children of God. "For all who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God" (Romans 8.14). Sometimes You are leading us in ways we don't realize and sometimes You are there redeeming the wrong ways we have chosen. Either way, if we look to You to be our Way, even our detours become part of our destiny; and You are glorified in all things. Be glorified in our journeys today and every day. In Jesus' name we pray, Amen. Be encouraged this day! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays To subscribe/unsubscribe/reply please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- "preparing the way of the Lord" -- MessiahMin@aol.com Our mailing address: 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502. God bless you!

Hidden Hindrances of the Heart 5-1-05

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Draw me close to You in the stillness of the morning. ... As You draw us near, it exposes another layer of whatever would hinder us from the fullness of Your embrace -- not to push us way or to expose our unworthiness to draw near, but so that every hindrance can be removed. You love us this much, that You are willing to expose the hidden hindrances of the heart. Then as we release them to You by Your grace, You lift them from our hearts, so that we can lift up our hearts to You. "Little children, let us love, not in word or speech, but in truth and action. And by this we will know that we are from the truth and will reassure our hearts before Him whenever our hearts condemn us; for God is greater than our hearts and He knows everything. Beloved, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have boldness before God, and we receive from Him whatever we ask, because we obey His commandments and do what pleases Him" (1 John 3.18-22). This is what pleases You, that we allow You to expose these hidden hindrances so that we can love You in truth and love others in truth. By Your grace, we can take the action of releasing these hindrances to You. This is the call to love "in truth and action." This is the process of allowing Your truth to reveal what is causing our hearts to condemn us and holding us back from drawing near to You and to others in love. As You forgive us and cleanse us, our hearts no longer condemn us, and we have unhindered "boldness before God" because You have removed every hindrance. Thank You for loving us enough to reveal what holds us back from Your embrace, so that we can be free to draw near -- near to You and near to one another. In Jesus' name we, pray, Amen. Be encouraged this day! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays Friends, we've come to western Kentucky to carry the fire and fan the flames of revival from one end of the Commonwealth to the other. Let the fire of the Lord spread in our hearts and throughout the earth to His glory. Let's pray for one another and for all those who will embrace the fire. The Lord is the Fire! To subscribe/unsubscribe/reply please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- "preparing the way of the Lord" -- MessiahMin@aol.com Our mailing address: 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502. God bless you!

Fire Carriers 4-30-05

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Let Your fire burn in my heart. You are the fire; You are the burning bush; You are the flame of the Spirit of God. Burn in me as I embrace Your fire in the communion of prayer. ... In Your Revelation to John on the Isle of Patmos, You opened the heavens before his eyes to let him see a measure of Your glory. In one of the revelations, he saw You as a rider on a white horse leading the armies of heaven to judge the earth in righteousness. You were called "Faithful and True" and You were named "The Word of God." Upon Your robe and thigh were written, "King of kings and Lord of lords." Your eyes were "like a flame of fire" (Revelation 19.11-16). As John saw You that day, so we see You today. "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever" (Hebrews 13.8). As we seek You to behold You and to long for Your coming in glory, we see the fire in Your eyes. As we hold Your gaze, we are set ablaze. Everything in us that is not yet like You is consumed in Your holy fire, "for indeed our God is a consuming fire" (Hebrews 12.29). The longer we hold Your gaze, the more we are consumed by the fire of Your glory. Your Holy Spirit lifts our eyes to behold Your eyes of fire and teaches us how to hold Your gaze. As You are holy, so we become holy, in the all-consuming fire of Your presence. Then Your Spirit burns within us to set ablaze all that we touch. Paul said he longed to impart the spiritual gifts he had received from You to others (Romans 1.11). Let this gift of the fire of God we have received in Your presence be released and imparted to every life You would touch through ours. Let us be Your fire carriers to carry this holy fire wherever we go till the whole earth is set ablaze with Your glory. In Jesus' name we pray, Amen. Be encouraged this day! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays Friends, thank you for covering us in prayer for our "Tabernacle of Fire" last night as the Lord fanned into flame His holy fire through our sisters in Christ from Wales, Heather Butler and Mary Burt. May everything the Lord released to us be released to you and then to every life you touch -- all for His glory. God bless you to be carriers of His holy fire! To subscribe/unsubscribe/reply please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- "preparing the way of the Lord" -- MessiahMin@aol.com Our mailing address: 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502. God bless you!

