Tuesday, April 07, 2020

Behind the Masks - Morning by Morning, April 7, 2020

Morning by Morning, April 7 - Behind the Masks
 
Good morning, Lord Jesus. Put Your thoughts in my mind and Your desires in my heart to make me more like You today. ...
 
During that Holy Week on Your way to the cross, You didn't back down from speaking the truth. You didn't shy away from calling out the hypocrisy and self-righteousness You saw. It was like an infectious disease spreading its sickness to everything it touched.
 
"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs, which on the outside look beautiful, but inside they are full of the bones of the dead and all kinds of filth. So you also on the outside look righteous to others, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness" (Matthew 23:25-26).
 
Those religious leaders and cultural influencers -- they wore their masks. On the outside, they looked beautiful and righteous, but on the inside they were full of death and filth, full of hypocrisy and lawlessness. You weren't fooled and You didn't fail to stand up and speak out, though it would cost You Your life.
 
But before we're so quick to judge, do we do the same thing? Do we put on our masks to fit it with the crowd, to cover up our sin, to bury what's inside like the bones of the dead? Do we excuse ourselves while judging others? Do we exalt ourselves in self-righteousness while cursing and controlling and condemning those around us who are not living up to the self-projected image we portray?
 
Father, forgive us. Convict us and lead us to true repentance. Give us courage to call it out in ourselves, to be willing to look and see behind our masks, to bring it out of the darkness and into Your light, to the foot of Your cross and under Your blood. Your heart is not to condemn us, but to forgive us and free us. Your passion is not to shame us, but to save us and cleanse us. "If we confess our sin, He who is faithful and just will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness" (1 John 1:9).
 
I went to the grocery store yesterday and I've never seen so many masks! Some were black and some white, some very colorful and some plain, some fancy and some home-made. But they all were covering up our faces and making it harder to breathe. While they were serving their purpose of self-protection and hopefully protecting others, they were also separating us (about 6 feet if you went by the red tape hash marks on the floor of the store in the checkout line).
 
But as it is in the physical realm, isn't it also true in the spiritual realm? Don't we wear our masks? Don't we self-protect? Don't we hide our faces of who we really are and bury inside what we're really like? At least to some degree and at least every now and then, if we're really honest with ourselves? Don't we even tend to save our harshest judgments for those we see who are exhibiting the very things down inside of us that we despise so much? Don't we act just a little hypocritical and self-righteous and try to hide from the truth of the Word of God that "none is righteous, no, not one" (Romans 3:10)?
 
And when we do, doesn't it make it a little harder to breathe? Don't our filters, no matter how fancy or plain, make it a little harder to take in the fresh air of Your Holy Spirit?
 
Come, Holy Spirit. Remove our masks. Let our faces shine with the Spirit of Truth -- not covering our sin and shame, not pretending to be something we're not, but humbly giving our hearts to You, completely surrendering our lives to You, repenting of all that remains in us that is not yet like You to fully embrace Your mercy and love. Then we can truly speak and share Your mercy and love from true hearts with true words, forgiven and free in You.
 
Come, Holy Spirit. Fill our lungs with fresh air. Fill us afresh with the holy Breath of God this Holy Week, as we follow Jesus to the cross, through death to the world, and to the empty tomb of resurrection life in Christ. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen. 

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

My friend, may you be courageous in humility and surrender to let the Lord get behind the mask to forgive you and free from all that's not yet like Him, in Jesus' name. Please pray the same for me. May we all be filled afresh with the fresh breath of God with faces shining like Jesus to a hurting and lost world around us! God bless you, my friend!

     
Daily Prayer Journey with Tommy Hays



Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries
Healing from the Inside Out ...
Preparing the Way of the Lord
  
Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries
4 Dominion Drive, Building 1
San Antonio, Texas 78257

Please share this word to encourage a friend!

Posted by at

Monday, April 06, 2020

Fearless and Relentless like Jesus - Morning by Morning, April 6, 2020

Morning by Morning, April 6 - Fearless and Relentless like Jesus
 
Good morning, Lord Jesus. I watch and wait to see what You're doing, to hear what You're saying, in the communion of prayer with You -- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit of God. ...
 
"Then Jesus entered the temple and began to drive out those who were selling things there; and He said, 'It is written, 'My house shall be a house of prayer'; but you have made it a den of robbers.' Every day He was teaching in the temple. The chief priests, the scribes, and the leaders of the people kept looking for a way to kill Him; but they did not find anything they could do, for all the people were spellbound by what they heard" (Luke 21:45-48).
 
