Wednesday, December 18, 2013

Morning by Morning, December 18 - Surrounded by the Glory of God

Good morning, Lord Jesus. My eyes are fixed on You, so I'm steady and secure to go everywhere You send me in the power of Your strength and the leading of Your Spirit.  ...

"Then an angel of the Lord stood before (the shepherds keeping watch over their flock by night), and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, 'Do not be afraid; for see -- I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people:  to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord..." (2:9-11).

You cause Your glory to shine around us. If our spiritual eyes were open to see it, we might be terrified at the light and the power and the glory of God. But our praise should overcome our fear. We're surrounded by Your glory; why should our hearts fear? The One who is glorious in power and light is also the One who loves us and fills us with good news of great joy!

Lord, open my eyes to see that I'm surrounded by Your glory every moment of every day. You are Immanuel, God with us (Matthew 1:23). Let me hear afresh in my heart Your good news of great joy that I have a Savior and His name is Jesus. "Glory to God in the highest!" (Luke 2:14) In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays


My Friend,  may you know you are surrounded by the glory of God and hear His good news of great joy in your spirit every day! 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

Share this word to encourage a friend! Blue 

Tuesday, December 17, 2013

Morning by Morning, December 17 - Protect and Nurture the Gift of God

Good morning, Lord Jesus. I speak out Your name as my first word and my first prayer today.  ...

"And (Mary) gave birth to her firstborn Son and wrapped Him in bands of cloth, and laid Him in a manger ..." (Luke 2:7).

You birth beautiful things in our lives. It's always in Your perfect timing, in Your perfect way, according to Your perfect plan -- "in the fullness of time" (Galatians 4:4). In so many different ways, in ways that we often don't even recognize at the time, You send Your Father blessings by Your Holy Spirit to bring forth the heart of Christ in our world through our lives. Now, "in the fullness of time," in the mystery of faith and the sovereignty of God, we are the very "body of Christ" in the earth, conceived by the Holy Spirit with the loving heart of our heavenly Father (1 Corinthians 12:27).

And just as Mary was to took great care for the Life entrusted to her, so are we. She took what she had in the place where she was and tenderly, lovingly protected and nurtured her Gift of God. You've entrusted much to each of us, to be protected and nurtured as the gift of God that it is -- a life conceived by the Holy Spirit to be an expression of the heart of the Father through the Life of Christ lived through us.

Lord, give me eyes to see the mangers You provide for protection and the swaddling clothes You provide for nurture for every Gift of God You birth in my life. Let me be found faithful, as the servant of God, to fulfill every calling and purpose You bring forth through me in the fullness of Your time. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays


My Friend,  I pray you will see the Gift of God that you are and protect and nurture all the Lord has entrusted to you. 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! Blue 

Monday, December 16, 2013

Morning by Morning, December 16 - The Bethlehem of My Heart

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, I look to You -- Lord God Almighty, Creator of Heaven and Earth, Savior of my soul, Lord of my life -- and listen for Your leading as I begin my day with You.  ...

"Joseph also went from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of David called Bethlehem, because he was descended from the house and family of David. He went to be registered with Mary, to whom he was engaged and who was expecting a Child. While they were there, the time came for her to deliver her Child. And she gave birth to her firstborn Son and wrapped Him in bands of cloth, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn" (Luke 2:4-7).

From centuries before, the prophet Micah foresaw the coming of this day in "Bethlehem of Ephrathah" -- the day the Messiah of Israel would be born. He would be the One who would rule in Israel and "to the ends of the earth" forever and ever as "the One of peace." He would be born as both a little baby in human flesh, but also eternally existent as the One "from of old, from ancient days" (Micah 5:2-5).

Come, Lord Jesus, I open up the Bethlehem of my heart. I make room for you in me. You foresaw long ago that I would choose to entrust my life to You as my Lord and Savior, for "in Your book were written all the days that were formed for me, when none of them as yet existed" (Psalm 139:16). Let Christ be born in me today and every day. Make me more like You, morning by morning and day by day. By the grace of God and the Spirit of Christ abiding in me, let me grow "in wisdom and in years, and in divine and human favor" to display Your life through mine (Luke 2:52). In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays


My Friend,  I pray the Spirit of Christ would fill the Bethlehem of your heart every day, as He makes you more like Him. 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! Blue 

Friday, December 13, 2013

Morning by Morning, December 13 - "Call Me Blessed"

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Let Your Life fill my life today.  ...