Tabernacle of Fire 4-29-05

Good morning, Lord Jesus. As You woke me this morning for our time together, I realized Your Holy Spirit had been worshiping You in my spirit. The first thoughts of this morning continue that song of worship: "Holy, Holy, are You Lord God Almighty; Worthy is the Lamb; Worthy is the Lamb; You are Holy!" ... For some time, You've been bringing together the people of the kingdom of God in our city and region in the unity of the Spirit, in the fervency of prayer, and in the intimacy of worship. Every time we gather together in the various forms and meetings, our hearts tremble with anticipation, "Is this the time?" We don't even really know what we are anticipating other than knowing we are anticipating You. The truth is, every time is the time, for in the unity and the fervency and the intimacy, we are being transformed into a people who seek You above all else, who long for Your presence, who long for Your glory to cover our hearts and our city and all the earth as the waters cover the sea. Tonight, You are calling us together at several key places across our region and we cry out to You again in the fervency of prayer, "Is this the time?" Your Spirit is showing me a picture of the blue earth turning in the midst of the darkness of space. I see a golden censer filled with fire, like they use in the "high church" service in some traditions. It's being swung around and around in the heavens, and with every swing, it passes by the earth, leaving a trail of smoke. Every time it swings by the earth, it grows closer. Though I don't see it, I know there will come a pass when the censer will collide with the earth and all the earth will be set ablaze with the Fire of God. Is this the time? The words You spoke on earth still ring throughout the heavens: "I came to bring fire to the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled!" (Luke 12.49). Lord, prepare our hearts and our cities throughout every region of the earth as kindling ready for Your Holy Fire. Set us ablaze with the Fire of Your Presence. Though the holiness of Your Fire will consume the flesh of our sin, it will also refine our hearts into the gold of Your glory, "for indeed our God is a consuming Fire!" (Hebrews 12.29). "Another angel with a golden censer came and stood at the altar; he was given a great quantity of incense to offer with the prayers of all the saints on the golden altar that is before the throne. And the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, rose before God from the hand of the angel. Then the angel took the censor and filled it with fire from the altar and threw it on the earth; and there were peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning, and an earthquake" (Revelation 8.3-5). You've called us to a "Tabernacle of Fire" tonight. Is this the time? Yes, for every time is the time, as we are being transformed in the longing and the anticipation for the glory of Your coming. We are the tabernacle of the Fire of Your Presence as You fill us and consume us in the Fire of Your Holy Spirit. As we seek You and behold You, the Fire of Your Holy Spirit is changing us into Your image, as the body of Christ on earth, "from glory to glory" (2 Corinthians 3.18). Lord, hear our prayer and swing the censor of Your Holy Fire near. Set the kindling of our hearts ablaze with the glory of Your Presence. In Jesus' name we pray, Amen. Be encouraged this day! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays Tabernacle of Fire With Heather Butler and Rev. Mary Burt of Wales, UK This Friday Night 4/29 at 7pm in the Chapel at Centenary United Methodist Church, Lexington, KY

