Michael Todd - The Circle of Faith
Oh, come on! Let’s give God a shout of praise! Hallelujah! Oh, I’m excited to be in the building! Hey, listen, listen, listen, listen—I want to welcome you to a Sunday like no other Sunday because we’ve never had it before. God is with us right now, and I believe that the expectation is high. I can feel expectation in the room; I can feel expectation online! If you’re expecting something right now, I need you to type it in the chat and say it in the room: «I’m expecting something from God.» Come on, somebody, say, «I’m expecting something from God today!»
I just want to express how grateful I am that you decided to join us at Transformation Church. Right now, we are in a crazy season of believing God with crazier faith, and there are people all over the world literally putting their faith and expectation not in what God has done in biblical days or for somebody else, but in what God can do through our lives. I’m excited that you’re joining us, no matter how you got here—whether your baby mama told you that you couldn’t come see the kids unless you watched church with her, or whether someone is playing this in the gym you’re in. I believe this is a divine intersection in your life, and I believe God has something so specific just for you.
So today, I just want to pray. Could everybody lift your hands wherever you’re watching, wherever you’re tuning in right now? I want to pray that your ears would be open today. Yep, the Bible says, «He that has an ear to hear, let him hear.» There have been a lot of distractions trying to block our hearing this week, and today I’m going to pray that you hear God.
So, Father, in this place right now, Father, in this moment, God, we ask You to get Your word to us in the way that only You can. Father, You know where we come from; You know our backgrounds, our problems, our issues, our proclivities, our bends, our ideas, our thoughts, and right now, Father God, You know how to get to us. So right now, we submit our hearts and our lives to You. Speak, Lord; Your servants are listening. Say something to us that changes our trajectory. Say something to us today, Father God, that changes our families, that changes our future. Say something, God, that changes our hearts. I thank You, Father God, that nobody’s heart will be the same after this message. Thank You for the transformation taking place on the inside of us, and today, before You do or say anything else, Father, we have given You worship; we have given You praise; we have given out of our lives. Now, Father God, give to us through this word. Speak to us like nobody else. We trust You, we believe You, and we praise You in advance. In Jesus' name.
Why don’t you take three seconds right now and lift your voice? Oh come on, let everything that has breath praise the Lord—in your home, at your house, in the track—come on, give God praise! Hallelujah! Anybody ready for the word? Alright, y’all sit down. Hey, everybody, get your notepads ready. Thank you, musicians! Don’t we have an amazing worship team and band? Thank God for y’all! Man, I’m so grateful they set the atmosphere for what God’s about to do today. I’ve got a word for you all.
Last week, God did something special. He really purified a lot of our motives; that’s what last week was about—the purification of our motives. Why do we want it? Why are we wanting God to do these things? Is this what God wants to do? We talked about our anointed imagination and how God is really purifying those things. But today, I want to talk to you in week four of a series we’re calling, «Somebody say crazier faith!» See, some of y’all are like, «What happened to crazy faith?» I believe that God is taking us to a level where it’s the «er» in our lives—crazier, healthier. Oh, y’all missed it! Wiser! Somebody say, «Don’t forget the ER!» I believe this is the season of the «er.» I think we have 80 days or something left in this year, and God is saying, «I want you to be healthiER; I want you to be wisER; I want you to—come on—find the ER.»
Give me another ER word. What does God want for us? Smarter? What’d you say? Happier? Huh? What’d you say? Wealthier? Somebody’s there! Come on, in the chat, give me an ER that you’re believing God for right now. I need somebody to do it! What’s another one? Huh? Strong? Oh, you know I like that word! What’d you say? Bolder? Come on, give me three more! I feel that thing! Greater! Somebody needs to feel that! Somebody needs to shout «greater!» This is the season of the «er,» and that’s why when I came back, we were just going to name this series crazy faith, and God said, «No, no, no, no! This is the season of the 'er.'» I want you to add the «er» because what the «er» does is it acknowledges where you’ve been but then gives you the expectation of something greater.
And I don’t know where you’ve been okay with being at that status or that standard, but my God is saying: «ER—greater, stronger, healthier, bolder!» There are some «ers» that you need to go ahead and ask God, «Would You allow this to not just be an idea, but would You bring this into my life?» One of those things for us as a church is crazier—crazier in faith—to believe that the promises of God are really true and that they can actually come to pass in my life. And I just know that everybody won’t believe, but there are about 15,000 people—not everybody watching—but there’s about 15,000 people across this nation, word up to Transformation Nation, who have the faith to believe that God can do crazier—that He can do more than what He’s done before.
So today, I want to help you with that, but we’ve got to take it all the way back to the place where your faith resides. Okay? So today, I want to talk about the environment of crazy faith—the habitat of crazy faith—the surroundings of crazy faith—the scene or setting of your crazy faith—the conditions around your crazy faith. I think I like this word the best: the atmosphere of your crazy faith.
What atmosphere are you trying to believe in? Some of us are living in an atmosphere that is contrary to what we’re believing. Many of us are claiming the exact opposite of what we are living in right now, and God’s saying, «You can be in a different situation, but if there is any way that you can change the atmosphere of your faith, it is time for you to move to a new address and location.» Some of y’all need to move off certain streets in your belief. You need to move off of Insecurity Lane; you need to get off of Lying Road. You need to be able to move to a Place of Belief Boulevard. You need to be able to get into an atmosphere of Anointing Avenue. Some of the addresses we’ve been believing God to meet us at are the wrong addresses. We’ve been in the wrong atmosphere trying to say we have faith.
And today, I want you to know that certain things can only live and flourish in certain atmospheres. I’m going to say that one more time: certain things can only live and flourish in certain atmospheres. Let’s play a little game real quick: if I said to you a fish flourishes in the atmosphere of a desert, b) a kitchen, or c) water, what would be the correct atmosphere that a fish would flourish in? See, see, some of y’all are in water now. In the desert, a fish could flop around, but it wouldn’t flourish. In the kitchen, some of y’all are like, «No, that’s where that fish needs to be; put a little lemon on it and sauté it!» But you would be flourishing, while the fish would not flourish in that kitchen. The only place that the fish could flourish is where? In the water!
Okay, let me give you another example: a flower. A flower flourishes in the atmosphere of a vase, the atmosphere of a beautiful bouquet, or in the atmosphere of soil. Which one is it? It’s c) soil! But the only reason it’s c) soil is because that’s the atmosphere it can grow in. It’s not the most beautiful atmosphere; the vase is a much more beautiful atmosphere for the flower, and the bouquet is a better presentation of the flower!
