Michael Todd - Here We Go
This is the last week of this series we’re calling «Here is Holy Week Six, » but this is not the last sermon that is going to confront what God is doing in us and through us. Everybody say right here. This is the phrase for the entire year. So in the next series, we’re going to talk about what God is doing in our generosity and stewardship right here. Then, after that, we will start discussing what God wants to do in our relationships. I think I’m going to do, I’m not sure right now, but I think I’m going to do a series called «Cuffing Season» after the finance series and after Easter. Because what I’m finding is that people are in relationships and cuffed to things that are taking them in the wrong direction.
I just find that everybody knows a relationship can be a little different. I really feel like you’re in a relationship with whatever you’re tied to, and I just feel like we’re not going to be talking about the future of our relationship; we’re going to discuss what you’re cuffed to right here. I don’t know what all the other sermon series are; I have an inkling of them, but I just feel like God, all of 2022, wants to do a work within us right here. For those of you just joining this series, welcome. God is doing something really, really special here at Transformation Church. If you’re excited to be a part of a church that’s led by the Holy Spirit, could you just give God some praise? I just need to know. I love it here! You understand, I love it here, but do you love it here? In the chat, in the comments, in the room, can we give God some praise that he’s actually doing this right now? Amen.
So write it down: «Here is Holy.» This phrase is something we have coined for what God is saying to us in this season of life; it needs to apply to every area of your life. «Here is Holy» is the awareness that your current situation—everybody say, «where I’m at"—is sacred. Uh-oh, «where I’m at» is sacred. It’s not asking you if you like where you’re at; it’s making a declarative statement about where you’re at: «Where I’m at is sacred.» Somebody just say that: «Where I’m at is sacred.» It’s being intentionally used by God to prepare me for my purpose, and it’s opposed to «there.» It means that «there» is no longer the goal. I’m going to say this again because it’s going to go against everything you wrote in your vision planner: There is no longer the goal; here is the gift of God.
Until you divorce the theology of «there, » you will always be frustrated about «here.» You will always devalue «here.» I heard somebody say the other day they have small children, and we have small children too, and we were talking back and forth. They said, «I can’t wait until they get older.» But the moment they get older, you’re going to be wishing they were little again. Any parents in the house? Oh God, they can talk back, and they drive you crazy, and you wish, «Ah!» And you wish they could go back to being little. Why? Many times, people have more children because they didn’t value the «here» they were in. Uh-oh; I’m going to get real here.
So they keep having children trying to recapture a moment they didn’t value. Maybe it’s not children, but it may be boyfriends because you’re trying to find a feeling that you had at one moment when things felt good and godly, but you didn’t like the package God sent them in. So you started talking to your girlfriends, and you let their opinions divorce you from your future. It may not be a relationship, but it may be a business, and you didn’t value the time when nobody knew you, when you could actually greet every customer and go out to dinner with people who wanted to invest in you.
Now you’re so busy you keep praying for God to take away what you fasted for. When you do not value «here, » everybody shout at me, «Here!» «There» is never fulfilling because «there» turns into «here.» You never get «there, » and every time you get «there, » it turns into «here.» If you were not content with the «here» you were in, you will not be content in the «here» you go to. They tell me that the average satisfaction of people’s lives does not go up drastically after you make seventy-five thousand dollars. Did you all hear that?
I know some people are like, «Well, test me! Let me see what could happen!» But they literally say that your joy, happiness, and vigor for life increases very little after you make seventy-five thousand dollars. So, «But when I get there, when I make two hundred thousand, when I make two hundred fifty, when I make a million, » and God says, «But you weren’t satisfied at thirty-five thousand.» So you can put three point five in the books and still be frustrated, hurting, and broken, and God is saying, «Could I teach you a principle that will allow you to enjoy the rest of your life, valuing 'here'?»
So I want you to write it down as a point: «Obedience here always takes you there.» Most people are not obedient immediately «here, » so they delay «there, » and that makes them frustrated about «here.» Because they thought God was going to do it «here, » and God said, «You didn’t obey 'here'.» Well, I thought you were going to change my situation! I thought you were going to listen. What if God said what it really was? I thought you were gonna give me a relationship. I wanted a relationship with you first. I thought you were gonna make my church known. I see your church; it is known. Uh-oh, He’s literally saying, «Would you please obey me 'here'?» Because when you obey me «here, » it always takes you «there.» Could you put «here» and «there» on the screen?
I want everybody to see this. I want you to see it very clearly. Matter of fact, I’m going to move this out of the way because I want you to see this. I got this revelation this week that literally God can take you on a journey from wherever you are if you just obey. God says, «Step One: Obedience.» I didn’t have to run; the «here» took me «there.» Okay, give Him the crazy faith offering. Well, God, I don’t… Well, promotion—love on that person that doesn’t like you. Favor—stop committing to people who are not committed to your purpose. Whole new friend group.
See, a lot of us will not obey God for the first step, so now we’re trying to work our way to somewhere God would carry us to. I’m not using any energy except the energy to step, but it’s because I’m obeying the step. Everybody shout at me, «Here!» That when I do it, say yes to serving—and this is what many of y’all do: «God, I’ll say yes, but I don’t really like it. I don’t really… um, that’s not my group of people. I really thought you were going to do it in a different way, God. I really thought you were going to use them and not me.»
God said, «If you don’t stop fighting against the current of the vision I have for your life, then you would actually be able to get what I have for you. But you know what? If you just stop, even if you turn the wrong way, if you would just stop, you could go with what God is trying to do in and through you.» He can take you from «here» to «there» from broken to whole. He can take you from a poverty mindset and allow you to live in wealth and abundance with generosity. He can take you—I’m just trying to get somebody to see «here» always turns into «there» if you’re obedient. Everybody say «here!» Yeah, if this whole year we would just make the next obedient step, you’ll end up «there.»