hosted by Rev. Tommy Hays and Messiah Ministries Please come join us for an evening of worship and ministry led by Heather Butler (Hidden Treasures Ministries) and Rev. Mary Burt (Word and Spirit International Ministries) of North Wales, United Kingdom at 7 p.m. on Friday, April 29th. Heather and Mary have been sent as "Fire Carriers" to release a Welsh Revival in Kentucky. They will be in America for 2 weeks and this will be their first meeting which will be held in the Chapel at Centenary United Methodist Church in Lexington, hosted by Tommy Hays of Messiah Ministries. The worship leader is Rob Poindexter, who leads a weekly city-wide worship in downtown Lexington (Worship on Wednesdays at noon at the Ky Theater). Heather and Mary will minister prophetically in word, music, and prayer. The Lord's healing, deliverance, miracles, and salvations often accompany thier ministry. There will be no charge; however, an offering will be received. Please spread the word! Come if you can and please cover us in prayer if you can't. Let the Fire fall! God bless you! Tommy Hays Messiah Ministries -- "preparing the way of the Lord" To subscribe/unsubscribe/reply please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- "preparing the way of the Lord" -- MessiahMin@aol.com Our mailing address: 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502. God bless you!

The Passover Lamb 4-28-05

Good morning, Lord Jesus. I call upon Your name -- the name that is above every name -- and seek You with all my heart at the start of a new day. ... Last week we shared in a Passover meal at a friend's house and saw so many prophesies of the coming of Christ foretold in the feast. You are the Passover Lamb (John 1.29). On the first Passover, judgment passed over every home where the blood of the lamb was applied (Exodus 12.1-28). It is the blood of the Lamb Who takes away the sins of the world that causes judgment to pass over our lives when we bring our lives under Your blood. We are cleansed from our sin and the sins of our generations "with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without defect or blemish" (1 Peter 1.18-19). As we call upon Your name in the confession and repentance of trusting surrender to You, Your Holy Spirit applies the blood of the Lamb to our hearts. We are cleansed of all unrighteousness so that Your judgment passes over and "the blood of Jesus, the Son of God, cleanses us from all sin" (1 John 1.7). Like Pharaoh after the first Passover, the accuser of our souls is then condemned in the sea of deliverance and overcome by the waters of our freedom in You (Exodus 14.26-31). You commanded the celebration of the feast of Passover to be in the first month of the Hebrew year, "the beginning of months" (Exodus 12.1-3). Today, You call us to celebrate this blessing with clean hearts and a fresh start (1 Corinthians 5.7-8). Passover marks the season of new beginnings. As we apply the blood of the Lamb to our hearts and our homes each day, let each day be the day of new beginnings. "So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new!" (2 Corinthians 5.17). We celebrate our freedom in You this new day, for the old has passed away and the judgment has passed over. In Jesus' name we pray, Amen. Be encouraged this day! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays To subscribe/unsubscribe/reply please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- "preparing the way of the Lord" -- MessiahMin@aol.com Our mailing address: 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502. God bless you!

"Where are You?" 4-27-05

Good morning, Lord Jesus. How humbling to realize that the God of all creation is willing -- actually desires -- to meet with His children every day in the mystery of the communion of prayer? What a holy honor and indescribable treasure of immeasurable worth. ... Adam and Eve "heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden at the time of the evening breeze, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. But the Lord God called to the man, and said to him, 'Where are you?' (Genesis 3.8-9). They were created for intimacy with You, yet it was after the fall of sin that they hid from You. You came looking for them, maybe even longing for them, with the cry for the intimacy of relationship -- 'Where are you?' You weren't crying out for an answer, for You know all things. You were crying out for them, for You longed to be with them. You are Love, and love longs for the intimacy of relationship to express love and receive love. But they drew back from You, trying to hide from Your presence. They had become afraid and ashamed, naked before You in their sin. They didn't see Your heart that even then, You longed to draw near to them and make provision to cover the nakedness of their sin. They didn't know yet that You redeem all things -- even our sin -- and nothing "will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 8.38-39). Let us see the longing in Your heart for intimacy with us. We think it is humility that keeps us from seeing You this way, but it is just another form of self-centered pride that tries to describe You in our own terms rather than Your own. But Your Word reveals Your heart. You long to gather Your children into Your arms like a mother hen longs to gather her brood under her wings (Matthew 23.37). You long to comfort us as a mother comforts a child (Isaiah 66.13) and to embrace us as a father embraces a wayward son who has finally come home (Luke 15.20). You hold out Your hands all day long, longing for those who do not ask for You, yearning for those who do not seek You, crying out to us, "Here I am, here I am" (Isaiah 65.1-5). You are stilling calling out over our sin and our pride, "Where are you?" Let us learn to answer in the intimacy of prayer, "Here I am, Lord." In Jesus' name we pray, Amen. Be encouraged this day! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays To subscribe/unsubscribe/reply please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- "preparing the way of the Lord" -- MessiahMin@aol.com Our mailing address for Contributions to the Kingdom of God through our Ministry: 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502. God blesss You!

