Michael Todd - Attraction 2 Satisfaction
I’m ready; let’s go! All right, all right, all right, all right, all right, all right. I don’t know how long you all have, but nothing else is happening today, so I’m going to give you all of this message, okay? I’m going to give you everything that I have. If you need to go and do something, just go, and you can hit it on the rebroadcast. Today, I believe that I have a word that is going to help you in your relationships. So, today, we are starting week seven of a series we’re calling «Relationship Goals Reloaded.»
Help me! Okay, now some of you are like, «Pastor, wait, this is week seven.» Well, what you need to realize is that, in the middle of this series, we took a necessary break to address racism, inequality, and what that looks like. I want you to know that we will always be led by the Spirit. Our plan at Transformation Church is Plan B. If God wants us to address something or speak about something, we’re going to do that every single time. I believe that all those messages were very necessary; they are needed and anointed to help transform and change our world. However, I still could not shake the burden that God had given me to finish what He had given me for «Relationship Goals.»
So, for the next four weeks, I’m going to complete my assignment. Some of us right now, I’m preaching already, are so thrown off by the things going on in life that we think it negates our assignment. God is saying that even though everything is in turmoil and things have changed, the assignment is still the same. Everything can change, but the assignment remains unchanged.
As for anybody who has been a part of Transformation Church for over a year, you know that every July is Fun Month at Transformation Church; we have all kinds of themes and usually host guest speakers. This is because, in July, my wife, Pastor Natalie, and I always take that month off to recharge and rejuvenate. The original «Relationship Goals» series came out of a sabbatical; the «Crazy Faith» series came out of a sabbatical. When I can rest, recharge, spend time with the Lord and my family, it gives me more burdens, and God is able to download more. But I moved all of that back to August because I’m finishing the assignment.
So, in July, for these next four weeks, I’m telling everyone right now that every one of these messages is coming for all of us so that we can be more like Christ and win in our relationships. Somebody say, «I’m going to win in relationships!» A lot of people look at this «Relationship Goals» series, and they may have been married for 50 years, or they may not want a relationship, so they say this series is not for them. But anyone who’s plugged in knows this is not just about romantic relationships; it’s about the relationships you’re going to have with your kids and grandkids, your relationships with business partners and CEOs of companies. These are relationships you’re going to have with the clerk at your local Kwik Trip or the relationships you have with people in church. God wants you to win in all of your relationships.
But without revelation in our relationships, we usually resort to what we know. Let’s just be honest: most of us don’t know much about relationships. We look at our parents and how they did relationships, the family dynamics, the things that have happened to us and hurt us in the past and even in the present. It’s time for us to go back to God’s Word and see what it says about relationships. So, today, I’m going to take a step further in this series, and I believe this message is strategically for every person watching this right now. You’re going to share this with someone afterward because it’s something that everyone is dealing with and nobody is talking about.
See, that’s my job today: to bring this to the church—not to social media, not to Instagram, not to a small group of people I trust. I, as a pastor, have to stand here and talk about things in the church that are a little unclear. But I must address these things because if we don’t talk about them, then who gets to define the narrative? The culture does, and they don’t know about what they didn’t create; they can only assume, and it leaves all of us looking like the first three letters of that word.
What I’m telling you today is that we’re going to go to God’s Word. People keep asking me, «Okay, Mike, I hear you talk about relationships and all that, but how much does—watch this word—attraction have to do with relationships?» Today, I want to talk about attraction. I want to address this word because a lot of people don’t realize how much it controls their actions. Attraction is controlling so many of our actions and reactions, and today I want us to get a better handle on what’s happening with this word attraction.
Let me tell you what attraction means, and I want you to write this down: attraction is the power of evoking interest. Mmm, I like that! Ooh, that’s nice! Mmm, that would look good on me! Evoking interest, pleasure, or liking for someone or something. I’ve been talking to many people, counseling a lot of them, listening to DMs in the comments, and people have placed this massive weight and worth on attraction. I’m not saying it’s bad; I’m not saying it’s wrong; I’m not saying it’s not important. I wholeheartedly believe attraction is important. However, I do not think it may be as important as some of us have been making it out to be.
Now, before you tune out and hit me with, «I don’t know what he’s talking about; they have to look fine because if I can’t look at them, then I’m not going to bother,» whatever you’re feeling right now, give me the next 30 to 40 minutes to break down how much attraction is sometimes controlling what we want to do and what we don’t want to do. How much value are we putting on this feeling that we have? It’s placing us in situations that are not the goal.
See, many of us have a goal. We put it out on our vision boards, we wrote it down in our journals, we do all sorts of things, and then we get attracted to things. We get attracted to things that we never knew were there. Let’s be honest; have you ever gone to a restaurant and then you see something on the menu and think, «I didn’t know they had triple-dipped cheese fries with onions and bacon»? You didn’t even know it was there! I didn’t even know this was an option. That’s what the enemy’s plan is for you: to present you with options you didn’t even know were there, to put things in front of you that you’re not clear about and didn’t even have a desire for before. What happens is that because we don’t know how to deal with attraction, it usually ends up in subtraction.