"And Mary said, 'My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for He has looked with favor on the lowliness of His servant. Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed; for the Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is His name!" (Luke 1:46-49)

Like Mary, I am blessed. Let all generations call me blessed. You have done great things for me, Mighty One, God my Savior. You've embraced me with Your love, saved me by Your grace, forgiven me by Your blood, and filled me with Your Spirit. You've helped me discover my identity and my destiny in Christ. You've never left me alone for a moment and promised You never will.

My soul magnifies You! My spirit rejoices in You! You've gathered me up from every lowly place and established me in the security and certainty of Your steadfast love that never fails. So I can't keep from praising Your name. Why would I? And why would anyone who truly begins to understand just how much You love us so? We are truly blessed. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays

 My Friend,  I pray you will understand more every day the fullness of how blessed you are through our Mighty One, our God and Savior, who love you so. Please pray the same 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

Share this word to encourage a friend! Blue 

Wednesday, December 11, 2013

Morning by Morning, December 11 - Leap for Joy, Filled with the Spirit

Good morning, Lord Jesus. I open my spirit to drink deeply of the Living Waters of Your Spirit in the holy communion of worship and prayer.  ...

"When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the child leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit..." (Luke 1:39).

Mary brought the Presence of Christ to Elizabeth's house. And the child in Elizabeth's womb "leaped for joy" in the Presence of the Child in Mary's womb (v. 1:44). Wherever Your Presence comes, so does Your Spirit, filling all who welcome You and embrace You with the "Spirit of Christ" (Romans 8:9). In Your Presence, we have "righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit" (Romans 14:17).

Lord Jesus, I welcome You and embrace You in my house and my heart today. Fill me afresh with Your Holy Spirit -- the Spirit of Christ abiding in me as I abide in You. Awaken the fullness of Your righteousness and peace and joy within me today. Let "the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus set (me) free" (Romans 8:2). I want to leap for joy in the Presence of God and carry Your Presence everywhere I go. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays


My Friend,  I pray you would be filled with the Spirit of Christ today and all the righteousness, peace, and joy that the Presence of God brings into your life and everywhere you go. Please pray the same 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

Share this word to encourage a friend! Blue 

Tuesday, December 10, 2013

Morning by Morning, December 10 - "Favor with God"

Good morning, Lord Jesus. I look and listen for Your leading, as I deliberately choose to begin my day in the Presence of God.  ...

"The angel said to her, 'Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a Son, and you will name Him Jesus...'" (Luke 1:30-31).

 Your favor replaces our fears. How can we be afraid of what may come against us when Your favor rests upon us? "For You bless the righteous, O Lord; You cover them with favor as with a shield" (Psalm 5:12).

Father God, as You poured out Your favor upon Mary, Your Holy Spirit conceived the Life of Christ within her womb (Luke 1:35). O Lord, pour out Your favor upon me today. Conceive the Life of Christ within me. In the favor of God, let me be unafraid and unashamed to fulfill Your plans and purposes for me and through my life today.

Let me respond like Mary, "Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word" (Luke 1:38). Then, "Let the favor of the Lord (my) God be upon (me), and prosper for (me) the work of (my) hands" for the glory of Your name, by the power of Your Spirit, expressing the Life of Christ in me (Psalm 90:17). "Christ in (me), the hope of glory" (Colossians 1:27). In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays


My Friend,  may you be found with favor with God and may the Life of Christ arise in you to fulfill God's plans and purposes for you today. Please pray the same 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

Share this word to encourage a friend! Blue 

Monday, December 09, 2013

Morning by Morning, December 9 - Choosing to Believe the Good News

Good morning, Lord Jesus. "O come, let us adore Him, Christ the Lord." ... In worship and prayer, I adore You and choose to live this day for You. Put Your thoughts in my mind and Your desires in my heart. Make me more like You today. ...

"The angel replied (to Zechariah), 'I am Gabriel. I stand in the Presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news" (Luke 1:19).

Thank You, Lord, for Your holy angels who stand in the Presence of God. And thank You, Lord, for Your Holy Spirit, who now fills us with the Presence of God. In so many ways, You send us Your good news -- the good news that You are with us, the good news that You forgive us, the good news that You love us and want us to the embrace the fullness of Your salvation and grace through Jesus Christ.

