There Is Always a Doorway To Distraction // Death To Distraction: Week 2 // Michael Todd

Welcome to Transformation Church Podcast, where we represent God to

the lost and found for transformation in Christ. We're so

glad you're here and wherever you're listening from, we believe

God will transform your life to today's message.

And so today I'm gonna do my assignment by pointing

people to Him. But I'm gonna do it a little

different because I need to talk about you just for

a second, because we might be the hindrance in our

own way. Has anybody tripped over your own feet before? Okay,

I'm about to find out where everybody's at. Has anybody

slammed your own hand in a cabinet or a door?

Has anybody ever dropped the food that you prepare? And

there is nothing more devastating then telling other people they

can't eat your food, preparing to God all your sauces,

and then right when you try to do too much

and pick up all the plates and the drink at

the same time, biot and your automatic reaction is to

get up and fight somebody and blame somebody, but you

realize the only person who was responsible for the distraction,

the death of your plate, the actual devastating moment was you.

Now usually when it comes to our life. We try

to blame everybody out else for the moments in our

life that caused us pain, keep us from our purpose,

don't take us to the greatest level. But in week

two of this series that we are called death to distraction,

I gotta help.

You have the faith to focus.

Somebody say, I will have the faith to focus. Say

it one more time with faith, I will.

Have the faith to focus.

How many people could use some more focus in your life?

You know it would positively impact your life. Okay, how

many of you know where the distraction is? I love

a self aware congregation because everybody that raised their hand,

we can go somewhere. The rest of y'all. You gonna

make me work for fifty minutes to convince you that

you are distracted in the area that everybody else around

you can see, but you have not taken ownership that

it's affecting you in.

The way that it is.

And that's why today to get you to him, I

gotta start talking to you so that you can get

out your own way. Look at your neighbor and say,

get out your own way.

Come on, now, choose your the.

Neighbor that you didn't like as much the first time.

I don't know why you didn't turn to them. Now

you got to look at them and say, neighbor, get

out your own way. How are you going to get out?

Then everybody's like, yeah, why didn't you look at me?

I got you, Okay.

The way that we can actually look at this is

by going to the solution before we address the problem.

Anybody that is distracted, there is a solution. Good news

for you today. There is a solution. And this is

going to be our scripture of the year. I'm going

to try my best to say this every single Sunday

until you get it in your spirit and in your heart.

I want you to turn to Hebrew's twelve one and

we're going to read this together. Y'all did so good

last week that we're gonna do it again together. And

I want us to read this scripture until it becomes

something that is hidden in our hearts. There will be

times in your life that you will not have cell

phone connection. There will be times in your life. I

just want to be very clear with you. I thank

God for convenience, but many times it hinders us from

having what we need when everything is not convenient. And

I want you the Bible says, hide the word of

God in your heart, And this one I'm gonna say

until we can hide it in our hearts. We're gonna

read this together. We're gonna start. Can we get it

on screen? Can we get it behind us so I

can get everybody to say.

It out Hebrews twelve one.

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud

of witnesses, let us throw everything that hinders and the

sin that so easily entangles us. Has anybody ever been

entangled by sin? I just wanted to make sure I'm

in the right place. Has anybody watched this ever been

entangled by weights?

Okay, we're in the right place.

We're gonna start at and let us here we go,

and let us run with perseverance the race marked out

for us. Does everybody know there's a race with your

name on it? Like why you're trying to be them

and do that and be compared to them? There is

a race with your name on it that when you

run that race at your case, nobody can beat you.

And many times the frustration of our life is because

we're running a race that was never marked out for us.

This is why this series is very important to your

fabric of faith and life life, because I want you

to get watch this out of their lane, get out

of their lane, Get out of that lane that you

made up.

Get out of move, get out the way.

I'm five minutes saying I'm too hype right now Verse two,

here's the answer I need.

Just say it.

We're starting fixing, fixing our eyes. Somebody shot at me.

Focus focus, fixing our eyes, Focus on who on Jesus,

the pioneer and the perfector 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. Let's give God praise right now for the

reading of his word week. I'm gonna tell you this

same thing, fixing your eyes or focusing on Jesus is

the thing that's going to change your life. I know

everybody's telling you to focus on other things, but I'm

telling you I've tried focusing on a lot. I tried

to focus on success. I tried to focus on the image.

I tried to focus on getting around the right people.

I tried to focus on making sure that I had everything.

And it doesn't matter what you do as a human being.

When you do not have Jesus as your fixed focus,

something is coming that will lead you to a place

of distraction that will ultimately end up in destruction. There

are too many examples in our own life, But if

you don't want to use your own life as a

case study, I need you to look at so many

other people's lives. And that's why over the next few weeks,

we're talking about a man named Samson.