Now, the crazy thing about this is sometimes this goes fast, and sometimes it goes slow. Could you speed it up just a little bit for me? See, because I’m expecting a certain tempo right now. But what ends up happening is, as you know and flow with God, things that used to take a long time begin to take less time because you have developed the muscle of quick obedience. I don’t know who needs to hear this today, but God is saying that you need to stop thinking about «there» and live your life in what Bishop calls «continual 'heres.'» Because I’m no longer looking at going from «here» to «there, » I’m looking at going from «here» to «here.» And then when He does that, I go from «here"—just «here.» It doesn’t matter how long it takes; it doesn’t matter if I look dumb. I’m not using my energy to make this happen. This is God! Uh-oh, He paused me, stopped me. I was in a rhythm in the last five years. Every time we did something, you just took us from «here» to «here.»
I wasn’t expecting that one, God. Do you get off when you don’t expect it? I wasn’t expecting that one, God! Oh dang, and now it’s going way faster! Whoa, hold on, Lord! Hold on! I need to brace myself for some of the transitions you’re making in my life right now. I need to be able to get in a position to do everything you’ve called me to do. It does not matter what it looks like; it matters that I’m… everybody shout, «Be obedient!» Because when I follow the steps God gives me, everybody shout at me, «Here!» It always takes me «there.» Now can you do something, cameraman? Put it to where you can’t see the treadmill, but you can see me. Yeah, yeah, yeah, right there, right there. Make it where you can’t see my feet either. Just come up a little bit. Yeah, just come on up when my feet get right here. Yeah, right there, right there, right there.
See, the crazy thing about it is it doesn’t matter if others can see what’s under you making you move. When you see me, all you see is it looks like I’m gliding through situations while other people are stumbling. This is what the church should look like when you follow the power of the Holy Spirit on your life. When everybody else is going down, you follow the Spirit, and it takes you up. It takes you from «here» to «here.» And it don’t… I’m going to do this all service. It doesn’t matter if they see what’s powering it because at some point they’re gonna come through and ask, «How? How did you lose your loved one? I saw you when you got the call, but grief and shame didn’t stay long. You were able to minister to me at the cubicle the next day. How?»
Everybody say, «How?» «How were you able to go into that situation that looked like you were at a disadvantage and walk in there with the favor of God, and be able to stand and declare what God said and see your family and others you don’t even know blessed?» It’s because I have something powering me that is not of this world. This is how we go from «here» to «here!» Or, if that’s too much for you, put the cross in front of «here, » and guess what it spells? «There!» So every time I get «here, » before I see «there, » I need to see the cross. Matthew 6:33: «Seek first the kingdom, its agenda, its plan, and everything else will be added.»
Every time it’s the cross. Every move I make—from my marriage, my money, my mindset—I should be going towards the cross. And this is for everybody who has not been going towards the cross, and you’ve been… this is what you look like in your everyday life: «How you doing?» «Blessings, holidays! I’m doing good, girl. Everything’s good.» «How’s that relationship?» «You know, we’re in a situation shift.» I mean, «But it was just Valentine’s Day, and he bought me some good chocolates, a little jingle.» But does he commit? «You know, it’s only been nine years, but I just know that God’s gonna…»
The only thing you have to do is repent. Do you know what repent means? It means to turn! I’m preaching on this treadmill right now! All I’m telling you is that if you turn towards the cross, if you turn towards what God wants for you, it takes you from «here» to «there.» Let’s keep that running; we’ll see what happens. You know, I started to think about how God doesn’t want us to stay «here» past our assignment, but most people don’t know the expiration date to «here.» So at the moment they get «there» and they don’t like it, they try to run from it.
Some stuff was only supposed to last eleven days. Ask the children of Israel; it had an expiration date of eleven days in the wilderness. But as soon as they tasted manna for the first time and were like, «What is it?» their hearts lengthened the time. Let me come preach to y’all: If your heart posture is not proper when God’s trying to do something in you «here, » you will make the clock longer because the whole reason for the wilderness, the whole reason for «here, » is to work out of you what cannot go into the promised land. There are so many things that we carry inside of us that we feel will be permitted in the promised land, and God’s saying, «That will get your access denied.»
So I gotta take you the long way to work on your attitude, to work on your thoughts, to work on your character, to work on your people skills. I gotta do that so that you do not disqualify yourself when we get to the place that I promised you, he promised them I’m going to take you to a promised land, but their heart condition lengthened an 11-day expiration date to a 40-year death. No longer do we need to be worried about there. I truly believe they probably had meetings about what it was going to be like in the promised land instead of focusing on what God told them to do right here. They were like, «Yo, but when we get over there, I heard…» And I bet you know what, and once I… and God was like, «Man, if you would just focus on what I’m trying to do in building you right here, it would change everything.»
So, last week, God invited Moses into this amazing call. Moses had internal limitations that would not allow him to fully obey what God was asking him to do. That’s why I said if you take the first step and obey God, He’ll take you from here to there. He will fill your mouth; He’ll give you what to say; He’ll educate you as you go. But most of us want to fight with God instead of have faith in God. I’m going to say this again: most of us want to fight with God instead of have faith in God.
I’ve been enamored with Moses’s story, reading it for this series, and seeing how much he argued with God about what God called him to do. I know none of you argue with God; as soon as He says it, you say, «Yes, Lord, here I am, your humble servant.» I know, but for the few of us that might have a little Moses mentality… No, no, I know you’ve heard of the Mamba mentality. You know Kobe Bryant had this thing where he would literally turn on this instinct and have this Mamba mentality. A Mamba is a snake, and if any opponent was in front of him, he would strike fear and insecurity into them.
Now, most of us don’t have the Mamba mentality because it would have played out of your life somehow, but a lot of us have the Moses mentality. Look, the Moses mentality fights the instructions of God due to fear and insecurity. God says, «Go to that place.» «Well, God, I don’t know them, and who am I, and in there, somebody? I got a stutter and a lisp…» and God’s like, «I did not ask you for your Moses mentality.» He spends over two chapters arguing with God. God says, «I want to use you.» «I can’t be used like that.» «I want people to be changed by you.» «I don’t know if I can change.» «I want to transform a nation.» «Which nation?» «I don’t even know nations!»
