Requirement for Entry

Amen. Let's just give that hand clap to the Lord. Come on. Let's lift up our voice. Jesus, we love you. Come on. Let's lift up our voice and honor him. Lord, we glorify you. You alone are worthy. There's none above you and none besides you. We're not in too much of a hurry. Father, we want to entertain your presence. Oh, hallelujah, speak to God. In your presence is fullness of joy. At your right hand are pleasures forevermore. Hallelujah, hallelujah. Amen. What a, what a sweet presence of the Lord is here today. And well, I love you, but I really love him. I don't, I don't make it a habit of just leaving my family and running the roads for the sake of visiting people. But when you throw Jesus in the mix, and it's, it's worth it. And I thank God for his presence that we feel here today. Such strength, refreshing. And I thank God for that.

I thank God for that. If, if you have a Bible today, I'm going to read from Psalm 100 verses four and five. And as you're turning there, I want to give honor to your pastor, his wife and their family. And I thank them for their friendship, their leadership in this church, and what they and you together, what this church is doing to impact this region and the Kingdom of God. I periodically in my travels, I will mention this place and not only really not because of its legacy, though I know there is great legacy. My connection here is not with the past, but I rejoice at what God is doing now and what is yet to come. And I was preaching elsewhere in Ohio just a couple of weeks ago. And the pastor was asking me, he said, do you preach around Ohio a lot? And I said, no, not, not a lot, but there's a couple of places I visit.

And I was bragging on Harrison Hills Church to him and the atmosphere, the potential that's resident here. And so I give honor to your leader, but I also give honor to you. And I thank you for playing a pivotal part in what God is doing in this area. And I think the best is yet to come. Amen. Amen. Psalm 100 in verse 4, the Bible says enter into his gates with thanksgiving, into his courts with praise. Be thankful unto him and bless his name. For the Lord is good. Why don't you just turn to your neighbor and tell him that. Say, the Lord is good. Sometimes you got to remind yourself of that fact, because if we took the time today, we could all share a story or two about things in life that were not good. But the psalmist said, the Lord is good. And his mercy is everlasting. His truth

endureth to all generations. Amen. And I don't often preach in the theme of the holidays, but just in contemplation of this season and this week as I was traveling in yesterday, I felt the Lord impressed this word upon my heart. And I feel like God's going to help somebody today. And I would like to preach to you for a few minutes on this subject, requirement for entry. Amen. The requirement for entry. Let's pray one more time. Lord Jesus, I thank you for each one that's gathered here today who's made your house and the gathering of your people a priority on this first day of their week. As we turn to the word of the Lord, I pray that you would give us ears to hear. I pray the spirit of God would minister to your people today. No doubt there are minds that are consumed with the cares of life and hearts

that are burdened by the worries and the troubles of this present world. But I pray today as has already been spoken and what we've all felt, the strength and the liberty that's in your presence. I pray today, Lord, that you would do something that would shift the thinking and the atmosphere surrounding the minds and hearts of those who might be struggling. There is help in this house today. And I pray in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ that any who needed would find it. That we would not leave here without receiving all that you have for us. And we pray this in the only name that has any power. We pray in Jesus' name and everybody said amen. Amen. God bless you. You can be seated today. The requirement for entry. I want to lay a little foundation here today before we get to the point of what I've come to preach.

We read in Psalm 100 a psalm of praise that we are to enter his gates with Thanksgiving. Now to us here in Eastern Ohio in 2024, this idea of gates is far removed from our life and the practice of our church culture. But the psalmist writes to Jews in the Old Testament, and to them the gates were the first thing that they would pass through when they were entering into that tabernacle of Moses and then later into the temple of Solomon. The gate was quite literally the point of entry. The equivalent for us would be to say we've got to enter that door with Thanksgiving. Simply put, gratitude was the attitude that was necessary to come through the gate. It was the attitude of entrance. Now I know this week we're going to eat well. I hope. Now listen, I was born and raised in Canada and I do want to tell you America does Thanksgiving better.