Like Zechariah, there are times when it's hard for us to believe and hard to receive. There are times when Your truth and Your word doesn't quite seem to fit our circumstances (v. 1:18). That's when our doubts and unbelief keep us from embracing the fullness of the goodness of God. And our doubts and unbelief have consequences (v. 1:20).

But You are the God who is greater than our doubts and mightier than our unbelief. And You even use our struggles and questions to bring us to a deeper place of faith, as we choose to be willing to believe (v. 1:64). So by the power of the grace of God, I choose to believe. I choose to receive and embrace Your Word and Your Spirit sending Your good news into my life today. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays


My Friend,  I pray the Spirit of God will fill your heart with the Presence of God, empowering you to embrace the fullness of the good news of God's grace for your life today through Jesus Christ. Please pray the same 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

Share this word to encourage a friend! Blue 

Friday, December 06, 2013

Morning by Morning, December 6 - "A People Prepared for the Lord"

Good morning, Lord Jesus. In the communion of prayer, let me start this day and every day embraced by my Father, centered in Christ, and filled with the Holy Spirit.  ...

"But the angel said to him, 'Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you will name him John.... He will turn many of the people of Israel to the Lord their God. With the spirit and power of Elijah he will go before Him, to turn the hearts of parents to their children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord" (Luke 1:13-17).

Come, Holy Spirit. You are still turning hearts to God and to one another. You're still preparing the way of the Lord, making ready a people prepared for the Lord. Just as You did through John for the people of Israel at the first Christmas, so You are still, by the Word and the Spirit of God for the people of every tongue and tribe and nation in the world at this Christmas.

Show me every way my heart needs to turn and be restored in every relationship -- with God and with others. I want to be ready, to be prepared, to fully embrace the Christmas Gift of the grace of God for me, revealed and unwrapped in Jesus Christ. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays


My Friend,  may the Holy Spirit of God turn and restore your heart fully to God and others, He prepares the way of the Lord in you. Please pray the same 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

Share this word to encourage a friend! Blue 

Wednesday, December 04, 2013

Max Lucado & Tommy Hays - Healing Prayer Service, San Antonio Tonight at 7PM CST

Max Lucado & Tommy Hays
Healing Prayer Service at Oak Hills Church
Join by Live-Stream Tonight at 7PM CST
Friends, 
  
Please join us if you can or join us by prayer or by Live-Stream if you can't tonight for our Healing Prayer Service at 7PM Central Standard Time at Oak Hills Church in San Antonio, Texas

I'm excited to be joining Max Lucado at the Crownridge Campus of Oak Hills Church on I-10 in San Antonio to share a message on hope and healing during this Christmas season. Our Rapha God Ministries Prayer Team will be joining the Oak Hills Prayer Team and Elders to pray personally for everyone at the altar. We'll also have Spanish-speaking prayer teams.

May the name of Jesus be high and lifted up as we encounter the healing love of God in spirit, soul, and body. May you also experience the Lord's power and Presence in your church and community. Thank you for your prayers!

God bless you, my friend!
  
Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries
Healing from the Inside Out
  
Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries
4 Dominion Drive, Bldg 1
San Antonio, Texas 78257

Max Lucado and Tommy Hays
Morning by Morning, December 4 - "A Great Light" through God's People

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Let my human spirit abide in deep communion with Your Holy Spirit. Let the Word of God speak my Father's heart into the depths of my human heart.  ...

"But there will be no gloom for those who were in anguish ... but in the later time He will make glorious the way of the sea, the land beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the nations. The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness -- on them light has shined.... For a Child has been born for us, a Son given to us; authority rests upon His shoulders; and He is named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace" (Isaiah 9:1-6).

During "the holidays" all the streets and stores can be draped with great lights. All the homes and office parties can be filled with joy and laughter. But at the same time, in the midst of all the light and laughter, there can be many who feel gloomy and dark, isolated and alone. The festive spirit around them only intensifies their anguish of heart.

But You are "the God who said, 'Let light shine out of darkness,' who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ" (2 Corinthians 4:6). You are the God who breaks through the gloom and darkness with hope and love until "sorrow and sighing shall flee away" (Isaiah 35:10). And only You can deliver us "out of darkness into (Your) marvelous light" (1 Peter 2:9).