On Your way to the cross for us, You were unafraid to confront the powers that be and unafraid of what they could do. You were fearless in the face of death and in the face of their threats. While they were looking for a way to kill You, You were relentless in Your mission.
 
Lord, let it be so with us.
 
These are unprecedented times for us in our world right now, just as they were unprecedented times for You in Your world during that last, Holy Week of Your life on earth as the Son of Man and as the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. 
 
As You were, so are we to be in our world (1 John 4:17). We're to "follow in (Your) steps" (1 Peter 2:21). We're to have "the mind of Christ" (1 Corinthians 2:16). We're to be filled with "the Spirit of Christ" (Roman 8:9). And we're to continue the ministry of Christ, with Your character being formed in our hearts and Your power flowing through our lives -- just as the Father sent You, so You send us with the character and power of Your Spirit in us (John 20:21).
 
May we be fearless in the face of death. Much of our world around us is dying of sickness and disease, dying to our sense of economic security, dying to our sense of peace and hope, dying to our sense of life as normal with a nagging angst that things may never get back to normal. May we not give in to the fear of death, but look to the One who overcame death with all its fears by the power of the resurrection. "So that through death He might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by the fear of death" (Hebrews 2:14-15).
 
May we be relentless in our mission -- to be the hands and feet of Jesus in our world overwhelmed by fear and sickness and death, as "the body of Christ" (1 Corinthians 12:27). May we be relentless in our mission -- to "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations" (Matthew 28:19). May we be relentless in our mission -- to "proclaim as (we) go, saying, 'The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.' Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, cast out demons" all in the authority of Your name, the power of Your Spirit, with Your nature in our hearts (Matthew 10:8; Romans 8:29).
 
You were fearless and relentless on Your way to the cross. May we be fearless and relentless as we walk in Your steps, filled with Your heart, as we "take up (our) cross daily and follow (You)" (Luke 9:23). In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays

My friend, may you be fearless and relentless in your mission, like Jesus -- living like Christ in your world, being the message of Christ and filled with the Spirit of Christ, in Jesus' name. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!

    
Daily Prayer Journey with Tommy Hays



Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries
Healing from the Inside Out ...
Preparing the Way of the Lord
  
Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries
4 Dominion Drive, Building 1
San Antonio, Texas 78257

Please share this word to encourage a friend!

Posted by at

Friday, April 03, 2020

"Trust in Me Alone" - Morning by Morning, April 3, 2020

Morning by Morning, April 3 - "Trust in Me Alone"
 
Good morning, Lord Jesus. I make room for You in my heart, as I look and listen to begin my day grounded in Your Word and filled with Your Spirit -- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit of God.  ...
 
"Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose trust is in the Lord.
He is like a tree planted by the water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit" (Jeremiah 17:7-8).
 
As I read this morning these Words of God I've read many times before -- Words of Spirit and Life, Words of hope and strength, Words that inspire me and empower me -- I see something I had not seen before. Your Word says "Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord" and then Your Word says "whose trust is in the Lord." Is there a difference, Lord? Or is this just poetic expression, with the same meaning about trusting You expressed slightly differently? ...
 
I sense in my spirit that there is a difference. Or at least there is a difference You are speaking to me today from Your Word applied personally to me today. I sense You are saying, "Many trust in Me, as they should, for I am trustworthy and true, and I provide My grace in their time of need. But fewer fully put all their trust in Me. They trust in Me but also trust in other things. Blessed are they whose trust is in Me alone." ...
 
Yes, Lord. Help me take hold what You are speaking. Forgive me for when I have trusted in other things, along with trusting in You. I'm thankful for the other things You have placed in my life to help me, to support me, to be there for me as I needed them; but at the same time, help me always see You alone are the Source of all I have needed and all I've been provided. You alone are worthy of my trust. By the power of Your grace at work within me, let me be one "whose trust is in the Lord," whose trust is in You alone.
 
The words of the old hymn come to mind from Great is Thy Faithfulness -- "All I have needed Thy hands hath provided. Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord unto me."
 
