Entering God's Presence | Pastor Steven Soon

You're listening to a message to go from asks church.

We hope this message will light up your day.

I just want to start off with this question, do

you remember the last time you truly entered into God's presence?

I'm not talking about making it to church events. Yes,

God is with us, but when was the last time

you entered into that secret place where you can feel

the Holy Spirit there speaking to you, ministering to you.

When was the last I take some time to reflect.

I had to make my own reflection as well, you know,

to be honest with you. Being someone who is in

full time ministry, sometimes I can get so used with

the motion of the ministry. I get so used with

just praying just like that, preaching just like that, doing

things here and there. But sometimes I forget to really

enter it God's presence. So when in this season, God

was also challenging Miss even are you entering into My

presence every day? Where is your sustenance coming from? Where

is your strength coming from? Every day when you minister

to people? Where is that radma coming from? Is it

from your own where else of knowledge that you read

the Bible and you get from, or is it from

My presence? Where you gleaned from me, so I had

to also check my heart. So then my question to

you again is this, when was the last time you

truly experienced God's presence? Do you remember how it was? Like?

I'm pretty sure for the believers here, we've had some

pivotal moments in our life that really transformed us when

we encountered the law. Remember those moments. Remember your probably

burning bush moment some of you may have that. Remember

the baptism of the Holy Spirit that you may have experienced.

And I pray that all of us will get to

be baptized by the Holy Spirit. And in a bit

I will share a little bit of why that is important.

All right, So today's message is called simply entering God's Presence.

Can you look at your neighbor and say, enter God's presence?

All right? I only have very short points today. I

have a habit of saying that I usually end. I'm

not sure, but we shall see, because I want to

allow room for ministry later. And for those of you

who like to be baptized by the Holy Spirit, we

want to allow an opportunity to do that. We have

not done that much lately, but we want to do that. Today.

All right, So the first point is this, I got

three bees for us today on how to enter God's presence.

The first bee is this, be still, be still some

for the six verse tensays this. I'm gonna read from

the NLT version. Be still and know that I am God.

I will be honored by every nation. I'll be honored

throughout the world. Familiar scripture. We love to calle this

every time. We like to post this on our social

media all the time. Be still and know that he

is God. I want to go a little bit of

study on the world. Okay, you can see I boll

that the web be still still here. In the original Hebrewer,

it's called hard pooh. Say together one to har har.

It means to seize. Many times you think about being still,

it's probably just okay, don't say anything. But the literal translation,

the definition of hard poo is to cease, to go

a bit deeper, deeper. The root word of hard pool

is actually okay, And this is the definition. I want

us to pay attention to this. The definition of rapha

is to relax, to let go, to seize. The word

comes out again to be weak.

What so if I were to use these words the

root word Okay, to be weak and know that he's

got to ceaze and know that he's God.

To let go and know that he is God. To relax,

to know and know that he is God. To just

go God. Here, Today's time, today's generation, today's age, that

seems to be very tough to do right. Our phones

are constantly buzzing h with notifications. In the morning, when

we wake up, we're bombarded with messages. We want to

see how many likes we got on our Instagram pros.

We want to see, oh the message the email we

send out as the reply commedy. We want to see, oh,

we made a shopping order when it is the delivery?

Is it coming soon? Today's time, it seems it's so

hard to just go.

Like, oh God, we have lost the art of being still.

Some fortivers want to say this, I waited patiently for

the Lord. How many of us they can do that?

I waited patiently for the Lord? And you know what

happens when you do that? And he inclined to me,

incline moved towards ban and he inclined to me, and

my cry. He also brought me out of a horrible

pit out of the myrie clay and set my feet

upon the rock and establish my steps. To see when

we learn to wait patiently, to be still, to cease,

to relax, to let go, to be weak before the Lord.

He inclines towards us, Yes, son, yes, daughter, I'm here.

And not only does he incline, he hears our cries,

and not only stopping at hearing, there's action as well.