Y’all are not helping me! The only atmosphere that that flower can flourish in is in the soil! What are you trying to say? Some of you have been trying to go after atmospheres that look good and present well, but God says, «I need you to get in the atmosphere that may be a little dirtier or uncomfortable than what you want it to be, but that’s the place where you’re going to flourish! That’s the place where you’re gonna grow! That’s the place where people are gonna get to see your full potential!»
Many people don’t understand that it takes being in the right atmosphere to see the fullness of what God placed on the inside of you. One more, one more, one more: Faith flourishes in the atmosphere of a) doubt, b) fear, or c) belief. Which atmosphere does your faith flourish in? See, how can you say you believe God, but everything you believe Him for you plant in fear? How are we going to say that we believe God, but everything we plant is in facts? God said, «I need you to put your crazy faith in the atmosphere where it can flourish, and that atmosphere is belief!»
Write this point down: Crazy faith flourishes in the atmosphere of belief. Say that with me: Crazy faith flourishes in the atmosphere of belief! If we do not get the things that God says to us in an atmosphere of belief, it will not flourish. What if I knew I was called to be a pastor, but when I said that to my family, I was in an atmosphere of doubt and pessimism? What does that do to what I have faith for?
Some of you are living paycheck to paycheck right now, but God has birthed a business or a non-profit or something on the inside of you, and be careful who you say it to because if you’re in the wrong atmosphere, they will choke out the very thing that’s supposed to go and bring them shade! Oh God! In a different size, in a different season, what you allow to grow will be the very thing you eat from and bring you shade! But if you kill it in seed form—oh my God! You know that’s why they tried to kill every boy under the age of two because the best time to kill a king is when he’s a kid, and the best time to kill your dream is when it’s in seed form.
So what you have to do is protect the things that God has shown you by ensuring they are in an atmosphere of belief. Some of y’all don’t have anybody around you that really believes, and I don’t—I’m very far removed from that. That’s why I’m here to encourage you right now because everybody around me has to have crazy faith. You can’t be around me if you don’t believe. I don’t roll with anybody who doesn’t have crazy faith! We don’t have to be at the same level, but you’ve got to at least be able to agree. You don’t have to figure it out!
And today, I’m coming to challenge some of your comfortable atmospheres. Some of the places that are the most comfortable to you are killing your purpose. Some of the places that are the most familiar are the places where your purpose will become a funeral. Come on, can I just read a scripture to you that I’ve read all my life, but it jacked me up in a different way this week?
Alright, now we’re talking about faith, right? Okay, let’s go to Romans 10:17. People tell me this all the time; I’ve heard it all my life, but I want us to see it from a different perspective today. It says, «So faith comes from hearing—that is, hearing the good news about Christ.» Another translation says, «Faith comes by hearing and hearing the word of God.» I want us to read it one more time: «So faith comes from hearing—that is, hearing the good news about Christ.»
Now, I’ve read that all my life, and I’ve been able to quote it and say it and believe it. And then, as I was studying, God said to me, «Michael, do not casually cruise by the comma.» And I was like, «What?» He said, «There’s more happening in this verse than you’re giving it credit for.» Wow! So I went to the comma, and it says, «So faith comes from hearing.» Comma! Hold on, did You just give me a major key, God? He said, «I gave you a principle: faith—whatever you’re believing in—is strengthened by what you are hearing.»
Faith in God, faith in gangs, faith in money, faith in ministry—He said, «Whatever you have faith for is being strengthened and fortified by what you are hearing.» He said, «This scripture has a principle and a priority. I’m first going to give you the principle: faith comes by hearing—period!» He said… But now I’m going to prioritize ensuring that you hear the things that will build your faith. Right? He said that our hearing priority should be the good news about Christ.
So if you are going to hear anything, because faith is built every time you hear something, you need to be hearing the good news about Christ. You need to hear about the miracles He performed; you need to hear about how He forgave your sins. You need to hear that there is now no condemnation for those of us who are in Christ Jesus. You need to hear that greater works will we do; you need to hear that we can lay hands on the sick and they will recover. You need to hear me because if you are going to walk in crazy faith, the priority is hearing the good news about Christ, but the principle is that faith comes by hearing. Hmm.
So if faith comes by hearing, I have a point for you that might shake up your friend group: whoever has your ear also has your faith. Whoever has your ear has your faith because faith comes by hearing. Oh, and the priority of what you should be hearing is the Word of God. But the truth of the matter is that in a seven-day period, what percentage of your hearing consists of the good news about Christ? We’re hearing a lot of gossip, uh-oh; we’re hearing a lot of bad news. We’re hearing a lot about sickness, COVID, and job loss. We’re hearing a lot about our family dynamics and dysfunction. We’re hearing a lot about what others are doing, who they like, and what we’re going to do. We’re hearing a bunch, and everything you hear is building your faith. The question is, is it building your faith in something that will last? And I just need you to know that whoever has your ear also has your faith.
Put your ear up on the screen for me. This is your ear; this is one of God’s greatest creations in our body. This allows us to enter places with our eyes closed, and because our ears are sensitive, we can hear the footsteps of an animal. We can hear someone calling us. How many of you—let me say this right now—if your mama came into this room and yelled your name, and some of you are 58 years old and your mama has been gone for three years, you would still recognize her voice. If you hear your mama say, «Michael! Janice! Daquan!"—y’all have some creative names—because of the sensitivity of your ear, you could still hear her.
I need to ask you a question: who has control over it? Because they are also controlling what you believe. Who has your ear? Is it the news? Is it a specific political party? Is it your favorite influencer? I’m stepping on everybody’s toes with this one, so just get ready. Who has your ear? Is it a fashion icon? Just because they can dress doesn’t mean they can lead you. Who has your ear? Is it your beautician? Because some of you allow someone to touch your hair, and they can tell you anything. For some of you, one of the greatest places for gossip is at the barbershop or your salon, and you’ve changed how you view someone you’re supposed to reach because you heard something from someone who doesn’t even know them. Uh-oh, I’m in somebody’s business.
Who has your ear? Is it the big homie on the block? Is it the captain of the team? Is it your favorite musician? Who has your ear? Somebody say, «Who has my ear?» Is it your boss? Just because they’re in charge of your promotion doesn’t mean they are in charge of your purpose. People have acted out of character and done things lacking integrity because they hold an authority but aren’t the authority. And they have your ear. And it’s okay to bend the numbers a little bit, saying, «Well, they won’t know about the discount.» Who has your ear? Let me stop.