Now Samson, by all.

Accounts, was a Bible character that you might have heard

of when you were a child. And what was Samson's

claim to fame? His what? He had?

Super human strength?

You one could say that he was able to do

things that others were not gifted to do. You could

say that Samson had the ability to be able to

endure things and handle things that nobody else could handle.

It sounds like many of us, though we do not

have the title of Samson. Some of y'all strong. Some

of you have been so strong, and you've been gifted

to go through seasons that seemed unfair. You have been

strong enough to walk through adversity after adversity, after heartbreak,

after broken thing and steal smile. Some of you see,

you're thinking about physical strength. But he was gifted by

God to be strong. And some of y'all have been

discounting what God is doing in your life because you'll

be like, I don't want to be strong no more.

But God said, that's how I anointed you. I have

given you the ability to do something that would take

most people outs.

But your strength.

May have made you think that you do not have.

To submit to the words of God.

Because Samson had a strength the way some of us

have a strength and a gift that then becomes the

thing that we put our faith in instead of Him. So

our strength, I can handle this, I can go through that.

I don't need nobody else. The word of God may

work for them in that situation, but this is how

I survived. And your strength makes you feel like you

don't need to submit the word of God. Some of

us make so much money, we don't pray to God,

Oh God, because money is the thing you're submitted to.

So if God tells you to do something, you won't

but you will literally put your family, not even on the.

Back burner, out the house.

If there's a business deal you can't miss. What are

you submitted to? Some of you college and career and

the pursuit of knowledge is good, but you're submitted to

it because you decided that I'm gonna work my way

up this corporate letter and I'm gonna be this, and

I ain't never gonna be like them. And if God

asks you to do something, it's a fight. But if

the college say you gotta write a paper that's nine

hundred pages long, I'm not saying it's bad.

I'm just asking what are you submitted to?

What is your strength submitted to? Because Samson's st y'all.

I'm sorry, I'm just hype. I know where we're going.

I'm so sorry. I'm forgive me. Samson was strong without

being submitted, and so his strength became the very thing

that would lead him to destruction. Okay, all right, Judges,

Chapter sixteen, verse four. This is the part where we

usually start in Sampson's journey. Sometime later, What time was

it was? It was a later time, sometime when that

means there was something before this. Anytime you see sometime later,

you should always go back and read what happened before.

I know you're trying to get through your Bible playing quick.

But whenever you hear sometime later. That means there's a

story attached to that. Sometime later, Samson fell in love

with a woman named what's her name, hey Ther Delilah

who lived in the valley of Siret. When I was

gonna start the series here week two, was gonna start

from here on because I got a message next week

that's gonna take you out. But then the Holy Spirit,

said Michael, most believers don't pay enough attention to the principles.

We can extract from Samson's life before.

Delilah, before destruction, before the disaster, what happened in your life.

Before the divorce?

Come on, because so many times we're trying to just

heal from what happened, but it is inevitable. Top and

again because we did not pick up the blues clues

from what happened. Somebody say before and if the church

does not stop and wait on God to reveal, why

do I keep getting in this situation? And most of

us what our prayer's, Father God.

Just take me to the next level.

Father God, I thank you that we go from glory

to gloria and faith to faith. Father God, I thank

you that this season won't look like last Sea said, yes,

it will because you never learned about last time. If

I can tell the church anything is make it through, heal,

do everything that God told you to do. But don't

leave this lesson without learning what you need to learn

from last time, because last time becomes this time when

you don't spend time.

Oh my God, let.

Me say, last time becomes this time when you don't

spend time. Why did I let them? Why did I

let them call me dad? When did I put my

guard down? When did I When did I say that

was okay? When was the first time that felt comfortable?

And I used to be convicted about it? Taser Mike?

Why is this important? Because write this point down. Destruction

always starts with a distraction. Destruction always starts with the distraction.

Delilah will be the last stage of Samson's destruction.

But not the first.

Whatever you will ultimately be known for happen isolated, like

like we know Samson for being taken out by Delilah.

We know people that do great things for doing great things.

It never starts where you find it. Hear what I'm saying.

Jealousy never starts at beating somebody else's wife up. Insurance

fraud don't ever start with Bank America. Like the honesty,

it never starts at the big thing. It always starts

with one distraction.

What you doing over there? What you're looking at?

What y'all eating? Everything that has ever happened in my

life that went against the word of God never was presented.

To me on a platter. It was always something that.

I was distracted by. Subtle, covert, quiet, secret, easy, watch

this a moment. The reason why I'm taking this moment

to just let you sit in this is because there's

things you don't think are a big deal right now

that are literally leading you down a path that you

will be asking for deliverance from. And I wish you

could see the monster that's at the end of this. Yeah,

but right now it's.