I don’t know why our insecurities and fears get so big at the moment God is saying, «I want to use you.» But we have to get this Moses mentality out of our head when God is saying, «Here is holy, and I want to invite you into a call that’s going to be bigger than anything else you’ve ever done. It’s not going to look like your last season.» Moses spent 40 years in a desert place with sheep, and then God comes out of the blue and says, «Now you’re going to culture, and I’m going to use you as my mouthpiece to the entire nation of Egypt.» That doesn’t look like my last season. God says, «It doesn’t have to, because I’m leading you.»
And this is why I’m asking everybody, as we end this series: don’t fight with God this year. I just want to close this whole series saying if God says, «Here is holy, » and then He starts giving you crazy instructions, do not fight Him. What if Moses had had the right attitude the first time God said, «I want to use you»? What if it wasn’t two chapters of back-and-forth? What if it wasn’t, «Oh, but I need a hearing too»? He literally put his purpose and destiny on hold. We thank God that Aaron came along and helped, but what if Aaron was reluctant to do what God called him to do? Now my purpose is waiting on somebody else to say yes when God never even required them to do it in the first place.
You’re waiting on a committee of people when God said there’s enough in you to do this just with me and you. But your insecurities and fears are saying, «But I need somebody else, » and God said, «I’ll let you have them if that’ll make you move, but you didn’t even need them.» That was a request you asked for, but my plan for you was for you to stand flat-footed and fulfill the purpose I called you for when I allowed you to live when they were killing all babies. This is the attitude we should have this year: my attitude will agree with the anointing of God on my life. No, that’s not right. Everybody say, «This year, my attitude will agree with the anointing of God on my life.» It doesn’t matter if it’s comfortable—I’m going to agree with what God is saying about me.
So I’m going to be a book writer. I can’t really spell, but I agree. No, you all don’t hear me! Okay, I’m going to use real examples. I failed ninth-grade AP English, and my parents are looking at each other confused in the front row right now. I was a manipulator back then; they didn’t know. But I failed ninth-grade English. Now, watch this: this is when Natalie came into my life, and it was really sweet, and it hurt my feelings. She said, «You’re smarter than that; don’t be dumb.» And that’s all I needed. I needed her to say that. I was like, «Hold on, I am smarter than that!»
I went back and asked the teacher if I could take all the tests over again. I took all the tests over again, and I graduated with a C in AP English, and then I was in AP classes the rest of the time in high school. But I needed that moment; it never showed up on my report card because I went back and made it happen. But the truth of the matter is that there was an anointing on my life that I didn’t agree with yet, and it followed me even after ninth grade. Part of my hesitation to go to college—I tell the story—is that I wanted to do music and all that other stuff, but there was another hesitation about the academic side being too daunting for me. And God was like, «No, you’re an academic. You can get this stuff. You can do it.»
But I hadn’t agreed with the anointing. Oh my God, He’s literally telling me I can do it, and I’m listing all the reasons why I can’t do it. It’s just like God to allow me to become an author of books— not one book, but currently two—and there are more on the way right now. He uses the foolish things to confound the wise. He said, «I’m not just going to let it be a book that you wrote. I’m going to let your first book—just so you know who’s God—go New York Times bestseller, and I’m going to make it sell over a million copies in less than three years.»
I really should have agreed with you earlier. If I would have known what you could do with all that I have, I would have agreed earlier. Uh-oh! I came to tell somebody you should agree now because it’s going to take you to the place you’ll end up eventually. If you want to get there faster, agree now! Or let me say it a different way: agree here. Moses didn’t agree when God said it. After he took off his shoes and did all this stuff, God said, 'I know the plans I have for you; you don’t.' So why, when I say something to you, do you start questioning me? This year, we’re not going to fight God. My attitude will agree with the anointing of God on my life. Why, Pastor Mike? Because obedience equips you for your assignment.
When you obey, that’s how you get equipped. It’s not, 'Let me get equipped, and then I’ll obey.' That’s being disobedient. But if you just obey God, He will equip you along the way to do the assignment He’s called you to do. So I made a decision that all of 2022, I have a brand new attitude. When God says something about me, says something about this church, says something about my family, when God wants me to go to another level, when God wants to take me somewhere, and I don’t even feel fully secure in where we’re going, I have a new three-word phrase. Here we go! This needs to be the biggest faith statement that you say all year: God says, 'I’m going to use you in this way.' I don’t even get it, but here we go! God, You’re going to do this from this converted grocery store even after You gave us the arena, but You’re not allowing us to be in there right now, so You got us right here.
Well, here we go! You’re going to allow me to forgive people who have used me in a wrong way and bless them. I don’t want to, but here we… I’m telling you that these three words are going to guide you all year because what it’s doing is it’s aligning your attitude. You don’t have to know everything to say, «Here we go!» You just have to obey. Somebody shout at me, 'Obey! ' Shout at me really good, 'Here we go! ' That’s the title of my message today: 'Here We Go.' And this brings me back to several moments in my relationship with my wife, Natalie. Um, Natalie, um, tries to let me finish the statement, but I’m going to say how I feel. She tries to kill me once a year with some type of outlandish activity that puts me and my body, and my limbs, in a very compromised state.