He brings us out or whatever pit we're in. It

sets our feet upon a rock, so we are not shaky,

we're not anxious. We are firmed, we are grounded, and

he establishes our steps. Reminder again, Church, simple truth. Are

we being stale before the Lord? Because if you want

to enter into his presence, you must do this. There

is no other way. Be still? Meaning what the thoughts

that may come to your mind to distract you, You

rebuild the thoughts and you say, no, I want to

hear from the Lord. But the day a few weeks

ago preach about this right to shut the door, I

appreach about how he went to the girl there has

fallen asleep died and said, tala, we got little girl,

go gold. But the first thing that Jesus did was

asked all the mourners, all those crying, willing, and then

also laugh at Jesus. Jesus said, she's asleep. He asked

all those people to go out, only the Father and

only two of the believers to I think, what's with him?

Not even all the disciples were with him. And then

he shut the door. Because you know what, we need

to learn how to shut our opinions sometimes man's opinions.

We take advice, we take heed, but we need to

learn to discern whether it is off the long because

we are in a in a generation where there is

abundance of information, sometimes a little too much, that there's

more harm and good, the causes to fear than to

have faith. So we have to be very careful. We

have to govern our thoughts. We have to be very

very careful in what we think, and we have to

learn when to seize the thoughts to go like, okay,

God had shot the distruction God, I'm here out of

being still First Kings nineteen eleven to twelve. In the

scripture as well from the prophet Elijah, and I'm gonna

read this for us. Go out and stand before me

on the mountain. The Lord told him and This was

Elijah at that time in depression. Okay, he was in depression.

He was hiding in the cave, trying to run away

from from a group of people trying to murder him,

kill him. So there he goes. The Lord told him

go and stand before me on the mountain. And as

Elijah stood there, the Lord passed by, and the mighty

windstorm hit the mountain. It was such a terrible blast

that the rocks were torn loose. But the Lord was

not in the wind. After the wind, there was an earthquake,

but the Lord was not in the earthquake. And after

the quake there was a fire, but the Lord was

not in the fire. Do you remember, if you're laughing,

your age is showing because you caught my earth wind

and fire reference. If you don't know what I'm talking about, Yeah, yeah, okay,

good thing. But the Lord was not in the fire.

And after the fire there was the sound of a

gentle whisper. The Lord was not in the wind. The

Lord was not in the earthquake. The Lord was not

even in the fire that Elijah prayed, and it was

brought down just prior to this, right against the professor Bow,

God brought down fire. Remember, and here it says the

Lord wasn't even in the fire, but he was in

the gentle whisper, in the still small voice. How are

we going to catch the still small voice if we

don't be still, if we don't seize the noises in

our head, if we don't shut the door and go like,

enough of opinions? God, what is your opinion? Enough of one?

The internet says, Lord, what are your thoughts? I want

to hear from you lor. How many of us have

been doing that? I want challenges. Do it daily and

you'll be surprised by the wisdom and discernment the Lord.

You seem be still, and then you will be able

to enter into God's presence. I mentioned about the VA

production and going to the next light show. You some picture.

This is yesterday. Yeah, so we prepared very hard since

early this year. A lot of work went in our

school for our school production. And something interesting happened yesterday

then made me go like, okay, God, you're teaching me

to be still. So you can see this scene. We

call it the Paku scene. There are flecks, all right,

so the actually links are in black, but they are

fake links, so they are people carrying the legs running

around and all that. All right, it's very funny scene,

very funny. See, after the rehearsal, we were trying to

figure out, okay, where would the actors go to fit

those fakelicks right, to change the costume and all that.

So I was like, friendic right, I was like, so

many things to do. I have so many departments to

talk to to make sure everything is aligned. And then

when I went backstage to figure out, okay, where can

our actors change into this costume? I was going like, okay,

maybe maybe okay, toilets, they're not in our space and

all that. And then there was one student literally shouted

bass a steven and then I got like, wait, so

I think something. I'll come back to you, and I

wear the whole round for the next two minutes. Okay,

maybe you try here, you try here, you try here.