In Spirit and Truth 4-26-05

Good morning, Lord Jesus. I exalt You, O Lord, and lift up my heart in praise. ... "I will extol You, my God and King, and bless Your name forever and ever. Every day I will bless You, and praise Your name forever and ever. ... The Lord is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. The Lord is good to all, and His compassion is over all that He has made. ... The Lord upholds all who are falling, and raises up all who are bowed down. ... The Lord is near to all who call on Him, to all who call on Him in truth. He fulfills the desire of all who fear Him; and also hears their cry and saves them. The Lord watches over all who love Him, but all the wicked He will destroy. My mouth will speak the praise of the Lord, and all flesh will bless His holy name forever and ever" (Psalm 145). You are gracious and merciful, yet You fulfill the desire of all who fear You. You are good to all and cover us with Your compassion and love, yet You destroy the wicked. You draw near to all who call upon Your name, yet it must be Your name we call upon in truth. Your heart is to lift us up when we are falling and lift our hearts when we are burdened, yet we must lift our voices to You, we must cry out to You and none other. You desire our worship, but You desire that we worship You in truth. "God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth" (John 4.24). In these days and the days to come, we need Your compassion and mercy and love as never before. Teach us Your truth, that we may call upon You in truth. Free us from the deception that we can call upon any god and You will answer, that we can cry out to any spiritual being and it will the God of creation who delivers us. "The Lord watches over all who love Him" (Psalm 145.20). We cannot love You, unless we know You; we cannot worship You in truth unless we know the truth. As we come to know You in the truth of who You are, we cannot help but love You and worship You. And You cannot help but draw near, for You draw near to all who call upon You in truth (Psalm 145.18). Draw near, Lord, as we worship You in spirit and in truth. In Jesus' name we pray, Amen. Be encouraged this day! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays To subscribe/unsubscribe/reply please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- "preparing the way of the Lord" -- MessiahMin@aol.com Our mailing address: 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502. God bless you!

Living Stones 4-25-05

Good morning, Lord Jesus. You are the Word of God made flesh to live among us. Now You live within us by the presence of Your Spirit, making us one with You, one with each other, and one in ministry to all the world, to the glory of our Father. Come live in me and be at home in my heart this day and every day. ... "Come to Him, a living Stone, though rejected by mortals yet chosen and precious in God's sight; and like living stones, let yourselves be built into a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ" (1 Peter 2.4-5). We are each living stones, being hewn and chiseled through the circumstances and afflictions of life, to be fitted together into the house of God. Every stone is unique and every stone is needed. Together, we are Your temple -- the place where Your presence dwells on earth (1 Corinthians 3.16). You desire to fill the temple with Your glory, but You will not fill a broken house nor will You fill a house made with human hands. As we each look to You, Your Spirit fits us together as one; and as one, You come and fill Your temple with the fullness of Your glory. "Listen to Me, you that pursue righteousness, you that seek the Lord. Look to the Rock from which you were hewn, and to the quarry from which you were dug" (Isaiah 51.1). You are the Rock of our salvation; You are the Cornerstone of the spiritual house You are building with Your own hands -- one stone at a time. Let us each be fitted for our place in the temple of Your glory. In Jesus' name we pray, Amen. Be encouraged this day! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays Friends, please come join us for the Tablernacle of Fire led by Heather Butler and Mary Burt of Wales this Friday night 4/29 at 7 in the Chapel of Centenary in Lexington. They've been sent to minister prophetically in worship and word to release a Welsh Revival to Kentucky. Please write for details and spread the word. To subscribe/unsubscribe/reply please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- "preparing the way of the Lord" -- MessiahMin@aol.com Our mailing address: 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502. God bless you!