Your co-workers? Is it a specific podcast? They might be good at helping you feel better when you’re down. I’m not saying it’s bad; I’m just asking, can you live your life based on what they say? Because they’re building your faith right now. Who has your ear? A motivational coach telling you to 10X it? A high school buddy? A pro athlete? Somebody who wears your family’s favorite team’s colors? The person who is into a really niche thing that is only popular on Etsy? Just because they’re an expert in it doesn’t mean they’re an expert for you.
This is a real evaluation question; I need you to ask yourself. Some of your parents have your ears too much. They were responsible for training you in the way you should go, but some of you are now older, and God is telling you to do something. But mom didn’t pray about it; she just thinks she knows what’s best. Dad did not seek any wisdom from God. Their daughter isn’t going to—and their sons are going against principle. And I’m asking you, who has your ear? Because there will come a time in your life when you’ll need to stand on the Word of God over the words of your parents. I know, I know—it’s tough, but it’s true.
There will come a time when I had to do this with my parents. They told me I wasn’t supposed to do something that I knew God was telling me to do. I had to look them in the eye and say, «You trained me to hear God’s voice. You told me that God would speak to me, confirm it, and show me. So I’m going to have to honorably not do what you’re saying.» Okay, I’m talking about real stuff.
Who has your ear? Does culture have your ear? Does your pastor or leader have your ear? Does your therapist have your ear? Does Christ have your ear? I’m asking this because if you don’t evaluate this, I don’t even have to know what you believe in God. If I just know who you’re around— I don’t have to ask, «Is this a person of faith?» Just introduce me to your top five friends. Let me talk to them, and your friends will expose your faith. That was deep. Your friends need to hear what I’m saying right here. The people you consistently spend your life with will be the greatest indication of what you believe in God.
Your friends will expose your faith. When you find yourself in a difficult situation, and your friends say, «Well, you can just forget this and go there, leave this situation,» but you don’t have friends saying, «Let’s pray about this. Let’s stand. I’ll meet you over there; let’s stand in faith and believe against the diagnosis,» you will be quickly exposed by who you have on speed dial.
Who has your ear? This means that some of your friend groups and family access have to—watch this—boundaries. I’m trying to encourage you to live in crazy faith, but you can’t embrace crazy faith when every time you receive something, the people you love come in to rob, poison, and kill the very thing God told you to do. Boundaries are more biblical than people give them credit for. Today, I want to let you know—write this point down: You must protect your ears to protect your purpose. That’s good.
Whoever has your ear, they have your faith. The reason I’m telling you this is that God is about to give you, I feel it, some crazy faith ideas, some crazy faith plans—things that nobody in your family has done. Somebody believes it. Somebody in Texas, somebody in Florida, somebody in the third row—God is about to give you something that nobody else has done. But you have to protect it. God will not give it to you and then protect it. He gives it to you for you to protect it.
And that’s why I need to do this—everybody put your hands on your ears. This is the new sign of how people with crazy faith live their lives. God spoke it to me; I’m going to protect it. I cannot let anybody into this. I can’t watch every movie or documentary, and I can’t listen to every piece of music that comes out. I know it’s «Certified Lover Boy,» but uh-uh, I’m trying to live in purity.
Oh, y’all are playing, but I love Drake; I do too. But there are certain things I will not let in because this is not going to forfeit my purpose. So what I’ve found is that it’s our responsibility to protect the things God gives us in crazy faith—protect our hearing. This means that you must have a strong—this is the title of my message—Circle of Faith.
Every believer needs a circle of faith. Every person who is going to reach their purpose needs a circle of faith. Every person who is going to live life on the edge, walk on water, and do things that nobody else has done is going to need a circle of faith. Some of you might be like, «No, I don’t need it; I can do it by myself.» God never called anybody to do anything alone. He may give you a vision alone, but then He always tells you to communicate that vision to a trusted group of people because you were never meant to carry out the vision alone.
God says it’s not good for man to be alone, so He will never give you a vision that doesn’t include somebody else. That was a key point for some of you believing in crazy faith. God will never say, «Well, I’ll adjust, and then I’ll adjust, and then I’ll adjust,» and God is like, «No, you’re not"—because when I do things, even all the way back in the Bible, how did Jesus send the apostles out? Two by two. He never let anybody do anything alone. Even when He died on the cross, He died with two other people. He said, «I’m not going to do anything alone so that they know that when they live, they’re not going to do anything alone.»
So that’s why if we’re going to see the purposes of God come into our lives, I need the circle of faith. Somebody say, «I need a circle of faith!» Okay, let me break down the circle of faith and how God showed this to me, and this is going to make you reevaluate everyone in your life this week. Everyone on your timeline, everyone you follow, and everyone you’re planning to have lunch with next week.
Here we go—the circle of faith starts with your family. You don’t get to choose your family, but the best thing is to have a family with crazy faith. The beginning of your circle of faith starts with your household. It’s one of those things that isn’t fair because you didn’t get to pick. Let’s be honest: some of us were raised in households that believed in God and had faith. Thankfully, I was raised in a household where my parents would pray with us, have Bible studies, and encourage us to believe, but I’m very aware that this isn’t common today.
But here’s what I’ve found: family is God’s big idea. It’s literally all He wants to convey through the various analogies in the Bible. Everything that talks about his sons and daughters, from generation to generation, and the church as the bride of Christ—everything is about family. And what I want you to understand is that maybe you weren’t born into a family with crazy faith, but you can create it. Maybe it didn’t happen for you, but you can be the one to stand up and say, «With my little cousins, I’m going to take them to McDonald’s every Thursday, and we’re going to have a Bible study around McDoubles.»
I know you want to be fake, and they look up to you because of your Jordans and your earrings, but what you’re going to do is create a place where they can bring their dreams and ideas—a space where they can express themselves—and you can guide them, helping them understand what the Word of God says about things like sex outside of marriage, pornography, and so on.
What I’m trying to say to you is that this is the start of the circle of faith. Many of you haven’t been able to go where you want to go because of the family you were born into. It’s not that you don’t love them, and it’s not that they aren’t good people; it’s just that they haven’t stepped into this level of belief in God that allows you to believe in God too.
And what I’m saying to you is that the first ring of the circle of faith is a family with crazy faith. You might not have it, but you can create it. As I just said that, I felt like someone made a decision that their family is going to have crazy faith. If that’s you, would you raise your hand all over the building and online? Somebody say, «That’s me! We are a family of faith!» I like that. «We are a family of faith!» Somebody just declared by faith, «We have a family of faith!» Yes!