And there's no debate about it. The marriage supper of the lamb is going to have that sweet potato stuff with brown sugar and pecan pie. And these things are the will of God. So if you're not ready, you've got a couple days left to get ready. You might want to fast today in preparation. And if you don't have stretchy pants, you're going to want to buy them before you eat. Now thank God for Thanksgiving. In America, it's a day. But in the kingdom, it's not a day. It's a way of life. And so the psalmist writes to these Old Testament people about the entering of the gates, the point of entrance into that ancient tabernacle. And I know, I know today, you can find me. You can find me a thousand churches in the state of Ohio that'll tell you you can come to church however you want. Doesn't matter. Well, I hate to be the bearer of bad news.

That's not true. Now you don't have to have a suit and tie on like I do. There's not really a dress requirement like that. But we can't be so dismissive towards the Scripture in our approach toward God that we just start advocating this false idea that you can just come however you want to come. When you look to the Old Testament, there's three chapters in your Bible that talk to you about creation. Fifty chapters, at least by my count in the Old Testament, that God gives us about the creation of the tabernacle. And in that, he describes the materials they'll use, the clothing they'll wear, and the process by which they'll enter in. It's done in great detail. He talks about the measurements and the fabric, and all of this is to say this single point. I think to God he gives detail because to him the approach mattered. And those Old Testament Jews understood this well.

They knew they couldn't come to God any way they wanted to come. They had to bring the right kind of sacrifice, wear the right kind of clothing. And while we don't live under that Old Testament law anymore, the principle is still true, and it is this. Our approach still matters. So I want you to consider with me now what was required when a Jew was going to come into the presence of God in that Old Testament. They would have to enter in by way of the gate of which we read today. It speaks to us of thanksgiving and praise. It was to be a joyful entrance, and this is why the Psalms speak to us of clapping our hands, lifting our voice, singing unto the Lord, leaping and dancing for joy. It was the place of entrance. When you come to the gate, that first piece of furniture you would find was the brazen altar. That was not a pretty place.

It was there where that animal that had been slain and where blood was shed, that animal would be placed upon that altar. A sacrifice was given. It was messy. It was dirty. It didn't smell good. You say we don't live under that. I know and thank God because pastor doesn't want to clean blood up off the carpet this afternoon, but the principle is still true. What's the principle? The principle is this, is that repentance, death to self is necessary to come into the presence of God. And I thank God for the screen and the lights and the decor. And I honor you and I thank the Lord for all the elements of production that make church welcoming and good. But I want you to hear me today, church was never meant to be a production. And if we're not careful, we can become so focused on the production of a church service

that we lose the raw authenticity of sacrifice. Listen, I thank God for pretty buildings, but the elements of sacrifice and entering into the presence of God were never meant to be pretty. And if you're focused on holding your composure and looking a certain way and acting a certain way, you will miss what God has for you. Then you'd move on from that brazen altar and you'd come to a lair of water and it's here where the priest who would be covered in blood in the filth of the animal sacrifice would come to that lair and he would wash himself. He would cleanse himself. And after you did this, you would have to pass through the five pillars on what was called the tent of meeting. You would come into the holy place where there was pieces of furniture, one called the candlesticks or the gold menorah. There was in there the

table of showbread and the altar of incense. The candlesticks fueled by the oil gave light to this place. It speaks to us of the spirit bringing revelation or light knowledge and understanding to our lives. There was a table of showbread. It's here where they would eat of the bread. This is symbolic to us of God providing for us our personal needs. Give us this day our daily bread. And there was the altar of incense. It would be sprinkled upon the altar and the Bible says it would ascend into the heavens and it was a sweet smelling savor under the Lord. It was the worship and the prayer of the priest that was offered unto the Lord and the Lord delighted in this thing. And then he would pass only one day a year with this happen where the high priest on the day of atonement would take the blood of the sacrifice and he would pass beyond the veil