Because we don’t know what to do with this actual feeling we have, this actual desire, this actual inclination, we give into it so willingly because we feel it. Fast-forward through our lives, and we realize that was the moment we did it, but this is what it cost us. That was the moment we were attracted to it, and that was the moment it subtracted from us. Today, I need you to realize that God wants you to know what to do with the attraction and do His Word. Today, I’m going to help you.
What I’ve found out in my own life is that everything I’m attracted to is not good for me or good to me. It’s one of those things I’m finding out daily because, you know, your pastor has been very open. I’m on this healthy lifestyle journey, trying to lose weight and all that, and it sucks. It’s up and down; some days I feel great and drink my whole gallon of water, and then other days it’s like a gallon of junk. I just want to be transparent with you.
But do you know there are some things hindering my goal of getting to where I want to be in my health journey? One of those things is little kids' birthdays. Do you know why I’m frustrated right now? I’ve got to vent to you all. Little kids' birthdays bother me because there’s free pizza and my weakness—cake! It’s cake everywhere: vanilla cake, chocolate cake, cake everywhere! At the end of the party, they’re always looking for someone to take the cake home, and I don’t know why I’m always around when they ask, «Do you want the cake?» I’m like, «Yes, but no.» Yes, I want to eat the cake because I’m attracted to it—the sprinkles, the whipped icing, the strawberries. Am I the only one? You’re going to leave me out here like this? There’s just cake!
I have a goal, but I’m attracted to the cake. Now, you may be laughing at me for talking about cake, and it may not be your exact situation, but there are things you’re attracted to that go against the goals you’ve set for your life. It goes against the goals God has already charted for your purpose, and I’m frustrated about it.
You know something else that’s distracting me from my goals? My wife! I’m coming for you, Madam! My wife and I set up a plan to save a certain amount of money to be able to invest in things for the house, for the kids, and for our future. She’s like, «Hey, can I go get,» and undoubtedly, every time we walk into the store, Natalie—who’s a country girl, doesn’t know name brands—just picks what she likes. And for some reason, everything she likes is the most expensive version of whatever it is! We walk into any store, and she says, «I like that one,» and it’s, «That’s seven million dollars!»
The goal is to save and invest, but because of her attraction, there are things that are going against that goal. I’m using fun analogies right now, but I want to ask you: what are you attracted to? And the second question is—why are you attracted to it? These are questions that most people never sit down and actually ask themselves.
Now, you hear me up here talking about my weakness for cake, and you’re just going to put what I’m attracted to right in front of me? You’re going to bring up this beautiful, sprinkle-infested thing? I need to investigate more because there’s not enough information here! It’s taking me off course of what I’m supposed to be doing right now, but it’s so attractive.
But no! I have a mission; I’m going to finish my assignment! You get behind me, Satan! I’m an overcomer! I’m not going to let this distract me. But, oh man, I didn’t eat breakfast this morning, and I’ve been doing so well all week. I’ve been eating nothing attractive—I’ve been eating salad all week. I feel like I deserve to indulge in this thing that will keep me from the goal. It’ll only be a moment; nobody would know if you all weren’t here. But no! I’m going to stay focused! I’m going to stay focused! Okay, my attraction to cake is robbing me of my goals. Can you fill in the blank there? My attraction to _________ is robbing me of my relationship goals.
Now, there are many things we can put in that blank. If you’re honest, for some of you, it’s a person. «My attraction to Jerome is robbing me of my relationship goals.» Girl, you don’t understand; he’s good to me! I mean, he buys me things; I mean, he looks good in my Instagram photos! Your attraction to Jerome is robbing you of your relationship goals! Your attraction to money is robbing you of your goals. Now, you may have all the money in the world, but your wife doesn’t like you because you’re never there to spend time with the family.
Your attraction to success is robbing you of your real relationship goals! I’m preaching already, and I know it’s quiet around your house because you’re watching me on something you felt was more important to buy than spend time with your family. Your attraction to toys, cars, and people’s approval is robbing you of your real relationship goals. It’s the same thing with the cake! If my goal is to live healthily and walk correctly and be here long-term, I’m not saying cake is bad; I’m just saying I don’t need cake!
What we try to do is generalize everybody’s journey. We try to say, «Well, everybody needs to eat cake!» Listen, some people might need that cake because they have low blood sugar. But my journey is not your journey! So, if God is telling me I can’t eat cake, it doesn’t matter if it’s a birthday party for me; it doesn’t matter if you «I bought it with good intentions». It doesn’t matter if it used to be my favorite; what you need to recognize is that this is no longer what I need. However, I’m still attracted to it, so what do I do when it’s still appealing? There’s legitimate attraction here. What I found is that attraction is often a thief of full satisfaction. What I’m attracted to will ultimately steal what I really want. I’ve been observing this because the enemy tries to sell you the lie that there’s a straight line from attraction to satisfaction: «I’m attracted to it, so it’s going to satisfy me.»
