Michael Todd - Toys "R" Us Ministers
Good morning, Transformation Church! Hey, in your home right now, I want you to clap your hands. I want you to give God a shout of praise! Come on, right there in your home! Man, today I feel the presence of God in this place, and I know it’s in your place too. This is what I want to do: I want you to comment below because there are thousands of you watching right now. Where are you watching from? I’m seeing it right now—there’s Texas, Houston, Africa, Kansas, California, and New York. Come on, I want to know where you’re watching from! The reason I want to know that is because in this moment right now, there is unity happening all over the world.
As we get into the Word of God today, I just want to let you know that what God is doing right now in this season, as everything seems to be going crazy, is that He is bringing you into a place where He’s trying to speak to you. He’s trying to join us as a church and allow us to be everything that God has called us to be. I am so excited that you are here today because we are starting week two of a series that we’re calling «Help Me, Who’s the Minister Here?» Come on! If you’re watching with somebody, point at them right now and say, «You’re the minister here!» And if you’re by yourself, I want everybody to say, «I’m the minister here!» Come on, say it one more time: «I’m the minister here!» I really believe that is what God wants all of us to know. No matter what sphere of influence we are in, no matter what God has done in the past and what He wants to do in the future, He has placed you in that job, in that school, because you’re supposed to be His minister right there.
Today, I want to take this idea one step further. I’m pumped up right now because I am about to preach to you with everything I’ve got. I need everybody to know that if this is your first time on the live stream, there’s nobody in this big auditorium, but the Word that God has given me and that is brewing in my heart right now is about to come into your house. So, if you hear something or feel something good, I want you to respond out loud. The technology worked last week, and I felt your prayers. I felt the «Amens,» I felt it, and we’re going to do it again! The kingdom of God is voice-activated, and I am so excited because it’s not about a building; it’s about what God is building in you.
As we go further into this series, I want to thank every minister who accepted the call to be ordained earlier this week. We did something kind of fun on Friday night. We had an online ordination service, and a lot of people joined me. There were a lot of fun things that happened, but one thing I know is that, number one, people got saved that night. Number two, tens of thousands of people decided, «I’m going to step up and be the minister.» Now, as a pastor and the minister, Mr. Miyagi, the one who’s supposed to help you, I want to go back to Ephesians 4:11. I want to see if we can’t take this a little deeper—not just to answer the call but to walk worthy of the calling that God has placed on our lives.
This is what I want to say to everyone who’s watching for the first time. Maybe you feel like what you’ve done or who you’ve been and who you’ve been with disqualifies you. No! I want to tell you right now that God is looking at you and saying, «I factored in all your flaws.» At the moment that you repent and turn back to Me, that is the moment I can use you. Somebody needs to hear that. That’s the moment I can use you to do everything I called and created you to do. So, this is for you: repent; turn. That’s all that means, and God says, «I will use you.» This is how I want to use you: I want to use you to be My minister.
Ephesians 4 is going to teach us. I want to read it out of the Message version because the imagery and graphics are so vivid, and I think it’ll help us get it. It says, «He handed out gifts above and below.» This is God. He filled heaven with gifts, and then He filled earth with His gifts. He handed out gifts of apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers. Now, a lot of times, we’ve made those the goal, but those are just gifts. Like being an apostle or a pastor, those are gifts that God wants us to have to serve people. That’s not the goal. The goal is not to be Bishop Michael Todd; the goal is not to be Apostle Natalie; the goal is not to be Archbishop Charles. No, the goal is to be a gift to other people.
So, I just need to talk to some people right now. If you carry the title of pastor, apostle, teacher, bishop, you’re supposed to be serving, not being served. Oh, you want to ask about it? Ask Jesus, the greatest one in the world, and His words were, «I did not come to be served but to serve.» This is what I’m saying: If you’re in a place of prominence—if you’re a CEO, if you’re a father, if you’re the mother of the house—whatever you are, your biggest qualification is not to be served; it is to be one who is a gift that serves others. That’s what God says right here.
He said, «I handed out all these gifts for one reason: to train Christ’s followers or ministers in skilled servant work with each other.» It says, «Working within Christ’s body, the church—not the organization, but the organism—until we’re moving rhythmically—I love that—and easily with each other, efficient and graceful in response to God.» Look at this: «Fully mature adults, fully developed within and without, fully alive in Christ.» No prolonged infancy! My God, we need to come back to that in just a second. Among us, we will not tolerate babes in the woods because the woods are dangerous for babies, and we’ll talk about that in a minute. Small children who are easy marks for imposters or the enemy. God wants us—watch this—to grow up, to know the whole truth and tell it in love, like Christ in everything.
What area do you need to be like Christ in? In every area. What area do you need Christ to be modeled in your life—in your business, in how you talk to people, in how you love others, in how you forgive people? It’s got to be like Christ. That’s our example. Then it says to us, «We take our lead from Christ, who is the source—not a resource.» I have to stop there because many of you this week realized what you thought was your source is now drying up, and you’re waiting for a stimulus package to give you hope. But the one thing that you’ve got to understand is that $1,200 is not going to sustain you, but the God of the universe will. He’s Jehovah Jireh; He is my source. He is not my resource. He made birds feed Elijah when there was a famine in the land, and God is saying, «If famine comes, I’ll still provide for you.» «When famine comes, I’ll still be your God. In the middle of nothing, I can bring water out of rocks. I can provide manna from heaven.»