into this place called the holy of holies and it was the ark of the covenant that box overlaid with gold on top of it was what they called the mercy seat on each end of that they had two golden cherubims angelic figures that looked down onto the mercy seat and one day a year the high priest would enter in to that holy of holies with blood from the sacrifice lamb and he would sprinkle that blood atop of the mercy seat and if the sacrifice was received of the Lord the glory of God would fill that place and the glory of God would be manifest and for one year the sin of the people and the punishment of sin would be rolled back and it would be pushed away and judgment would be avoided for another year. It was the day of atonement. Now I know all of this seems so foreign

to us because we don't live in that world. Hebrews 10 explains to us that because of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ the body that was prepared his death as a man on a cross called Calvary has freed us from that old testament system so while we don't live under that law I would remind you today there are still a great in many principles of which we can learn and then within within that ark of the covenant were three things the tablets of stone what we call the ten commandments the law of God Aaron's rod that budded it was symbolic of the power of God and then there was a pot of manna preserved from their wilderness journey it speaks to us of the provision of God these were the blessings of being in covenant with God his law his power and his provision and all of this

was how those Jews in the Old Testament were conditioned were trained and were accustomed to how they approach God simply put it was all about the action you couldn't get into the presence of God without completing these necessary steps you could not get into the glory of God without fulfilling the action that was required at every stop in the tabernacle it was not present possible to enter into his presence or to reap the benefit of his presence accept and buy and through these necessary actions but if you read the Old Testament you've already discovered this Israel had a little heart problem one day they're doing good and the next day they're doing bad one year they're in victory and the next year they're in bondage it was a repetitive cycle of victory and defeat how can this be well if you're a parent in this house you already know how

because it is all too possible for somebody to do the right action but have the wrong attitude you know what i'm talking about you tell your child to go do something and they do it but they do it like a house on fire smoke coming out of their ears grumbling under their breath and you know you know that while their behavior is in compliance with your directive their attitude is way out of alignment this was the problem of the Old Testament Israel had conditioned themselves on fulfilling these necessary requirements they had mastered the actions they had mastered the mechanics of religious activity they knew what to do and when to do it they had got the action down pat but they never mastered the attitude psalms 24 said who can ascend to the hill of the lord and who can stand in his holy place he then hath clean hands he whose actions

are right before god but you must also have a pure heart it was not sufficient to just master the actions no god was never looking for actions without attitude he was not looking for behavior in the absence of a pure heart that was not what he was after that's why the prophets of the Old Testament said when the new covenant comes he's taken out that stony heart and he's put in you a heart of flesh a heart that's tender that's pliable that can respond and feel love not something that's stubborn and resistant why would he say this because it was never about the action and the plight the problem of that Old Testament is this they had mastered the action but never mastered their attitude and so when jesus comes in the new testament there's a total turn of narrative the law that these people had heard and lived and studied

for thousands of years he introduces it in a new light the bible would speak to us about all that was in the Old Testament and the scripture would say it was a shadow of that which was in the heaven now if i was to ask you what does the shadow lead me to what do you have to do you've got to walk to the end of my shadow and if you follow the shadow it brings you to the substance and this is what the bible was saying it was never god's intention for you to live under the plan or the pattern of the Old Testament that was a shadow of that which was to come and just like that shadow will lead you to me on this platform if you follow the pattern the shadow of the Old Testament it will lead you to what was supposed to be which was jesus himself

and when jesus comes he turns the law upside down he starts saying things like this you have heard it said that you shouldn't commit adultery but i'm telling you if you have lusted after her in your heart you've already committed the sin and that jew is they can wait a minute i didn't commit the action and jesus is saying that's precisely the point you have lived under a covenant under a mentality where you thought it was all about the action but i'm trying to show you what it's really about it's about your attitude that's why john would write and say he who hates his brother is already a murderer now i know in the Old Testament they said that thou shall not kill don't commit murder murders a sin but in the New Testament the bible teaches you if you hate your brother if you hate your sin your sister you've already committed the sin of murder in