With my trust in You alone, I will be like a tree planted by the water. My roots will keep growing deep into Your Living Waters. I will be grounded in Your Word and filled with Your Spirit. I will not fear when the heat comes and I will not be anxious in the year of drought. And by the power of Your grace, I will not cease to bear fruit, no matter what I face or what season I go through. My leaves will remain green -- even if at times when it feels like there's only one green leaf left -- my roots in You will keep me grounded and Your Spirit in me will keep me alive in Christ and ready to flourish when the time comes.
 
Now I believe I'm hearing in my heart, "Stay steady in Me. Stand firm in Me. With My Word and My Spirit in you, you will not waiver, you will not wither, you will flourish." ...
 
Yes, Lord. Let it be so -- for me and for all whose trust is in You. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays

My friend, may you trust in the Lord alone and may you see His if faithful to provide all you need and even make you to flourish -- all in His time, all in His way, and all by His grace, in Jesus' name. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!

   
Daily Prayer Journey with Tommy Hays



Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries
Healing from the Inside Out ...
Preparing the Way of the Lord
  
Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries
4 Dominion Drive, Building 1
San Antonio, Texas 78257

Please share this word to encourage a friend!


Posted by at

Thursday, April 02, 2020

Morning by Morning, April 2 - "Make Room for Me"
 
Good morning, Lord Jesus. I turn my eyes upon You and open my heart to You -- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit of God. ...
 
As I wait and listen for Your leading this morning, I believe I hear You speaking in my heart, "Make room for Me." ...
 
Yes, Lord. I want to make room for You, much more room for You--in my heart, in my home, in my thoughts and desires, in how I spend my time and what occupies the moments of my day, in all that I am and all that I do. Give me a greater desire to make more room for You. "For God is working in (me), giving (me) the desire and the power to do what pleases Him" (Philippians 2:13 NLT).
 
One thing I know that pleases You is for Your people who are called by Your name to make more room for You. It pleases You for us to take the time we have to seek Your face, to listen for Your voice, to allow Your Spirit to search our hearts and let You remove anything in us that is not yet like You. As David prayed, "Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends You, and lead me along the path of everlasting life" (Psalm 139:23-24).
 
Father, You've sent Your Holy Spirit to prepare the bride and the body of Jesus Christ. All by the power of Your grace at work within us, You are preparing the way of the Lord in us and in the earth. "Christ loved the church. He gave up His life for her to make her holy and clean, washed by the cleansing of God's word. He did this to present her to Himself as a glorious church without a spot or wrinkle or any other blemish. Instead, she shall be holy and without fault" (Ephesians 5:25-27).
 
Only You can do this. And our part is to turn to You, to open our hearts to You, to allow You to come and do this in us by the power of Your grace at work within us to do what pleases You. This is how Your Word is fulfilled, "Let us be glad and rejoice, and let us give honor to Him. For the time has come for the wedding feast of the Lamb, and His bride has prepared herself" (Revelation 19:7 NLT) -- "His bride has made herself ready" (Revelation 19:7 NRSV).
 
These are extraordinary days, where many of us have much more time to make much more room for You -- to be a people preparing the way of the Lord, to be a bride who is preparing herself and making herself ready.
 
I believe I hear You speaking in my spirit a word to Your bride: 
 
"One day I will come in My glory in the clouds, but right now I am coming in My glory in your hearts. Make room for Me. Put away everything that is unworthy of Me and incompatible with Me from your hearts to make room for Me. I will fill your heart with My glory. And you will be My glorious bride to display My glory for all the world to see Me in you." ...
 
Yes, Lord. You're coming in Your glory on that day (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18), and every day between that day to come and today, You desire to come in Your glory in us. "Christ in (us), the hope of glory" (Colossians 1:27). 
 
Through us as Your bride, as a people throughout the earth who have taken time to make room for You, to prepare the way of the Lord in our hearts, "the knowledge of the glory of the Lord will cover the earth as the waters cover the sea!" (Habakkuk 2:14) Lord, let it be so in me today and Your bride today, here in our hearts and to the ends of the earth! In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays

My friend, may you make room for Jesus, set free from all that's not yet like Him in your heart, set free from all that hold you back from being all He created you to be as the body and bride of Christ in our day, in Jesus' name. Please pray the same for me. God bless you, my friend!

   
Daily Prayer Journey with Tommy Hays



Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries
Healing from the Inside Out ...
Preparing the Way of the Lord
  
Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries
4 Dominion Drive, Building 1
San Antonio, Texas 78257

Please share this word to encourage a friend!