Somebody say, «I serve Jehovah Jireh!» Somebody needs to know that! I serve Jehovah Jireh! He says that «Christ is our source of everything we do. He keeps us in step with each other. His very breath and blood flow through us, nourishing us so that we will grow up healthy in God, robust in love.» That’s some good Bible right there. I don’t know what you like, but I like good Bible. I don’t even really have to preach, but I’ve got about 35 more minutes, so I’m going to go ahead and preach this today!
Now, I’ve never seen verse 14 before, and it messed me up. The Word said that if we’re going to be God’s ministers, if we’re going to answer the call, if we’re actually going to go into the spheres of influence that God has called us to go into, we cannot have prolonged infancy. The crazy thing is that most people in the Body of Christ, after they get saved, stay in the infancy of their salvation for decades. They stay in the place where they’re just trying to see, «Is this a sin or not? Can I Netflix and chill with them and still…»? They’re staying on the edge, and God is saying, «Would you live your life in the infancy of salvation, in the infancy of Christianity?» He said, «I don’t want my ministers to live in a place of prolonged infancy.» I don’t want any old babies! The problem is you think that your age means that you’ve matured, but you are an old Christian baby!
People need to understand that it’s time for us to mature. It made me think about this old song that I used to hear all the time, and it literally got stuck in my head. This may date me a little bit, but before Amazon and all the online shopping, if you were a kid and you wanted a toy, there was only one toy store you would go to. Does anybody know what it is? Come on, say it out loud: Toys R Us! You already knew! Toys R Us was the best! For all the young people that don’t understand what Toys R Us was—before Amazon killed all the big box stores—you used to go to this warehouse, like Walmart, but there was nothing there except every toy you’ve ever seen on Nickelodeon and Disney. You could play with them, you could try them out; it was like the free version of going to an amusement park. It was amazing!
And the thing I remember about Toys R Us the most is their theme song. This theme song had a very distinct melody, but the words were even more powerful, and it reminded me of this thing: «I don’t want to grow up; I just want to be a kid. 'Cause if I grew up, I couldn’t be a Toys R Us kid!» That reminded me of many believers who feel, «I don’t want to grow up; I don’t want to go to the next level. I don’t want to actually have to forgive those people who did me wrong. I want to stay in a place where I can throw tantrums when I don’t feel it. I want to be in a place where I can act like I’m not responsible when I break things.» Like some of you are breaking relationships, breaking trust, and then not wanting to take responsibility for it. God told me, «All that is, Michael, is prolonged infancy.» They’re trying to hold on to a season that I’ve already given them the power to grow out of, but they’re deciding, «I don’t want to grow up; I just want to be a kid. I don’t want to grow up; I don’t want to have to take responsibility. I don’t want to grow up; I don’t want to read my Bible. I don’t want to grow up; I don’t want to make time to pray.»
I’m preaching right now! «I don’t want to grow up; I just want to have my attitude and say, 'That’s just how I am.'» And God is saying, «If you’re going to be My minister, I can’t have you being a Toys R Us minister.» Matter of fact, that’s going to be the title of my message: «Toys R Us Ministers!» I want to make it very clear: God, in this hour, is not looking for us to stay in the place where He saved us. He’s looking for us to mature past that place so we can reach back and get other people who are in that place. But it’s hard to take somebody where you have not gone, and it’s hard to lead somebody to a place you’ve never dove into yourself. God is calling us to mature.
I know this is a heavy word, and I know some of you might not like that, but I want you to see both sides of it. Okay, let me ask you. I need interaction at home, watching on rebroadcast right now. How many people like promotion? Come on, hands up in the air! You like promotion! You like going to another level! I don’t know about you, but I love being in the coach seat and getting upgraded to first class! That stroll from a f/32 up to the front seat is like a gangster stroll. I don’t know what you’re talking about, but how y’all doing? How y’all doing? It’s like you go up there, and you’ve been upgraded. Everybody loves an upgrade; everybody loves a promotion, but they love the idea of it more than the responsibility that comes with it. Everybody wants to be a minister; they love the idea of that more than they love the responsibility of it. I think about moments when I was promoted, and I want to share some of those with you because we are a hot church—humble, open, and transparent.
I remember one of my greatest promotions was when I graduated high school. When I graduated high school, y’all, I shouted, I danced, I did everything—it was a promotion. I remember being in school, thinking that when I graduated, life would change. When I got out of high school, I realized that this promotion came with other responsibilities. That promotion from one level came with a whole new set of responsibilities that I had to take care of.
Let me tell you about another one of my promotions, one of the greatest promotions, second only to being saved, was when I married my wife, Natalie. Okay, this was my boo-boo; that was my upgrade, but I did not realize all of the responsibilities that would come with my greatest promotion. Let me share about another promotion I received when I became the lead pastor of Transformation Church. This was an amazing promotion, and when Bishop Gary handed me the baton, I didn’t know I was also taking on a whole bunch of responsibilities. I had to decide that I wasn’t going to be a Toys"R"Us minister. I was going to step into the calling and not just take a title but also take on the responsibilities at every level.