your heart the point is this under the New Testament in the new covenant you suffer the same consequence not by the committing of the action but by the carrying of the attitude this is what jesus was trying to teach them he was trying to bring them out of an action mentality into an attitude mentality because the requirement for entry is an attitude now i take you back to our text this morning psalms 104 enter into his gates with thanksgiving and into his courts with praise you see this thanksgiving is the attitude praise is the action i preach to you today the requirement for entry is not that Old Testament stuff because Hebrews tells us in chapter 10 jesus fulfilled all of that the requirement for entry for you and i to get into the presence of god and for you and i to get what we have need of

it is the attitude of thanksgiving and here's the thing if you have the right attitude you will inevitably show the right action but what the Old Testament shows us is it's possible to do the action but not have the attitude and i've been around this thing long enough to know that we can fill church buildings with people in their sunday best they might read the lyrics and look the power they may clap their hands and even lift it at a moment in the service and i hate to be the bearer bad news today but your action is not sufficient you can have your hands raised in this house and your heart be a hundred miles from god what god needs is a heart that's fixed on him what god needs is an attitude of gratitude that is the requirement for entry i can't help but wonder how many times god is looking down on us like i've had to look at

my three sons at different points in their life i i've got a boy who just turned 13 a couple weeks ago i've got one who turned 10 last month and i've got a boy who'd be six in april and they're good kids they're great kids i love them to death but i'm gonna tell you they're stubborn and there are moments when through my position as a father and the authority i have in my house that i can force their behavior into compliance i can make them do what i want them to do but the action is not sufficient because inevitably there's gonna come a day when they walk out daddy's door for the last time and they walk into the world as a man of their own and if i don't get the attitude right by that moment they will discover that the action was not sufficient i want you

to hear me today i've been in churches all around the world small churches big churches rural villages large cities other countries america this thing it's a battle that we're fighting if we're not careful we can deceive ourselves into thinking all as well because i've mastered the action the action may get you in this house but it won't necessarily get you in his presence because the requirement for entry into the holy presence of god is thanksgiving it's the attitude of gratitude and if you really have the right attitude it's going to be evident in your actions when the music starts playing you're not going to sit there like a bump on a log you're not going to be counting the panels on the ceiling or finding the spelling mistakes on the screen no you're not going to be you're not going to be upset about the volume no no no no no

if you got the right attitude you're just going to be so overwhelmed with the presence of god so full of gratitude for the goodness of god oh let me preach to you where you're living now you think well not everything in my life is good join the club honey i could write you a book how about the battles and the burdens i've encountered in the last six months and the trials i've walked through and the war in my mind but when my circumstances aren't good and when life doesn't seem fair and i feel like i'm being tossed to and fro at the mercy of unfavorable trials this is what this preacher's learned god is still good and the problem is the problem is too many of us allow our actions to be dictated on our circumstances rather than our attitude and so in life's hard we're absent and when life's difficult we're not praying and when we're battling

we're not praising that is not how the child of god is supposed to live and that's why we're struggling that's why we're weary that's why we're burdened that's why we're worn out because we haven't entered in to the place of refreshing and strength enter into that place is with thanksgiving it's the attitude required for entry this is what jesus spent his entire earthly ministry trying to prepare them for paul would write in Ephesians 4 he said be renewed in the spirit of your mind if you've got a newer translation something other than the king james it probably changes that word spirit for attitude captures the meaning of this text paul writes to that church at Ephesus and tells them you have to be renewed in the attitude of your mind you have to take control of your thoughts you've got ah listen to me he's writing to a church you think oh yeah well this you know this makes sense if you've got to say

this to you know johnny whose football team lost or you you got to write this to someone who's upset about the election write this to someone who's mad that lost their job and no he's writing to a church a letter that they will read in the church he tells those believers you need to be renewed in the attitude of your mind and then just four verses later in verse 27 of Ephesians 4 he says neither give place to the devil you think well yeah i mean i don't drink i don't do drugs i'm not living in adultery devil's got no place in my life excuse me he was talking about your mind he wasn't talking about a demon showing up at the end of your bed he was talking about a lack of self-control of the inward man he was talking about our own inability to govern our thoughts

