Mike Todd’s Introduction
- Mike never wants us to miss God because of the package it comes in.
- God has been maturing mike and putting himself in different packages.
- He used to only be able to received God in different packages – that’s a sign of immaturity.
- Like a child, who can only eat via a breast or a bottle – it’s the level the child is at.
- When you’re older, you can receive in different ways.
- Today, Mike is on an assignment to teach us some things about crazy faith without being hype today – you need to get this and to not be distracted by anything but the words coming from this message.
- The next 5 messages Mike is going to speak will blow your mind – they’ve already blown Mike’s mind.
- He would be irresponsible as our pastor to give us the license to drive, without the parameters to drive in.
- The parameters will show you to stay in your line and to keep your eyes open at the wheel in order to experience the fullness of what God wants for you.
- Today, we’ll be taught more about imagination in week 3.
- How many people have been imagining all kinds of stuff?
- God told Mike to go back and tidy some stuff up – to help people to understand where our imagination has to be and what it is not.
- The greatest thing for you to do is to become spiritually mature and for it to actually work in your life. The change in your life is the proof and evidence of what we speak about at church.
- Today we’ll go deeper in crazier faith to understand the foundation.
Anecdote: Mike ran into a friend this week at a fast-food establishment. For some reason, he kept saying, “I would’ve never imagined. You?! You?!” Then Mike started to feel a little offended. Then he started to examine the words, “I would have never imagined.” Then it rose up in Mike, “why not?” Imagination is free. Why wouldn’t you imagine yourself whole, free, your family together, or forgiving someone? Why have you imagined being mad at someone for the next decade and going to their funeral with a stink face? Why wouldn’t you imagine the great things God has for you.
Never ‘not’ imagine the good that God has for you.
The true manner of what you need to know is, the obedience to believe is my job, but the outcome is His.
1. The Obedience to Believe Is My Job, But the Outcome Is His
My job is to believe.
Most of us have skipped out on our job. You may have not even imagined yourself healthy. You can sit with a dozen Krispy Kreme donuts and still say, “one day, I will not have to go to this for comfort.” You can be sitting there with the blunt and imagine yourself not calling the weed man. You can imagine yourself while in the bed not calling someone to temporarily fulfill an insecurity you’ve had since you were 14.
Believing is your job, but the outcome is His.
Take a different stance in faith – believe no matter what.
The outcome is His job – believing is my job.
God is waiting for you to believe, no matter the outcome.
Your job is to believe.
Obey God. Believe God – regardless of what it looks like.
Last week we looked at imagination and that it’s purified in intercession.
This week, the prayer that happened this week changed the trajectory of our church. When you take your imagination to intercession, God purifies it and changes the future.
Let’s layout the framework of our faith.
2. Framework of Our Faith
Our faith starts with imagination. The next step is to write the vision down and make it plain.
When you shop online, you get a receipt prior to the package arriving in your possession. When you get a vision and it’s written down, that’s your receipt.
What has God given you in your imagination that you haven’t turned into vision? Now you have evidence when you write it down. Even if it didn’t happen in your timetable, you can take the receipt to the owner.
Mike was given evidence that the healing was coming, that you would be free from that, that you would be joyful and not depressed.
Imagination turns to vision. Once you get vision, it has to be fueled by faith. The fuel of faith is hope. At least hope for it. Don’t reason why it can’t happen.
Hope. Hope to be out of the apartment.
Every step we’ve just asked for is FREE. You don’t need an education or a committee. It’s all free.
When you get hope, hope turns into crazy faith.
You start talking different when you get hope. Your faith can get stirred.
It can make you move in crazy faith – believing enough to do something.
Will you believe enough to just do SOMETHING?
Mike saw one of his friends put this into practice by putting it on IG. She started a crazy faith account, an account for abundance.
She went from imagination, to hoping for it, and believing God to do it, then it happened within an hour. Someone put $100 in there. Faith is contagious. $1000 is hitting her cashapp after service.
God told Mike that she did all the free steps, then believed God enough to wait and walk it out.
Evaluate where you are in this process. Some of us are not on the board.
It’s okay, because that’s where Mike started – i.e., not imagining anything, but living by instinct.
That’s what separates us from every other living thing. We have a tool in imagination, where our instinct may want to take over, but we know that God wants to do something against what our instinct would want us to naturally do.