God requires more, and when you get more, that means you have to mature. That’s why I’m telling everybody right now: being in high school was harder than being out of high school; being married is harder than being single. Some of y’all right now are in this single phase, thinking, «I just want to be married.» Baby, listen to me. This is the last season of your life where you can dictate everything you do without considering someone else. You better enjoy your singleness. You better wake up at 10:00, take a two-hour shower, then go get your hair and nails done, then come back and read a book. You better do that right now because as soon as you get a wife, as soon as you get a husband, all that is out the window. As soon as you have kids, that gets cut in half again. What people don’t understand is that at the moment they want something, responsibility comes with every upgrade. That’s why I’m letting everybody know that at each level of promotion, there is a higher requirement to produce. Every time you get a raise, there’s another level of responsibility. For every elevation, there is a brand-new expectation.
Pastor Mike, what are you really trying to say? Write down my first point: being a minister demands maturity. If you’re going to do and be everything that God has called you to be, I’m begging you right now; I’m pleading with you. I want you to mature. Don’t be a Toys"R"Us minister. Don’t stay at a low level. Don’t prolong your infancy. Don’t avoid the issues in your marriage or the problems between you and your business partner just because you’re trying to keep everything comfortable. Adults mature; mature people face the problem. They don’t run from it; they don’t hide from it. We know that if we go through, everybody say «through,» if we go through this, we’re going to be stronger on the other side.
I want everybody to remember what the word God gave us for this year was: «stronger.» There’s no way you can get stronger by being immature. There’s no way, huh? There’s no way you can get stronger by avoiding conflict. There’s no way you can get stronger by saying, «I don’t need counseling. I’m going to work it out myself.» You only get stronger through it; you cannot get stronger around it. That’s why I want everybody in here to know that my only job is to prepare you to be the minister God has called you to be—in government, in the field that He has placed on your heart, in education, in the financial realm. He wants you to be a minister there, but maturity is required for you to be that minister.
So what are you saying, Pastor Mike? We have to be maturing ministers who don’t fight on Facebook about coronavirus. We’ve got to be maturing ministers that don’t cheat on our taxes. Our actions must change when we start maturing. You can’t be maturing ministers who make advances at people’s spouses because you’re not getting what you want at home. Uh-uh, I’m talking about real stuff, and I’m talking about things that happen in the church. You may think, «Oh, that doesn’t happen here.» I know it does. You have to be mature ministers that don’t talk down to your kids but instead speak to them with value and correct them. You don’t punish them; you discipline them.
You need to be maturing believers that don’t gossip and then, in the same week, try to have a word for the same person. We need to be maturing ministers that don’t hold grudges but can actually live in freedom. We need to be maturing ministers who aren’t scared to commit; instead, we’re just Netflix and chilling. You need to put a ring on it, bro. You need to know how to marry her. You need to be the one to commit to this thing. It’s time for you to mature. Stop being on baby food; stop drinking milk. It is time for you to mature.
You need to be a maturing minister who doesn’t run to substances for peace. You need to be a maturing minister who doesn’t just talk about God but actually spends time with Him. Somebody say that right now: «I have to mature.» Don’t click off this. This may be the word you were looking for to change everything in your life. Somebody say, «I have to mature.» That just hit some of you right now because a lot of times, pride is a trait of immaturity. Haha! Everyone who got defensive, you need to realize that literally, an immature person has pride rising up in them. But when you mature, you walk in meekness, and meekness is power under control. Meekness is being submitted.
When God reveals something to us in our hearts—and I know I’m coming hard at you, but I’m really trying to raise up an army—do y’all know the days we’re living in right now? Do you know how many people pass away each day? It’s time for the Church of Jesus Christ—not the organization, but the organisms—to stand and make a decision: I will mature. When you make that decision, God says, «Okay, we can make something happen.»
I gotta get stronger. I gotta move. I think about this story when I got my first car, and y’all know when you turn 16, you think about being grown when you get your own car and can go where you want when you want. You’ll say what you want, too. My parents are amazing people. When I was 17, they bought me and my older brother a car to share. He bought us a plum— not purple—a Chrysler Sebring with a tan ragtop, and I didn’t care that my car looked like Barney when I pulled up; nobody could tell me nothing, you hear me?
I remember vaguely that the day my dad got it, we were so excited he handed me the keys, and as I was running towards the car, he said, «Son, be responsible.» I was like, «Yeah, yeah, yeah, I’m a boss; be responsible.» But I didn’t really understand what that meant until I ran out of gas for the first time. When I ran out of gas, I called my dad because he was the one who provided the car for me. I said, «Dad, I ran out of gas.» He said, «Son, I said, 'Be responsible.'»
This was the moment I was going to mature. He said, «If you want to drive the car, you have to put gas in it.» Huh? No, I just thought I could drive the car. I thought I was just blessed. That was the moment when a maturing lesson happened for me that would guide me even today—the blessing always comes with the burden. Somebody needs to hear me say that right now; every level you’re praying for, every blessing you want, comes with a burden. I didn’t know it at that time, but that was the moment I decided to mature. It was the moment I transitioned from an adolescent who got rides everywhere to someone who would take on the responsibility and the burden as well as the blessing.