Let me explain. For my 26th birthday, she blindfolded me, drove me to the middle of nowhere in Oklahoma, and said, 'We fell in love this many years ago, so today for your birthday, let’s fall from 10,000 feet and go skydiving.' What?! I don’t even like it! At this moment, I’m paralyzed in fear. I start thinking about how much I weigh; I start thinking about the last time I used the bathroom because it would be very devastating to pee in the air, and I start, like—my life is flashing before my eyes. She’s just sitting over there like, 'What possessed you? ' Like why? We get into the hangar, and the dudes are so excited because it’s like their six thousandth jump, so you can tell they’re skipping through stuff. I wish I was lying! They’re like, 'Yeah, yeah, you got it, bro! Don’t even worry.' I was like, 'No, no, no, no! This is my life! That’s my life! '
We get in a plane that literally is from, like, 10 feet. This plane is so little! I’m crunched up in the front of the plane with the pilot, and the other people out there—Natalie—they’re talking and laughing, and all I can see is Jesus! I was like, 'I’m going to meet Him today! ' I said three salvation prayers! I ain’t even going to lie to you. But there was a moment that something switched in my head. The pilot literally said, 'Look down at the—at the—I don’t know why he said, «Look down at the cars.» He said, «How high do you think we are? Because we had to go to ten thousand feet.» I said, «I don’t know, nine thousand feet.» He said, «You’re two thousand feet off the ground.» And then something changed in my mind.
Well, if I’m going to die today, here we go! Now somebody said, 'Pastor Mike, why do you—? ' At this point, I’m in the air; at this point, I got to trust! Somebody say, 'At this point, I’m about to…' At this point, there’s no turning back, so I might as well agree with the situation I found myself in! Would I have ever put myself in this situation? Hell to the number! But since we’re here, here we go! And I got outside that plane, and that man said, 'On the count of three, we’re going to jump! ' I’m literally just shaking—my legs shaking, my hands shaking, shaking everything—and he said, 'One, two, three! ' and we did like this, and I froze! He said, 'Bro, you’re too big not to go! ' He said, 'The next time we do this, you gotta go! '
And I had to remind myself, I said I was going to do it! I don’t get it; I don’t understand, but here we go! One, two, and I’m telling you with everything in me, I jumped! And literally, it felt like this. I didn’t move a lot; I didn’t put all my effort into it, but I just leaned in the direction—uh-oh! I just leaned in the direction of obedience! I just leaned in the direction of the favor! I just leaned in the direction and the momentum of my obedience! Somebody shout at me, 'Here we go! ' If you would take that attitude for everything that God places in front of you this year, you will find yourself having experiences and moments that will never be taken away from you.
I will never go skydiving again, but nobody can take from me that I have had that experience! And what God is saying to many of us right now is lean in the direction of obedience! You may not be fully ready to jump out of there—I didn’t! He was like, like, that’s why my guy was there! Everybody say, 'Lean! ' Just lean right now. Just lean! Just lean! Lean, lean, lean! If you do this with God all year, I’m not going to fight you; I’m not going to work against you, but I am going to lean in the direction of obedience! And that’s why my new phrase for the rest of this year is, what? Here we go! So let me say it to you like this: you don’t just say here we go; it has to be in your heart.
A lot of people have lip service, but they don’t have obedience. It’s out of the abundance of the heart that the mouth speaks, and then the body acts. Like, if you want to really know it, like you say it before you do it. And we got to get it in our hearts, so I want you to write down 'Here we go'—heart—is what I want. Like, yeah, I want to hear 'Here we go' heart! Like, so when God says forgive them, your response is, 'Here we go! ' And that actually has to be in your heart! When God tells you to shut up and stop complaining, and your M.O. is to talk about everything, vent, and let people know your truth, when He muzzles you, your response is, 'Here we go! ' Or maybe, 'Mm-hmm! ' Like, when God asks you to serve in a department that you do not have any expertise in, but you would be a savant in a different area, but God calls you to a place where you have to learn again.
Instead of fighting like, 'Why? Why do I need to be in this place? ' We are agreeing with the assignment and the anointing that God has placed on our life at Transformation Church. And so our response is, 'Here we go! ' Yeah! You need to write that somewhere—in your binder, on your mirror—when you get up to go to that job every day, and you know that you’re not functioning at your highest level, but God’s trying to teach you something. Here, you need to say to yourself every day, 'Here we go! You can use me! You can do whatever You want to do through me! You can change me! You can transform me! ' Everybody shout at me, 'Here we go! ' The reason I’m trying to say this over and over and over and over again is because when you get to a 'Here we go' heart, the only way you can say that is because you actually trust God.
See, a lot of people get exposed in their obedience because if God said it, we should trust Him. But the truth of the matter is we don’t! So a lot of times when God says, 'Go here, ' and that’s going to be your next level to what you’re going to, when you get there and you don’t like it, you stop trusting God, and you blame other people. But the truth is, nobody told you to come here; God did! You couldn’t open those doors for yourself; God did that! God allowed you to have those kids; God allowed you to do that. And when we stop trusting God, it shuts down our heart. 'God, I thought You said we were going to be able to be generous.' And God said, 'Trust me, because if you trust me, I promise you it’s going to happen—maybe not when you wanted to, and maybe not even how you wanted it to— but I am a God who does not lie! '
And this is why Isaiah 45, verses 3 through 6, really helped me out anytime I’m like, 'Here we go, but God, are You sure? ' Watch this: 'This is God, and I will give you treasures hidden in the darkness, secret riches. I will do this so you may know that I am the Lord, ' He says, 'the God of Israel, the One who calls you by name.' And why have I called you? This is what we want to know: why have I called you for this word? Why did I call you by name when you did not know me? It is for the sake of Jacob, My servant, Israel, My chosen one—it’s for the sake of others! I am the Lord. There is no other God. I have equipped you for battle! Oh, I love this part right here! God has equipped me for battle, though you don’t even know me!