And then I walked over and then that's what they say,

that's a Stephen. I was going to tell you to

change here. Actors will change here. This is the designed

this one. And I went like, oh, I'm so sorry,

please forgive me, actually apologize, so sorry. Sorry, she's listened

to you. I'm sorry many times it's Christians were like that, right,

we do things. We're like trying to troubleshoot things, fight fires,

solve problems, do everything and all for nothing. And then

when we finally go God, and God said, I was

going to tell you before you did everything that you

should have done.

This.

God showed me yesterday in a very practical way from

a young young girl saying, Stephen, I was gonna tell

you here when I do all that hand and I

was thinking more that she didn't say that better on

ther ingediatec But in my head I would imagine she

brought this Stephen, don't listen. So I learned that I

had to apologize, and God through that reminded me Stephen,

you also in your life have to remember to listen

to me first. And I mean that gentle whisper. I

mean that's still small voice until unless you quiet down

your mind and your heart, you will not be able

to hear me. When was the last time you heard

the lot's gentle whisper? If it's been a while, I

want to encourage your friends. You can start today. You

don't have to wait. Try today and all you have

to do. And we are in a fasting and prayer

season forty days, right, all you have to do and

I want to encourage you if you can do it

in the morning. Doing in the morning, if you really can,

and in between the day it's fine, and night it's fine.

But I want to say, do your quiet time in

the morning. Why that morning is really quiet? I kind

of realize when I started doing this for today praying,

and first I started a week earlier. Man is quiet.

The notifications haven't come in yet from my phone. And

what I do is I can share if you pass sender.

Remember she preached a few weeks ago about saying she

has a spot. She has a room for her, a

prayer room, and different ones of us we may have

our own spot. I have to find a sport, and

for me, my sport is at my working.

Desk, away from the bit. Don't do it at the bit.

Trust me, it's very hard. You start sitting like that

and so lee you start leaning back. Next thing you know,

your alarm reading tellus to be.

My place was the desk. I would sit at my

desk and so we know outside, so I would look

out there are trees, a person're being very nice, and

then I'll read my Bible and I'll pray, I'll worship

and wait on the Lord. I want courage us if

you can't do it in the morning when it's very

quiet and nobody is demanding things from you yet, from

work or whatsoever, and just take some time to God. Here.

I'm going to think about what that's coming up next.

I'm not going to think about what I'm going to

have for lunch. I'm going to think about what's happening

in the next hour. No, Lord, now I'm here, speak

to me. I want to encourage us to start doing that.

Doing that, and you'll be surprised by how you enter

into God's presence when you do that. Okay, So the

first point is be still. Second point I'm going to

is to be prayerful. To be prayerful. This also need

to teach her prayer. No, Mama, Christian, first day come.

The first prayer you pray before you become Chritian and

when you become Pritian is what the singers prayer or

you pray fundamentals. So easy, right, But you see again,

if you've been Christian for long for a while now

prayer may just become ritualistic. I pray because it's the

Christian thing to do. But I'm gonna share something with

us to open our eyes that prayer is more than

just stringing some words together and sending it to God.

Philippines for sixty seven teaches us this be anxious for nothing,

but in everything by prayer and prayer and supplication. Some

translation says, by petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be

made known to God, and the peace of God, which

surpasses all understanding. Regard your hearts and minds to Christ Jesus.

I don't get our attention on the word prayer here.

Let's look at the translation. The prayer word here that's

used in the original text in Greek is this word

pros k. Say together, I mean prok. Prosk sounds Cantonese,

prosk okay, prosk Greek. All right, and this is a definition.

And next like shows this personal and corporate communion with

the Living God. Hold up, what you're saying is not

just talking communion, personal and corporate communion. Corporate is not

meaning worker, corporate meaning together okay, Personal is on your own,

compress together as the church. Okay, Personal and corporate communion

the Living God, adoration, confession, thanksgiving, intercession, petition, and surrender.

That makes a prayer. It is neither magical incantation or

you trying. You time, you try and prayer, you tring

the lost prayer five times and things will happen. No,

it's not. It is neither magical incantation nor mere ritual.

