Pressing into His Presence

Enter Into His Gates With Thanksgiving

Three Angels Broadcasting Network

Program transcript

Participants: Shelley Quinn

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Series Code: PHP

Program Code: PHP000004


00:01 Hello, I'm Shelley Quinn.
00:02 Please join us today on Pressing in to His Presence
00:05 as we learn the value
00:07 of starting our prayers with thanksgiving.
00:32 Welcome to Pressing in to His Presence.
00:34 Today, we are going to learn the value
00:37 of starting our prayer with thanksgiving
00:40 and why this is such a vital thing.
00:44 If you have been following along
00:46 in your program companion book
00:48 "Pressing in to His Presence"
00:50 we're beginning on chapter three today.
00:54 Now, on previous programs
00:56 I have shared how God impressed me
00:59 to spend an hour with Him each day in prayer
01:02 to overcome backsliding.
01:04 But what God taught me
01:06 I'm going to be sharing with you
01:09 and it is just as valuable for a shorter prayer.
01:13 So don't think that it has to be an hour long prayer.
01:16 And although its not necessary to write out our prayers
01:21 I was trying this process which is called journaling
01:24 and on that first morning
01:26 I-- that I was trying to pray the first time
01:29 for an hour journaling
01:31 I typed the date at the top of my page
01:36 and stared my computer screen.
01:39 That blank white screen glared back at me
01:42 and it was intimidating.
01:44 So I prayed Father, where do I begin?
01:48 Teach me how to pray.
01:50 Teach me how to press into Your presence.
01:53 And the verse that came to my mind
01:56 was Psalms 100:4, 5 and there Bible says
02:02 "Enter into his gates with thanksgiving
02:06 and into his courts with praise.
02:08 Be thankful to him and bless his name."
02:13 That was the answer.
02:15 I was to begin my prayer with praise and that's what
02:19 we are going to be discussing today.
02:21 But first let's consider God's plan to have a people
02:26 who are a royal priesthood.
02:28 The Old Testament reveals that before God established Aaron
02:32 and his descendents along with the tribe of Levi
02:37 before He established them
02:39 to carryout the duties of the priesthood
02:41 God had called all of His people
02:44 to be a kingdom of priest.
02:46 The setting was the wilderness of Sinai
02:49 where the Israelites were encamped before the mountain.
02:52 And God instructed Moses to tell the people
02:56 in Exodus 19:4-6 these words.
03:01 "You have seen what I did to the Egyptians,
03:05 and how I bore you on eagles' wings
03:08 and brought you to Myself."
03:10 Can you hear the language of love
03:14 God is bringing His people to Himself
03:16 delivering them out of Egypt?
03:19 Bearing them up like on eagles' wings.
03:22 And He says "Now therefore,
03:25 if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant,
03:29 then you shall be a special treasure to Me
03:31 above all people for all the earth is Mine.
03:35 And you shall be to Me
03:38 a kingdom of priests and a holy nation."
03:44 Well, we know they didn't obey.
03:49 Although the Israelites of all
03:50 do not follow God's original plan
03:53 the same call is issued for God's New Testament people
03:58 under the lordship of our Savior Jesus Christ.
04:02 We are called to fulfill this role
04:04 of being a kingdom of priest.
04:07 1 Peter 2:9 say--
04:12 if I can find it here says this.
04:15 "You are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood,
04:21 a holy nation, His own special people,
04:25 that you may proclaim the praises of Him
04:28 who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light,
04:33 you who once were not a people but are now the people of God,
04:39 who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy."
04:46 Do you see that Christians are a royal priesthood,
04:51 a fellowship of priests who are to come boldly
04:55 into God's presence through the new and living way
04:59 open for us by the blood of Jesus?
05:03 You know, as ancient priest entered into the courtyards
05:09 they had to enter into God's presence in a specific order.
05:13 First they entered through a gate
05:15 and when they did
05:17 they were doing this to reach the outer court
05:19 they walked through with thanksgiving.
05:22 I thought about this that first morning
05:24 as I was preparing to journal my first prayer
05:27 and as I did I pictured the heavenly temple
05:31 described by the apostle John in Revelation 11:19.
05:36 It says there, then the temple of God was opened in heaven
05:42 and the Ark of His Covenant was seen in the temple.
05:46 The priests of old drew near to the Lord
05:50 in the earthly sanctuary.
05:52 Now I was preparing to draw near to Him
05:55 in His heavenly sanctuary.
05:57 God was leading me press into His presence
06:01 through the heavenly portal of thanksgiving.