and have some restraint in our words to practice the attitude of gratitude because it is the requirement for entry all the blessing of the covenant the law the power the provision all that god is and has and can do and wants to do may only be accessed by thanksgiving and so it is discontentment ungratefulness all of these things are the attitudes of the mind that keep us from getting what god has for us how easy it is in a moment of frustration to lose self-control and the restraint of our own time and all of a sudden we are voicing frustration voicing bitterness voicing anger and you say well if you only knew what i've walked through if you only if you had any idea how hard it is i know but is your mouth going to be a mouth that praises god or is your mouth going to be a mouth that glorifies circumstance

life is not always good but god is so the question is what do i focus on because my focus will form my attitude and my attitude will determine my access jesus teaching was this that it was the action that brought the sin brought the consequence it was the action that brought the reward in the old testament put in this new testament it's the attitude now if you have the right attitude the actions will follow but this is why you can feel his overwhelming spirit you can be surrounded in a cloud of glory and feel the help of god rocking in your recliner on monday night or it can show up in this sanctuary on sunday morning you can be driving home on wednesday afternoon after a frustrating day at work venting to the lord in your car and his presence show up why because he's drawn to the attitude and it's those who master their mind

that live in states of victory it's those who master their mind that start walking in dimensions of blessing and power that's what paul said in 1st Thessalonians 5 and 18 in everything in what in some things on this day on payday at tax return time on vacation when you get a new car when you're open in christmas presents now in everything give thanks for this is the will of god in christ jesus concerning you so much talk about finding the will of god knowing what the will of god is i just want to do his will i'll tell you what his will is master your mind so you have an attitude that will allow you to have access to what the king has for you in everything give thanks how is that possible because in the middle of your trial amidst the uncertainty and the overwhelming difficulty and the questions that you don't

have answers for and the prayers that haven't yet been answered and that moment of decision you choose do i focus on what's good or what's not well what's good you forgot that you're not walking through the valley by yourself god is with you is good yeah you might have bills and you might have pain and you might have problems and your car wouldn't start your roof's leaking and you got fire and your company's shutting down and yeah yeah yeah give me a list of a thousand reasons of sorrow but when you're bringing me in to the presence of god they don't mean anything when i get in his presence his presence there's fullness of joy there's no lack it's overflowing at his right hand our pleasure's forever more pleasures you realize what a pleasure is a pleasure is that which goes beyond necessity it's the overflow it's the abundance i know jesus told you in the sermon on

the mount he already knows what you have need of and he's going to provide for your every need he feeds the birds he cares for the flowers he's going to care for you too but can i preach to you there is an attitude there is a mindset that moves you beyond necessity in to the pleasures of the kingdom you know how many times how many times i've spoiled my boys more than i should have probably but it's the nature of a father the only reason a father would not spoil his children is because he recognizes an attitude in them that is not right and that the spoiling will perpetuate the wrong attitude the wrong mindset and for that reason only that father will have to withhold his resources and not spoil his son or his daughter but if daddy sees a level of maturity a mindset of understanding an ability to be spoiled but not be destroyed if he realizes

that they're living in the attitude of gratitude that they have a mindset of thanksgiving that keeps them selfless and thankful there is a place beyond necessity there is a place where god pours out his pleasures in your life where he starts giving you more than you have need of things that you maybe desire but didn't even have the courage to ask for he shows up and starts pouring it out where does this come from in his presence but you can't get in his presence if you don't have the right attitude how is it that we can come to a church just like this our music can come how is it that we can we can come to a place like this where god is his word is his spirit is moving among us a place where miracle signs and wonders can happen prayers can be answered provision can be