So all the world from the east to the west will know there is no other God! Why does God choose us? Because He knew we were weak. The only way He gets the glory and looks really strong is He doesn’t pick the biggest, strongest, most qualified person. He usually finds the most broken person and says, 'If I do this through them, the whole world will know from the east to the west that I am God.' What a great privilege it is to be used by God in my weakness! See, people talk about Paul saying, 'In my weakness, He is…' That’s God’s preference—to be strong in somebody’s weakness. And your proclivity is to always act strong and actually be weak. And God says, 'Would you please just admit you’re not a good person at organizing, and stop acting like you have every app and still can’t be on time?! '
Can we just acknowledge this is a struggle for me? And God says, 'Finally! Now I can be strong in the middle of your weakness.' But you only can do that when you trust God! Somebody say, 'Here we go! ' Okay, so how do we have a 'Here we go' heart? Three points, and we’re out of here for the day. God’s already met us! Matthew 28:18, oh, I love the Word of God! Matthew 28:18—this is Jesus. Everybody say, 'Here we go! ' Say it one more time, 'Here we go! ' Jesus came and told His disciples, 'I’ve been given all authority in heaven and on earth; therefore, what is the next word? Go! Say it loud: Go! ' Hold on! Jesus establishes His authority; then He gives us an instruction, and the instruction is, 'Go! ' 'Go where, Jesus? ' 'And make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all of my commands I’ve given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.'
Jesus' last instructions to His disciples were to go! But do you know what happened right before this? He says, 'You’re going to go! ' And I came to tell somebody right now, you’re mad because the word and phrase of the year is 'Holy'! I just came to tell you, 'You’re going to go! ' 'Go' is coming because 'here' and 'go' are always connected. So His last instruction was 'What? Go! ' Okay, but before that, do you know what He told His disciples to do? He told them to stay here. Pastor Mike, what are you talking about? Go to Acts chapter 1. Once when He was eating with His disciples, He commanded them, 'Do not leave here! Don’t leave Jerusalem until the Father sends you the gift He promised you.
As I told you before, John baptized you with water, but in just a few days, you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.' Hold on! Jesus tells them to go, but before He tells them to go, He tells them to stay here! 'My here is connected to my assignment to go. If I don’t wait to be empowered here, it will be pointless for me to go there! ' If I don’t forgive here, my heart will not be malleable for God to use me», there is a tension among true believers like «hear» and «go.» Thank you; those are my two executive team members. That’s good! Why are they saying that? Because they know that’s where I’m at. I can’t preach anything to you that God’s not taking me through right now.
God has told me all of 2022 to wait here, despite having so much go vision, so much go ability, so many go resources, and so many connections. I could go through my phone right now. Eight years ago, I had to obey God. I had nothing. I didn’t have any connections. A lot of people say, «I’m just waiting on God.» You don’t have any choice; you don’t have any options. You really don’t know if it’s God until you have the options not to obey Him. I have so much go ability—I just made that word up! I have go ability, and God’s saying, «Here.» I’ve made a decision that «hear» and «go» are exclusively tied together. What I do here qualifies me for where I get to go there. How I handle people here determines what rooms I get to go into up there. How I stood over my body here gives me the stamina to go.
Do you all know that most of you would be exhausted, all my musicians, if you actually went on tour? If you had to sing every night, sign autographs, and board a plane, then take your Instagram picture, you wouldn’t have a voice tomorrow because you haven’t conditioned yourself here. You’re carrying 40 pounds of extra McDoubles; you love Sonic’s new McFlurries; you can’t get enough of Krispy Kreme donuts. So, what you’re praying for is delayed because you will not be intentional and steward over this place. «Hear» and «go» are connected, and until you do these three things, you’ll never get to see where God wants to take you on the go.
Number one: you need to value here. I’ve said it every way I can throughout the series: value here. Why are you valuing here? Because here equals position. If you’re in the right «here,» the right position, it will take you there. Remember my example earlier: all we have to do is be in the right position, and it delivers us to where God wants us to be. Stop devaluing the place God has assigned to you. Imagine the disciples telling Jesus, «Jerusalem? Man, I thought we were headed to Caesarea! I have some friends up in Capernaum that I told we were going to roll through.»
You know, they might say, «Well, I’m about to move to L.A., and they told me there are better opportunities in New York.» This is the jargon and language of people who do not value here. You think your favor is in a different city? Wherever I go, the favor is on people. You’ll never hear God anointing the land; He anointed the people. He said, «Wherever your footsteps go…» What I’m trying to convey is that if you value here, God will take you there. But if you aren’t positioned this year, you will delay your goal. Somebody’s going to watch this back and think, «Darn it! If I had just gotten into position!»
Sometimes, the positions aren’t visible; sometimes, the positions can’t be posted about. Some positions require anonymity. You know what that is? That means people can’t even know what God’s doing in you because the position requires just being here. Some of the work God’s doing in me right now is frustrating because I wish people could at least see what God’s doing. It would give me encouragement to keep doing it. God said, «You’re going to have to encourage yourself.» David said it like that: «Sometimes I’ve got to encourage myself in the Lord.» Do you know what that’s doing in me? It’s building stamina; it’s building endurance. I don’t know what’s ahead. I don’t know what there is. I don’t know what happens when we open our church back up. But whatever God’s doing here, I’m valuing it. If you don’t stop devaluing your current position, God can definitely take you to a different one that you might not like even worse.
What am I saying, Pastor Mike? God told me one time, «Michael, you better start enjoying where you are because this can either be the last time we do this, or it can be the thing that you learn to enjoy because you need it for everything I’ve called you to do.» I’m trying to say it without saying it: you don’t even know what you need up there. And if you don’t let God do the work in you right here, you won’t be equipped; you won’t have the instruments or the tools. So I’m asking you, Transformation Church, value here! Everybody say «here.»
But then there’s a «we,» and I like «we.» Let me go back; I forgot something. Here is where you hear. The reason why you stay here is it’s where you hear God. When you hear God, everything changes. I know I’m right in the middle of where God wants me because I’ve heard Him clearly. When you hear Him, you better make sure you have the right «we.» You need to value here and then value the «we.» What are you saying? Who are you around? Are they the right «we» for here? They might have gotten you through the last season, but are they the right people?
For everybody, say «here.» That’s why when I say «here we go,» it’s not «here I go»; it’s «here we.» God always chooses to do things in community. He never asks for a solo project; He wants a collaborative work of people who are going the same way with the same heart and the same mind. Who’s your «we»? This is what you have to value in 2022. Some of you… I’m just going to say what I feel God has put on my heart today: some of you do not have friends because you’re not friendly. You’re mean; you make people prove to you that they deserve your time, like they should be grateful to breathe your air. If you text them back or respond, somehow they’ve won the lottery to speak to you today.