It's little.

Yeah, it's just it's just I mean, I was scrolling

and then yeah, somebody was working in booty shorts and

they work out though, and I can.

Scroll past that.

You didn't delete it, you didn't block it, you didn't.

Do nothing, y'all. See how quiet.

On. It's not just that man in the muscle shirt

and wearing the two tight pants and all that other stuff,

and you over there looking at my God, What is

God doing in his life? My God? Yet yet yet

two days later it pops up again, four days later.

It's a whole group of people like that, and it

just takes one moment when you're weak. I'm gonna leave

it alone. Let me show you this picture real quick. Everybody,

look at this picture of this tragic accident, accident that

I found.

This is the pile up here.

You can look on the center screen and even there

this is one hundred and thirty three car pile up.

This is one of the most devastating things that could

ever happen. This is what we would call an unfortunate

accident that caused a lot of destruction. Destruction to property, destruction,

to people's lives.

You can bring the feedback to me.

Destruction to the highway, to people's day, destruction everywhere. What

if I told you this happened because somebody was checking

their phone. What if I told you it was fifteen

seconds of a distraction in a place that needed focus,

that caused people to literally have to be raised for

the rest of their life without a parent. We looked

up some status just to see because I didn't want

to just take this picture. In twenty twenty two alone,

over three hundred thousand people were injured due to cell

phone distraction in a car, and over thirty three hundred

people died because somebody was distracted checking if they got

two more followers. Now, we feel it when we see

pieces of metal piled up, but we don't feel it

as much when in our own life. There's all kinds

of generational habits, patterns, ideas that have crashed in our

lives and become the scene of destruction. So today I

just want to I want to bring a parallel to

that picture, because there was no threat to those people

except their own decision to be distracted.

Hear what I'm saying. They weren't defensive driving.

To get away from something they saw in a Tom

Cruise movie. This was not an action scene. This was

a decision to be distracted. And I have to come

to the church at large today and ask you are

some of the disasters we have faced and that we're

going towards only because we've decided to be distracted. Let

me put a disclaimer up here for distraction, very simply,

distraction will take you further than you want to go,

keep you longer than you want to stay. And cost

you more than you want to pay. That's what distraction

will do. When you are distracted. You were like, how

did I get here? And I don't even want to

be here no more? But why am I staying here?

And I didn't know that was gonna cost me that

much and I wouldn't have paid it, But I'm still

paying it. And the reason I have to tell you

that is because there is a secret twin of distraction

that I want to expose today. If I don't get

to do anything else, if you ain't heard nothing else

that I said, this the one if if you are distracted,

the worst add the worst partner to distraction is this

word we got to deal with today, denial. The crazy

thing about distraction is when somebody comes to tell you

might be distracted by that, most people are in deny.

And denial is the thing that is plaguing the body

of Christ. Because we cannot take constructive criticism from anybody,

We cannot take correction in love, we cannot be able

to make a different suggestion, we can't be able to say, hey,

I used to be in that, now I'm in this.

We can't do anything, and people be like that ain't me.

My issue ain't no issue. I'm not dealing with that.

I can handle these things. And the problem is you

cannot deal with anything you do not see, is there? Okay,

write this point down. Denial is dangerous because it makes

it impossible to change. Y'all all have family members right

now that you know that you want your relationship to

be better than it is. But a lot of the

problem is that when you bring up stuff, they're gonna

tell you that it didn't happen like that. They're gonna

try to make that's not how you was raised. I

didn't do that to you. I'm telling you. This is

how I experience this moment. I'm telling you, this is

how it affected me. Am I in the right place

right now? Okay, I'm telling you this is why I'm mad.

I'm telling you, this is why I was pushed to

drugs and you don't tell me it didn't happen like that.

Ask your brothers and sisters.

I ask your cousin. I think, what's there There's no

way they could have done that to you. There's no

da wait, and many times because of denial, our healing

gets delayed. Can we take it out of anybody else's hand.

You're in denial when God is trying to reveal something

to you, and you'd be like, God, it what that bad?

I didn't really do that. I wasn't flirting with them.

When the Holy Spirit said you did too much, too much,

I gave him a side hug. He said, but I

know what you were thinking. I know you gave him

a side hug. But I know what you was thinking.

Too much. And in the area that God wants to

potentially bring clarity, healing, help, we're still in the enemy

would love for the body of Christ to stay in

denial because it keeps you distracted. And if you never

get out of denial, you'll always stay in distraction and

you will never have deliverance. Some of y'all are mean,

and multiple people have tried to tell you because you

could fix it, you could become what you don't, what

you currently are not. But because you are in I've

met so many gifted singers who I've said, man, if

you would just do a little less stuff, don't do

all the runs. Just piano players, musicians, gods, God's got it.