So let me move to the next ring. The next… The ring outside of your family is something you have control over; it’s your friends. This is always an interesting one for me because friends, when you’re in elementary and high school, are made out of survival. You’re just trying to navigate the social awkwardness—can we be honest? You find people who like the same things you do: «You like SpongeBob? I like SpongeBob.» You find people who eat pizza with the crust and ranch, and you’re just trying to socially survive.
If you never mature and break out of that, all your relationships will be based on survival. All your friendships will be based on who can help you get a promotion, who can elevate you to the next level, and who makes you feel better about yourself, even in your dysfunction. Some of you have ride-or-die friends, and that’s exactly what they’re doing: they’re riding you until you die because they’ll never correct you. They’ll never tell you, «This is the wrong way to go; that’s not the person you should be with.» They won’t say things like that because, to them, you’re their best friend. They just do all of this all the time.
What you need are friends that are not chosen out of survival; you need friends that are chosen out of necessity. There are friends in my life who are necessary for my purpose. I don’t always see it at the beginning, but as I reflect, I realize being around them makes me want to be more organized. Being around them makes me believe in things I didn’t believe in before. It makes me want to know the Bible more; it makes me want to be a better husband to my wife. Like, «Dang, they do date night every Monday.» So, you need friends with crazy faith. You have family with crazy faith, and then you have friends with crazy faith. Let me share what I wrote here: you may not share the same blood, but you share the same beliefs. That’s how you know they’re a friend with crazy faith—you might not share the same blood, but you share the same beliefs. When it comes down to it, we are going to believe in the same things.
However, there’s this next level, and this is where most people stop. They have their crazy faith family and their crazy faith friends, but I’ve found that there’s another group you need when you’re living life. It’s not just about vacations, double dates, and going to the movies. When life hits you, that next circle you need for your circle of faith consists of fighters with crazy faith. I can have family and friends, but if I’m going to reach the destiny that God has called me to and do everything I need to do, I need at least a couple of fighters who have the audacity to believe with me when I can’t believe for myself.
Let me help you understand. I’m giving you the formula for the people you need, and you should really evaluate who is around you because fighters with crazy faith are the people who will sacrifice something to see you enter your promised land. They might not even make it in themselves, but they will fight for you. They’ll say, «I’ll intercede for you. I’ll give you my money. I’ll meet you at the spot.» So many of us do not have fighters who will get into the Garden of Gethsemane with us.
Everybody always plays Peter, James, and John because they fell asleep, but they were still there. They may not have done it perfectly or even met the expectations, but they were there. I can even see it in the scripture when Jesus goes to them and says, «Man, wake up! I’m sweating blood about to go to the cross. Y’all can’t at least pray with me?» He doesn’t tell them to go away; he gives them another opportunity to see him in his most vulnerable moment. He says, «Fight with me.» Peter was a fighter; he just got it wrong. Jesus wanted to fight in the spirit, but Peter pulled out his sword instead. He had the raw materials.
You all are so judgmental about the biblical characters. He had fight in him; the only reason he was there was because he wanted to fight. When the soldiers came, he cut off an ear, and Jesus said, «No! That was the wrong time to fight; I needed you an hour ago, and you were sleeping.» He picked up the ear and put it back on the soldier because that’s what the Bible says. You all don’t read it.
But he had fighters in his corner, and some of the people you’re calling besties, lifelong friends, and folks you are planning to spend more time with—people you talk to every day—these are the individuals closest to you, and they impact what you hear. When they affect what you hear, they impact the level of faith that you have. I’m just asking you: who’s talking to you? Who’s shaping your life?
If you don’t have anyone who can see you at your worst and still fight for you at your best, you don’t have any fighters. I’m trying to tell you what I’ve had to do when believing for this building and currently for my son’s healing. I don’t need fans; I need fighters. I don’t need anyone simply to clap and say, «Oh yeah!» No, I need people who will get into the trenches with me—fast and pray when I’m not fasting and praying.
Have you ever gone on a fast for somebody else who wasn’t fasting for themselves? If not, you’re not a fighter! Have you ever faced a situation where you had to fight for someone who didn’t seem to care? And what I found is that this type of friend or family member can be a friend, a family member, or even a fan who becomes a fighter. I’ve had people who watched me from afar, but when we finally met, they had something in them that skipped a whole bunch of steps to get into my inner circle. Why? Because they had a fight in them for me, for my family, and for my purpose.
This is your circle of faith, whether you have it now or not. At the center of this circle is you. There you are with your crazy faith and all of your belief. Now, what you have to do is evaluate whether these people are filled with crazy faith. If they’re not, you’ll have to fight through all of them to reach the thing that God has called you to do.
Well, God told me that we’re supposed to move to Dallas. What’s in Dallas? Who, who, who gon'… who gonna provide for you there? Who’s gonna help you? Alright, fighters, let me go ahead and talk to my friends. Hey guys, I feel like God is calling me to go to Dallas, so what does that mean for our group? What does that mean for our every Friday? Every Friday we have a… okay, let me go to my family. Hey family, I believe that God is calling us. Our family has always lived here, and you would leave us for what? This is many of our lives fighting the people who should be giving us faith. Let me go to the Bible: Numbers chapter 13, verses one and two, a familiar scripture. Y’all just give me a few more minutes to work this thing out; it took me a long time to set this up to give you this.
There were two guys named Caleb and Joshua. Remember, I’m talking about hearing and the things that you’re hearing building your faith, and you’ve got to have a circle of faith—your family, your friends, your fighters—this is all affecting your hearing. It says the Lord now said to Moses, «Send out men to explore the land of Canaan.» Watch this though—underline this: «the land I am giving to the Israelites.» It is a foregone conclusion; God is saying, «I am giving this to you. Send one leader from each of the twelve tribes.»
What ends up happening is Moses calls twelve men up, and two of their names were Joshua and Caleb. They were just representing some of the tribes, and they were supposed to go into this land that God promised. God promised this land just like He promised you a child, just like He promised your marriage would succeed, just like He promised you would be secure, just like He promised you wouldn’t be dependent on that medicine forever like He promised you. They were supposed to go there and give a report so that the two million people in the tribe of the children of Israel could go in and possess it. They came out of slavery already, and they’re in this in-between spot trying to get into the promise of God, like most of us are right now.
Look what happens in Numbers chapter 13, verse 25. After exploring the land for forty days, the men returned to Moses and Aaron and the whole community of Israel at Kadesh in the wilderness of Paran. They reported to the whole community, so they had the ear of the entire community. This was the news station for all the children of Israel; this was the soundtrack for all the children of Israel. This was the podcast; they had the ear of the leaders and the entire community, and they reported to the whole community what they had seen and showed them the fruit they had taken from the land.