06:04 This would be the first portion of my prayer
06:06 and would be followed by praise.
06:09 Now, since thanksgiving is a form of praise
06:12 I just combine thanksgiving and praise
06:15 under the one label of praise.
06:18 So what is thanksgiving?
06:21 Why should we begin our prayer in this way?
06:25 Thanksgiving is a joyful expression of gratitude to God
06:30 for His goodness toward us, recognizing Him as the giver
06:34 of every good and perfect gift.
06:37 God wants us to recognize, appreciate
06:41 and acknowledge His goodness
06:43 so that we may proclaim all of His wondrous works
06:47 with a voice of thanksgiving.
06:49 Why?
06:50 Why does God want us to give Him thanks?
06:53 It took me some time to realize how faith building this is.
06:58 God prescribed the practice of thanksgiving
07:01 to open our hearts like receptacles
07:04 and to be open vessels ready to be filled
07:09 with a greater measure of trust and faith.
07:12 Let me illustrate this with a story.
07:15 The Sunday morning after my 2004 car accident
07:20 the problems I confronted set me up
07:22 as the perfect candidate for complaining.
07:26 Just 24 hours earlier I had that typical ration of troubles
07:30 that accompany more to life
07:32 but good health had made it easier to give thanks.
07:36 My pastor was out of town so I had been scheduled
07:40 that Saturday to present two church services
07:43 in two different towns, my home church
07:46 and then another church that was 30 miles away.
07:49 One service began at 9:30 am and the other at 11 am.
07:54 So when I concluded the first service
07:56 I departed for the next without delay.
07:59 And traveling down a four lane
08:01 divided highway driving southbound
08:04 at the speed limit of 70 miles an hour
08:06 I saw a white van
08:08 who pulled out from a dirt road.
08:10 He crossed the northbound lines
08:13 and then he came into the median and he stopped.
08:16 He appeared to be looking my way so I didn't slow down.
08:19 I was in the outside lane
08:21 but just as I approached his location
08:25 he soared across the first southbound land
08:28 and into the second outer lane
08:30 just about 12 feet directly in front of me.
08:34 There was no time to hit the brakes
08:36 and that wouldn't have prevented the collusion anyway.
08:39 I knew that I broadsided that van someone would die.
08:44 So instinctively I yank the steering wheel
08:48 sharply to the right and then I saw
08:51 there was a deep, deep dirt ditch
08:54 that ran parallel to the road.
08:56 But I was careening directly toward a concrete culvert
09:00 which had two steel rods just judging out from its center.
09:04 And I cried out and I said, Lord, save me.
09:08 But that's the only words of prayer
09:10 that time would permit.
09:12 And honestly details from that moment
09:15 are a little bit blurry but my SUV I know slammed
09:21 nose down into the dirt ditch missing the concrete culvert
09:26 and I went from 70 miles to 0 on impact.
09:30 So contents from the back
09:32 catapulted to their front floorboard
09:34 brick is shaking like a bullet
09:36 my SUV lurched into the air, made a quarter turn
09:40 and bounced violently to its landing.
09:43 I momentarily lost consciousness
09:45 and when I open my eyes I was surprised to see
09:49 that I was actually straddling this V shaped ditch.
09:53 I shut at the door repeatedly
09:56 against the earth and side of the ditch
09:58 and I managed to open it just a crack,
10:01 just enough to squeeze through.
10:04 So stumbling upward to the weeds
10:06 I saw the white van he had pulled off
10:08 to the side of the road
10:10 just a couple of hundred yards at the highway.
10:12 But when the driver spotted my head coming up
10:16 he hopped into his van and sped off.
10:19 So there I was dazed and I saw a couple of cars pass by
10:23 and I was desperately
10:24 trying to wave them down but apparently
10:27 they weren't able to see me down in the ditch.
10:30 I couldn't find my cell phone to call for help
10:33 so I noticed that ditch actually
10:37 became shallower as it went further south.
10:41 That appeared to my best option
10:43 was just to try to maneuver my vehicle
10:45 out of its landing place.
10:46 So with the car straddling the sloping sides
10:49 I cautiously drove a quarter of a mile onto the ground
10:53 graduated in elevation enough to allow me
10:56 to actually return to the highway.
10:58 And unaware of how seriously
11:00 I had been injured I reached the second church
11:03 as the song service was finishing
11:05 and I delivered the message God had given me
11:08 but boy, now on the morning after
11:12 I knew my injures were significant.
11:15 Throbbing pain had robbed me
11:17 of even a wink of sleep all night
11:19 and my neck seemed hot and swollen
11:22 and I couldn't turn my head.