found and people walk out unchanged people come with needs but leave empty-handed i'll tell they don't have mastery over their own mind come to church and they're just sitting there thinking well man where we're gonna eat for lunch can't wait to get home i think i think the football game starts at three their minds not even attentive to where they are they're in the atmosphere but their attitudes a hundred miles away and god comes with intention and purpose powers moving among us they walk in and walk out unchanged untouched does it happen you say they were here i know that was the action what they didn't have was the attitude it's not sufficient to be in the atmosphere you have to have the attitude that makes you aware of what's in the atmosphere visit how two people could come into the same house have the

same need hear the same word feel the same spirit one receive in another knot this is why because one had tuned their attitude to be keenly aware of who was among them and what he was doing and the other oh they're here but they're not really here i'm preaching to you today something that must be contended for especially in this great country as great as it is is killing itself with consumerism spirituality is being suffocated by materialism want want want want men shall be lovers of self paul said this is that day and we are permeated by that truth in this present culture you have been caught out of darkness into his marvelous light we live by a different set of values a different spiritual standard the bible said of us Thanksgiving was this thing and we're going to celebrate and we're going to eat good and thank god for it i hope you cook

ham not turkey that's my preference that's not the lord but that's just my preference put a little pineapple and brown sugar on that ham but this was never meant to be just a day it was supposed to be a lifestyle and so in paul writes in philippines four and six he says hey when you're asking when you're coming with your prayer and supplication when you're telling god what you have need of do it with Thanksgiving because it's the attitude that tempers you it's the attitude that keeps you from becoming spoiled and destroying yourself it's the attitude that when god sees he opens up his arms he opens up his hands i'm going to give you this is all i have need of i know because of your attitude i can trust you i'm going to give you more than you need of want you to stand with me

Thanksgiving Thanksgiving who would have thought something so simple it could be so profound that that single attitude can be the determining factor of whether i get in and i get what i need or not i want you to you don't have to be perfect you don't have to have it all together there's there's not a there's no essay requirement there's no test you have to write knowledge is not a requirement in fact he would liken our approach to him as those children so young and so innocent in their understanding but he said i want you to let the children come under me so young so vulnerable so freed from the opinions of everybody else if you're a parent you know what i'm talking about because your child says things that you wish they wouldn't say and they act in ways that you wish they wouldn't act now it's just

what kids do but you're concerned how it makes you look in the eyes of others and Jesus says that's exactly what i want i want your approach to me to be just like that child i want you to run to me without consideration of what anyone thinks and what anyone cares about it's just me and you but i need you to do it with Thanksgiving and if you come with that kind of attitude which i know it's hard because circumstance will rob you of that attitude life will suffocate that out of you family and friends and circumstance it seems like everywhere you turn the world is at war with the attitude of gratitude and i would tell you it could just be the devil because this is what he knows if i can stop you from being thankful i can keep you from receiving everything god has for you oh yeah you can come to church put your

little dress on come and sing the songs given the offering do all the actions and i don't want you to twist the words of the preacher today i'm not saying the actions don't matter but what i am saying is the actions without the attitude but if you get the attitude the action will inevitably follow because if you come with Thanksgiving he said then there'll be praise the action follows the attitude and you know what follows the action these signs shall follow them that believe there's a world of what i would call god possibilities miracles signs and wonders supernatural provision peace and joy that never ends and words can't describe all these things that god affords to us in his kingdom but there's an order it's the attitude it's the action and then there's access to all those things so here's my invitation today if you have need if you've got a circumstance that

you're needing god to work in probably already asked and it would be so easy to come and ask again but can i tell you he already knows what you have need of you don't need to ask you've already asked you just have to be thankful you've got to put a little Thanksgiving in that request and here's what i think it looks like in this economy thank you is the offering of gratitude at the conclusion of the exchange once i receive i say thank you but in Philippians 4 he said when you ask do it with Thanksgiving so in the kingdom gratitude is not to be given at the conclusion of the exchange but at the beginning or in the process of the petition you say thank you before you receive because you have such confidence in who you are asking that you know it's his good pleasure to give good things to them that ask