This was their report to Moses: «We entered the land you sent us to explore, and indeed it is a bountiful country, a land flowing with milk and honey. Here is the kind of fruit it produced.» It literally said that a bushel of grapes was so big that it would be the equivalent of two men having to carry it between them on a two-by-four—a grape as big as your big old head! I want you to think about one grape as big as your head, okay? This is the land. Everybody say, «But.»
«But the people living there are powerful, and their towns are large and fortified, and we even saw giants there, the descendants of Anak. You know Anak; the Amalekites live in the Negev, and the Hittites and the Jebusites and the Amorites and the… Gladys Knights? They were all in the hill country. The Canaanites live along the coast by the Mediterranean Sea.» It’s just a lot. We saw the promise, but to possess it would be a lot. We see the great thing that God has for us, and we even tasted it—brought back proof that it’s real—but it’s going to cost us something to possess it.
«But Caleb!» Everybody say, «But Caleb!» «We’re sturdy, but Caleb tried to quiet them. 'Shut up, everybody. I’m sorry, excuse me, be quiet. I have a report. Come on, let’s go up at once and take the land; we can certainly conquer it! '» This is the language of a fighting friend. If when you bring your crazy faith ideas to the people who are closest to you and they don’t have a «let’s go» in them, they may not need to have your ear. I’m not saying be frivolous; I’m not saying not to find out what the best plan of action is or to be strategic, but if the first thing they do is tell you why it can’t happen, they don’t have an automatic «let’s go.» They may not be somebody who wants you to see the promised land.
Caleb is the only one. And why did Caleb try to quiet them? Watch this: because what they say will affect what you’ll see. What they say—and I don’t know who your «they» is, but what they say will affect what you see. Some of you right now are in positions because of what they said. Some of you, oh my God, oh my gosh, oh my gosh, some of you are in careers right now because of what they said. You didn’t like that job since you started it; you didn’t like that field, but somebody they said needed you in that field, and now you’re doing something you hate because they said so.
What they say will affect what you see. How do you know that, Pastor Mike? Because they shut Caleb up so quickly. But the other men who had explored the land with him disagreed. «I don’t know what that fool’s talking about. I don’t know what he saw! We can conquer it! We can move in crazy faith! We can buy the Spirit Bank Event Center; we can buy the entire community around it; we can buy the transformation!» I don’t know what he saw. Do you know that if the people that were around me when God gave me those visions would have sowed seeds of doubt and fear, we may not be standing here today? Because the people you love, the people you trust can also be people without faith.
People don’t think about this: the same people you love, the same people you trust can also be depleted in faith. And it literally says right here they go to complaining again: «We can’t go up against them; they’re stronger than we are.» So watch this: they spread this bad report about the land among the Israelites. «The land we traveled through and explored—watch this—will devour anyone who goes to live there.» They just exaggerated their own fear to make other people even more scared. Be careful of people who’ve never crossed into a land that God called you to live in. He might have called them there, but something kept them from going, so you may have to go past their experience to get into your promised land.
I’m talking to somebody right now. I love you, but I’ve got to move past your experience. I need you in my life if you want to stay, but I’ve got to move. Somebody say, «I gotta move past this.» We’re not gonna be broke all our lives; we’re not gonna always struggle with this. We’re not. I’ve got to move past this. They exaggerated their experience to give other people anxiety. Don’t let anybody else’s fear steal your faith.
There are so many stories that I hear when y’all write in or DM about what God is telling you to do, and all it takes is one conversation from somebody who helped you in a past season to be able to literally deflate your faith just that quick. But I’m telling you, something in you has to say, «I’m not going out like that. I’m not going to miss the great things God has for me based on the experience of what I’m hearing from somebody who didn’t live in the promised land. You didn’t even live there; you didn’t even go there, and you’re telling me they’re gonna devour everybody who decides to live there? Did you live there?»
They made up something to make people scared, and it said all the people we saw were huge. «We even saw giants, they’re descendants of Anak!» And then watch how dramatic these fools are. «Next to them, when we stood next to them, when we got in their presence, when we looked at their church and their business and their nonprofit and their social media, when we compared ourselves to them, we felt like grasshoppers, and that’s what they thought too.»
How do you know? You didn’t talk to them; you just assumed your own insecurity and then projected it onto your enemy to reinforce why you need to stay in the same box you’re in right now. Yup, that’s why I tell people it’s very important: Caleb, who has your ear? Because leading with feelings always spreads fear. If anybody that you’re around is leading with their feelings, fear gets spread. These people did not even experience it for themselves.
That’s why I’d be real leery of people who’d be like, «All you young ladies, don’t get married! Don’t get married! All men are blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.» And these dudes, these OGs, like a little player: «Don’t settle down, player! I’ve been married twice, bro.» All you want to do is play the field! Play the field—first base, second base, third base, outfield—play the field! Just 'cause your marriage failed twice and now you’ve exaggerated this experience to spread it to me so that I would have fear for doing what the Bible says—marry the wife of your youth!
Play the field; you’re too young to get married! What am I gonna go on, your word or the word of God? And so many of us—here we go—who has your ear? Uncle June-June got your ear! He got your ear, and now you’re sitting there with the woman you should be planning purpose with, messing around on her, because Uncle June-June, when you were fifteen, told you not to settle down. And you’re literally about to forfeit God’s plan for you because of who had your ear.
Your business partner, who’s gonna help you take over that industry, is at the school that your family hates? The colors—oh yeah, we just had an Oklahoma-Texas game, and some of you purpose-driven Oklahoma fans may be at Texas. I’m just using this as an example because some of y’all Texas people, the purpose that God has for you might be in Oklahoma. Pastor Mike, why are you even using this example? Because some of you let something as trivial as a college and colors keep you from obeying God.
I’m in somebody’s business right now, and it may not be a college in colors, but it may be somebody’s color of their skin. Uh-huh. Yeah. Some of you are supposed to be in partnership with somebody who doesn’t look like you, but all your family said, «Don’t you interact with those! Don’t you be around those! Don’t you bring the white girl in here, and don’t you bring no one in here!» And all of these things—oh my God! Who has your ear? I’m in your business, and the purpose of God on your life and the faith that He wants to take you to is being stopped by all these people who have your ear and are being led by their feelings.