I know nobody is preaching this. I know nobody is talking about this, but if you’re going to really be the minister in the place that God has called you to be, you can’t shy away because there’s a burden with it. You have to step forward and say, «I’m mature enough for this. I’m responsible enough for this. I can change my life, my schedule, my attitude, my relationships to answer God’s call.» I’m going to take this blessing, but I’m also going to steward this burden.
What are you trying to say? All I’m trying to tell you is that if we’re going to mature, the blessing of being a minister comes with the burden of becoming mature. You’re going to have to change some of your conversations. You’re going to have to let some friends go that are good for your flesh but terrible for your faith. You’re going to have to decide what you’re watching on TV. What would happen if Pastor Mike Woods watched what you watched all week right before I started ministering to you? Would you trust that I had heard from the Lord after what you scrolled through, after the websites you visited, after the things you stayed up late at night watching? Would that be the thing you would want your minister to give you? Remember, I’m not the minister here; you are.
So at the time when we’re filling ourselves with stuff and then we go to the grocery store, and God says, «I was trying to use you right there,» but there’s so much stuff infiltrating your mind and heart that you can’t even see past it. He’s saying it’s time to mature; it’s time to walk worthy of the calling I’ve placed on your life.
I feel the presence of God right now, and I want everyone to hear me. I’m not saying you’re immature. Maybe you are. I’m not going to point that out; I’ll let you self-identify. Okay? So I’m going to talk about the difference in the next few minutes between being a Toys"R"Us minister—a Toys"R"Us minister who doesn’t want to grow up, who wants to stay comfortable—and someone who is a maturing minister.
My prayer is that every person watching this would, by faith, shift into maturity—not perfect but progressing—that you would take a step towards what God has placed you on this earth for. So look again at Ephesians chapter 4, verse 12. It says, «He handed out gifts: apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, teachers to train Christ’s followers or ministers in skilled servant work within Christ’s body, the church.»
Watch this: until we’re all moving rhythmically. Rhythm means everything is working together. You see, my body is moving; help me. Come on, clap. My body is moving right now at the rhythm that has been set. God says until the church starts moving in rhythm and easily with each other, efficient and graceful in your response to God—until we get this thing unified—you’re still not mature.
Do you know some of the greatest arguments my wife and I have had never came to a resolution until one of us decided to be more mature? At that moment, when one of us decided to mature, we came into unity. It didn’t matter if she was right; it didn’t matter if I was right. The goal was that in our household, we would be walking in unity. Much of the arguing that’s happening in the body of Christ, so many opinions floating around, is a trap of the enemy that tries to keep us divided.
That’s why in the garden, he did not approach Adam and Eve and tell them about the fruit; he only approached Eve. Because if he could get them out of unity for just one second, we could lose eternity in paradise because of division. God is saying if you’re going to be mature, unity has to be more important than you. Let me just tell you the point: if you’re a Toys «R» Us minister, this is what you value—you value being the only one. Yeah, I’m the only one that does it like this; this is me, this is how I am. And that’s what our culture is saying: everybody be yourself, do you; nobody has to agree with you. That is directly against the Word of God, which says there is a commanded blessing wherever there is unity.
The reason why many people’s marriages, businesses, and ideas often aren’t working is that you value being the only one. There’s like this badge you’re wearing, like it’s me against the world, and God says, where did you get that from? Jesus didn’t come with that attitude. If Jesus had come with the me-against-the-world mentality, he would have just gone around like, «I’m Jesus, the Son of the Living God. On April 12, I’m going to do something nobody has ever seen before; I’m going to die, I’m going to rise again, I’m going to heal people.» It wasn’t about him when he came; he was trying to take others on the journey. He was trying to bring unity so that when he was gone, they could carry the message further. What I’m saying is if you’re a Toys «R» Us minister, you value being the only one. But if you’re a maturing minister, you value being one, being unified.
That analogy of rhythmically working together came to mind because I’m a drummer. One of the things that we all are—what the Scripture says—is that we are many members of the same body. When I play the drums, I have to use all the members of my body; I have to use both of my hands and both of my feet. Now, what would happen if I sat down at this drum set and all of my body’s parts were not doing what they’re supposed to do together? This is doing something; this is doing something else. The crazy thing is this is what the church looks and sounds like because we’re all trying to do our own thing: «I want to be the one,» «I want to be the one,» «I want to be the one.» But God says, what would happen if you got into unity? Somebody shout at me, «Unity!» And you started working together. When you’re doing your thing, I’m supporting it; and when I’m doing my thing, you’re supporting it. Unity!
What I’m telling somebody is God is looking for his church to be in unity. God wants your marriage to be in unity. God wants your business to be in unity. God wants his church to function in unity. But if you don’t value being one whole, but you value being the only one, you’re still a Toys «R» Us minister. That’s why John 17:20 has Jesus talking and praying to God. Look at what he says: «I am praying.» Of all the things he could have prayed, look at what he prayed: «I am praying not only for these disciples, not only for the ministers, but also for all who will ever believe in me through their message.» So that’s everybody that’s watching. Look what he prays for us: «I pray that they will be one. I pray that they will be in unity just as you and I are one, as you are in me, Father, and I am in you. May they be in us.» So may all these ministers and everybody they reach be unified in us.