Hearing Your Voice 4-24-05

Good morning, Lord Jesus. I lay this day before You and entrust it into Your hands -- hands scarred by the nails of Your sacrifice of love for us. ... "Surely the Lord God does nothing, without revealing His secret to His servants the prophets" (Amos 3.7). You have poured out Your Spirit upon all flesh -- both Your men and Your women, Your sons and Your daughters, that we may hear Your voice, discern Your will, and speak Your word as You lead (Acts 2.14-21). You are the Good Shepherd and Your sheep learn to know Your voice, so that we are not led astray but are led in trusting obedience to Your will (John 10.1-18). You go before us and all things are present to You in the heavenly realm, even before time unfolds them for us in the earthly realm. You desire to lead us by Your voice since You know now what we will face then (John 10.4). How foolish to not take the time to listen. How foolish to not take the time to learn the leading of Your voice by spending time alone in Your presence. Forgive us for not valuing this greatest of all gifts -- the gift of knowing You and Your voice so that we can obey Your will and fulfill our destiny in You. Free us from our distractions; humble us from our pride; teach us to know Your voice; and empower us to obey. Though You are preparing the way and revealing Your plans, we will never hear unless we learn to listen; and it does no good to listen unless we learn to hear Your voice. You have always commanded Your people to listen and to hear so that we can obey Your command to follow -- all for our good and Your glory (Deuteronomy 6.4-9). Give us ears to hear what Your Spirit is saying to us each day, that we may be both followers and conquerors, vigilant and victorious in Christ (Revelation 2.7) In Jesus' name we pray, Amen. Be encouraged this day! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays To subscribe/unsubscribe/reply please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- "preparing the way of the Lord" -- MessiahMin@aol.com Our mailing address: 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502. God bless you!

Transformation 4-23-05

Good morning, Lord Jesus. You are my example and my standard, my mentor and my guide. By Your grace, I choose to follow You as You make me more like You each day. When I sin, convict me; when I stray, correct me; when I slumber, awake me. I don't want to settle for anything less. Like all Your children, I am created to be conformed into Your image -- step by step and day by day. ... "Thus it is written, 'The first man, Adam, became a living being'; the last Adam became a life-giving Spirit. But it is not the spiritual that is first, but the physical, then the spiritual. The first man was from the earth, a man of dust; the second Man is from heaven. As was the man of dust, so are those who are of the dust; and as is the Man of heaven, so are those who are of heaven. Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we will also bear the image of the Man of heaven" (1 Corinthians 15.45-49). Like the metamorphosis of the caterpillar into a butterfly, we may begin like a worm crawling in the dust of the earth in our flesh; but we are created for glory to fly in the freedom of Your heavens in the beauty of holiness. As we behold You, You are changing us. As we gather in to the cocoon of prayer alone with You each day, we are being transformed by Your presence. First the physical, then the spiritual. First we make the choice of complete surrender and total submission in humility and faith, then we receive the blessing of the transformation of our souls into Your nature (2 Peter 1.3-4). "Now that you have purified your souls by your obedience to the Truth so that you have genuine mutual love, love one another deeply from the heart. You have been born anew, not of perishable but of imperishable seed, through the living and enduring Word of God" (1 Peter 1.22-23). Yes, Lord. Convict us, correct us, awaken us that we may arise into newness of life each day in Your process of transformation. In Jesus' name we pray, Amen. Be encouraged this day! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays To subscribe/unsubscribe/reply please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- "preparing the way of the Lord" -- MessiahMin@aol.com Our mailing address: 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502. God bless you!