I’m attracted to that woman, so I’m going to have sex with her; it’ll satisfy me. I’m attracted to that business or that success, so I’m going to start this business. We think it’s a straight line, but this is the enemy’s trick, and I’m exposing him today. Everything you’re attracted to does not lead to satisfaction. It may provide momentary pleasure, but what it’s doing is pulling me away from the real goal. It’s causing problems that I will have to deal with later. It creates a bunch of issues that will have to come out. This is what some of our relationships look like right now. This is what we’re approaching the altar for every week to get prayer for: things we were attracted to that we indulged in, and then we had to get rid of somehow. Some of you are constipated with all of your attractions. Let me stop. That’s the enemy’s greatest lie: that what he thinks you want will actually satisfy you.
Remember, he even tried to do it to Jesus. If he tempted Jesus, he’s certainly going to try it with you. Remember when he tempted Him in the desert? He said, «Hey, if you do this, I’ll give you what will satisfy you.» Now, y’all don’t have to bring out the chocolate cake. Black lives matter, and so does this chocolate cake! Oh, and it’s got Reese’s on top of it. Now, I have what promises satisfaction in one hand and what promises satisfaction in the other. What it’s doing to me in this moment is distracting me from my assignment. I don’t know what’s going on in your life, but it may look like this: there’s something that looks satisfying on one hand, and something else looks satisfying on the other. What it’s currently doing to you is distracting you from what will bring full satisfaction: doing what God’s called you to do, being in the middle of purpose, and living a life that is not robbed by this idea but full of what Jesus has called you to do.
This is why I need to give you my second point: attraction is often a distraction. I know this seems elementary, but what this is is your life. What is happening right now is the distractions of being friends with those people, the distractions of making more connections, being popular, and having Instagram followers. These all started as attractions. We saw it with someone; we saw it somewhere. The house you want—how do you even know the house is right? Except that you were attracted to it. You thought that maybe if you had it, it would make you into someone better. God says many of our attractions—not all of them, but many—are distractions. My question to you is: what are you doing right now that you feel will satisfy you but has disappointed you at every step of the way?
Some of you are in careers, relationships, and marriages, starting blogs and businesses you don’t even like. Somebody showed you an image that you thought would satisfy you. You are jumping from bed to bed with guy after guy, girl after girl, searching for something that will never happen. I have to speak to you because, at the moment when many people think it’s fine to just hook up with everyone to see what it gets you, what it’s doing is creating an appetite. See, your attractions, if indulged, will create an appetite that will never be fulfilled. Then you’ll get the thing that could have fulfilled it, but because you tasted everything else, now you have an appetite for something that was never meant to be there. I have to stop because this isn’t my message, but it’s making you look at Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, and your cousin and your coworker. It’s distracting you from what you’re supposed to be doing.
I’m not saying attraction isn’t real; I’m just saying attraction is relative. I’ve seen people like this before. The same people who are like, «Save the animals!» are wearing leather. Some of y’all didn’t get it, but you can’t make leather without killing animals. So, what they do is they’re attracted to the idea of saving the animals, but they’re also attracted to their leather jackets. That’s why we can’t listen to our attractions and make them the truth. Because if our attractions become the truth, then we follow our feelings, and our feelings can contradict each other.
That’s how you can be attracted to the bad guy who mistreats you. I’m not trying to make light of this; I’m showing that we follow our attractions and can end up in something that is daily subtracting from us because we listen to, «Well, he could be good. He could be better, and he takes care of his kids,» but he hits you. Maybe he doesn’t physically hit you, but every time he opens his mouth, he verbally backhands you. He’s taking away your worth, your dreams, and your purpose. He’s doing this, and your attraction has lied to you. You’ve been on stage performing in a role you don’t even want to play because you believed the lie that the attraction would bring you satisfaction.
Okay, how am I going to help these people? Here’s the important point: attraction is about impulse; full satisfaction is about input. I’ll say it again: attraction is about impulse. «Oh, they brought the cake; I need to eat it.» It’s about the impulse of it. But if you want full satisfaction, it comes from input, from what you put in. It’s harder right now to resist my attraction and put input into my decision. My attraction can come, but my decision needs to win. My attraction to cake can be there, but my decision to eat healthily has to win. My attraction to another woman can come, but I’ll never say every woman became unattractive when I married Natalie.
Let me clarify: every man didn’t just become unattractive to me when I married Natalie. There are men I see, and I’m like, «Wow, he looks great.» But that doesn’t mean anything will happen. My attraction can be real and valid, but my decision to be faithful and committed has to win. My attraction to waste time can be real, but my decision to dedicate time to my word, to pray, to show love and worship—my decisions have to win. The problem is, many times, our attractions win over our decisions. Some of you are in cities right now because you were attracted to the idea of living in LA or Miami or New York, thinking, «That’s the city I just feel alive in.» I’m sorry to tell you; your family didn’t tell you, but the struggle you’ve been experiencing wherever you are is because the idea was an attraction, but it’s not bringing you satisfaction because it didn’t align with God’s purpose for your life.