And when you let feelings lead, it always spreads fear. That’s why 1 Peter 5:7 says, «Give all your worries, give all your cares to God, for He cares for you.» Can I tell you what happened to sum up this whole story? Because ten came back and had the ear of the people, they literally started to rebel against everything that God had done for them to take them out of slavery. Look at it; I’ve got to show you Numbers chapter 14, verse 1. Then the whole community began weeping aloud, and they cried all night. Their voices rose in great chorus of protest against Moses and Aaron. «If only we had died in slavery! If only we had stayed in that jacked-up, abusive relationship! If only we had kept being an alcoholic or a liar or someone who ran to things instead of Jesus. We should have gone back to our slavery!»
They complained: «Why is the Lord taking us to this country only to have us die in battle? How weak are you? Who signs up for the army, and then when they have to fight, says, 'How did we get here? ' You signed up for a battle, but at the moment of the fight, that’s when you need faith! Why is the Lord taking us to this country to have us die here? Our wives and our little ones will be carried off as plunder. Wouldn’t it be better for us to return to slavery in Egypt?» Then they plotted among themselves: «Let’s choose a new leader and go back to the thing that had us bound.» Wow!
See, this is why you’ve got to watch who you hear, because it will make you think what you got free from is better than where you are today. There are too many times when you get in a fight, and God is trying to take you to another level of faith. If you don’t have the right circle of faith around you, you’ll get with those people because their faith was being built. Remember, faith comes by hearing, and it’s whatever you hear.
So they were hearing the negative report, the bad report; they were spreading anxiety; they were going through fear. They started plotting and planning to go back to what had them bound because their faith was being built in the wrong thing. And this is the thing I want to tell you: write this point down: what you receive determines how you respond. See, there’s a difference between hearing and listening. Like, I can hear a bunch of stuff, but I listen when I actually receive it, report they heard, the report of Caleb and Joshua. Remember that they heard their report too, but they also heard and received the report of the ten.
What you receive determines how you respond; they started responding in anxiety and fear because they received the bad report. Look what happens in verse 5: Then Moses and Aaron fell face down on the ground before the whole community of Israel. Two of the men who had explored the land, Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh, tore their clothes. They were trying to get attention. «Ah, they got butt naked! Please listen, I’m willing to embarrass myself so you can see that God has something better for us.» It says they said to all the people, «The land we traveled through and explored is a wonderful land, and if the Lord is pleased with us, He will bring us safely into that land and give it to us.»
Watch the language of a fighter. It says it is a rich land flowing with milk and honey. «Do not rebel against the Lord and don’t be afraid of the people of the land; they are only helpless prey to us.» That is some gangster talk right there. You need people in your corner who will stand at the biggest mountain, the biggest giant, the biggest obstacle. All that is is helpless prey to us. That ain’t nothing; 10.4 million dollars for this building, that ain’t nothing; 20 million for the land outside, that ain’t nothing. The money I need to go back to college, that ain’t nothing. Who in your life is telling you, «Well, I have moving expenses, and this and that, and I got to find an apartment, I gotta qualify»?
You need a friend who’ll say, «That ain’t no big deal.» «Well, how is it going to happen? How am I gonna get the LLC? How am I gonna get the nonprofit status?» You need somebody to say, «That ain’t nothing to us.» Watch this: They have no protection, but the Lord is with us. Don’t be afraid of them! Don’t be afraid of them! What they said, don’t be afraid of them! See, the only way you can have this type of language in your life and people around you like that is if you believe the promise.
Remember what I read all the way back at the beginning? It said that Moses was told by God to go explore the land of Canaan, the land I’m giving to you. All the other ten didn’t remember the promise of God; only Caleb and Joshua rehearsed the promise. This is the type of friends you need around you, people who will fight and remind you of the promise that God said over your life. Melody, everything God said about you, everything He said about your singing and your music, remember those words that God said to you. You gotta have people around you; that’s why you don’t marry a husband who won’t remind you of the promise of God. You don’t marry a wife who won’t remind you of the promise of God.
I won’t always be on a mountain, but when I’m in a valley, I need somebody around me to remind me of the promise. God said that we will be the head and not the tail, that we will be above and not beneath, that we can take the land. This is what we have to do: write this point down: Believing the promise changes your perspective. Caleb and Joshua had a different perspective because they actually believed the promise. That’s the only difference. They saw the same thing; they saw the same grapes, the same giants, the same problems, the same opportunities. The only thing that separated them was believing the promise of God. Remember at the beginning when I was talking about the atmosphere of crazy faith? What is belief? If you don’t have an atmosphere of belief, you’ll forget the promise and forfeit the purpose.
Verse 10: But the whole community— I mean, these dudes are out there. I just want you to get a picture in your holy imagination of two grown men naked, trying to convince you to walk into the promise of God. And the whole community looked at them and was like, «Yeah…» Verse 10: «Should we stone them?» I want you all to read this. The whole community began to talk about stoning Joshua and Caleb. I was trying to help y’all! I was just trying to help your business; I was just trying to help your family, and you want to stone me?
I always wondered as I read this: Were there people in the crowd, perhaps, that believed Joshua and Caleb, that the promised land they could have taken? But the crowd got caught up in fear, and they contracted it too. See, the thing you need to know is fear is contagious, but that means that faith is contagious too. Faith is contagious just like fear is contagious. What if a thousand of them had raised up in faith, and they would have started chanting, «Take the land! Take the land!» Think about it: «Take the business! Take the house! Take the family! Take the hills!» What if they would have started deciding, «We can take this land»? It would have spread, and that faith, JD, would have gone throughout two million people instead of fear. By the end of the day, there would have been, I see a scene from Braveheart where these babies are sitting there, and they’re like, «Ah, we ready! Hey, we ready! Come on, giants! I’m about to eat them grapes!»
Do y’all see what I’m saying? That’s the team I want to roll with; that’s the type of people I need on my team for the dreams that God has given me. I gotta have crazy faith fighters around me. I had a bunch of people in fear, and that’s why I try to warn people: Don’t stay around TC if you don’t want this faith to jump off on you. I’m telling you; don’t keep logging on, because the same way fear is contagious is the same way faith is contagious. Stay around here long enough, you’re going to start believing God for something! You stay around here long enough, you’re going to start seeing healings, miracles! Y’all can’t get nobody to believe with me, but stay around here long enough, 'cause faith is contagious.
Verse 11: These people rebelled. The Lord said to Moses—now this is God talking to the leader of these people—"How long will these people treat me with contempt?» Saddest five words: «Will they never believe me?» When God talks about you, is He saying, «Will they never believe me,» even after all the miraculous signs they’ve seen? They didn’t think they were going, and I saved them from…after everything I did? God gets frustrated with these people because He’s done so much to get them to this promised land. He’s about to lay the smackdown on them. I’m talking about a straight, The Rock, 1999 smackdown on them! But then we see Moses; Moses becomes a fighter for the people who were stuck in unbelief.