In this season, as You fill our hearts with Your true Light and fill our spirits with Your true joy, also open our eyes and our hearts to see those overshadowed by darkness around us. Let Your love break through their loneliness; let Your hope encourage their spirits, as Your great Light shines from heaven through Your people on earth (Isaiah 60:1-3). In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays


My Friends,  may the Great Light of Jesus Christ shine through you in love to push back the darkness over those overshadowed in loneliness and gloom around you. Arise and shine, for your Light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you! (Isaiah 60:1-3)  Please pray the same the same for me. God bless you, my friend!

Friends, I'm excited to be joining Max Lucado to share a message of healing and hope at Oak Hills Church in San Antonio at the First Wednesday Healing Prayer Service tonight, Wednesday, December 4 at 7pm CST.

Our Rapha God Ministries Team will be joining the Oak Hills Prayer Team to pray for everyone personally at the altar. Live-streaming will be available, starting at 7pm Central Standard Time. Click Here at 7PM CST when the Live-stream begins  (www.oakhillschurch.com/live-stream Please join us if you can and pray for us if you can't. And may your church and community experiencing the healing love of God through Jesus Christ!
 
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! Blue 

Tuesday, December 03, 2013

Morning by Morning, December 3 - Holy Spirit - Our Helper, Comforter, Abiding Presence of Jesus

Good morning, Lord Jesus. I watch and wait for You. You're always near, always here. Open my eyes to see You and my ears to hear You, as I embrace Your abiding Presence, both with me and within me by Your Spirit.  ...

"If you love Me, keep My commandments. And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that he may abide with you forever -- the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you.... At that day you will know that I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you. He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him" (John 14:15-21, NKJV).

Holy Spirit of God, You manifest the Presence of Jesus. You are the embrace of my Father. You are my Helper and Comforter who comes alongside me and abides within me. You encourage me and enable me to desire intimacy with God and the righteousness of God. You empower me from the inside out to keep the commandment of love and You mercifully convict me when I fail, always leading me to repentance and restoration to intimacy with God. You always lead me in truth and leading me to the One who is the Truth. You cause me to be all I've been created to become.

As I prepare my heart to make room for the King in this advent season before the celebration of Christmas, I know I can't have the right heart without the Spirit of God abiding deeply within my heart. So come, Holy Spirit. Fill me afresh every morning and throughout the moments of my day (Ephesians 5:18). Prepare my heart, today and forever, for the Child of God who is the King of all (Isaiah 9:6-7; Matthew 1:23). In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays


My Friend,  may the Holy Spirit of God be your Helper, Comforter, and abiding Presence of Jesus in your heart today and forever. Please pray the same the same for me. God bless you, my friend!

Friends, I'm excited to be joining Max Lucado to share a message of healing and hope at Oak Hills Church in San Antonio at the First Wednesday Healing Prayer Service this Wednesday Night, December 4 at 7pm CST. Our Rapha God Ministries Team will be joining the Oak Hills Prayer Team to pray for everyone personally at the altar. Live-streaming will be available, starting at 7pm Central Standard Time. Please join us if you can and pray for us if you can't. And may your church and community experiencing the healing love of God through Jesus Christ!
 
 
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! Blue 

Monday, December 02, 2013

Morning by Morning, December 2 - The Adventure of Advent

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Prepare my heart in the coming days to celebrate the coming of Christ as the Light of the world. ...

"When John heard in prison what the Messiah was doing, he sent word by his disciples and said to Him, 'Are You the one is to come, or are we to wait for another?' " (Matthew 11:2).

In the days of John the Baptist and all the long centuries before, the people of God longed for the coming of the Messiah, the Christ. They longed and looked for the One who was to come. Something in their hearts, deep down in their spirits, yearned to hear the voice and experience the Presence of the One who would be the Child of God and Savior of man, named "Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace" (Isaiah 9:6).

They believed the prophecies of God would be fulfilled in the perfect timing of God. And then, "when the fullness of time had come, God sent His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, in order to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as children," that through the Christ, the Messiah, each of us would be "no longer a slave but a child, and if a child then also an heir of God through Christ" (Galatians 4:4-7).

And just as You came as Christ at Your first advent, Your first coming, You will come as Christ at Your second advent, Your second coming (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18). You are forever "the Alpha and Omega," the One "who is and who was and who is to come" (Revelation 1:8). And at the same time, You are the One who is always coming, again and again, into every heart that prepares You room -- our Immanuel, our God who is with us always (Isaiah 7:14, fulfilled in Matthew 1:23).