Today, it’s time for somebody to make a decision. Somebody say, «I’m about to make a decision!» Why do you keep doing this? There are these little French cookies—what do they call them? Macaroons! Oh yeah, macaroons! It’s everywhere I turn; there’s something I’m attracted to. If God was good, He wouldn’t even allow temptation to exist. If He knows my downfalls, why would He allow me to be in these situations? Our reactions to attraction often stem from impulse. We’re hungry and run to things that won’t satisfy us. Let me say: hunger is real, and where you go to fill that hunger matters. Yes, you want to be loved, significant, and have purpose; the hunger is real. But the place of satisfaction is temporary. That’s why you can keep going to alcohol and pills; you can keep people-pleasing and running to everything. But until you come to Jesus: there was a woman at a well who said, «Hey, I’m thirsty,» and He replied, «If you drink of the right thing, you will never be thirsty again.»
I don’t know who I’m talking to right now, but some of you have been thirsty. Some of you have been hungry, and you’ve been going to things that look good to satisfy you. But after you try them, just a little later, you’re still going to be hungry. That’s the message. Just in case anyone’s taking notes, I’ll title it «Attraction to Satisfaction.»
And I know some of y’all, if they haven’t tuned out by now, are like, «Where’s the Bible? Where’s the Word?» I wanted to give you most of my points and then show you in the Bible, in a clear and succinct way, how this idea of attraction subtracted from someone’s life—someone God used, someone who walked with God, someone who did great things. So I want you to learn this: we’re talking about David today. Now I know, some of y’all got really excited, but I’m not talking about the David who slayed Goliath. I’m not talking about the one who played the harp. No, I’m talking about the darker side of David. In every story, everyone can be a David; «I beat Goliath! I’m the king! I’m on the run from my enemies. Everybody hates me, but I could have taken him out, but I didn’t.» Everybody can be that David, but I want to talk about the moment when David followed his attraction.
This is good; I love the Bible. In 2 Samuel chapter 11, it says, «In the spring of the year, when Kings normally go out to war,» he’s a king now, and all his men are winning victories—David! They’re not just singing songs about him; they’re making albums! And it says, «In the spring of the year, when the kings normally go out to war, David sent someone else: Joab and the Israelite army to fight the Ammonites. They destroyed the Ammonite army and laid siege to the city of Rabbah. However, David stayed behind in Jerusalem.»
One afternoon, at midday, he woke up from a nap—he had a good nap. David got out of bed, went out to the courtyard, and saw a woman bathing. As he looked out over the city, he noticed a woman of unusual beauty taking a bath. Oh Lord, you are marvelous and worthy in all your works; there’s nobody like you! Look at what God has done! He looked out over the city and saw her! «Go get her!» he said. He sent someone to find out who she was, and he was told, «She’s Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam and the wife of Uriah the Hittite,» then David sent messengers to get her, and when she came to the palace, he skipped dinner and slept with her.
Now, if you want to see someone be attracted to something, here it is. He was in a place he wasn’t supposed to be in because he decided to stay when he was supposed to go, and he noticed something he was never meant to even notice. Because he was attracted to it, his attraction made him feel that this attraction could lead to satisfaction. But let me help you. Write this point down because we need to find out what, oh man, oh man brought up the white strawberry jump-off. Autumn hidden with the little strawberry curlicues—I don’t even know what these are. Are these edible? Oh, y’all, such a multi-ethnic cake bringer, outers got the browns and the whites, and the, I don’t know—it’s going to be hard to finish what I’ve been called to do if I keep looking at what I’m attracted to. It’s going to be hard to finish what I was called to do if I keep paying attention to what I’m attracted to.
Write this point down because I need to see what happened to David because David walked with God. He didn’t sing worship songs; he hadn’t done all this other stuff. How in the world does he fall into temptation due to his attractions? Look at it: in the spring of the year, when kings normally go to war, he had a purpose; he had something he was supposed to be doing. He decided to send somebody else to fight, and that’s what’s happening to so many of us in the middle of this pandemic. «I don’t feel like it. I did it in another season. I don’t know if it’s going to work right now, so I’m going to send somebody else to fight for my kids. I’m going to send somebody else to fight for my marriage. I’m going to send somebody else to fight for my purity.»
I’m going to send somebody else. But God is saying it’s time for you to arise and get back in the fight. It’s time for you not to be sitting here saying, «Well, enough of the victories; maybe God’s trying to do something else.» It’s time for you to stand up and say, «I know I don’t feel like it, but I’m not paying attention to my feelings. I’ve got to stand up and fight. I’m going to fight for my purpose. I’m going to fight for my business. I’m going to fight for this church. I’m going to fight for my relationship goals.» Somebody type in the chat, «I’m going to fight.»