Let me ask you a question: Who is fighting for you when you don’t believe? See, this is how you know you have a fighter. Moses goes to God in Numbers 14:17. Listen to this man plead with God on behalf of people who didn’t even want to believe: «Please, Lord, prove that your power is as great as you have claimed it to be.» He’s remembering; he was trying to remind God of His promise. «For You said…» Oh, see, this is the most powerful thing about reading the Bible: You can remind God of what He said when your situation doesn’t look like it. You can say, «But You said!» My daughters use this on me all the time. I’d be like, «Nah, it’s bedtime,» but «Daddy, you said we could watch a movie before bed.» «I did say that, didn’t I?»
And like every defense that you have when you remind your father of His word, it changes the dynamic. It says, «For You said, 'The Lord is slow to anger and filled with unfailing love, forgiving every kind of sin and rebellion.'» You know these people are bad, Lord, and they’re sinning and rebelling, but He does not excuse the guilty. We know you’re fair and just, God. He lays the sins of the parents upon their children; the entire family is affected, even children in the third and fourth generations. «In keeping with your magnificent unfailing love, please pardon the sins of these people just as you have forgiven them ever since they left Egypt.» Then the Lord said, «I will pardon them as you have requested.»
What if Moses hadn’t fought for the children of Israel? This is a type and shadow, Brentum, of what Jesus would do on the cross for us. When He’s stressed out, and He says, «Forgive them because they don’t know what they’re doing,» this is what He’s saying right here: a type and a shadow. «Forgive the children of Israel because even in their rebellion, they don’t even have a clue; they don’t even know what they’re doing.» My question to you is: Do you have the type of leader, friend group, or family member fighter who has—watch this, write this point down—who has enough faith for you to borrow? Moses had faith for people who couldn’t believe. My question to you is: Who around you has faith that you can borrow?
I think about my fighting friends. I’ve got some. One of them—one of mine and Pastor Natalie’s fighting friends is Pastor Brie and her husband Aaron. I remember when they were going through a rough time in their marriage, and they called us to their house with another friend, the Stantons, to tell us they were getting a divorce. Papers were signed, «We’re getting a divorce; we just wanted y’all to know.» We listened to that whole spiel, and something rose up in me and said, «No, no, y’all haven’t done enough to be able to see God intervene! We have not!»
And I mean, for 25 minutes, the fighter in me rose up, and I was trying to give them faith to borrow. There was too much hurt there for them to have faith for themselves. There was too much pain there for them to do it for themselves. But as a group of four friends, we got around them, and we fought for the marriage they have today. They couldn’t see it, but I saw what God wanted to do in their life, and we sat there and let them borrow our faith, even if it was just for that day to get them to the next day. Today, they’ve been married almost six years—not because of us, but at some point, their faith kicked in. At some point, they had to start believing.
At some point, they had to start acting on it. But if we wouldn’t have been there to stand in the gap—what friends do you have? What community do you have that will stand in the gap, that has enough faith for you to borrow? See, there are consequences to unbelief. These people in Numbers 14:23—Ah, Jesus said, «Alright, I ain’t going to kill them. Stay with them, Moses, but because you’re riding for the wrong people, you’ll never see the promised land either.» Oh, what happens when you’re surrounded by the wrong people, and they cost you your purpose? He said, «I’m gonna let you ride with them, but look at verse 20: 'See, they will never even see the land I swore to give their ancestors. They won’t even see it. Evan, none of those who have treated me with contempt will ever see it.'»
But, oh, I like this: «But my servant Caleb had a different attitude. He had a different attitude than them. He had a different attitude than the others. He has remained loyal to me, so I will bring him into the land he explored; his descendants will possess their full share.» I like that: «of the land.» Point: A different attitude creates a life of abundance. It was his different attitude. When the situation looked bad, he had a different attitude: «Well, God can bring us through this!» When the diagnosis came, he had a different attitude: «Well, God shall supply all our needs, and He’s the healer!» We gotta be the ones who have a different attitude because a different attitude creates a life of abundance.
Verse 26: Then the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, «How long must I put up with these wicked communities?» He was sick of these people, y’all, because He keeps saying the same thing. He said, «Yes, watch this! I have heard.» We talked about faith comes by…now God’s hearing something. «Yes, I have heard the complaints of the Israelites that they were making against me. Now tell them this: 'As surely as I live, ' declares the Lord, 'I will do to you the very things I heard you keep saying. You’re going to die lonely! You keep saying, „I’m always going to be broke! Nobody will ever acknowledge my gifting!“ Keep saying it! Keep saying it! Keep declaring! Keep confessing that, „I’m just insecure, and I don’t have the things that I need!“
Keep saying it, because the thing that these people didn’t realize as they were complaining about the place God had them in is: God can hear too! And God told them, 'I will do for you the very things I heard you say! ' You will all drop dead in this wilderness because you complained against Me! Every one of you who is 20 years old or older and was included in the registration will die in the wilderness! You will not enter or occupy! You will not enter or occupy! You will not enter or occupy the land I swore to give you! I put it on Me; I was going to give it to you, and because you spoke, I heard!» The only exception—oh, I like this! The only exception! Somebody yell at me, «exception!» Yell it one more time! The only exception will be Caleb and Joshua the only two people who had crazy faith at this time.
Most theologians believe there were two million people as part of the children of Israel, which means 1 million 998 thousand people. I don’t even know if that’s the right number. Everybody except two died in the wilderness, except for those two people who were trying to fight for everybody to get into the promised land. Um, just write this point down: God has ears too. I should have probably titled the message that He has ears too; He’s listening to what you’re saying in the middle of the wilderness. He’s listening to how you’re responding after you receive a negative report. He’s listening, and that’s why I’m telling you that who is in your circle of faith is more important than anything you could be trying to cultivate right now. Because when God gives me a crazy faith idea, I’ve got to have family with crazy faith; I’ve got to have friends with crazy faith, and I’ve got to have fighters with crazy faith.
Can you put the picture of the ear back up there for me real quick? So I end this by asking, who has your ear? See, because the whole thing about this entire story is that if the children of Israel would have believed in their ears what Joshua and Caleb said, they would have lived in promise; instead, they died in a wilderness. You know those three rings that I mentioned: the inner, the family, the friends, and the fighter? I looked up in the ear, and there are three parts of the ear too. There’s the outer ear, the middle ear, and then the inner ear. The fans can be on the outside, but when I get to what’s going to help me flourish, I’ve got to make sure that who’s in these rings has faith.