So Immanuel, our God who is with us, Jesus the Christ, the One who is "both Lord and Messiah," I open my heart to You today (Acts 2:26). I join in the adventure of advent, with expectant faith and excited hope to experience Your Presence as the Light of my world. And may all the people who have walked in darkness yearn again to experience and embrace Your great Light (Isaiah 9:2, fulfilled in Matthew 4:16, ultimately to be fulfilled in Revelation 22:5). "Come, Lord Jesus!" (Revelation 22:20) In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays


My Friend,  I pray you'll embrace this advent season with expectant faith and excited hope, longing and looking for the coming of Christ afresh in your heart by His Spirit every day. Please pray the same 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

Share this word to encourage a friend! Blue 

Thursday, November 28, 2013

Morning by Morning, November 28 - National Thanksgiving and Praise to God

Good morning, Lord Jesus. On the Thanksgiving Day, I give You thanks and praise for all Your abundant provision from Your extravagant heart, Almighty God -- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. ...

"O give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; for His steadfast love endures forever" (Psalm 107:1).

Thank You, Lord, for the heart of thanksgiving that rose up in the hearts of the Pilgrims at their First Thanksgiving in their new home in 1651. The dairy from that day says there were over fifty Pilgrims and over ninety Indians sharing their meals and celebrating their harvest, as prayers and praise were lifted up to You their Source of life and provision.

And thank You for the tradition that has continued through the years and generations as a heritage of our people in our land. Thank You for leaders of our nation, like President George Washington, who humbled himself to bow His knees and acknowledge Your authority and providence over the people of our land. In 1789, President George Washington made this Proclamation of Thanksgiving to You as Sovereign God on behalf of our nation:

Whereas it is the duty of all Nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey his will, to be grateful for his benefits, and humbly to implore his protection and favor, and whereas both Houses of Congress have by their joint Committee requested me "to recommend to the People of the United States a day of public thanksgiving and prayer to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many signal favors of Almighty God especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness."

Now therefore I do recommend and assign Thursday the 26th day of November next to be devoted by the People of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being, who is the beneficent Author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be. That we may then all unite in rendering unto him our sincere and humble thanks, for his kind care and protection of the People of this Country previous to their becoming a Nation, for the signal and manifold mercies, and the favorable interpositions of his providence, which we experienced in the course and conclusion of the late war, for the great degree of tranquility, union, and plenty, which we have since enjoyed, for the peaceable and rational manner, in which we have been enabled to establish constitutions of government for our safety and happiness, and particularly the national One now lately instituted, for the civil and religious liberty with which we are blessed; and the means we have of acquiring and diffusing useful knowledge; and in general for all the great and various favors which he hath been pleased to confer upon us.

And also that we may then unite in most humbly offering our prayers and supplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations and beseech him to pardon our national and other transgressions, to enable us all, whether in public or private stations, to perform our several and relative duties properly and punctually, to render our national government a blessing to all the people, by constantly being a Government of wise, just, and constitutional laws, discreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed, to protect and guide all Sovereigns and Nations (especially such as have shown kindness unto us) and to bless them with good government, peace, and concord. To promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the increase of science among them and Us, and generally to grant unto all Mankind such a degree of temporal prosperity as he alone knows to be best.

Given under my hand at the City of New York the third day of October in the year of our Lord 1789.

George Washington, President

Yes, Lord. You are the Lord and Ruler of Nations. And in this year of our Lord 2013, I give You thanks and praise for all Your goodness in my life and our land. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays

  
My Friend,  I pray for thanksgiving and praise to to our great God to rise up your spirit today. May you be blessed by family and friends; and may you be blessed by the One who loves you the most. Please pray the same 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

Share this word to encourage a friend! Blue 

Monday, November 25, 2013

Morning by Morning, November 25 - Feast Together on the Abundance of God

Good morning, Lord Jesus. 'Tis so sweet to trust in Jesus ... Precious Jesus, Savior, Friend ... Wilt be with me 'til the end." ...

 "How precious is Your steadfast love, O God! All people may take refuge in the shadow of Your wings. They feast on the abundance of Your house, and You give them drink from the river of Your delights. For with You is the fountain of life; in Your light we see light" (Psalm 36:7-9).

This week is a time of thanksgiving and feasting, of abundance and joy. I'm thankful for some time away with family and friends. And I'm thankful for of the abundance of Your house and the river of Your delights. You're a good God, full of steadfast love, with a heart open wide for all to come under the shadow of Your wings and into the embrace of Your arms.