The Spiritual War 4-22-05

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Bring Your Word to life in my spirit as I listen for the leading of Your voice. ... The wars of the Old Covenant fought in the earthly realm speak to us of the wars of the New Covenant being fought in the heavenly realm. For our true enemies are not flesh and blood, but the spiritual forces of wickedness, who influence us in our flesh to rebel against You and destroy one another (Ephesians 6.12). The weapons and strategies of war under the Old Covenant are now fulfilled in Christ, that we may fight with spiritual weapons in spiritual strategies at Your command under the New Covenant (2 Corinthians 10.3-6). No one desires war, yet war has been declared against You and Your people and Your purposes, so that we are at war whether we desire it or not. The war for the souls of men that began in the beginning will rage until the end (Genesis 3.15; Revelation 12.17). You are opening our eyes to see, so that we may open our hearts to obey. You are teaching us obedience and discipline, giving us wisdom and courage, as we learn to "fight the good fight of the faith" (1 Timothy 6.12). Because we are at war, we must learn to fight in the midst of war. Yet we need not fear nor let our hearts be troubled, for the victory is won by the power of the cross through the blood of the Lamb. "Thanks be to God, Who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ!" (1 Corinthians 15.57). In Jesus' name we pray, Amen. Be encouraged this day! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays To subscribe/unsubscribe/reply please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- "preparing the way of the Lord" -- MessiahMin@aol.com Our mailing address: 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502. God bless you!

The Cadence of the Drums 4-21-05

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Before the thoughts for the day come rushing in, I silence every thought but the thought of You. ... I hear the call of the cadence of the drums. Throughout the heavens, You are calling our steps into agreement. The scattered troops of Your army are being called to march as one. Through the worship and words You are releasing through many voices, You are bringing us into agreement, into order, into unity. You lead first in the spirit, then soul, then the body. There is a sound in the Spirit bringing our steps together to a level of unity that teachings and sermons, doctrines and creeds could never do. The call of Your Spirit is piercing through the heavens, crossing every barrier -- not stopping at the walls of division or the boundaries of pride. All who have ears to hear will hear the call and come into line -- from every tongue and tribe and nation, from every church and tradition and denomination. Your call is going forth to make "every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace" (Ephesians 4.3). We will be move as one as we hear the call and answer Your command. You are making our steps steady as we move forward in agreement with the cadence of Your voice. "There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, Who is above all and through all and in all" (Ephesians 4.4-6). Let us respond in courage and obedience, in the unity of the Spirit. In Jesus' name we pray, Amen. Be encouraged this day! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays To subscribe/unsubscribe/reply please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- "preparing the way of the Lord" -- MessiahMin@aol.com Our mailing address: 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502. God bless you!

Fill Us Up 4-20-05

Good morning, Lord Jesus. I reach my hands and my heart up to You. ... "Be appalled, O heavens, at this, be shocked, be utterly desolate, says the Lord, for My people have committed two evils: they have forsaken Me, the Fountain of Living Water, and dug out cisterns for themselves, cracked cisterns that can hold no water" (Jeremiah 2.12-13). Lord, You are the supply of all we need. You are available to us as we humble ourselves enough to acknowledge we need You. Without You, our strength fails, our hope pales, and our worries prevail. Open our eyes to see where we have dug our own cisterns, in our own strength, to be filled up with our own waters that we think will bring us the life we are thirsting for. They are easily cracked and broken, and all that we've spent so much effort in collecting just spills out onto the dry and parched soil of our souls. All the while, You long for us to simply open our hearts to You and let You fill us freely with the Waters of Your Life -- the Living Waters of the Living God, Who satisfies our thirst with Your presence. We thirst for You, Lord Jesus. Come fill us up again to overflowing with Your Spirit. Blessed are they who thirst for You, for they shall be filled (Matthew 5.6). We receive the blessing of Your filling that Your Spirit has prayed for us through Paul: "May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit" (Romans 15.13). In Jesus' name we pray, Amen. Be encouraged this day! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays To subscribe/unsubscribe/reply please send a note to me at Messiah Ministries -- "preparing the way of the Lord" -- MessiahMin@aol.com Our mailing address: 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502. God bless you!