It is relational conversation, grounded in faith. I want to

pay and want us to pay attention to this. Grounded

in faith. Grounded in faith meaning you trust that as

you pray, as you bring your adoration, convension, thanks giving, internation, intercession, petition,

and surrendered to the Lord. You trust by faith that

the Lord is offered through the sun. Yeah. Able to

pray like this today because of what Jesus did, dieing

across resurrected. The view was torn right, So there's no

longer a separation. We are reconciled with God. We can

go to the Lord, not through a priest, not through

other people, but we ourselves have a relationship with God

that we can go to God. Yeah, grounded in faith,

offered through the sun and enabled by the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit is part of the picture when you pray, enabled,

meaning the Holy Spirit brings your prayer to the Lord, God, God,

our Father. That is prayer. That is prayer. When we pray.

Let it not just be a habitual paragraph of words

that we say every day. But the Lost Prayer is

that you can pray. It's a set list of things

you pray, but mean everything you pray when you go

like a father, you ever your name a king and

coming away with down on earth as says ever, give

me to day my daily braith. Forgive me your trustporsor

sometimes we could do like this. You know I need

to go forgive me on my truss and forgive those

trust because we leave me not in your tradition, believer

me from you go for your power and going forever

and then okay, God, I sometimes you treat the Lost

Prayer as something we just need to get it over with.

I want to encourage us the next time you do

the Lost Prayer mean every sentence. Give me today my

daily break, take some time. Lord. I need my daily brain. Lord,

I need strength. Lord, I need you to provide for

me wisdom to every decision after me. Forgive me of

my treuspasses. Lord, forgive me I've seen against you, as

I forgive those who have trespassed against me. Lord, help

me to release for keefness too. It's aness bitterness that

Lord uprooting the name of Jesus and releasing unto you.

Lead me not into temptations. Lord, help me to flee

from the devil. Flee from these ways and deliver me

from the evil one. With Yours is the kingdom, power

and glory. Lord, my life. I live for you Jesus name. Amen.

When you pray the Lost prayer or any other prayer

for the method, mean what you pray. That is what

it means to be prayerful. When you are prayerful, you're

enter into God's presence because God is looking for people

who put a really sincerely, earnestly praying to him. When

you are praying with the right posture, you enter into

the Lord's presence. Some hundred and four, just now, John

mentioned this scripture. Is it Sharon? I think, oh, Sharon,

Sharon ancient? The scripture right to enter his gates with

thanksgiving and into his courts with praise, be thankful to

him and bless his name. Entering into his gaze means

you're entering into his presence. So just how she shared,

if you want to enter into God's presence. The key

is thanksgiving. God has given you the solution. The key

enter with thanksgiving. You enter with thanksgiving. You're allowed to

enter into His courts, and then you enter into His presence.

Something you two three says this but your Holy and

throw in the praise of Priisons of Israel. Oh, this

is a scripture that we love as extreme praise and

worship team. Right. We always like to say, oh, when

we praise the Lord, the Lord dwells in our praises. Right,

but you see, the truth is I was just teaching

the leaders this on Friday. The truth is this God

is and throw. Whether you praise Himha, God is and thrown.

Whether you like Himma God and right that you believe

he is, this is or not, He's still a truth

does not matter. But when we praise him, he is

and thrown in our praises. Meaning to say, when we

praise this God, the One True Living God, when he's

enthrone in our praises, that means his presence is coming

into our situations. That means whatever you're going through, you're

opening the door and say, Lord, I praise you, Lord,

Come come into my situations, my life and throne in

my life. When you praise God, suddenly you're opening your

doors to the Lord to say, God, come and do

well in my praises. And that is when God's presence

you're coming to whatever situation you're going throughe. So this

is how you enterend the God's presence when you're being prayerful.

It involves adoration. Remember that when you're praying, you're not

just bringing requests. You're bringing your adoration to the Lord.

And when you're adoring the Lord, you can't help but

give thanks for all that He is to you. When

we pray, remember these few things that we need to do.