Imagine yourself a man of valor, and loving one woman until the day you die, your kids being able to call you blessed, and as someone who passed the test – not by instinct, but by the imagination that God has planted in you. Sadly, many are still living on instinct, that’s why fear grips you.
Instinct – is to freak out, call people and sow fear into everyone when you hear a doctor’s report. Then we all freak out instead of living by the imagination of God. We should be able to say, “God, you said in your word that I can speak to disease” before you call anybody.
Until you start believing what God’s word says, you only live out of instinct.
God wants you to have an anointed imagination until you get to a level of crazier faith.
Eyes haven’t seen, ears haven’t heard, neither has it entered into the imagination of those who love him.
Hebrews 11:3
New International Version
3 By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.
This goes back to knowing that God framed the whole world by words, but did it with things that weren’t yet here.
God’s imagination created us. God saw it before He saw it. You have to see “it” before you see it.
See yourself being joyful before you see yourself actually being able to do it. See yourself managing a lot before you’re doing it.
The word “Framed” kept messing with God.
Psalm 103:14
King James Version
14 For he knoweth our frame; he remembereth that we are dust.
The word “frame” in the original Hebrew was “yester”. This means, “imagination.” It says, for God knows our imaginations and remembers that we are dust.
1 Chronicles 28:9
New Living Translation
9 “And Solomon, my son, learn to know the God of your ancestors intimately. Worship and serve him with your whole heart and a willing mind. For the Lord sees every heart and knows every plan and thought. If you seek him, you will find him. But if you forsake him, he will reject you forever.
Your imagination frames your life.
The life you have right now, you framed it. Stop blaming everybody else. It’s not your family anymore, you don’t live there anymore.
You’re framing your life with the thoughts you’re thinking right now.
3. Make the Frame Bigger
Illustration: The really old, 1921, drum set on the stage is tiny and only has a frame for a few things. Tony’s new drum set on stage has a crazy amount of things attached to it. The difference between the two are the frames they were built on. The frame is big enough on the new one to imagine. When you build a drum set on this large frame, there are all kinds of options. That 1921 drum set doesn’t have the frame to be able to build something great.
God said, “most of them don’t have the frame big enough for what I want to do in their life.”
What Mike is able to do on this modern drum set are based on something that was built on a frame that was big enough for him to hold what he imagined.
Could you imagine for more?
Make the frame bigger – take the limit off of God. He will not go past your belief to take you into a space for you – ask the children of Israel.
They couldn’t believe what God had for them. They turned an 11 day journey into a 40 year death because they couldn’t get a bigger frame for what God wanted to do.
You just want to be married, that’s it? You don’t want to impact people with your marriage? You don’t want to raise generations that change the trajectories of communities? You just want to have money. Can you just widen the frame?
Mike started believing for things he can’t even share with people because it would fry the belief of people that say they believe – because the frame is too small.
4. Imagination is Neutral
Imagination can work for you or against you – but it’s always working.
What you feed it dictates how it’ll work for you.
A lot of our mental health issues stem from our imagination.
“Faith versus Fantasy” needs to be discussed.
5. A Perverted Imagination is Fantasy
This simply means twisted. It’s when you take the thing and twist it.
Fantasy:- the process of creating unrealistic mental images in response to a psychological need.
It comes from a real need – for instance, a need to be loved. You can try to live out a fantasy instead of letting God lead you.
The legitimate need gets twisted. “What if my husband talked to me like how he talked to me?” “What if we stayed late after the business function?”
It starts very subtle.
Somewhere along the way it got perverted.
Many of us are trying to run away from something we were born into. You want resources to make others feel how you used to feel while God wants you to bless others.
2 Corinthians 10:5
King James Version
5 Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;
Some of you are letting fugitive thoughts run rampant in your mind, and you haven’t locked up these fantasies.
God will not bless you to be married to someone else’s husband.
God will not bless your business with stolen money from the last place.
Take these thoughts captive and cast out every imagination.
God will not allow you to minister to people about forgiveness while you still hold unforgiveness against them.
Lock up your pride and allow God to do the work in you.
Romans 1:21
New International Version
21 For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened.
They became vain in their imaginations.
God needed Mike to tell us to allow God to imagine our imagination and to stop dealing in fantasy in order to see what He has planned for us.