The reason? So that the world will believe you sent me. The only way people know that Jesus is who he said he is, is when people of different economic backgrounds, different ethnicities, and differing beliefs come together around the one name of Jesus and they say there’s no way they should be working together, but there’s unity there because Jesus is there. I’m asking you right now to grow up. I’m asking you right now to mature and to get off of this petty back and forth: «I’m right; I’m the one; we’re the only ones.» No, we want to be one. Somebody shout at me, «Unity!»
Okay, let me tell you another thing that I found. In Ephesians 4:12, it tells you the difference between the Toys «R» Us minister, who doesn’t want to grow up or mature, and a maturing minister. Listen: «Until we are moving regularly, rhythmically, and easily with each other, efficiently, gracefully responding to God’s son.» Look at this: «fully mature adults, fully developed, watch this, within and without.» See, I need everybody to understand that God is not trying to do just a work for people to see; he would like the work to start within and then be a product without. He wants it to be in you, and then he wants it to come from you. He wants it to be ignited, and then he wants you to export it. This is what God is saying: Toys «R» Us ministers value how it’s packaged—the outward appearance—and maturing ministers value what’s in the package. God wants you to be valuable on the inside and out.
I was thinking about Toys «R» Us, and one of the greatest things that they do at toy stores is package things well. This thing costs like $80, okay? I have two daughters, and the crazy thing about my daughters is they don’t pick out stuff based on what’s actually in it, how cheap it’s made, or what’s happening, because they are immature; they don’t know how much stuff costs. Because they are still at a smaller level of understanding, the only thing they pay attention to is the packaging when they walk around. «Oh, that looks nice! Oh, that could be cool!» I can’t tell you how many dollars I’ve wasted on things like this—no offense, Barbie—but things that cost a lot of money because they spent a good amount of money on the packaging. But as soon as we opened it up, it was in pieces; it wasn’t even put together. The least they could have done was make it for me!
What happens is we get into a bunch of relationships that look good on the outside, but they’re in pieces on the inside. We come in, and we try to figure out how it works, and then we have insignificant parts, and we end up losing pieces of ourselves because we’re not worried about the value of the contents on the inside as much as we’re worried about the packaging on the outside. God is saying that it is time for the church to mature to the place where they do not judge or prejudice based on who he’s using based solely on the outward package. Maybe they don’t have all the words right, and maybe they’re not as proficient, and maybe they don’t have the network. I didn’t come from anybody’s camp; I didn’t have anybody around me. All God said is, «Yes, all my dents and dings are still there,» but God says, «I’m doing a work on the inside of you.»
And I don’t know who I’m talking to right now, but you’ve been so worried about making sure your Instagram is popping and you’ve got your right friends and everybody sees the packaging right. God says, «I would rather you be more potent on the inside than just look good on the outside.» This right here is what I look like, and what many of you look like—the packaging doesn’t look like this; there are dents, rips, and scrapes. But when you spend time doing what God’s called you to do and actually being the minister, the content on the inside is much more valuable than what it looks like on the outside. This costs so much more than this, but it was put in a package that didn’t look like much. And I don’t know about you, but some of y’all were born into packages that didn’t look like much—families that didn’t look like much, education that didn’t look like much. The first five years of your marriage didn’t look like much. But God is saying, «If you let me work it out, I’ll pull something out of you that will be more valuable.»
These ministers who are Toys «R» Us ministers—immature ministers—they’re going to keep going for what looks good on the outside. But I’m looking for a group of ministers that say, «I might not have it all together, but I want God to do a work deep within me.» And someone said, «It’s within me, so it can come out of me!» Ah, I feel this right now! This is why it’s time for us as a church to move from external projection; it’s time for us to access real power. I’m going to say it again: nobody needs to know like Scripture prayers that don’t work. At this moment, nobody’s looking for somebody who prays but doesn’t even believe what they’re saying. Nobody’s looking for dry run daughters, and then the next day you’re freaking out about everything that’s happening. God is saying, «I want to give you real power, but that work has to be done by the Holy Spirit on the inside.»
And I just want to give you encouragement: this is not a new problem. Even back in Ephesians 4:14, no, it’s 2 Timothy—let’s go to 2 Timothy 3:5. It says, «They will act religious; they will act like they know me, but they will reject the power that I could actually give them that could make them godly.» And this is the warning that the word gives us: stay away from people who ain’t got no power. They may look good; they may project well, but if they haven’t got any real power, stay away from those types of people.
What I’m encouraging you to do right now during this time of quarantine, when the entire country and almost the whole world is shut down, is to make sure you come out of this time with more on the inside of you than what you’re showing. Forget about Instagram posts or Instagram lives; is there something coming alive on the inside of you? Is there something beginning to move? Are you stirring up the gifts that are inside of you? If you don’t use this time for that, you’re going to come out of this and still be the same age spiritually. You’re still going to be talking about, «I just can’t wait for the weekend!» Huh? You got weekends every day! Some of y’all didn’t even know it was Sunday today because you’ve just been at home every day; the days are just running together. You said, «What day is it again?»
God’s giving you a bunch of weekends, and you still aren’t maturing. And it says to stay away from these types of people. Do you know another group of people that he tells us to stay away from? It’s in that verse. 2 Timothy 3:14 says, «People who prolong their infancy.» We can’t have them among us. Why? Because Toys «R» Us ministers value playground companions.