None of David’s attractions would have even been able to be seen if he would have fought. The thing that I want somebody to understand is that what God’s given you is worth fighting for—the marriage that He’s given you, the kids that He’s given you, the purpose that He’s given you. And no, it hasn’t come to pass, and nobody’s seen it again, but it’s worth fighting for. And it’s in the season where you’re not in action. Let me just put it in a point: it said David stayed. My question to you is, where are you staying that you need to be leaving? Where are you staying right now? Some of y’all are literally staying with somebody you need to leave. That ain’t your husband; that ain’t your wife, and you surround yourself and sleep with your attraction, but it’s going to be subtraction.
And let me stop. Okay, but where are you? Where are you staying that you need to be leaving? David’s whole problem came because he did not want to fight, so he stayed instead of leaving. And that’s why destruction is always an option of inaction. When you are not in action, distraction is always available. That’s why I keep telling people in this time, what should we be doing during quarantine? Everything God said for you to do—start the business, write the business plan, go visit your parents every day—do whatever God’s told you to do. Not because I’m trying to be good and get some award and check off this list and be super productive; it’s because I know that when I’m not in action, destruction is just there.
Every time I make a foolish decision, it was when I was not doing fully what God told me to do. Every time I cheated on Pastor Natalie before we got married, every time I looked at pornography, every time I was doing all these things, it was a result of inaction. When I was supposed to be in war doing something, when I was supposed to be praying for somebody else, when I was supposed to be a leader of a small group, when I was supposed to stand and do the business, I was inactive, talking about my insecurities and what I didn’t have and the team I didn’t have and what I couldn’t do and what I didn’t have the education for. And at the moment that I was inactive, distraction. Well, I wish somebody would have told me, «Michael, stay productive. Michael, stay in your word.»
How does a young man or a young woman keep their way pure? Psalms 119 says by hiding himself actively in the Word of God, and all the distractions I was praying God to deliver me from would have never happened if I would have stayed interactive with Him. I’m preaching to God! I take this jacket off, somebody take that. I got it, whoa! Listen to what I’m saying to you right now. Verse 2 says late one afternoon after his midday rest David got out of bed. He was walking on the rooftop. He looked out over the city, and underline this: he noticed. Notice is not an overt, like demonstrative, like aggressive word. Noticed is casual, noticed is passive.
So it’s not like I got to be on the website looking at images and things that are not good for me. I could be on another website and notice an ad. I can be on Instagram and notice somebody thirst-trapping in their bathing suit reading the Bible. Watch who reads the Bible like that; y’all know I’m telling the truth. So it wasn’t like I got up this morning and said, «I’m going to be distracted today.» It wasn’t like I got up this morning and said, «I’m going to emotionally cheat on my wife today.» It wasn’t like I got up this morning and said, «I’m going to eat what cake you brought. Another cake? Oh, I want to eat. Oh, I want to hold you. I want to spend time with you. I want to caress you. I’ll be back.»
I didn’t plan to be in this situation, but now everywhere I look, I’m noticing. No, you didn’t, no you didn’t bring the cookies and cream. You know the cookies and cream? You know, «God, I won’t eat it. I’ll just get real close to it and smell it. God, I promise I won’t sleep with them; we’ll just dry-hump. God, I promise I won’t steal from the business; I just won’t report all of the money we made. I’m going to just try to get close enough to it to where I can stay faithful to you and give in to my flesh. God, is there a way I can do this Christian walk and stay faithful to you and give in to my flesh?» Y’all know that’s what our whole culture is trying to figure out right now: can I still give God His and get mine? And that’s why the Christian faith is so powerless right now—it’s because we’ve got a lot of lukewarm believers.
You’re walking out here telling everybody, «For God, I live; for God, I die,» and then if you catch you at the wrong moment, you just cuss everybody out and do whatever feels right. You pay attention to what you’re attracted to instead of who was attracted to you first. See, this whole thing about Jesus and salvation was not that we even looked attractive. It said while we were yet sinners, while we were yet ingredients, not even put together yet, while we were yet broken, He said He was attracted to us. Feel the presence of God. He loves you so much in your dirty state, in your nasty state, in your broken state, that He said, «I see a masterpiece.» They see a lot of broken pieces, but I see something put together and stirred up with me in the middle of it, and I see them reaching purpose. I see all of that! But oh no, they’re attracted to other things.
So what I have to do now is prove my love to them by sending them to TC today to let them know that, yeah, there are other things around that are attractive, but you need to notice God’s love for you more than anything. And I know that’s easier said than done because David knew God. David had walked with God. He had written some of the most beautiful songs to God in worship in songs. But what happened to David could happen to us if we are not aware. Remember I said David noticed. Everybody say noticed. At the moment you noticed, many times you need to say no. It needs to be no at the notice. It needs to be, when you saw the little thing pop up, leave the website. No, like I can’t even allow it, because what you try to do is get prideful and be like, «That doesn’t even affect me.»
Nothing affects me! I’m not even attracted to people who look like that that much. Today at 5:00, but at the notice, you need to say no. After notice, we’re going to say, «See, the attraction is okay if you at the notice say no.» The problem that David had and the problem we have many times is that with the notice, we wanted to say, «Let me know who that is! Send for her. Let me see where this website leads us. Let me look if they’ve got any other pictures like this. Let me see how far we can go in business with these people and see if I can still keep my integrity.» And God says at the notice, it needs to be no. If it has to notice, it’s I want to know, your attraction could be leading you to subtraction.