In Genesis 11:6, God had to confuse the languages of those trying to build the tower on their own accords.
Genesis 11:6
King James Version
6 And the Lord said, Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do.
Your imagination is working no matter what you do. It’s either bringing you toward God or taking you away from God. Is it your money, status, or your family being together – is it taking you towards, or away from Him?
Your anchor makes you not drift away. If you haven’t been anchored, then you can drift away with no return.
Genesis 8:21
New King James Version
21 And the Lord smelled a soothing aroma. Then the Lord said in His heart, “I will never again curse the ground for man’s sake, although the imagination[a] of man’s heart is evil from his youth; nor will I again destroy every living thing as I have done.
Without God, we will fantasize and ask God to bless it with our faith. We will believe for things that God is nowhere in.
This is not “name it and claim it.” This is not a prosperity gospel.
This is not a fantasy where you rub the lamp and God becomes a genie.
What God wants you to know is that He has something for you that is specific to you, that has to be purified by it being in His will for your life.
6. Fantasy is Fueled by the Flesh
Your flesh empowers the dreams God is nowhere in.
Anointed imagination is fueled by the spirit.
You cannot live a victorious Christian life without being empowered by the Holy Spirit to live out this life.
This is where God becomes our Lord, not just our Savior. He wants to be our Lord – in control. You can have the money to buy the house, and if He says don’t buy it, you obey your Lord.
How sad will it be to see the things God has planned for you, but never reach any of them because you still want to be Lord? Let Him be Savior and Lord.
You have to live a life empowered by the Spirit.
This message is the anchor for the whole series.
How to know if it’s fantasy or anointed imagination?
7. If it Does Not Glorify God, It’s a Fantasy
God won’t tell you to create a song called, “drop that a**.” You can’t “give God the glory and honor” for that song. God didn’t call you to be married 6 times. You made a fantasy for yourself and you’re living something that doesn’t bring glory to God.
The Bible tells us that he who builds a house without God, is built in vain. Unless the Lord builds your house, all your grinding and accolades will burn up.
God is not rewarding you based on followers. He only needs you to be a follower of one.
If whatever imagination you have doesn’t bring God glory, it’s a fantasy.
If you’re just trying to stunt on everybody, that’s not to glorify God.
Mike researched for 3 weeks, what it took to become a car dealer. In his mind, he thought it could be used for the glory of God, but more for the glory of Mike to get expensive cars at a cheap rate (stewardship?). It’s wanting what the world wants and trying to keep God in the mix to maybe bless some people. It’s not to give God glory, it’s to make you feel small. If you searched his heart, he felt small without the things.
Ask yourself if it will bring God glory.
8. If It Doesn’t Produce Fruits of the Spirit, It’s a Fantasy
It might produce finances, but if it’s doesn’t produce fruit of the spirit, it’s a fantasy.
Patience, love, long-suffering, self-control – all of it was required for Mike to be able to believe the vision for TC.
If it’s not making you more like Christ, then it’s a fantasy.
If you’re not being gentle, despite your usual character, it’s a fantasy.
9. If it Is Birthed in Deception, It’s a Fantasy
Some have been in a straight lie asking God to bless it. Someone asked Mike to pray for God to bless his new relationship – even though he was still married. “We met on a one-night stand, but God blessed us.” You’re in a full fantasy. You want God to bless the mess that you wont even acknowledge and ask Him to help you get out of? You’re in straight delusion.
There are so many people in the body of Christ living in a fantasy because it started in delusion.
Until we submit ourselves anew and afresh to God, that’s a fantasy.
10. If it’s All About You, It’s a Fantasy
He’s not obligated to make that happen. He’s trying to make His name great, through you to others.
Many of us, our whole life is wrapped up in us and we’re trying to treat God like a genie.
God isn’t saying, “tell me what you wish, imagine what you can.” Aladdin’s wishes weren’t to glorify God. The things produced were birthed in deception. God doesn’t bless who you pretend to be, He blesses who you really are.
We need to submit our anointed imagination and get the right framework to allow God to do something within us to change us forever.
Galatians 5:16-25
New Living Translation
Living by the Spirit’s Power
16 So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves. 17 The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions. 18 But when you are directed by the Spirit, you are not under obligation to the law of Moses.
19 When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, the results are very clear: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, 20 idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, 21 envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these. Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God.