See, when you’re immature, you only want to deal with people who are on the same level as you so you can keep playing those same childish games. Uh-uh! If you look at all of your friends, you’re trying to set up playdates to gossip. You’re trying to set up playdates with people who lower the standards just enough for y’all to do something illegal in business together—not that I’m advocating that—because both of you are on the same page, and you keep it together. You’re looking for playground companions. And God says, «If you’re going to be a minister, you’ve got to level up—some of those relationships, some of those people, and some of the ways you’ve been doing things.» That was kiddie stuff. I’m asking that you would grow up and mature and be able to represent me!
The reason you’ve got to get your taxes right now is because what I’m about to bless you with in 2021 will expose you. The level of money you’re going to make—the IRS is going to come check! So I need you to mature now when it’s barely enough to count, because of what I’m about to do! But you don’t want to do that. Some of you are exposed and you’re looking for all these playground companions. But God says a maturing minister is not looking for playground companions; they’re looking for take-ground companions—somebody that can walk with them and say, «Hey, do you see that over there? By faith, we’re about to take this ground!»
«Hey, do you see that? Right now, that thing is going to be healed! The Bible said we can speak to that thing. Y’all, we’ve got to take ground!» If you don’t have some people around you that will take ground with you, you need to find some new friends. That’s why I tell people, you’ve got to get in small groups; you’ve got to get in belonging groups; you’ve got to have community. Because until you get to a place where you’ve got somebody saying, «Come on, let’s take that! Let’s break that generational habit in our family!» That’s why you’ve got to marry somebody who’ll take ground with you. When I got the vision for this building, I only told about four or five people. I didn’t tell any playground companions. I only told people who had the faith to believe we could take this ground when it was impossible, when nobody believed it, when we didn’t have the money. I told my wife, I told my mom, I told Bri, and I told Bishop. And all of them said, «If it’s God’s will, let’s take it!»
And I’m standing on a stage right now because I had faith—a faith to believe with some people who had faith to believe with me. That’s why the Bible says iron sharpens iron, not plastic sharpens iron. If you’re iron and you’re around somebody who’s plastic—which is what most toys are made of—you end up damaging the plastic and dulling your own edges, the sharpness of the iron, and some people right now, are becoming dull because of who they’re rubbing up against; some of you are becoming damaged because of who you’re around. God is saying right now, it’s time to get off the playground, and it’s time to find somebody who will take ground. Somebody needs to shout hallelujah: no more prolonged infancy.
There’s a reason for it. It’s not just because we don’t want to be around those kinds of people; it’s because it tells us we can’t tolerate babes in the woods. If you took my two-year-old right now, who is unaware and immature in her perception, and you put her in the woods, that would be a dangerous place for her because she doesn’t have the maturity or understanding. We’ve got to keep babies out of the woods. That’s what’s happening in so many people’s lives. Small children are easy marks for imposters; they are easy targets for the devil. That’s why many of us go out into the world, into fields of influence, and we get eaten up and spit back out because we’re sending babes who don’t know the Word, who don’t have a conviction, who don’t have an anchor in Jesus, who do not have the maturity they need out into the music industry.
They went in saved, and they come out tough; they went in quoting scriptures, and now they’re cussing you out; they went in with a generous heart, and now they’re selfish. It’s because if you’re not mature enough to go into the woods where there are wolves, bears, and lions—oh my! You understand what I’m saying? If you don’t enter that space ready to fight, mature enough to understand the situations you’re walking into, you become an easy mark for the enemy. Many times, the church is full of people who went out too immature. They got a call from God to be a minister, but they didn’t take the time to mature, and so they went out and got hurt and scarred. Many of us, it’s been a lot of the leaders' faults because we haven’t equipped you for the type of work you’re supposed to do.
That’s why I’m preaching this series because I’m not the minister here; you’re the minister here. You have to come back and let me teach you the Word so that you can be prepared for the fight you’re going to face out there. I’m not going to send you into the woods or into the world, or into your business, or into government unprepared, not knowing the Word of God, because that’s the only thing that will allow you to withstand the attacks of the enemy. The crazy thing about it is Toys"R"Us ministers are easy targets, but maturing ministers are taking shots.
I’m tired of believers and ministers not maturing because when you mature, you know when to shoot your shot. When you mature and you understand what’s happening, God has spoken to you, and you know He tells you things like, «Be strong and courageous; that’s your land, possess that land.» When we went back to this building, and they were trying to show me other buildings to look at, I said, «No, no, no, no! God’s given me a word. I’ve spent time with Him; I’ve been in His presence. I’ve been holding on to this in crazy faith.» I told them, «Don’t show me any more Kmart’s; I don’t want any poles; don’t call me until it’s about this building.»
I’m about to shoot my shot! I’m not going to allow the enemy to make me back up; I’m going to advance the Kingdom of God. But you can only advance something you are confident in, and too many believers have not taken the time to mature. So when we get out into the world or in the woods, we’re an easy target. But I’m telling you, it’s time for us to mature! Somebody say, «I’m going to mature.» Something is building on the inside of you. Ephesians 4:14: «Then we will no longer be immature.» That same verse in the NLT says, «We will no longer be immature like children; we won’t be tossed and blown about by every wind of new teaching.» That’s where everybody’s at right now: we will not be influenced when people try to trick us with lies so clever they sound like the truth.