The reason you don’t have encouragement in down times is that you literally repel the very people who are supposed to be a resource to you. You’re so insecure in the areas of life that are deficient to you in this season that you will isolate yourself from the people who are supposed to give you courage. That’s why they call it encouragement; somebody’s supposed to put it in you. If you don’t have a community around you to encourage you, you may need to ask yourself, «Who am I encouraging?» Because you reap what you sow. If you want friends, be a friend. If you hear about a problem, if somebody’s sick, do what you would want someone to do for you. We talk about it in finance and serving, but we don’t talk about it in friendship. I might have to revisit this in cuffing season, but what I’m talking about is: if you really want best friends, who are you a best friend to? You don’t have to call me your best friend for me to be your best friend. You can deny the title, but you can’t deny how I function in your life.
Some people have weak «we’s.» Yo, our «we’s» are weak! I just can’t take it anymore. When you fall, you hit the ground because you don’t have any «we’s» around you, or your «we’s» are weak because they just don’t have the capacity to hold you up. Zoe, come here. Kaylee, come here. Jennifer, come here real fast—just real fast. Okay, yeah, just come here. I know you all weren’t ready to be on the platform today, but just come here. I’m about to jump and fall. I don’t know where I’m going to jump and fall, but I don’t have enough in me to stay up anymore. So I’m about to… (only one of them was ready; Kaylee is looking at me like, «Pastor Mike, I just had a baby!») The problem is I don’t feel secure near them.
Let me say it again: I don’t feel secure, and neither do they, because they’re not built for this weight. Even if we have great conversations, laugh at the same jokes, and watch the same TV shows, they’re not my «we.» (Come here, Brinson. Come here, Scott. Come here, Will Heckenbock—I mean, Will Dale.) Okay, so what ends up happening is that some security comes to my life when the wrong «we» steps aside and the right «we» gets near me. Now, it’s not that it still won’t be heavy and it might not actually be difficult, but I know they are built to hold me up. You’ve got to hear me—they’re built to hold me up. Even when I look like I’m not prepared, they’re built to hold me up. Even in moments where it doesn’t look like it, they’re built to hold me up.
If I would have done that with these babies, watch: they would have been hurt, and I would have been hurt. If you don’t get the right group of people around you, hurt is inevitable. You’ve got to find a strong «we,» a strong community, a strong church. (Hey, Brent, Scott—I thought I was done! I didn’t even tell them what I was doing, but the right community can hear my tone.) They can hear in my voice that I could say, «I’m not good; I’m cool, bro. I don’t need anything. I’m good.» But look what they’re doing; they’re walking with me. They’re following me around because they know that at any moment I might need some support.
And the crazy thing is, Brent might be going through a situation, and we might switch places; he might need us to hold him up. After Brent gets held up, Will may need something. You ready, Will? Let’s go! See, in my community, when Will’s done, Scott may need something. When Scott needs it… this is what our community looks like! Until we get the right «we» here, there is pain; there is hurt; there is discipline. That’s why most people leave the church—because I was getting a divorce and fell flat on my face, and nobody caught me. Now I’m dealing with the pain of my heart being broken, and I didn’t have the right «we» around me—people who were strong enough in prayer when I didn’t have the words, who could give me words of encouragement.
Some of these people hold vulnerable parts of me; I’m not worried about where any of their hands are right now. I’m just grateful to be off the ground. Someone might say, «Don’t touch that; don’t do this; don’t do that.» No, baby, when you get in a community that’s humble, open, and transparent, you don’t care what they see—you just care that they’re holding you up. I’m preaching right now! Somebody say «we!» If you don’t get the right «we» here… and all I’m saying to you in this moment is that it may not even feel like you need them now, but you have no idea what’s ahead. When me and Natalie got the diagnosis for MJ, there was no warning for that. If I didn’t have the right «we» around me, I wouldn’t be standing on this platform today.
When the spit hit the fan, if I couldn’t have called a couple of my friends and said, «Let’s go to Napa, California,» actually, I didn’t say it—they had already had a trip planned, and I was like, «Y’all just come with us!» I looked at Natalie and said, «I’ve got to get up out of here. I need to disconnect from social media; I need to be around people.» We sat every night on the balcony overlooking some amazing vineyards, talking about the purpose of God. In that moment, when I already felt—watch this! —like I was on the ground, this is what a good «we» does: they’ll get down in your situation and, when you don’t have the strength to pick yourself up, they’ll be the ones to pick you up.
Then I get a little strength back, and I start feeling it, but I can’t do it without them yet. I can listen during praise and worship, but I haven’t raised my hands fully yet. They’ll stay with me, walk with me, and still believe with me in this time. I might say, «I’ve got a little strength, but don’t leave me yet! Just hold me up!» And they’ll stay with me, walk with me. Oh, let me say this: your «we» should look multi-ethnic! I’ve got a white brother on my left side and a black brother who didn’t like white people most of his life on my right side. One day, you’ll get to hear Scott’s testimony. I’ve got Will behind me. I wish I had an Asian brother—Michael Ty, where you at? I need somebody else!
Here, all I’m saying is when you get it, it doesn’t matter at this moment; their background doesn’t matter. It’s their strength and my time of need this year when God says, «Here is holy,» and we say, «Here we go!» Make sure you have the right «we» so that you can do everything that God has called you to do. Somebody, give God some praise right here! Thank you all. Hey y’all, turn around; I just wanted to make sure. All right, all right, but look what happened. It was a situation that they were able to catch me in that they were unprepared for, which makes them stay closer. Look at all of them! Put the camera on them, not on me. If your «we» is not ready, and some of y’all have been committed to people that resourced you in your last season, you are expecting that they’ll actually help you now, but they’re actually awake. I’m good for real!
