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Thursday, July 25, 2013
Friday, July 12, 2013
Morning by Morning, July 12 - "Here I Am"
Good morning, Lord Jesus. Let my spirit be in communion with Your Spirit, as I start my day grounded in Your Word and embraced by Your Presence, O Lord, my God -- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. ...
"I was ready to be sought out by those who did not ask, to be found by those who did not seek Me. I said, 'Here I am, here I am,' to a nation that did not call on My name" (Isaiah 65:1).
Let me be one who seeks You; let me be one who finds You. Let my nation be one that calls on Your name.
You are a God who created us for relationship -- a relationship of love and honor and respect. You require our obedience and You desire our love. You require our humility and You desire our faith. You know what's best for us and You created us to experience it. Yet You always set before us the choice to seek You or not, to trust You or not, to obey You or not, to embrace You or not, to love You or not.
A relationship of love requires the freedom to choose. And I choose You. By the grace of God, I will seek You, I will pursue You, I will find You and embrace You. I will love You, because You first loved me (1 John 4:19). I hear You say, "Here I am." And I say to You, "Thank You, Lord, for always being here for me." In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays
My Friend, may seek our God with all your heart and know in your soul that He is always there for you. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!
Friends, we're excited to now have four teams of seven to fifteen trained prayer ministers getting to know one another and ministering together at Rapha God Ministries. We've been havingweekend retreats with each team and I'll be away with one of our teams this weekend at the retreat at Horseshoe Bay and then get to have a week of vacation with my family. Please keep us all in your prayers, and I pray for you to be aligned and bonded with your team and family in the love of God.
Also, I have a lot of friends coming together at the Aldersgate Conference in Lexington, Kentucky this weekend, which is a conference on Life in the Spirit (www.aldersgaterenewal.org). Please keep them all in prayer for a great outpouring of God's Spirit. God bless!
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!
Thursday, July 11, 2013
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Wednesday, July 10, 2013
Morning by Morning, July 10 - "Whatever You Ask in My Name"
Good morning, Lord Jesus. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, sanctify my spirit, soul, and body. Make me whole, set me free, and fill me up, as I entrust my life and this day to You. ...
"I will do whatever you ask in My name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If in My name you ask Me for anything, I will do it" (John 14:5).
To be willing to ask is to be willing to humble myself to admit I need You. Humility is to willingly choose to be desperately dependent upon God alone. And Your invitation to ask is Your invitation to admit I'm not yet all I am to be and I don't yet have all I need to have, but You are the Source and Provision of all I'll ever be and all I'll ever need. You are my "all in all" (1 Corinthians 15:28).
When I ask in Your name and You answer in Your power, "the Father is glorified in the Son." Answered prayer in the name of Jesus honors God and humbles me.
Lord God, my Daddy Abba, my Father God, I want to honor You today (Romans 8:15). Help me pray in Your way in the power of Your name with the faith and confidence of a child of God. "For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God" (Romans 8:14). Lead me by Your Spirit to ask of You in prayer according to the authority of Your name and the nature of Your will. "For we don't know how to pray as we ought," but You invite me to humble myself to be led by Your Spirit to pray "according to the will of God" (Romans 8:26-27).
When when I ask in prayer and You answer in power, Your kingdom comes, Your will is done, on earth as it is in heaven. Then my God is glorified by my prayer. That's my desire, because I believe that's Your desire. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays
My Friend, may you be led by the Spirit of God as a child of God, in both humility and faith, to ask in prayer and receive by power in the name of Jesus to the glory of our Father. God bless you, my friend!
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!
Tuesday, July 09, 2013
Morning by Morning, July 9 - "Draw Near to Listen"
Good morning, Lord Jesus. Here I am to worship You -- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Let my soul be still, as I listen for the leading of Your voice. ...
"Guard your steps when you go to the house of God; to draw near to listen is better than the sacrifice offered by fools; for they do not know how to keep from doing evil" (Ecclesiastes 5:1).
Before I speak, let me listen. Before I offer up my petitions and prayers, before I begin to think of the people and places set before me today, let me first draw near to You. To draw near and listen, to watch and wait for the leading of Your voice and the guidance of Your Spirit, helps me surrender my agenda to Your agenda, yield my ways to Your ways, and entrust my day into Your hands.
As I wait in the silence of surrender, seeking Your face and listening for Your voice, it seems I hear You say, "My son, I have prepared a place for you. I see that you have prepared a place for Me. That place that I have prepared and that you have prepared is in your heart, in the depths of your innermost being. That's where I abide in you and you abide in Me, always and forever. As you draw near to Me, I always draw near to you."