This is the problem: when you anchor your life in Jesus Christ and you mature in that, your anchor starts going down, and you won’t have to be tossed. Right now, every sailor understands the idea of an anchor; when a storm comes and it’s blowing and making everything move, you drop your anchor on something that can keep you standing. I don’t know about you, but some of us haven’t matured enough to actually have an anchor. So, we’re out on the boat looking good, cruising, but when the storm comes, we capsize because we don’t have anything—our God, anything that keeps us grounded. But I declare by the power of the Holy Spirit that this is the time when ministers are going to mature, and we’re going to drop our anchor on the Word of God! Coronavirus? Drop your anchor! Financial problems? Drop your anchor! People leaving? Drop your anchor! «We don’t have enough»? Drop your anchor!
And when you drop your anchor, it says that maturity will allow different teachings to come and go. People will try to trick you with schemes and gimmicks, but they will go. I’m telling you, this is why maturity is so important for every minister watching and hearing this because God is saying, «I want to take you out there, but I don’t want you to capsize. I want to use you for all those things I’ve shown you in your heart.» But if you don’t spend this time maturing, it’s going to damage you more than you’re going to reach destiny. Toys"R"us ministers value what sounds like the truth; maturing ministers value the only truth, which is the Word of God. I’m begging every person—statistically, it is said that social media usage has increased almost 50% since Corona has come into our world.
I’m just asking you to scale back what every other word is saying and get lost in the Word of God. Why, Pastor Mike? Because more information won’t mature you; only revelation will. People have told me things for years that I needed to do, but when God told me in His Word—when He showed me something that convicted me, when He gave me a revelation— that’s you, you’re acting in pride, or you’re walking in this or that. That revelation revealed truth; it transformed my life and made me mature. I keep talking about me and my wife because many of you are in situations where this is the most time you’ve spent with your spouse in years, and you’re asking, «Who did I marry? Oh my God!»
What I’m saying to you is that in this season, you need to stop fighting each other, and you need to ask God what He wants to change in you. Yeah, you all are now forced to be in each other’s space. Some of you, this is exactly what God needed you to have because you’ve been able to ignore what’s been festering in your relationship out of busyness. But God is trying to not just allow you to heal; He wants you to be whole. Remember, unity is the first point of this whole thing. When you mature, you want unity. Sometimes you’re going to communicate with your husband, wife, or children, and you’ll be able to say, «You know what, just talking to you is not going to change this. Convincing you about this is not going to change this.»
There have been many times I’ve been stubborn about something, and my wife said, «Michael, I don’t care what you say; I’m going to God about this.» She likes telling God on me. I promise you, I’ll be stuck in my ways. I’ll say I’m never changing, then two days later, the Holy Spirit will say, «Michael, you’re prideful; you’re doing the wrong thing, and I’m going to show you this in Scripture.» I’ll come back to my wife and say, «Baby, I’m so sorry; I didn’t want to be where you are; just hold me.» That’s what I do at that moment—not because she changed me, but when I hold on to not what sounds like the truth, but I hold on to the only truth, that’s the only thing that can mature me and make me change.
God is saying, «I want to send you; I want to send you to be my ministers in entertainment, in government, in education, in finance on Wall Street. I want to send you into the tech industry, but I can’t have Toys"R"Us ministers there; I can’t have immature ministers there; I have to have maturing ministers there.» That’s why, in verse 16, it says we take our lead from Christ, who is our example and is the source of everything we do. He keeps us in step with each other; His breath and His blood flow through us. This is the reason why we have to mature. Look at the end of the verse; it says it’s nurturing us so that we won’t grow up. Everybody shout at me, «Grow up!»
Come on, say «Grow up!» He doesn’t just want us to grow up; He wants us to grow up in a certain way, grow up healthy in God, robust in love. Let me give you my last point: Toys"R"Us ministers value staying the same; they say, «I don’t want to grow up; I just want to be a kid. I don’t want to grow up; I just want my anger. I don’t want to grow up; I just want to be an individual.» Whatever your immature statement is, God is saying, «That’s just exposing that you’re a Toys"R"Us minister.» But maturing ministers value growing up healthy, and today I’m asking everybody not just to accept the call to be the minister here, but also to accept the responsibility that comes with this race. Accept the promotion, and accept that it’s going to require change in your pride. I want everybody listening to me to mature.
How do we mature? By spending time with God, by cutting off distractions. Look what John 3:1-2 says: «Dear friend,» says John, «I hope all is well with you and that you are as healthy in body as you are strong in spirit.» What that means is your spirit health and your physical body should be equally strong. I know there are people right here who do a lot for their physical body, and their spirit man is scrawny and weak; there are a lot who do a lot for their spiritual body. I know people who can pray the heavens down but will die 20 years early from diabetes because they won’t ensure their soul is healthy and their body is healthy.
What God is saying for all of us is this: «I have big plans for my ministers. You’re going to be out in the world; you’re going to be changing stuff; you’re going to do things. But I need something from you: I need you not to think immaturely about this. We’re playing for the long haul. I want you to be effective for many years, so I need you to be physically healthy and spiritually healthy.» That means anything toxic, anything that is over-sugared, everything that my flesh loves, He’s saying that’s the thing that will keep you from doing everything I’ve called you to do. I’m looking for ministers who will accept the call to mature. I know this is a heavy word, but my greatest days of effectiveness are right in front of me because I’m deciding to put away childish things.