Posted by at

Wednesday, April 01, 2020

Morning by Morning, April 1 - Coming Closer to Jesus
 
Good morning, Lord Jesus. You are One with my Father, One with the Holy Spirit, and I welcome You here in my heart to be One within me, as I begin my day looking to You and listening for Your leading. For "anyone united to the Lord becomes one spirit with Him" (1 Corinthians 6:17). ...
 
The closer I come to You, the more I sense a burden for those who are not coming closer to You. The more I find myself desperately dependent upon You to be my Source of peace and security, the more I'm moved for those who are trying to get through this crisis depending upon themselves. And in the moments when it feels like You're not there or not acting on our behalf in the ways I feel You should, when it makes me press in even that much more deeply to come even that much closer to You, the more I'm deeply burdened for those who feel distant or forgotten or even forsaken.
 
The story of the bride-to-be and her beloved in the Song of Solomon comes to mind this morning, of her yearning for his presence in times when it feels like he's not there.
 
"Upon my bed at night, I sought him whom my soul loves;
I sought him, but found him not;
I called to him, but he gave no answer.
'I will rise now and go about the city, in the streets and in the squares;
I will seek him whom my soul loves.'
 
I sought him, but found him not.
The sentinels found me, as they went about in the city.
'Have you seen him whom my soul loves?'
 
Scarcely had I passed them, when I found him whom my soul loves.
I held him, and would not let him go
until I brought him into my mother's house,
and into the chamber of her that conceived me"
(Song of Solomon 3:1-4).
 
The bride-to-be is not a casual acquaintance of the one she seeks. He is her beloved, her bridegroom-to-be, the one whom her soul loves. And at the same time, she feels like he isn't there. She seeks him, but doesn't find him. She calls to him, but he doesn't answer.
 
But she doesn't give up on her relationship. She doesn't give in to any feelings of distance or rejection or abandonment. She doesn't settle for something less than her hopes and dreams for intimacy and security that she longs to come from only him.
 
She says in her heart, "I will rise now and go.... I will seek him." And even then, it feels like she's having a hard time finding him. She goes to others who may have been seeing him and experiencing his presence in the ways she longs to see him and experience him.
 
It seems her pursuit only makes her even more desperate for his presence. It seems her feelings of distance from her beloved only make her more determined, more passionate, more committed to her pursuit of him.
 
And then she finds him! With great relief that was worth the waiting in the pursuit, with great joy that was worth the sorrow of the feelings of separation, she must have shouted out for all to hear, "I have found him whom my soul loves!"
 
Father God, You've sent Your Holy Spirit to prepare the bride for Jesus, our Bridegroom. It's not a gender thing or sexual thing; it's a spiritual thing. Men are part of "the bride" of Christ (Revelation 19:7), just as women are part of the "many sons being brought to glory in growing up into the maturity of the body of Christ (Hebrews 2:10). Jesus is our Beloved (Ephesians 1:6).
 
We're created to long for Him, to pursue Him, to even feel empty and alone and lost without Him. But He is not far from any of us -- even before we come to know Him and humbly open up our hearts to Him. "God has done all this, so that we will look for Him and reach out and find Him. He isn't far from any of us, and He gives us the power to live, to move, and to be who we are. 'We are His children'" ... (Acts 17:27-28). 
 
Father, fill me with Your Holy Spirit (Ephesians 5:18). Holy Spirit of the Living God, stir in my heart to pursue Jesus (John 14:26), to listen for His voice (John 10:27), and to deeply abide in and embrace His Presence (John 15:4). Lord Jesus, I welcome You here in my heart and every moment of my day. You are my Beloved and I take hold of You to never let You go and I thank You that You take hold of me and never let me go -- even, and especially, when it feels like You're not here or acting in all the ways and in all the timing that I feel You should. Through it all, You are Lord of all. "There is peace with God through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all" (Acts 10:36). In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays

My Friend, may you come closer to Jesus every day, more passionately pursuing Him and more deeply embracing Him, in Jesus' name. Please pray the same for me. And I join with you in prayer for all who need to know Him and God's love for them in this current crisis and through every moment. God bless you, my friend!

  
Daily Prayer Journey with Tommy Hays



Tommy Hays | Messiah Ministries
Healing from the Inside Out ...
Preparing the Way of the Lord
  
Pastoral Director | Rapha God Ministries
4 Dominion Drive, Building 1
San Antonio, Texas 78257

Please share this word to encourage a friend!

Posted by at
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)