11:24 The slightest moment of my arms
11:27 caused nerve pain that just shot
11:29 from the base of my neck through my fingertips.
11:32 And my fingers were jammed
11:34 and swollen twice the normal size
11:36 and they were throbbing.
11:37 And I had a torn ligament in my shoulder
11:42 and it mimic a knife just being thrust
11:44 through the shoulder blade.
11:46 My feet bottoms were bruised,
11:48 I had an egg size bump on my forehead
11:50 and that explain my headache.
11:53 There is one thing I knew
11:54 I wouldn't be writing my prayer this day.
11:58 You know, I could have murmured against the Lord.
12:03 Wasn't I working in His harvest fields
12:06 when it happened?
12:07 Hadn't I prayed for traveling mercies?
12:10 Why would He allow such a tragic accident to happen?
12:14 My husband JD was out of town and I was home all alone
12:19 and I was parched and thirsty
12:20 and I couldn't even get out of bed for a glass of water.
12:24 In my mind I tried to calculate
12:27 how on earth we'll repay for the medical costs
12:30 that are sure to come.
12:32 I knew that benefits from our auto policy
12:35 would be questionable.
12:37 There had been no collusion, no police report
12:40 and no witnesses to step forth.
12:43 Now, on our health insurance policy
12:45 we carried a $5,000 purposed deductible
12:48 that was gonna be a big hit to our pocket
12:52 and actually neither policy seemed too promising
12:55 to help us out of the situation.
12:58 And I realized it could result in massy medical expenses
13:02 at a time that we could ill afford it.
13:05 Perhaps, I would have murmured had I know than
13:09 that it was gonna ultimately cost us $18,000 out of pocket
13:13 because our health provider insisted
13:16 the auto insurer should pay
13:18 and auto insurance it sought otherwise.
13:23 So neither one paid but the point is
13:27 I didn't murmur and in that's no glory to me.
13:31 God had so changed my heart
13:34 through the practice of thanksgiving
13:36 that I sensed His blessing in every situation.
13:41 He had filled my heart with trust and faith
13:44 through the experience of acknowledging His goodness.
13:50 So instead of murmuring I prayed thank you, Father,
13:54 that I didn't collided with that van
13:56 and killed someone.
13:58 Thank you Father, for saving my life.
14:00 Thank You for sending angels to carry me
14:04 beyond that concrete culvert.
14:06 Had I hit it I would probably had died.
14:09 Oh, I said Father, I'm so thankful
14:11 that the impact was in the dirt ditch.
14:14 Thank You for preventing my SUV from rolling over.
14:18 Thank You that I wasn't injured by the tools
14:22 or impaled by the T posts.
14:25 We had fenced T post in the back.
14:27 And I said oh, Lord,
14:29 I praise You for your protection.
14:32 Thank You that I can still walk.
14:35 Thank You for blessing me.
14:37 With so many other blessings I give thanks for I know
14:41 You will work this out for my good.
14:44 You have a plan for my life, hallelujah.
14:49 So here I was the following morning Monday
14:54 and I woke to a severe post concussion syndrome
14:59 and uncontrollably raising thoughts.
15:02 They seem true although they weren't.
15:05 Eventually I learned that
15:06 I had cracked the access of my spine right here
15:10 where your head sits on your spine
15:12 and I had two badly bulging discs in my neck.
15:15 So surgery to repair the damage
15:17 would have left my head with no range of motion.
15:21 I would have been turning like this.
15:24 So for the next-- they wanted to operate but I told them no.
15:29 So for the next 42 months constant pain was my companion
15:35 yet I rarely murmured about my condition
15:38 and again that's no glory to me.
15:41 Because I was tempted to murmur
15:43 but when I was tempted the Holy Spirit reminded me
15:47 to continue thanking God
15:49 for His mighty hand of protection.
15:52 Here is our wake up call.
15:55 If we murmur and complain against our circumstances
16:00 we are actually murmuring and complaining against God
16:05 and forgetting all of His benefits.
16:08 In Psalm 103:2-4 this is what King David wrote.
16:15 He said, "Bless the Lord, O my soul,
16:19 and forget not all His benefits
16:23 who forgives all your iniquities,"
16:26 and boy, that's enough for thanksgiving right there
16:28 if we didn't go any further.
16:31 "Who heals all your diseases,
16:34 who redeems your life from destruction,
16:38 who crowns you with loving-kindness
16:41 and tender mercies."
16:44 You know, that Bible passage was my constant prayer.
16:49 Thanksgiving had made my heart like an open receptacle
16:54 into which God could pour out His blessings.