At the same time, I pray for those who feel left out and alone, rejected or abandoned, defeated or discouraged. Open my eyes to see them and move in my heart with prayers to cover them. I pray for divine appointments and angelic interventions that bring each one to the abundance of Your house and the river of Your delights. It's not good to be alone; we're created for companionship and community (Genesis 2:18). "How very good and pleasant it is when (we) live together in unity ... for there the Lord ordained His blessing, life forevermore" (Psalm 133:1-3).

Lord, let there be bonds of community and love in the hearts of Your people. Give us hearts for the strangers and orphans and widows among us, for those who are alone and for those need as sense of community and kindness from the steadfast love of God (Deuteronomy 16:11). Together we rejoice and give You thanks and praise. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays

  
My Friend,  I pray you will feast on the abundance of God with all those He brings into your life in this season of rejoicing together in the community of faith. Please pray the same 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

Share this word to encourage a friend! Blue 

Thursday, November 21, 2013

Morning by Morning, November 21 -- The Grip of God

Good morning, Lord Jesus. In the holy communion of prayer, make me one with You, one with the Body of Christ, one in ministry to all the world, to the ends of the earth, until I feast with You at Your heavenly banquet in final victory.  ...

"I will deliver you from the hand of the wicked, and I will redeem you from the grip of the terrible" (Jeremiah 15:21, NKJV).

At a Thanksgiving celebration with my friends Liz and Joe at Threads of Love Ministries in San Antonio, we passed around the letters from the word "Thanksgiving" and gave thanks to You in testimony with the letter we drew from the basket. I drew "G" and You brought the word "Grip" to mind, for the Grip of God upon my life.

Lord God Almighty, You've gripped my heart in Your hand by the power of Your love. You've broken "the hand of the wicked" and delivered me out of "the grip of the terrible." You've saved me from hell, forgiven me from sin, healed me of wounds, and delivered me from evil. You've freed me from the chains of my past, exposed the lies of my enemy, and shut the mouth of my accuser. You've cleansed me in the blood of Jesus, filled me with the Holy Spirit, and embraced me with the love of the Father to call me Your son. You've caused all things to work together for good, and all that was intended for evil You have turned around and redeemed for good. "For I know my Redeemer lives" (Job 19:25).

Every moment of every day, You hold me in Your no-slip grip and never let me go (John 10:28).  And You pour out blessings upon me exceedingly, abundantly more than I could ever ask or imagine (Ephesians 3:20).

Truly, I am a blessed man. I give thanks and praise to You, O Lord, from a grateful heart, redeemed in Your unfailing, steadfast, unstoppable love (Psalm 42:8). "I waited patiently for the Lord; He inclined to me and heard my cry. He drew me up from the desolate pit, out of the miry bog, and set my feet upon a rock, making my steps secure. He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God. Many will see and fear and put their trust in the Lord. Happy are those who make the Lord their trust!" (Psalm 40:1-4) In Jesus' mighty name I pray. Amen!

Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays

  
My Friend,  I pray you will know the firm grip of God every moment of every day of your life, redeeming all things in the power of His steadfast love for you. Please pray the same 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

Share this word to encourage a friend! Blue 

Wednesday, November 20, 2013


Morning by Morning, November 20 - "With Great Boldness"

Good morning, Lord Jesus. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, I entrust to You my spirit, soul, and body. Be Lord of all my life today.  ...

"Such is the confidence that we have through Christ toward God... Since, then, we have such a hope, we act with great boldness" (2 Corinthians 3:4-12).

Lord, my faith in You gives me great confidence -- confidence in You and confidence that You are at work within me by "the Spirit of the Living God" (v. 3:3). And Your Spirit always leads me to put all my hope and trust in You to guide my steps, direct my path, open the doors in line with Your will, and provide all I need to fulfill all You have for me.

With such a hope, I can be bold to believe You more every day. I can "act with great boldness" to live a life that doesn't hold back, doesn't look back, doesn't turn back. With boldness of faith grounded in hope that's confident in You, "I press on toward the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 3:14). Let me be bolder still today, filled the confident faith of Your first disciples who "were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God (and lived the word of God) with boldness" (Acts 4:31).  In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays

  
My Friend,  I pray you will live your life boldly in faith today. Please pray the same 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

Share this word to encourage a friend! Blue