You know that scripture when it says, «When I was a child, I thought like a child, I spoke like a child, I interacted like a child. But when I matured, here’s the decision: I put away childish things.» Why do you put away childish things? So you can fulfill the call that is on your life. I want to pray for you right now—hands lifted all over. I don’t care if you’re in high school, middle school, a senior citizen, or a senior saint; I need you to know that the Word of God—this is not a sexy word, this is a transformative word. This is a word that, if it gets down in your heart and you stop doing the things a childlike minister would do. Would you put all of them up on the screen for me?
See, a Toys"R"us minister is one who only cares about how it’s packaged, the outside; they only care about and value the playground companions. What sounds like the truth and staying the same—God says, by faith, I want you to shift, and I want you to become a maturing minister that is more concerned about and values being one, being in unity, concerned about what’s in the package, not just what’s outside; concerned about and values taking ground companions—people that will have faith with you—and value the only truth, which is the Word of God, and values growing up healthy. God says, «I can take you into any sphere and use you.» Today, I want you to lift your hands because I’m about to pray that we would answer the call to mature in the name of Jesus.
Father God, I pray for every person listening and watching right now. I thank You that in this moment, You are moving in their hearts. Father God, somebody’s heart has been closed this whole time, but right now, a crack has just happened, and I’m thanking You now, in the name of Jesus, that they are going to become the ministers You called them to be. Your Word says that it is our duty and our honor to walk worthy of what You have called us to, so I am speaking to every distraction, I am speaking to all selfishness, and I am speaking, Father, to everything that has given us excuses. Father, by Your Son and in Your blood, we have been made new; all things have passed away, and today, Father, I thank You that we step in and own our calling as maturing ministers. We will no longer be tossed to and fro by what the news says, what Corona says, or what finances say, but we will drop our anchor on the Word of God.
I declare and believe, Father, that families are getting stronger right now, that singles are getting stronger right now, that businesses are getting stronger right now—not because of the work You’re doing on the outside, but because of the work You’re doing on the inside. We take God into our homes; we surrender to You on podcasts, we surrender to You while taking a walk, we surrender to You, God. We stop and say, mature us, God. Let us not be stuck in prolonged infancy, but today, make our marriages, our lives, and our perspectives mature. In You, we trust You, we believe You, and we thank You that this will not be by might nor by power, but the only way this can happen is by Your Spirit, God. So, we need You; we invite You in. In Jesus' name, Amen.
I declare and believe, Father, that families are getting stronger right now, that singles are getting stronger right now, that businesses are getting stronger right now—not because of the work You’re doing on the outside, but because of the work You’re doing on the inside. We take God into our homes; we surrender to You on podcasts, we surrender to You while taking a walk, we surrender to You, God. We stop and say, mature us, God. Let us not be stuck in prolonged infancy, but today, make our marriages, our lives, and our perspectives mature. In You, we trust You, we believe You, and we thank You that this will not be by might nor by power, but the only way this can happen is by Your Spirit, God. So, we need You; we invite You in. In Jesus' name, Amen.
Hey, listen everybody, just watch Him right there in the comfort of your home. If you have never invited the power source into your life, remember that some people act righteous but deny the power of God. Today, I want you to not just be a good person; I want you to invite the power of God into your life. It’s so simple. All you have to do is ask God, according to Romans 10:9, to come in, believe that He saved you and sent His Son, and repent. All that means is to turn; if I was going in one direction, I’m just turning, and God says He wants you to turn to Him today. All throughout this week, there will be people getting saved. At this moment, there are family members in the room with you right now and family members you sent this link to. That’s why it’s so important to share what God is doing, because this is the thing that can change somebody’s eternity. Today, I want to pray for you.
If you are saying, «Pastor, I no longer want to be in control of my life. I no longer want to be the one controlling everything that’s happening, and I want the God of the universe to get into the details of my life.» If you want to pray this prayer with all of us, I want you to just slip your hand in the air real quick. It doesn’t matter if anyone is standing next to you; it doesn’t matter who’s around. Just slip your hand in the air, even if you’re in the room by yourself; you could put it down. God saw that. It doesn’t matter if anybody else sees it.
See, this is the greatest decision you could ever make. It’s a decision that took me from being a liar, a manipulator, one who was addicted to pornography, with a lot of darkness in my heart. I was doing things wrong, I cheated on my wife before we got married, causing all this pain. God took all of that, and when I made this decision for real—not for outward appearance, but so God could do an inward work on me—it didn’t make me perfect, but boy, I started progressing, and that is the promise I give you today. Through this pandemic we’re walking through, God says you’ll never walk alone; I’ll go through it with you.
Today, I want to let you know that you just made the greatest decision of your life. Transformation Church, all over the world, we’re about to pray this prayer together, and I want you to know that this is when heaven rejoices. This is when people start their journey to becoming the ministers. Who’s the minister here? The people who are about to give God their life. Come on, all over this world, let’s pray this prayer together out loud. I want everybody to say:
God, thank you for sending your Son, Jesus, just for me. Today, I relinquish control; I give it to you. I believe you lived, you died, and you rose again just for me. Today, I make you my Lord and Savior. Change me, renew me, transform me. I’m yours. In Jesus' name, Amen.