16:58 And one morning three and half years
17:00 after my accident
17:02 there was a stunning reversal of my situation.
17:05 I woke up and the pain was gone, completely gone.
17:09 I had trusted in God's goodness
17:12 and He and His delight of mercy removed my torment.
17:17 It's never returned.
17:18 So I agree with what Paul wrote to the Thessalonians.
17:23 He said in 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18.
17:28 "Rejoice always, pray without ceasing,
17:33 in everything give thanks
17:36 for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you."
17:41 And then David said in Psalm 95:2,
17:46 "Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving.
17:51 Let us shout joyfully to Him with Psalms."
17:57 It isn't easy to give thanks
17:59 in everything as Paul had many issues to do.
18:01 It's not easy but it is their beauty.
18:04 You may have heard the story of the man who was complaining
18:08 because he had no shoes until the day
18:10 he saw a man who had no feet.
18:12 In every situation
18:14 you and I have something more for which to be thankful
18:17 than does about 90 percent of the world's population.
18:21 You know, I have a long standing friendship
18:22 with a dear sister in Christ
18:24 whom I've never met but we Skype weekly
18:28 and she watch 3ABN for years to improve her English.
18:33 And so a number of years ago this resulted in her conversion
18:36 from the Muslim religion she lost her prestigious job,
18:40 she lost-- she suffered abuse from here husband.
18:44 He eventually divorced her and unfortunately
18:46 he got custody of their children.
18:48 But through it all she learned the lesson
18:51 that you and I need to, she keeps her heart open
18:55 before the Lord through thanksgiving.
18:57 She recognizes and acknowledges God's goodness
19:01 and therefore she approaches her loving heavenly Father
19:04 with a heart filled with expectation.
19:07 And God daily gives her evidences of His love
19:11 and presence in here life.
19:13 This trusting daughter is just like Job.
19:17 She is saying though he slave me
19:22 yet will I trust Him.
19:26 Her faith serves as a spiritual telescope that
19:29 lets her look ahead to a better day
19:32 and such faith inspires me.
19:34 Thanksgiving is a faith builder.
19:37 It takes our eyes off self
19:38 and puts them-- our vision on the Lord.
19:41 And as we contemplate His love for us it awakens our awe.
19:45 The act of thanksgiving alters our attitudes,
19:48 it prevents the poor pitiful me party.
19:51 Are you in emotional turmoil right now?
19:53 This is how concepts seem pouring to your mind.
19:56 I understand because I have shared
19:58 your feelings in the past.
20:00 Have you lost a loved one,
20:02 it is difficult to discover reasons for thanksgiving
20:05 when your heart is gripped with grief.
20:08 But consider thanking God for being capable of loving
20:11 which means, you're capable of grieving,
20:14 you're capable of loving consider thanking Him
20:17 for the time shared with that special person.
20:20 Perhaps you've been victimized suffering cruelties
20:24 at the hands of the unsympathetic abuser.
20:28 I can tell you from personal experience
20:30 I know this can scribal the heart
20:32 and stifle thanksgiving.
20:34 But if this is your case please consider
20:37 thanking God for His mercies which are new every morning
20:40 and for the better plan that He has for your life
20:44 which He will reveal as you seek His face.
20:48 Maybe you've been diagnosed with a fatal disease
20:51 causing your heart to squeeze like a wise with fear.
20:56 Consider thanking God
20:58 for the blessed hope of eternal like
21:00 and for the opportunity to know in advance
21:03 so you can put your fears in order.
21:06 Thank Him for the peaceful rest ahead of you
21:09 as you will wait resurrection morning
21:11 when you hear His voice and come forward
21:14 from the grave to everlasting life.
21:17 Thanksgiving can quell your feel adding joy
21:21 and quality to each remaining moment.
21:23 Learning to live with your condition
21:25 is better than learning to die with it.
21:28 Maybe you are facing serious but more mundane problems,
21:32 Perhaps, there are financial problems
21:33 or someone is spreading malicious rumors about you.
21:37 James 1:2 says count it all joy
21:41 when you fall into various trials.
21:43 Now that's difficult counsel
21:45 but learning to heed it has its reward.
21:48 Why should we give thanks for fiery trials
21:51 the apostle James continues by telling us
21:54 that trials produce patience
21:56 and when patience is worked out in us
21:59 we are perfect and we lack nothing.
22:01 Crises reveals character.
22:04 So God sees a greater potential on us
22:06 and He trust us with the trial
22:08 in order that He may polish our potential.
22:11 He engineers our circumstances for our eternal benefit
22:15 working all things together for our good to conform us
22:18 to the image of our Lord and Savior Jesus.