What do you want us to do? Evaluate everybody in your circle; everything you listen to, everything that you keep letting in. When you get in the car and the radio station you turn to, they have your ear, and your faith is being built because faith comes by hearing. The priority of what we should be hearing is the word of God. Start a crazy faith YouVersion Bible plan; so many of you have already done it, but I’m telling you, every day get into your Bible. It’s very simple; go to the YouVersion Bible app and literally type in anything that you’re dealing with—anxiety, stress, frustration, joy, peace, love—and there are Bible plans that you can literally follow every day.
Go do the crazy faith five days this week; everybody go do the five-day crazy faith Bible plan. Why? Because faith comes by hearing, and the priority of hearing should be the word of God. But even when you hear the word of God, it still means you’ve got to cut out other things you’re hearing. Some of you have to delete your Spotify playlists. I know your Apple Music is—it’s cracking, huh? It’s popping, huh? It’s lit, but it’s actually building your faith in something that’s a fantasy. Go back and watch last week’s message, «Diamonds on My Wrist, Bust Down,» and I’m throwing that; I’m sliding in this Robin in my—God’s trying to make you a man of valor. All I’m saying is faith comes by hearing, and the people closest to you affect your hearing. The people closest to me affect my hearing. Even if I love them, it doesn’t mean they’re filled with faith.
So I’m asking everybody, the practical step this week is to get in the word of God. The second practical step this week is to get in godly community; find friends with faith. At TC, we call them B Groups—Belong Groups—because everybody has a place they belong. Some of you say, «I don’t like people,» and I just— you know what I’m saying? It’s weird! We have over 300 small groups, and would you allow your purpose to flourish in the environment of faith? These people are listening and watching the same message you are right now, and I want to say I’m so proud of you because you’re literally here hearing the word of God right now. Keep watching the messages; keep going back, watch other series; keep getting it into you.
But there’s something when somebody’s able to see you and you walk in, and they can tell by your countenance that something’s off, and you can be in an environment and you can borrow some of their faith. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve walked into a small group not feeling it, and just being in the atmosphere with people who believe changes everything about what I was feeling because I could borrow some of their faith. All I’m telling you is your circle of faith may be compromised. What God has given you is a mandate; He’s giving you a mandate to protect your crazy faith. Today, I want to pray for you. I want to pray for every person under the sound of my voice, that number one, you would get people around you in your family, your friends, and your fighters who have crazy faith, and that God would send those people to you. It wouldn’t be some reachy, weird thing like, «Will you be my crazy friend?»
Don’t be weird! Do you know the best way to get a crazy faith friend? It’s to be a crazy faith friend. If you give what you don’t have, you’ll get what you actually need. Can somebody borrow your faith? Who are you interceding for? Who are you believing God for? When you do that, it changes everything. Hands lifted all over the world.
Father, I’m thanking You right now. I feel Your presence. God, right now, You’re changing our expectations; You’re changing our priorities. Father, You’re giving us principles, and today, God, I’m asking that for everybody under the sound of my voice, that You would give them a group of people in a circle of faith that will be able to walk with them through the ups and downs of this crazy faith journey. Father, I thank You that You would give us family, and if we don’t have family, we can start it, Father God, to be ones who walk in crazy faith. And then You would give us friends who have crazy faith, and Father, You would give us some ride-or-die fighters that would ride with us with crazy faith. God, I thank You for those who even feel lonely right now; they feel like they once had that, or maybe they had it, Father God, but now, because of circumstances and situations, Father, things have changed. God, You’re a restorer, and I just thank You that You’re bringing the right people together for purpose. Align people’s destinies; let us desire this, Father God—from husbands and wives, boyfriends and girlfriends, business partners, coworkers—Father, align people’s lives and let us protect our ears so that we can protect our purpose. Give us a circle of faith! Somebody just say that: God, give me a circle of faith! Just one more time, say, God, give me a circle of faith! And I believe, Father God, that as we are planted in the right soil, I declare that people are about to flourish, businesses are about to flourish, God! Families are about to flourish! God, thank You for being a God who cares about every detail of our lives. We trust You; we believe You, and we thank You. In Jesus' name, somebody say Amen!
Listen, listen, listen, listen, listen! There are some people in here that need to give their life to Christ, and the first crazy faith step that you need to take is by getting in the family of God. All you have to do, according to Romans 10:9, is accept that Jesus Christ went to the cross for you, that He died for your sins and rose again with all power so that your eternity could be secure. Today, I want to give you the opportunity to start on your crazy faith journey, and I can feel that there are thousands of people. I need everybody to start praying right now if you’ve already come into this relationship with God, because this is why our church exists: so that people could be a part of the family. That’s the whole reason why God sent Jesus—so people could be a part of God’s family.
And today, you may be like how I was out there. I was a liar, a manipulator, addicted to pornography, and somebody who had all kinds of crazy stuff in my heart. And God says, «You! I’ll use you! Why not you?» And I gave Him control of my life, and He became my Savior and my Lord. Some of you are tired of running, tired of having to do it all on your own, tired of lifting the burden alone. And God said, «Can I have that?» He wants to help you right now.
In just a moment, we’re going to say a prayer, and I don’t care if you’re watching this live, you’re watching on rebroadcast, or you’re watching ten years from now. This is the moment of salvation, and thousands of people are praying for you right now, because your life can transform in this moment through your—oh—belief. That’s all it is! It just takes faith. We are saved by grace through faith, and all you’ve got to do is put your belief in Christ right now. On the count of three, if you want to be a part of this prayer and accept Jesus as your personal Lord and Savior, all I want you to do is raise your hand wherever you’re at—on the bus, at home, at your office cubicle. It doesn’t matter.
I want you to just say, «Pastor, include me in that prayer.» One, you’re making the greatest decision of your life. Two, I’m so proud of you, but that doesn’t even matter, because your name will be written in the Lamb’s Book of Life. Three, lift your hands all over the world! Come on, wherever you are, lift your hands up! Yes, yes, yes! You can put your hands down right now. See, because you don’t have to confess everything that you’ve done; God sees you. And right now, we’re going to pray a prayer as a family. That’s what Transformation Church is! If you don’t have a family of faith, you can come to this one, and we’ll help you walk with you. Transformation Church—nobody prays alone here! So all of us are going to say this prayer for the benefit of those who are coming to Christ right now. Would you just close your eyes and say:
God, thank You for sending Jesus just for me. Thank You for being my friend who fought for me. I believe You lived, You died, and You rose again for all of my mistakes. And today, I make You the Lord of my life. Change me, renew me, transform me. I’m Yours! In Jesus' name, Amen!