Yes, Lord. Come abide in me (John 15:4). Come draw near to me (James 4:8). In You, I want to "live and move and have (my) being" (Acts 17:28). I want to come and dwell in the deep place You've prepared for me, the place where You say, "Where I am, there you may be also" (John 14:3).
Down in my heart, down in the depths of my innermost being, I want to know that I am loved and embraced and never alone. There, I want to "be strengthened in (my) inner being with power through (Your) Spirit, that Christ may dwell in (my) heart through faith, as (I) am being rooted and grounded in love ... (having) the power to comprehend, with all the saints, what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that (I) may be filled with all the fullness of God" (Ephesians 3:16-19).
Thank You for drawing near to me and drawing me near to You. Thank You for speaking to my heart, renewing my soul, and filling me up with Your Spirit here in Your Presence. Now I'm ready to go forth and meet my day because I've first met my God. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays
My Friend, may you draw near to God as He draws near to you in the deep place of His abiding Presence, deep down in your heart, every day. May you know that you are loved and embraced and never alone, renewed in your soul and filled with His Spirit. God bless you, my friend!
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! 
Wednesday, July 03, 2013
Morning by Morning, July 3 - "Have Faith in God"
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Tuesday, July 02, 2013
Morning by Morning, July 2 - Wide Open Door
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Monday, July 01, 2013
Morning by Morning, July 1 - "With Mighty Victories"
Morning by Morning, July 1 - "With Mighty Victories"
Good morning, Lord Jesus. Your name be exalted above all my thoughts, all my desires, all the moments of my day. ...
"The Lord answer you in the day of trouble! The name of the God of Jacob protect you!
May He send you help from the sanctuary, and give you support from Zion.
May He remember all your offerings, and regard with favor your burnt sacrifices.
May He grant you your heart's desire, and fulfill all your plans.
May we shout for joy over your victory, and in the name of our God set up our banners.
May the Lord fulfill all your petitions.
Now I know that the Lord will help His anointed; He will answer him from His holy heaven with mighty victories by His right hand"
(Psalm 20:1-6).
"With mighty victories," You answer our prayers and move in our lives. You make it clear that it's not by our might or power, but by Your Spirit that You grant our heart's desire and bring our fulfill our plans, all in Your time and all in Your way.
When we look back and see Your hand at work in ways we couldn't begin to imagine, much less orchestrate or schedule, we are awed and amazed at Your patience with us and Your favor upon us. We are astounded at Your mercy and stunned by redemption, causing all things to work together for the good of our souls and the glory of Your name.
So we shout for joy! And than set our hearts to follow You into our next adventure. "Thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ" (1 Corinthians 15:57). In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays
My Friend, may you see mighty victories in the adventures the Lord has planned for you, as He sanctifies your soul and glorifies His name. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!
Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries
Healing from the Inside Out
Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries
4 Dominion Drive, Building 1
San Antonio, Texas 78257
Friday, June 28, 2013
Morning by Morning, June 28 - Guiding Light
Good morning, Lord Jesus. I am Yours and You are mine. I'm Your disciple and You're my Teacher. I'm Your sinner and You're my Savior. I'm Your servant and You're my Master. I'm Your child and You're my Father. As I start my day in prayer with You -- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit -- come fill my spirit, direct my thoughts, and order my steps. ...
"By the tender mercy of our God, the dawn from on high will break upon us, to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace" (Luke 1:74).
Savior of our souls, You are our Guiding Light. You are the Light of the world that breaks into our darkness (John 8:12). And darkness can never overcome Your Light.
And even though darkness may increase and obscure much, even seeking to eclipse the light of the glory and truth of our God if that were possible, the Light always wins, the Light always shines through. "For darkness shall cover the earth, and thick darkness the peoples; but the Lord will arise upon you, and His glory will appear over you. Nations shall come to your Light, and kings to the brightness of your dawn" (Isaiah 60:2-3).
Though there is always darkness before the dawn, there will always be a dawn of a new day when the light of the son bursts forth to overcome the darkness of the night. So let it be in our hearts and so let it be in our land. "The sun of righteousness shall arise" (Malachi 3:2). "It is You who light (our) lamp; the Lord, (our) God, lights up (our) darkness" (Psalm 18:28). In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays
My Friend, I pray you hold fast in faith through the darkness of whatever night you may ever endure until the Son of Righteousness breaks forth with the dawn of a new day in the light of His glory in your heart and your land. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!
Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries
Healing from the Inside Out
Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries
4 Dominion Drive, Building 1
San Antonio, Texas 78257
Thursday, June 27, 2013
Morning by Morning, June 27 - Still Seeking the Welfare of the City and Nation of our Exile
Good morning, Lord Jesus. I watch and wait for the leading of Your voice in the communion of prayer to start my day grounded in Your Word and filled with Your Spirit. ...
"Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat what they produce. Take wives and have sons and daughters in marriage; take wives for your sons, and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply there, and do no decrease. But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare" (Jeremiah 29:4-7).
With the choices our nation is making, it may seem as though we've been sent into exile. It may seem as though we've been taken captive from Jerusalem, the holy city on a hill in the heart of our promised land, into the world and culture of Babylon. According to the spiritual principles of the Kingdom of God, You give us over to the desires expressed in our hearts and confirmed with our choices, even if those choices break Your heart because You see the devastation that follows in the consequences of our choices. "And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind and to things that should not be done" (Romans 1:28).
But even so, "we do not lose heart" (Galatians 6:9). We will continue pray for the cities and the nations where we find ourselves immersed in a culture that seems to be increasingly failing to acknowledge our God and the authority of Your Word as the standard of morality for our lives. We will continue to seek the welfare of the cities and nations where You've sovereignly chosen to strategically position us for Your divine purposes, seeking to shine as light in the midst of the darkness, only by the grace of God. "Do all things without murmuring and arguing, so that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, in which you shine like stars in the world" (Philippians 2:14-15).
By the power of the grace of God, let us be found faithful to You, "holding fast to the Word of Life that (we) can boast on the day of Christ that (we) did not run in vain or labor in vain" (Philippians 2:16). In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays
My Friend, I pray you will be encouraged and strengthened by the Holy Spirit of God with passion in prayer for our nation, not losing heart but bold to stand firm in your faith and shine like light in the midst of the darkness. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!
Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries
Healing from the Inside Out
Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries
4 Dominion Drive, Building 1
San Antonio, Texas 78257
Wednesday, June 26, 2013
Morning by Morning, June 26 - "Encouraged and United in Love"
Good morning, Lord Jesus. King of kings and Lord of lords, be King and Lord of every moment of my day. ...
"I want their hearts to be encouraged and united in love, so that they may have all the riches of assured understanding and have the knowledge of God's mystery, that is, Christ Himself, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge (Colossians 2:2-3).
We are to be a people encouraged and united in love -- not in a common cause to do good things, not in great expectations of great victories for our favorite team, not in our agreement about forms of government or philosophies of life -- but in love. The bond we have as the Body of Christ, growing in the understanding and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Himself, is what unites us and encourages us to become all we were created to be. And it's in our journey together we become "mature in Christ" (v. 1:28).
Free us from what divides us. Remind us of what's really important. Let our lives be the passionate pursuit of seeking out the hidden treasure of Christ Himself. Bring us to the place where we can say with Paul, "I regard everything as loss because of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord... I want to know Christ..." (Philippians 3:8-11). Let that be the common bond that encourages us and unites us in love. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays
My Friend, I pray you will be encouraged and united in love with our fellow travelers in our passionate pursuit of Christ Himself. May we all become mature in Christ. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!
Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries
Healing from the Inside Out
Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries
4 Dominion Drive, Building 1
San Antonio, Texas 78257
Tuesday, June 25, 2013
Morning by Morning, June 25 - Go Through the Gates!
Good morning, Lord Jesus. Put Your thoughts in my mind and Your desires in my heart, as I begin this day in the communion of prayer with You -- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit of God. ...
"Go through, go through the gates! Prepare the way for the people; build up, build up the highway! Take out the stones, lift up a banner for the peoples! Indeed the Lord has proclaimed to the end of the world: Say to daughter Zion, 'Surely your salvation is coming; behold, His reward is with Him, and His work before Him' " (Isaiah 62:10-11, NKJ).
You've been speaking to me about going through the gates. Your Holy Spirit is preparing the way of the Lord in the hearts and souls of Your people. You're revealing and removing every barrier that would hinder the flow of Your life through our lives. You're raising up the banner of Your name and the banner of Your love and power over us as we advance into the fullness our salvation to proclaim the Good News of the Kingdom of God to the ends of the earth.
As we arise and advance, all by the power of Your grace, "the gates of hell will not prevail against (Your Church)" (Matthew 16:18, KJV). In Your power, we will go through, go through every gate of hell and enter into gates of Your righteousness. "Open to me the gates of righteousness, that I may enter through them and give thanks to the Lord. This is the gate of the Lord; the righteousness shall enter through it. I thank You that You have answered me and become my salvation" (Psalm 118:19-21, NRSV).