This time, Acts chapter 2, verse 1, says, «On the day of Pentecost, all the believers"—that means a «we,» a group—"were meeting together in…» everybody say, «one place!» This is where Jesus told them to wait. He said, «Get in position, stay here, and don’t leave. Don’t go until you’re in one place with the right 'we.'» So here is the position; «we» equals people. But watch this last one: «goal» equals power. The whole reason Jesus said to go and wait here is because He is going to give you the power of the Holy Spirit to actually go and be impactful. Look at Acts chapter 1, verse 7: He replied, «The Father alone has the authority to set those dates and times, and they are not for you to know.»
So that means there’s going to be a level of confusion whenever we are walking with God, but you will receive—everybody shout with me—power! Say it with your chest: power! But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. Value the power of the Holy Spirit! It makes no sense for you to say «Here we go» and be in the right position with the right people but have no power. The disciples had walked with Jesus all this time, yet He still told them to go to this specific place that I’m not going to be at with you and wait until you hear God in that place. Then, everybody in your «we» is going to get the same power to be able to go out and do what I asked you to do in the first place: go into all the world! But stay here with the right people until you get the power of the Holy Spirit so you can go out there and actually be effective.
What are you trying to say, Pastor Mike? Don’t go without power! Why would you go through this year without the Holy Spirit leading and directing you? Why in the world would you make a plan for a business and have the Holy Spirit on the sideline? And you’re like, «Yeah, just wait. Just wait. I’ll ask for you in a minute.» No, no, no! Put Him in the game right now and ask Him, «Give me power to do what you’ve asked me to do.» Leaving here and going there without power is pointless! God is not sending you to culture to get beat up and sent back to the church. He’s not sending you to be the first in your family to break generational habits and cycles for them to swallow you and spit you back out, and you’re like, «Yeah, I just think my ministry is to people who are broken.»
You don’t go to the place that God called you to. The sad fact is there are many pastors without power, many politicians without the power of the Holy Spirit, and many people parenting without the power of the Holy Spirit. Your parents did the best they could, but many of them did not do it the kingdom way. If you’re just following patterns of broken people, you should allow the Holy Spirit… «Well, I beat my kids…» «So I beat them.» «You spare the rod, you spoil the child.» That was your situation, but you’ve never even asked God how to discipline this child! You literally took the pain you experienced and turned it into punishment for them, and somehow now you think everything’s going to be okay because you didn’t even talk to them afterward! You literally hit your kids, sent them to their rooms, took away the things that they enjoy, and said, «You better eat dinner!»
That’s trauma if I’ve ever heard it! And you didn’t know that God gave you a compassionate child, a sensitive child—a child that you never would have to hit if you actually took the time to talk to them. If you would have done that, what you’re doing is creating a wedge between you and the person who’s going to take care of you sixty years from now. The reason you’re going to end up in a home that nobody cares for you is because you didn’t care for them when they were in your home. I don’t know who this is for right now, but what I’m saying to you is, don’t parent without the power of the Holy Spirit! Don’t, don’t, don’t go without power! It’s better that you stay here and wait for God to give you a revelation than for you to go out there without power and try to do it in your own strength! Apply it to whatever you want to; copy and paste it!
But you trying to live single and pure without the power of the Holy Spirit in 2022? That is a losing battle! But why? Why would you go into the fashion industry and not go with the power of the Holy Spirit? Why would you go into the school system? Why would you go into sports? Why would you go into education? Why would you go there ill-equipped to actually impact? That’s why God said it’s better for you to stay here and wait on me. When we sing the song «Wait on the Lord, wait on the Lord,» what’s the next part? «He will renew your strength!» That’s the power! So when I say «Wait on the Lord,» it’s because He wants to give you something! If you wait on the Lord, He’s telling you, «You need power; He will renew your strength!»
So wait! If we would actually do that, we would go into places that used to be a battle, and there would be no fight. When certain power shows up, certain conflict goes down. There is a certain level of bar that people have when someone weak is in the room, but when a strong person steps in, it changes everything! Let’s not lead this church, lead our small groups, or lead our businesses without the power of the Holy Spirit! What are you saying, Pastor Mike? God’s saying, «Here is holy.» Last point, write it down: the Holy Spirit isn’t optional. Here we go! But not without the Holy Spirit. Here we go, but not until He gives us power!
So what do I do in the wait? What do I do? Get healthy here! Get whole here! Change your heart here! And whenever God decides to give you a word from His Holy Spirit—an understanding of what’s happening, a new language for what God’s calling you to do—then you go! Me becoming the pastor of this church, I would have never done it unless God visited me in a Best Western hotel in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, at 2:30 in the morning. God said, «I’m about to do something in you, but you have to obey me here.» There was no Spirit Bank Event Center; there were no people; there were no crazy faith offerings; there was no book. God said, «On this floor, I need you to obey me here.»
Well, God, I don’t know how this is all going to happen. I didn’t ask you all that! I did not ask you all that! All I ask you for is a «yes» here! And on the floor with my wife in the bed, I said, «God, I’ll do it.» What my life has been since I obeyed God in that moment of «here,» all I can explain is, when I step, it takes me to my next tier. Every time I get confused and don’t know what to do, God says, «Do what you did last time. Just acknowledge that here is holy, and because God is here, you’re going to be all right.» Obey me! First year of ministry, I don’t know if that ever is going to happen again. Second year of ministry, wow, God keeps doing this! Third year of ministry, wow, it goes viral. Son diagnosed with autism, write the book Crazy Faith. God, it doesn’t make sense!
Okay, fifth year of ministry, wife going through depression because of the things happening with your son; God begins to start forming miracles in the situation. Staff members change; things hit the fan! It just seems like if I would get in the rhythm of agreeing with God—get in the rhythm of staying on pace with Him—I would have gone further obeying God than I ever would trying to figure out everything that was going to happen. Here is help me, Holy! I pray that from now on you get this internal «here we go» on the inside of your heart. God, you’re going to do something crazy this year! Yep! Am I going to know what it looks like? Nope! Here we go, God! I’ll wait on you! Here is holy!