Adore the Lord, worship him, commune with him, have a

conversation with him by faith, knowing that Lord, you're here,

You're here.

I just hear a very quick testimony in twenteen nineteen.

My family was going to a really rough patch and

you guys know this testimony, this story really rough patch.

I remember I was driving on the road, stuck in

a traffic jam, and I was so overwhelmed. I was like, oh,

I can't do this anymore. I really can't do this more.

I was crying and crying and crying. I was shouting

in the car. And remember I was stuck in a

traffic jam. The people around me were looking at me,

probably thinking what has gone wrong with this guy? But

there was crying and crying, crying, and suddenly, out of

the wells of faith in my heart. I really believe

it is my inner spirit man reaching out to God,

came out the song. As I was crying and in

payment suffering, God, You're so God, You're so good. God,

You're so cool, You're so good to me tears and pain.

Yet out of the wells inside of my spirit man

came out a song of praise unto the Lord and

I keep you not. When I was doing that, I

felt the heavenly is clashing. I'm not making this up.

In the car, I felt the powers and principalities worrying.

It's almost I can hear it happening. It's like my

flesh fighting against the spirit and my spirit fighting back

against the flesh. I experienced God's presence right then and there,

in my sorrow, in my pain, in my hopelessness, and

all I sing. And I don't think it was even

something that is voluntary that I thought about. I'm gonna

see it came out God, your sood that your goodness

is not determined by what happens to me. You are

good eerie regardless of what happens to me. And when

that happened, God's presence came into my car, in the

traffic jam, in the homes that happening, your health, God's

present came down, And in that moment, I found the

strength to go Like God, I can't go on. You

are with me. I will not give up. My strength

is restored, hope replenish, and I now know Lord I

can go forward. So I want to encourage these guys again.

When I'm preaching this, I'm not preaching out of theory

and preaching out of personal experience. God has been entroed

in my praise before, and he came into my situation.

He fought my battles. He fought helped me fight against

the flesh that seeks to tell me that God does

not love you, Stephen. How can God allow this to

happen to you, Stephen, just as you enter full time ministry.

How can God let this happen to your family? Oh?

I chose that moment when I praise, when I sound,

spirit took over and the flash was defeated, and I

was restored. There's an encouragement to us, my friends, as

you pray, learn to be prayerful. There is a certain posture.

Learn how to be prayerful. Adore the Lord. Worship him

even in the most difficult situations. Adore him. Praise him.

If you don't know what to say, if you find

that you have no strength to utter your own prayers

of praise unto the Lord, sing a song, and I

just give you a new, one simple song. God, you son,

sing unto him, and watch the Lord's presence come into

your minds. Are you okaying? All right? So far? First

point b still? Second point, be prayerful. The third bee

is this be true? Be true? Psalm fifty one, verse

sixteen seventeen. You do not desire a sacrifice, or I

would offer one. You do not want to burn the offering.

The sacrificing desire is a broken spirit. Hold on, broken spirit.

Not my serving on Sunday, not my nights I gave

up for meetings, or you alone. The sacrifice that the

Lord desires is a broken thing, our broken spirit, not

even a restored spirit, not even a well spirit, but

a broken spirit. Take that in for a moment. God

is not demanding something beautiful in the sight of man.

God is saying, what I desire is your broken spirit.

And the verse continues. The Psummi says this, you will

not reject a broken and repentant hollow God, God welcomes

a broken spirit. It's not even just ah, God, come come,

of course, it's broken spirit. I'm here, Come, I'm here.

Come Isaiah fifty seven, verse fifteen. The high and lovely

One who lives in internity, the Holy One, says this,

I live in the high end holy place with those

whose spirits are contrary and humble. I restore the crushed

spirit of the humble and revive the courage of those

with repentant heart. When I read this, I can just

imagine the excitement of God when he says this, I

restore the crush spirit. Look forward to do that. Are

you having a crushed spirit? Are you feeling broken? I

look forward to restore you. It's not something the Lord

will do in obligation. Can I, you're my child, do

for your love?

No?