22 But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!
24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to his cross and crucified them there. 25 Since we are living by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives.
Crucify your fantasies and follow the Spirit.
11. Faith Doesn’t Work for Fantasies
If the Spirit of God is not leading you to it, He will not make it come to pass.
Go back to Him and check your motives. Is it to make you look better?
This is all about Jesus.
Mike is in the middle of changing his whole life. He’s in a metamorphosis. He has always wanted to do more, great, amazing. The Holy Spirit has been asking him, “why?” “Why do you want it to be bigger, why go on tour, why have a book every year?” This message is the exclamation mark of something God is doing in Mike’s life. A lot of what Mike believed God for were fantasies. A lot didn’t happen because it wasn’t in the will of God for his life. He would get frustrated, even though God didn’t promise it, and it was made up out of his vain imagination. God never promised Mike that all of his kids would be healthy and whole. He never said there would never be any challenges. He is making Mike an example. He has given Mike promises, but he has to go back and ensure the foundation is on God’s promises and not Mike’s own desires.
Mike is trying to bring us to a place of maturity. There’s a lot of people saying name it and claim it – and while there are parts of that that is real, you need to make sure it’s not fantasy first. It’s all about God.
Hebrews 12:2
New International Version
2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
What do you do when some of your crazy faith statements were fantasy? Don’t think that God’s goodness is wrapped up in His gifts.
He is still good, despite whatever you see in your life. Despite loved ones being lost because of sickness, He’s still good.
It would have been really irresponsible if Mike didn’t live this out in front of us and let us know that God doesn’t want us to use faith for fantasies, but to let him purify our imaginations, then believe with all our heart for what He has shown us.
God will only pay for what He ordered.
The steps of the righteous are ordered by the Lord.
Check the order. Make sure that as we start believing in crazy faith, that we’re not believing for fantasy – but we’re believing in faith.
Evaluate what you’ve said, felt, and made up.
Prayer: God, be so gracious to correct, confirm, or cancel anything we’ve been asking for that’s not like you – whether in a relationship, a business, a material thing, a deeper revelation, a position, or a platform. Whatever you did not say, we give it back to you. We’re willing to sacrifice because we don’t want to live in a fantasy world, but in crazy faith. God, as we spend time with you, give us clarity. Thank you Lord for clarity about going, staying, moving, or staying planted, having conversations, writing it in a letter – give us clarity and let every vain imagination be torn down in our lives – anything that would exalt itself against the knowledge you have for us and your will for our lives. God, thank you. Thank you for the privilege to be led to you – fixing our eyes on Jesus. Thank you for this spanking Lord, thank you for this surgery. Thank you for this that has come to heal us. Thank you giving Mike the ability to lead us in transparency to your throne. Thank you for the Word. We will be spirit led in Jesus’ name, Amen.
Outro:
Mike wants us to get used to different dynamics of the Holy Spirit. Mike wants us to go home and selah – pause and think. “Is this car I’m driving, fantasy – willed and forced, now the payment is killing us, and we’re asking God to make a way for something He never wanted?”
What we’re about to do in this crazier faith series is grow.
If you stick with every sermon, God will speak something to you that will transform your life.
Altar Call: For everyone that knows how to pray, let’s start praying for people who have never accepted Jesus as their personal Lord and Savior. It’s about a loving God, who didn’t have a fantasy about us, but an imagination about us being together, and who sent His only son, Jesus, to die on the cross for me and you. It took Mike from being a liar, manipulator, porn addict, and with bad things in his heart, and made him not a perfect man, but a progressing man. He made Mike his Savior and Lord. God can do this for you too, regardless of your addictions, pain, or how far you feel from God, or how disappointed you are – God is in pursuit of a relationship with you. He wont stop knocking. He won’t stop coming. Today is the day of salvation.
This was purposed for your life. This moment is just for you.
If you want to be included in the prayer of salvation, just lift your hand on the count of three. 1. You’re making the greatest decision you’ve ever made. 2. Mike is proud of you, but that doesn’t even matter because, your name is about to be written in the lamb’s book of life. 3. Just lift your hand up wherever you are. God sees you. We’re so excited for what’s about to change.
Transformation church is a family, so we pray together. Your life is about to change.