I want to pray for you! This sermon series will be a marker for many of our lives over and over again. This isn’t a one-time sermon series. God will bring you back here several times because you’ll go from here to here, and then from here to here. People think you went from here to there, but it will be a bunch of obedient steps, and then you’ll get to a place like I was at the beginning of the year: «God, what do you want to do?» He said, «Just obey me here,» and He’ll take you to your next tier! I know for some of you, it’s like, «Pastor Mike, I just don’t get it.» You will! I promise you, if you walk with God long enough, you’ll have to look at a situation He doesn’t allow to change immediately and declare, «Here is holy!»
Today, in front of my whole church, in front of everybody that’s here, I’m declaring that where we are as a church is holy! It’s uncomfortable; I don’t like it; I wish we were back in the arena; I wish we could have people—all the different things. Like, I miss y’all! As soon as we open, y’all, we might have a 10-day party! I don’t even know what’s going to happen. I might just be there every night at six, by myself! But I can’t even tell you a date—I can’t even hint at anything. We didn’t have so many potential grand openings—re-grand, grand, grand your great-grand—we had so many! I just told the staff to just wait!
For some reason, God has prophetically paused us. Not pathetically paused us; nothing has gone down. More salvations? I think there have been five thousand seven hundred salvations since the beginning of the year! That’s how you know it’s prophetic when the things that God cares about start going up, but my feelings? He doesn’t care about that! He cares about His will being done! For some reason, He got us in this place, and He’s saying, «Here is holy.» I want you to look at every situation that may not be as favorable as you’d like it to be and stop and hear God say, «Here.» Could you close your eyes everywhere?
God, I’m praying over these people with the same prayer, Father God, that I’ve been praying over myself: Father, let us see you here. Give us revelation; reveal truth; show us enough for us to be content here! God, we acknowledge that you are the King of kings and the Lord of lords. Father God, we would like a lot more answers, but God, we want to fulfill the assignment! So today, let us not have the Moses mentality! Father, let us surrender and agree with what you want to do in our lives, in our family, in this church. Here we go! However, you want to do it, God; we’re saying «yes» to everything you want to do this year! Our attitude will agree with the anointing you have placed on our lives. Here we go! God, if it’s staying in this building for the rest of the year, here we go, God! God, I just want to be right where you want me! So, we’re saying, «Here is holy.»
Come on, say that out of your mouth: «Here is holy!» Just sing that one more time; just let God minister to you right here. Hands lifted, yeah! In your house, just turn this moment into an altar! Come on, this is our heart posture right here! Just one more time, just receive it! God’s speaking to you right here! All year, we’ll revisit this moment, DJ! All year, Steve! Right here is holy! I don’t know what God’s going to do the rest of this year for us, but I promise you our goal is connected to what we do right here! I promise you! Get healthy here! Take care of your body here! Read your word here! Get the right «we» here! For anybody that needs to understand the Holy Spirit or be filled with the Holy Spirit this week, I’m challenging you to go back and watch a series that we did called «The Upgrade.» I literally explained—because some of y’all want an experience, but other people need understanding—and I think it’s good to get both! I literally walk you through what the Holy Spirit offers us because it’s a person; it’s a He. When you get this revelation, it will change everything! Don’t go without the power of the Holy Spirit!
God, we thank you for what you’re doing in us and through us. Oh, I feel the presence of God; just do it one more time. Yo, jeez, come on, let her minister to you right there in your home! Here we go, God! Come on, somebody, just let that get in your heart. Here it is: for some of you, this is your moment of salvation. The reason this is holy is that this is the day you’re going to give your life to Christ. Yeah, yeah, around here there are no secrets. What we want everybody to do, if you don’t do anything else, is surrender your life to the love and lordship of Jesus Christ.
That’s why we exist: so people can be transformed in Christ. All the examples and all the stuff—that’s great! But all I’m trying to do is get you to have a real experience with the only person who can change you. It happened for me; like, when I was at my worst, here when I was a liar, a manipulator, addicted to pornography, I had a felony case against me. There were all kinds of different things going on in my life, and God said, «Yeah, if you would surrender right here, I’ll use you.» And I’m telling you, it’s the greatest decision I ever made. It changed me and transformed me forever. Now I’m not a perfect man, but I am a man who is progressing and being used by God. I can have an attitude that says, «God, I don’t understand, but here we go—whatever you want to do with me, however you want to use me.»
I want you to experience that same thing because it’s the reason why you were even born: for purpose, to have a relationship with God. So today, on the count of three, I’m about to say a prayer, but if you want to be included in that prayer and be like the other 5,700 people this year who have committed their lives to Christ, I just want you to slip your hand in the air wherever you are. It doesn’t matter if you’re in this room, on your couch, or driving in the car. If it’s live or rebroadcast, the Holy Spirit is right there with you.
The Bible tells us it’s the Holy Spirit that draws people to Jesus. You are at your day of salvation. Don’t let anybody distract you; don’t let what you did last night distract you; don’t let what you’re planning to do tomorrow distract you. Let God have your heart right here. One, you’re making the greatest decision of your life. Two, your name is going to be written in the Lamb’s Book of Life, but more than that, you are going to be God’s child; out loud, in front of everybody. And three, you are going to be a witness for His glory. Lift your hands in the air if that’s you! Yeah, there are hundreds, if not thousands, of hands going up right now at Transformation Church. You already know the deal: we’re a family here; nobody prays alone. Y’all ready to pray with these people who are coming into relationship with God? It’s a holy moment. Everybody just lift your hands and say:
God, thank you for meeting me here today. I surrender; have your way in my life. I believe you lived, you died, and you rose again with all power just for me. And today, I give you my life. Change me, renew me, transform me. Yours—here we go—into a new life! In Jesus' name, amen.