The Lord looks forward to do it. The Lord is

excited to revive your courage. Have you lost courage? Have

you become fearful lately because of things that has happened

to you, because of news of this world. The Lord

is looking forward to revive your courage, my friends. He's

excited to do so. But there is a prerequisite. You

need to have a repentant heart. And here's the thing.

You can't be repentant without being humble. You cannot be

repentant whiles sty're holding on the pride, because being repentant means, Lord,

I've messed up, I've done you wrong, I've hurt someone,

I've hurt your heart. How can you be prideful in

those moments literally becoming humble? And when you have a

repentant heart and you come before the Lord, Lord, I'm broken, Lord,

I've messed up. Watch the Lord's presence coming. Sometimes we

are so good at being Christian that we forgot how

what it means to be true to God. We're so

good at saying the right things, doing the right things,

serving in everything. But yet when you come to the Lord.

Can you imagine this, the Lord saying, I'm here, what

do you want a child? Everything is okay inside You're dying.

Funny right when I say this, But it happens, you know,

at least it happened to me. Sometimes I feel like this,

I think, don't need the dell God. Funny thought, God

already know right, very real thing. Last night found myself

in this position where I go like, I don't know

what was stirring in my heart. I just felt for

a moment disconnected with God. I got like, God, where

are you? I'm seeking you? Lord, where are you? And

in that moment, almost like God whispered this to me, Stephen,

how are you? My first response used to it always

said good God, Okay, Stephen, how are you? And then

I start seeing my walls break down. Okay, I guess Lord,

my child, Stephen, how are you? And then I start

seeing my tears. Well, oh it's been heart Lord on

certain dates, fal Lord, tell me more. Since the Lord,

I found myself started to cry, cry the Lord, and

I poured out. I said, Lord, is what I feel. Lord,

I feel like you know I've done this. I don't

think I'm doing a good job. Lord. I feel like this,

I feel like that. I feel I feel like I

feel like a mess. Lord, And you know what, God's

presence came and in that moment he didn't even have

to say anything. And he didn't. Only his presence came

and I was okay. I my tears went back to

my desk continue preparing this message. That was what happened.

I spent one hour in the Lot's presence before I continue.

The Lot wants us to be true, true to ourself

and true to him. Are we true the Lord? Because

that's what the Lord seeks. A broken and contract heart,

a broken spirit is what the Lord desires. John Fault

and the treating the Fall, I'm gonna come to an

end now. But the time is coming, and this is

here now, when two worshippers will worship the Father in

spirit and in truth. In spirit and in truth. The

Father is looking for those who will worship him that way.

For God is spirit, so those who worship him must

worship him in spirit and in truth. This is what

the Lord desires of us. Worship us to worship in truth.

What is worshiping in truth?

Means?

That means we're not putting up a mass. You know,

when we worship, we are worshiping as we are who

we are. If we are feeling great, we worship while

feeling great. If we are feeling really horrible, we still

worship while feeling horrible. That is being true. God, I

am feeling really bad right now as I worship you.

But I'll worship you anyways and acknowledge that I'm feeling bad.

A Lord, I'm gonna worship you anyways. That is being true.

It's not going Oh, I'm gonna pretend I'm happy, Lord

and worship you. That's not being true to God. God

desires again a broken spirit. So don't wrap your broken

spirit up in a like a nice present and present

it to the Lord. Said, Lord, here, I am broken

a mess. I'm here, Lord, be true, or you come

before the Lord and watch his presence come in. Gain

three bs for entering God's presence, Be still, be prayerful,

and be true. I end with this. I'm gonna invite

extreme to come, and we're just gonna take the next

ten to fifteen minutes to worship and pray. I'm gonna

end with this second Korenthian Stan verse five. We demolish

arguments and every pretension, pretention that sets itself up against

the knowledge of God, and we take captives every thought

to make it obedient. Christ. We want to be true

to God. We want to be prayerful, we want to

be still. We've got to learn to hold out every

thought captive.

We hope you've been blessed by this message. For more

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this week is going to be a good week. I

hit for you. God bless