That’s what happened to David, because this is the key to all of this, and I’m going to have to pick up part two next week. Is it okay if we come back next week and do some more of this? Okay, the reason is, you have to understand this: David never talked to Bathsheba before he wanted and sent for her. It wasn’t like he had a conversation with her; he saw her, and in his mind, he was attracted. He thought it would bring him satisfaction, and so he wanted interaction. I want you to know what breaks the chain; attraction is only activated by attention. The attraction is natural; it’s neutral. But my attention is a choice, and this is where people act like they don’t have control, and you have full control. You act like, «Why was I just attracted to it? I was just led there. I just didn’t know what happened.»
They don’t just end it up, and the only reason that I know where to go is because my attention is on it. The only reason I know which cake to go to, which thing I’m attracted to is because I’m steady giving it attention. My question to you is, what are you giving your attention to that you know you’re attracted to that’s going to end up subtracting from your real relationship goal at the end of the day? I know it’s quiet in your house because it was quiet in my house when God began to give this to me, because attraction is what I see, what I think.
But look what the Bible says. Because attraction, I need everybody to hear me say this: attraction’s not bad. Attraction is not true, but what you give your attention to will determine what type of attraction this will be. It’s just like money. You give money to somebody who’s feeding children in Africa, and that money is going to be used for good. That same money given to an illegal drug dealer, it’s going to be that same money; the money’s neutral. It’s whatever you give the attention to; it’s going to produce the results. Okay? That’s why God says in Matthew 6:22—this is Jesus—He said, «Your eye is like a lamp that provides light for your whole body. When your eye is healthy, your whole body is filled with light.»
Oh, I love the Bible! «But when your eye is unhealthy, when you notice things you’re not supposed to notice and want to know more about them, your whole body is filled with darkness. And if the light—oh this is gangster—Jesus! And if the light you think you have is actually darkness, how deep that darkness is!» Like some of us are walking around like, «I mean, it’s not that bad, though. It’s just occasionally,» and God says, «When you get into that occasionally notice and you get into those things that you’re trying to—» He says that’s a darkness that nobody knows how deep it goes. If I’m honest, nobody knows how dark these thoughts have gotten before.
Nobody knows how the images of pornography warped how I saw all women. There was no end to that depth until I got a Savior, until there was a lifeline thrown down and said, «You can make a decision to grab this.» And my lifeline has a name, and His name is Jesus. And when Jesus stood on that lifeline, I feel the presence of God. He said, «You’re not going to be perfect, but I can help you progress. Now, I can help you. I’ll send the Holy Spirit to help put you on the things that your attention needs to be on, so that your attraction to certain things becomes less.» Because once you see the results of your attention being on me, he said, then maybe you’ll be able to weather the storm of attraction more. I know many of you want to achieve your relationship goals, but your attraction is taking all of your attention, and you’re saying, «God, if you would just remove the distractions, I’d be okay.» And God says, «If you would just give me your attention, you’d be okay.»
What? No! There is nothing that I love more than cake and ice cream. I’ve been up here for 40 minutes staying focused on my assignment with all of these attractions around me, but when you bring both of these up here together, I don’t know how much more I can take. That’s vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry. That looks like an equal-opportunity cake with sprinkles. They decorated this one. I’m hungry. What do these little cookies call? Macarons? No, that’s wrong, but I got it wrong. It’s just one time. It has all my attention. I’ve been attracted to it, but it had no power until I gave it my attention. I’ve been attracted to it since I saw it, but now I want to interact with it because it has my attention.
And if I’m going to do it, I’m going to do it. I don’t want just a little bit. This is how the enemy tricks you. If I’m going to do it, and it’s just going to be this one time, I might as well. If I’m going to miss the mark, if I’m going to sin, if I’m going to hook up with this person, if I’m going to cheat, I might as well go big: Yolo! Oh my God, that feels so good in the moment. I’m not even worried about what’s going to happen tomorrow. Now this appetite—I didn’t know that it was going to feel so good right now. It’s making me think I’ll keep coming back to you, but then I’ll try something else too.
Well, I like the darkness that makes a room. I made room for the other room. Matter of fact, it has my attention. I no longer care about what my assignment was. Ain’t nobody going to see—Hallelujah! Come on, drugstore trucks, let’s leave! Hey, Lou, yeah, come on, let’s lift. Come on, everybody at home, let’s lift our hands and worship God like nobody can see. We want to lead and pray for other people and bring them in. Then what do we do? We come to the altar: «Lord, make me over. Do a fresh work in me. Do a new work, more of your Spirit, Lord. Let me play my best praise and worship setlist all week.» But you’re not accountable to anybody, and nobody even knew you were struggling with that for real. They only saw the outcome of it, but they didn’t know the details of it.