22:22 As we are tried in the fiery furnace of trial
22:26 our faith is purified and it's used with patience.
22:31 Faith eliminates the fog of circumstances
22:34 and we see God's goodness more clearly
22:37 and it is something
22:39 that establishes peace in our hearts.
22:42 Ephesians 5:20, Paul says,
22:45 "Giving thanks for all things to God the Father
22:50 in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ."
22:55 You know the luster of our faith life is mod
22:59 when we murmur about our circumstances.
23:02 Did our circumstances escape the attention of the one
23:05 who know the end from the beginning?
23:07 Instead of focusing on the problems
23:09 we should be focusing on the goodness
23:11 and mercy of the problem solver.
23:14 He will hear from heaven and will reward your faith.
23:17 He will keep you in perfect peace.
23:20 The obvious point here is to develop
23:22 and maintain a thankful heart.
23:24 Make a list of your blessings
23:27 and at the top of your list should be thanksgiving
23:30 for His perfect indescribable gift
23:33 our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ
23:35 and the gift of salvation.
23:37 Thank Him for strengthening you with the power
23:40 through His Holy Spirit living in you.
23:42 Thank Him for the transforming power of His word
23:45 which implanted in your hearts,
23:47 James says is able to save your souls.
23:50 Remember thanksgiving build faith.
23:54 And Hebrews 11:6 says,
23:56 "Without faith it is impossible to please Him,
24:00 for he who comes to God must believe that He is,
24:03 and that He is a rewarder of those
24:06 who diligently seek Him."
24:10 When we enter His gates with thanksgiving
24:12 remembering His rewards
24:15 we will pray more boldly with increased assurance.
24:19 Building on the foundation of trust
24:21 our faith mounts up on wings
24:23 and we are ready to approach the Lord
24:26 in a manner that pleases Him
24:28 and we won't risk being guilty of grieving the Lord
24:31 through ingratitude and disbelief.
24:34 You know, just consider this for a moment.
24:37 Have you ever given good things
24:40 and perform special favors of-- for someone
24:44 who repeatedly takes your generosity for granted.
24:47 How do you feel with little to know
24:49 appreciation is expressed?
24:51 Be honest.
24:52 If you've come into contact
24:54 with an ungrateful wretch like this the day arrives
24:58 when you weigh the benefits of withholding your faith
25:01 or to teach the good lesson of gratitude.
25:04 Isn't that true?
25:05 It grieves the heart of the giver of every good
25:08 and perfect gift when we fail to thank Him
25:12 for His undeserved goodness toward us.
25:15 In Luke 17:17, 18,
25:19 Jesus healed ten lepers and only one a Samaritan
25:24 returned to offer the thanksgiving to him.
25:27 "And Jesus asked, 'were there not any found
25:31 who returned to give glory to God expect this foreigner.'
25:35 " I wonder if God delays answering our prayers
25:38 because of our lack of thanksgiving
25:41 just to teach us a lesson of showing appreciation for all
25:45 He has done for us through Christ Jesus.
25:49 Though provoking, isn't it?
25:51 Hebrews 13:15 says, "Therefore by him
25:56 let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God,
26:03 that is, the fruit of our lips,
26:07 giving thanks to His name."
26:12 oh, thanks is something-- that thanksgiving is something
26:17 that we sure take for granted.
26:23 Today, we have learned the importance
26:26 of being like the priests of old
26:29 who entered into the gates of--
26:33 I say they were pressing into the presence of God
26:36 they entered into the gates
26:39 with thanksgiving in their hearts
26:42 and if we would just do this what it will do for us
26:48 is it will change our attitudes.
26:52 We won't be having that pity party
26:55 and remember self pity is straight from the pits of hell.
27:00 But as we start off our prayer with thanksgiving
27:05 it changes the way we think, it changes our attitude,
27:10 it opens up our heart before God
27:12 and we can receive from Him and we are pleasing Him
27:18 because we are coming before Him with faith
27:22 and without faith it's impossible to please Him.
27:26 It is so important
27:28 that we learn to be like the priests of old.
27:33 You and I we were called as the people of God
27:36 to be a kingdom of priest so as we approach our Lord
27:42 let us enter into His gates with thanksgiving.
27:46 Let us find plenty of reason.
27:50 We can always find reason to thank God.
27:54 Now, I pray that you will be joining us next time
27:58 as we will be learning how to enter
28:02 after entering through thanksgiving
28:04 we will press into His presence
28:06 and enter His courts with praise
28:10 and that will change our mental purpose.


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Revised 2014-12-17