so in the kingdom we're not going to say thanks when it happens we're going to say thank you before it happens so that's what we're going to do here today so if you have a need if you have a circumstance of a trial a health struggle a bill if you're battling your mind like this brother talked about earlier in the service if you have a need of if any kind of circumstance seems to be suffocating this attitude from your life and you just need god to help you and we're going to come to this altar but we're not coming to ask we're just coming to say thanks we're coming to let him know i'm thankful for what for you i might be in a valley but i'm in it with you i might be without a job but i'm i'm without a job with you i might not know the way but i know you

it's just an alignment of our mentality and when you get the mentality right the miracles will follow how about it come on i'm inviting you out of your seat now i want you to come gather around this altar when you get here i just want you to lift up your hands close your eyes come on you don't got to wait till tuesday you don't got to wait till thursday it's not a day it's a lifestyle it's not just a moment it's a mentality i'm thankful for it god i thank you for providing me with a new job i thank you god for helping my family come on that's it open up your mouth begin to voice it yes yes it's one thing to enter in the back door of a building but it's an entirely different thing to enter into the glory of god the action brought you into this house but the attitude

will take you into his presence action brought you to this place but the attitude will show you his power yeah yeah yeah come on thank him for it whatever it is you have need of whatever it is that you've been waiting on this is the moment to thank him for him you don't need to ask you've already asked and he knew before you ever did ask but put a little thanksgiving with it yeah that's it come on let praise rise begin to lift up your voice and lift up your hands and let us sacrifice a praise be offered under him yes yes come on i thank you for your help god i thank you for wisdom i thank you for direction i thank you for healing i thank you for deliverance yes yes come on come on let that river of the spirit flow through here right now

come on let that strength and that refreshing let that renewing of the holy ghost wash over you right now yes yes yes come on he's lifting burdens right now he's renewing minds right now he's washing attitudes right now yes yes that's it press here another moment lean into his spirit don't be afraid to lift up your voice and cry out to him in gratitude yes yes oh shakaha yeah i'm a ha ilabo ho sataraba kian de ye yes yes yes come on let's say this is beautiful come on this is the attitude that gives you access this is the mindset that brings the miracle come on that's it lift up your voice press here come on the holy ghost is trying to help somebody come on i'm telling you there's help in this house for you there's a mindset change that the word of god is bringing to you today don't resist it just release your will

surrender control let god change your thinking let god change your position oh god ha yama shahi anama katala mahaya god i loose miracles in this room right now i loose the gift of faith into this room right now i loose the gift of healings into this room right now hataraba ho satarama ha miko tonere behe shekere maha i thank you lord for the miracle of the mind i thank you lord right now for miracles of the body i speak to that pain right now i commanded to go in the name of the lord jesus christ i thank you for it right now i thank you for it right now whoo shekata mo yaha mila koto nere bahaya come on thank him there's a miracle in this house right now mila mo shekere yama satarama ha by the authority of the word of god in the power

of the name of jesus yama ha rima nuri anaya kaya sito no roko tomoye god right now ilamos shekata me ramo nuri anaya la bosa taha come on his powers here right now his help is here right now it's your attitude that gave you access now this is your moment to take hold of it receive of his pleasures receive of his power yes yes yes yes ke tere maha come on not by might not by power but by my spirit sayeth the lord it is the work of god it is a demonstration of his spirit you can't figure it out you have to faith it out by faith these things happen by faith and by faith alone you must believe that he is and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him yes yes yes come on his powers here right now his spirit is working here right now

she prays Hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah. Oh, God, we entertain Your presence. We entertain Your holy presence. Ha, shatokoma, i anosetere mahaya. Hallelujah, hallelujah. Come on, just bask in His presence. Come on, enjoy the overflow. Receive of His fullness. Hallelujah, hallelujah. Hallelujah, hallelujah. Yadah mahashatadadadadabosiki yadadadadabokoto rabahah. Remender emasannadadabosiki yadahashokomataye. Mmm, rabah sattadadaboyikatabah. Now have your attention. I'll tell you this. When that prodigal son came home, Daddy called for a celebration. He said, we're going to have a party. Because my son who was dead is alive. And that elder brother comes or sends word by his servant to his father. Daddy meets him outside the house and he looks at his dad and says, You didn't ever, you didn't ever do this for me. You didn't ever kill a calf for me. You didn't throw a party for me. And that father looked back and said, What do you mean?