So what do you do in a moment of attraction? It’s got the Reese’s on it. I’m not going to eat the cake this time, yes—the Reese’s. There’s a reason it tastes like that. You know what? God has given me a word today, just for you. He wants us to clean up the mess in America. He wants us to be united. Church, we see you. We see that you don’t have anyone on your staff that is ethnically diverse. We see that nobody comes to your kids' birthday parties that are not white or not black. We see the cake is on your face, and it’s because you’ve given this idea your attention and have been attracted to it. My question to you is: are you satisfied?
This is why the divorce rate is at 50%. Whether you’re a believer or a non-believer, you can get married and say, «In God We Trust,» and believe that, and still be divorced at the same rate as people who curse God. Why is that? It doesn’t matter what you know if you don’t use it, and God’s saying, «I’m ready to clean house. I’m ready to make your attention focus on something that can actually satisfy.»
But the ice cream, though—this ice cream? Man, I don’t even want to do it anymore. It’s a habit now. I don’t even want to call them anymore. I don’t want to work in that type of negative, gossiping environment, but it’s a habit now. Every time we get together, we’re going to talk about them. I left the job, and I’m going to tell everybody that even inquires why I left, and tell them how bad they are and how trifling they are, and how they wouldn’t be anything without me. It’s a habit now. And all the while, I thought I had already said goodbye to you. Uh-huh, you remember that one time? Because you start reminiscing when you’re down. In the moment, you start thinking about what you used to do.
That’s how the children of Israel, after they got delivered out of slavery, were begging to go back to slavery because they were in a hard season at the moment and thought their hard season was worse than their slavery. Some of y’all used to be slaves to sin, and God delivered you. Now He’s trying to change you, but you’re sick of the change. You’re sick of the thing, and so you look back at things that used to be good in a different season that harmed you, thinking they may be a better option.
So, since this is going to be my last time, I’ve got to get this two-for-one. Is my mic on? Oh snap! What was used to amplify my voice was taken away because of what I was indulging in. I want to help some people understand God’s not punishing you. These are consequences of our attractions. I’m going to have to talk about it next week because David, in this moment of attraction, gave his attraction attention, and it made him want to have an interaction. He brought Bathsheba up. They saw it together, and then, mushy mushy times—nine months later. Oh hey, Dave, you’re too, daddy! Maury Povich, all the way back in King David’s time.
That’s why some of you need to know this is an extra point, a bonus point—especially when you’re talking about your sexual purity and all that other stuff. Attractions can cause contractions. His attraction at the top birthed something that was never supposed to be here, and many of us are dealing with the effects that we never thought would birth something else. We never thought it would turn into this. We never thought it would look like us but have somebody else’s DNA in it. We never thought that this would happen to us, but it all came from the sin of attraction.
Next week we’re going to find out if his attraction led to satisfaction, but today I want you to realize that many of you look like me—you act like everything’s good, but spiritually, emotionally, even some of you physically and mentally, you look a mess. And it’s not because this is how you wanted to be; it’s because whatever you are attracted to, which is natural, which is neutral, you gave too much attention to. And when you give too much attention to what God has not called you to, it ends up taking from you. Today, I want us to come back and ask the only one who can clean us up—the only one who can take our mess and turn it into a message. I want you to get satisfied by Him.
Look at what the same man David wrote in Psalms chapter 107, verse 9. We’re talking about satisfaction here. He wrote this, so either he forgot it or learned it from this situation: «For He, God, satisfies the longing of my soul, and the hungry soul He fills with good things.» He knew that God was the only one that could satisfy him, but he still went to what he was attracted to. And I don’t know who I’m talking to right now, but there are some people that are watching this whose life is a mess, and the one thing that you have not tried, or the one thing you stopped trying a long time ago, is the only thing that can actually satisfy you. His name is Jesus.
How did I go from tasting all the cakes? How did I, in my own life, go from doing all these things to try to satisfy myself? Because I put my attention on Jesus, the only one who could satisfy. It’s not saying that I’m not still attracted when a cake comes by. I don’t give it my attention; the moment I notice, I say no. Because I’ve seen how it hurt my wife, how it hurt others, how it hurt me, and robbed me of time, destiny, and purpose. So, no longer will I put my attention on my attractions; I will put my attention on Jesus.
If that’s you right now, all over this world watching on rebroadcast, if you want to make a decision right now—it’s not a feeling—you’re making a decision right now to put your attention back on Jesus, or put your attention on Jesus for the first time. I want your hands lifted all over this place. Come on, all over the room, all over your house, wherever you are. I’m about to pray for you.
Father, You see us right here in every country and every area code, in every place we are right now. God, I’m asking You that by the power of Your Holy Spirit, You would allow us to first repent. Father, that means to turn. God, we turn away from our attractions; we turn away from the things that have made us messy, and we turn back to You. God, I’m asking You right now, by the power of Your Holy Spirit, that You would show us how to keep our eyes on You. You are the author and the finisher of our faith; You are the anchor in the middle of this storm; You are our Savior. So today, Father, for those who are in deep darkness, who are in despair, who are casually noticing things, send the lifeline. And I thank You, Father, that You don’t have to send it because You already sent it, and its name was Jesus.