Let’s Pray Together: God, thank you for sending Jesus, just for me. Today, I believe that you lived and you died, just for me, for my sin, for my fantasies, for my mess ups, today, I ask you to be Lord and Savior. I believe you lived, you died, and you rose again, with all power, just for me. Come into my life, change me, renew me, transform me, I’m yours, in Jesus’ name, Amen.
- Text ‘Saved’ to 828282 for our team to send you information to help you and to live this life out in crazier faith. Mike loves pastoring this church and he’s grateful for what’s about to happen in you and through you.
Thank you TC Nation! The Crazy Faith book went #4 on NY Times Bestsellers list. That’s a huge deal. Thank you! God is so good. We’re proving to people in spheres that care nothing about our faith and they’re handing them out in board rooms. It’s different. We’re just getting started TC. Mike believes God will do something specific in us and through us.
Listen to this message this week, at least twice. By next week, we’ll be in a place to then receive the ability to go to crazier faith, but without an anchor, we float away.
Go out and live a transformed life.
You can also still get “Relationship Goals” the book and study guide today for relationship guidance and support:
Click Here to Visit & Order OFFICIAL Transformation Church Merch on the New Represent Store!
Latest Arrivals in BIM Merch
Bold Insider Marketing (BIM) is not authorized, endorsed by, or in any way officially connected with any other company, agency or government agency. All products and company names are trademarks™ or registered® trademarks of their respective holders.
SUMMARY NOTES
- The Obedience to Believe Is My Job, But the Outcome Is His
- Framework of Our Faith
- Make the Frame Bigger
- Imagination is Neutral
- A Perverted Imagination is Fantasy
- Fantasy is Fueled by the Flesh
- If it Does Not Glorify God, It’s a Fantasy
- If It Doesn’t Produce Fruits of the Spirit, It’s a Fantasy
- If it Is Birthed in Deception, It’s a Fantasy
- If it’s All About You, It’s a Fantasy
- Faith Doesn’t Work for Fantasies
Join TC for service this entire week at 6:30 PM (CST) for prayer and worship during our 7 days of prayer and fasting.
If you want to join a Belong Group, text “BGroups” to 828282 or you can visit transformchurch.us/belong TC has groups for all people, yes you too TC Nation!
Link to full Video (share this message💕): TBD
Join TC for prayer every Monday night at 6PM (CST).
Text SUSTAIN to 828282 to join the sustain challenge to show your creative expression of this powerful song.
Text SHARE to 828282 to share your story via the TC video booth.
Transformation Church would love to hear how God is touching your life through this ministry! Tell us your story by emailing mystory@transformchurch.us!
If you would like to support TC financially you can give through the TC app, or online through the website by clicking here https://transformchurch.us/give/. You can also Text ‘TCGIVE’ to 77977.
If you need prayer, email prayer@transformchurch.us!
For more information about Transformation Church, visit https://transformchurch.us/.
To join a Belong Group, visit https://transformchurch.us/BELONG/ or text BELONG to 828282
The D.I.G. stands for Deeper In God and it is a conversation where we dive deeper in God. Join us this Wednesday at 7pm (CST)! — https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYv-siSKd3Gn9IsliO95gIw
Abby Olurin Dames
I love Jesus, my husband, Will, my toddler daughter, Sola, and the beautiful friends and family in our lives. Me and Will are from the Bahamas, but we currently reside in Austin, Texas. We joined TC Nation as online members of Transformation Church in 2017 when we moved to Austin from Miami, Florida. In 2020, we also happily took on a more active role with the E-Fam of Elevation Church by fellowshipping with other married couples and were pleased to have the opportunity to join TC Beta Belong Groups. I believe that representing God doesn’t have to be done in “traditional spaces”. After listening to Pastor Mike's sermon, "Who's the Minister Here?", it became my mission to shed light on Christ in all arenas, including, but not limited to, corporate America, marketing, technology, and finance. I'm not perfect, but I'm progressing. I am a marketer, but first, I am a Christian, and the aim of this blog is to publicly share my sermon notes as a form of stewardship. I hope that these message notes can bring clarity to anything you may be seeking and help you to experience the peace and glory of Jesus Christ. I'm happy to pray for you as well if you ever wanted to shoot me an email. The effectual fervent prayers of many of you have helped countless circumstances in my life and in the lives of those around me. Thank you! Also, for any Amazon specific links that you see, as an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