All that I have is yours. Everything in my kingdom you have access to. The fact was that elder brother had developed an attitude towards his younger brother. And his attitude towards his brother kept him from having access to all that the father had. I'm telling you today, attitude matters. Your attitude towards yourself. Your attitude towards your circumstance. Your attitude towards your brother. Your attitude towards your sister. Your attitude towards your employer. Your attitude towards the government. Your attitude matters. Because it's attitude that determines access. And in a moment when by the father's direction, the tone of the house was one of victory and rejoicing and celebration. Laughed or filled the air. Shouts of joy filled the air. Music is playing and rejoicing is happening. One man's attitude kept him from being in harmony with the father's house. I just came here today on this Sunday before Thanksgiving to preach to you that your attitude matters.

And I know life can get hectic and I know things can oppress us. I know. But the psalmist said the Lord is good. So I say, regardless of what's going on in your life, no matter what junk you brought in and what junk you're walking back out to, the father has set the house in order. He said we have a reason to celebrate. It ought to be an atmosphere of joy. We ought to let gratitude be that attitude which fills the atmosphere. So I just say, hey, let's eat good this week. But I hope when the calendar turns and we're 12 months away from Thanksgiving on the calendar, I hope to God we're not 12 months away in our life, in our praise, in our disposition. There is a requirement for entry into the presence of God. And it is this that I have preached to you today, the attitude of Thanksgiving.

One more time, would you lift up your hands and from deep within your heart, would you just offer the Lord a sacrifice of praise? Come on, just let him know that you're thankful. You're thankful. You're thankful. Come on, what you might be thankful for may be different than what I have to thank him for. But this, I know we all have something to be thankful for. So with your hands raised and your voice lifted from the fruit of your lips, would you let Jesus know how thankful you are? Hallelujah! Come on, with those hands still raised, can we continue in this? Come on, we've lend our voices to complaining, but let's determine today that we'll lend our voices to giving thanks. God, I thank you. God, I thank you. Lord, you've been so good. God, I thank you that you've never left. God, you've never failed.

God, you've never turned away from God. I thank you, Lord. Come on, why don't we pray in the Holy Ghost just a moment longer? I understand. I understand the time, but the presence of God is here. Can we just be comfortable in His presence for a moment? The Lord is trying to get our attention. Better yet, the Lord is trying to position us with a cloud. This morning, and he came with a word from the Lord. There's no question about that. But now it's up to us. What will we do with it? We heard it last week. We've heard it this week again. We've got to have that gratitude. We've got to have gratitude. God, we thank you. God, we thank you that you care for us so much that you would speak to us in the way you have today. God, it is obvious from the similarities, God, of what we have heard this week and what we heard last week.

God, that you are speaking something in the Spirit to us. God, it's not a rebuke, but it is the keys. God, it is the access. God, into something that you are wanting to do. God, I pray that we would receive it as such. God, I pray that we would receive the positioning, God, so that we can do what it is you've asked us to do. God, I ask that you would be with your people and that you deliver them safely at the next appointment. God, and I ask that any time that there be a moment of complaining that we're tempted to enter into, that we remember the words that we're spoken here today. God, and let there be a gratitude that comes out of our mouth. God, let there be appreciation that comes off of our lips. God, and let it begin to change our actions, God, and produce praise.

God, let us have moments where you begin to inhabit places where we didn't even know that you could inhabit, simply because we've responded appropriately. God, and we've adjusted our attitude to be in alignment with your will and your will. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.