In the name of Jesus, by the power of the grace of our God, we will go through the gate of pride and enter the gate of humility, through the gate of fear and enter the gate of love, through the gate of shame and enter the gate of honor, through the gate of rejection and enter the gate of acceptance, through the gate of lust and enter the gate of intimacy, through the gate of judgment and enter the gate of mercy, through the gate of death and enter the gate of life.
We are honored and excited to be chosen by You to live in these days the prophets and fore-fathers of our faith longed to see. In our generation, let Your Church arise, let Your Kingdom advance. There's an army of the Lord of hosts rising up. Let Your glory fill our hearts and fill the earth "as the waters cover the sea" (Habakkuk 2:14). "Christ in (us), the hope of glory" (Colossians 1:27). Let us open up our hearts and let us go through Your gates. "Lift up your heads, O gates! and be lifted up, O ancient doors! That the King of glory many come in. Who is this King of glory? The Lord of hosts, He is the King of glory" (Psalm 24:9-10). In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays
My Friend, I pray you will arise and advance and break through the gates hell into the gates of God's righteousness in every area of your life. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!
Friends, the Lord woke me up early Sunday morning with this message to Go through the Gates to speak at the Life Changer Church of Claremore, Oklahoma after our Above the Storm Conference this weekend, encouraging the intercessors and watchmen on the wall of the region, hosted at the CMore House of Prayer. We had an exciting time in the powerful Presence of the Lord! Thank you for your prayers for us. I pray for breakthrough in your prayer life and in the Church of Jesus Christ in your region. Thank you for joining with me in this journey of prayer.
Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries
Healing from the Inside Out
Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries
4 Dominion Drive, Building 1
San Antonio, Texas 78257
Thursday, June 20, 2013
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Wednesday, June 19, 2013
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Tuesday, June 18, 2013
Morning by Morning, June 18 - "Saved through the Grace of the Lord Jesus"
Good morning, Lord Jesus. Be high and lifted up in my heart and attitude, in my words and actions, throughout my day. ...
"And God, who knows the human heart, testified to (the Gentiles) by giving them the Holy Spirit, just as He did to us; and in cleansing their hearts by faith He made no distinction between them and us.... We believe that we will be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, just as they will" (Acts 15:8-11).
In the early church, there was "much debate" about whether Gentiles and Jew were saved by their performance and conformance to the law of Moses or by the openness of their heart to the power of Your grace (v. 15:7). There was "no small dissension and debate" over whether apart from compliance to the outward standards of the letter of the law and "the custom of Moses" anyone could be saved (v. 15:1-2). But through listening to one another's hearts and listening together to Your Holy Spirit, they came to agreement in their understanding of Your plan of salvation through the grace of God revealed in Jesus Christ (v. 15:22-29).
By the power of Your grace, You give us Your Holy Spirit. By the power of Your grace, our hearts are cleansed by faith. And by the power of Your grace there is no distinction in the means of our salvation between Jews and the Gentiles of every nation and race.
You know our human hearts. You hear our human questions. You see our human failures. You are all too aware of our human desire to be in power and control, to try set our own standards of righteousness and impose our own will as moral authority for ourselves and for everyone else. Yet You love us and reach out to us. You are painstakingly patient with us, "not wanting any to perish, but all to come to repentance" and embrace the grace of Your unfailing love (2 Peter 2:9).
Thank You for the peace of Your promise that You look to our hearts to determine our salvation. Then by Your leading of our hearts, You lead us and empower us to know Your truth and follow Your ways (Philippians 2:13). "For it is by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; is it the gift of God -- not the result of works, so that no one may boast" (Ephesians 2:8). "For the Lord does not see as mortals see; they look on the outward appearances, but the Lord looks on the heart" (1 Samuel 16:7).
Lord, give me Your heart. Make me more like You each day. Lead me to know Your truth and follow Your ways. Give me patience and grace for myself and for others, reminding me every day that it's Your gift to me -- to be willingly embraced or willingly rejected, but never earned. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays
My Friend, I pray your heart will be strengthened and empowered to be a faithful disciple of Jesus today, all by the power of the grace of God at work within you. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!
Friends, I'm excited to be going to Claremore, Oklahoma next weekend at the CMore House of Prayer to encourage the intercessors and watchmen on the wall of the region, being hosted by my good friend, Tiffany Miller Lotz called Above the Storm. Come join us if you can!
https://www.facebook.com/events/132789113590250/permalink/132840726918422/
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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