Today, all we have to do is accept it. God, today I thank You that all of us, no matter if we feel like we’re in a palace and we’re the king, or if we feel like we’re the person being overlooked, I thank You that You care. You care so much about the details of our lives that You’re coming right now and saying, «I’m the one that truly satisfies.» God, I thank You that all this week, as we notice the things we’re attracted to, there will be a «no» that rises up in our spirits. Our «no» will lead to action; our «no» will lead to us putting up blocks on certain things; our «no» will lead to us telling someone when we fall; our «no» will lead to us, Father God, turning off cable altogether; our «no» will lead to us making that friendship null and void.
Father, whatever is taking us from You, we put our attention back on You. I pray for every marriage right now that has taken their attention off of You, Father, amidst all types of quarrels and fights. I pray for every boyfriend, girlfriend, and engaged couple amidst all the turmoil happening in relationships. I declare that even this week they will put their attention back on You, not even on each other, but on You, Father God, and as it flows from You, it will flow to their relationships, flow to their kids, and flow to everything. For every single person that’s watching, every person that’s been divorced, who has either been wallowing, Father God, in what they don’t have, or has been so focused on doing things that please their flesh, Lord, let their attention be back on You this week. I thank You, Father, that You would transform us from the inside. Today we surrender…
Today, all we have to do is accept it. God, today I thank You that all of us, no matter if we feel like we’re in a palace and we’re the king, or if we feel like we’re the person being overlooked, I thank You that You care. You care so much about the details of our lives that You’re coming right now and saying, «I’m the one that truly satisfies.» God, I thank You that all this week, as we notice the things we’re attracted to, there will be a «no» that rises up in our spirits. Our «no» will lead to action; our «no» will lead to us putting up blocks on certain things; our «no» will lead to us telling someone when we fall; our «no» will lead to us, Father God, turning off cable altogether; our «no» will lead to us making that friendship null and void.
Father, whatever is taking us from You, we put our attention back on You. I pray for every marriage right now that has taken their attention off of You, Father, amidst all types of quarrels and fights. I pray for every boyfriend, girlfriend, and engaged couple amidst all the turmoil happening in relationships. I declare that even this week they will put their attention back on You, not even on each other, but on You, Father God, and as it flows from You, it will flow to their relationships, flow to their kids, and flow to everything. For every single person that’s watching, every person that’s been divorced, who has either been wallowing, Father God, in what they don’t have, or has been so focused on doing things that please their flesh, Lord, let their attention be back on You this week. I thank You, Father, that You would transform us from the inside. Today we surrender…
Come on, somebody all over the world, say, «I surrender.» Come on, say, «I surrender.» Whatever You want to do, God, I surrender. I surrender to how You want to change me, wherever You want to take me, whatever You want to do with me. Somebody say, «I surrender,» and I put my attention back on You. If you’re watching this right now in that same posture and you want to give your life to Christ, you want to receive that lifeline right now, you have the opportunity to make the greatest decision of your life today. As I sit here with cake on my face, this is how our souls look; so much other stuff is put on us by people, ideas, hurts, and pains, and we’re walking around trying to act like it’s makeup, but it really is taking away from who we are truly called to be.
Today, I want to give you the opportunity to realize what God does. He’s the great cleanser; He’s the only one that can take what you have done and clean it up and make it as white as snow, as the Bible says. Today, I don’t care what you did yesterday, how broken you have been, or what has happened to you; what you have allowed to happen to you, today the Savior of the universe wants to intervene in your situation, and all you have to do is receive it. If that’s you, on the count of three, I want you to lift your hands wherever you are. It doesn’t matter about your friends; it doesn’t matter if you’re in a public place. You could be in Walmart right now, watching on your iPhone, and if that’s you in the middle of that aisle, I want you to lift your hand. One, this is the greatest decision you’ve ever made in your life—I am so proud of you! But more than that, God is proud of you, and your name is going to be written in the Lamb’s Book of Life. Three, come on, lift those hands up all over this place; lift those hands up.
I see people making the decision right now. According to Romans 10:9, guess what the Bible tells us? I feel the presence of God; I feel like people’s lives are being transformed. I feel like people are coming and stepping into a new day. This is the 5th of July—the number five represents grace. I believe there is grace coming into your life right now. According to Romans 10:9, you don’t have to confess all the sins that you’ve ever made; He already knows. He was there. All He’s asking you to do at this moment is believe and confess that Jesus is Lord and that He died on the cross just for you. So that’s what we’re going to do at Transformation Church; we’re family. Nobody prays alone here; we’re one big family. So all over the world, over 29,000 people who are watching right now, and those who are watching on rebroadcast, I want you to say this for the benefit of those who are coming to Christ. Everybody say:
God, I need You. I repent from making a mess of my life, and I’m asking You to be my Lord and Savior. I believe You lived and You died for my salvation, and today I give You control. Take my life, change me, renew me, transform me. I’m Yours. In Jesus' name, Amen.