Hold on, but let us catch the beat. Where's the beat?

But as soon as you're saying they're like, oh no,

they don't value my gift. I don't wait.

You just took defense.

Because somebody had a different perspective on a situation that

they are outside of. But you won't even let it

get close because you're in denial. Samson, through his entire journey,

is in denial. He thinks he can play with what

God put parameters around. Gosh, I'm telling y'all right now,

this thing is ministering to me so much because God

is saying, Michael, when I speak to you, don't act

like I'm not God. If I say to you, you're

getting prideful. Don't start qualifying. But God, No, no, no, no, okay, Lord,

what does that look like for me?

What do I need to do? How do I need

to submit this? Where is it at? I've talked tomorrow.

Let me talk to my senior saints for a second.

Some of y'all will not go to counseling or therapy.

I'm dead looking at you. Why we got to bring

up ald stuff because it's still festering in you. You

are an old woman now, but you are a young woman,

bandaged and hurt. The healing never happened, and now it's

pouring out onto your family members and your grandchildren and

all that other stuff. Because what's this young little person

gonna tell me. They ain't even experience life, they ain't

even been nowhere. I've been here since nineteen sixties six, and.

God has seen me. He's seen me every season.

And you do all in that and nobody will even

open up to you. Your own kids have to create

worlds to stay away from your disease.

And if you don't let it out.

I'm just telling y'all, I'm talking about what I know.

I'm talking about what I'm dealing with. I'm talking to

you and talking to your kids. And they're saying we

could never bring that up to them, and they saying,

I ain't there. I don't know what's wrong with They

just disrespectful. Now. They don't call, they don't do nothing. God,

somebody might be in and the enemy would love for

you to stay in denial.

He would love for you.

To die in denial. And that's why I had to

come today to tell you that you may be distracted

by the wrong thing.

And today, if.

We could this is only week two, y'all got like

eight of these.

Okay, I just need us to walk.

Yeah, the Clippers love it. I just need us to

walk through this gently together to maybe see if there's

an area of our life that God wants to do

a deliverance. But we're still in denial. And this is

the reason I need to say this about denial, and

I'm staking on it because I want you to come

out of it. I want you to actually be people

who can hear from God, hear from others. This is

why you gotta get in a community group. This is

why you gotta get in tribes, because sometimes the people

you love can't say stuff. People you don't know, oh

can say to you, Oh my God. I can't tell

you how many times, like I'm bringing this up with Natalie,

and then we get around some other couples and they'd

be like, are y'all struggling with this?

Because we struggling with this? And be like, as a

matter of fact.

We are. And the only reason it worked is because

I didn't bring it up. But if I would have

brought it up, it would have been World World three.

But but but community created safety for us to come

out of denial. CAUs Mike, why you're going so hard

on denial? Because denial makes you dumb when you stay

in denial.

Watch this.

I heard Passadarius Daniel say it like this. He said

it turned seasons into cycles. Seasons into cycles. When you're

in denial, the thing that God meant to be for

a specific amount of time become the replay of your life.

Seasons change with time, cycles change with you. Do you

hear what I'm saying. Season, period of time it changed

to another season. Period to time, it changed to another season.

Some things in your life were supposed to be a season,

and because you're in denial and didn't allow God to

do what he wants to do in your life, it

became your cycle. And so I just need to put

this equation out here so we can know how to

guard ourselves against it.

Write this down.

Distraction plus denial always equals destruction. If I'm distracted and

I'm in denial that it affects me the way that

it does, it will at some point lead to a destruction.

Let me give you an example.

Somebody say, distraction, I'm attracted to someone at my job,

but I no, I'm not supposed to be with them,

but I'm you know, they fine, I'm fine.

We flirt.

It's nothing. Everybody say denial, it's not a big deal.

It's not a big deal. Like I'm a grown woman,

I'm a grown man. This is not a big deal.

It's just flirting at work. It's just asking do you

want to have donuts together?

No?

No, no, it's just taking our fifteen minute break together and

walking outside. Yes, I'm married, Yes they're married.

We are.

It's not a big deal. Everybody say destruction. It ends

in soul ties and divorce. It's that simple. Everybody say distraction,

I don't have time to budget. Busy, money's coming in, okay, missy.

Everybody say denial. I'll get around to it. You know

how many people that survive with out budgets. You just

got to make more money in then you let go out.

Everybody say destruction. You end up living in a cycle

of poverty. No matter how much money you make. Do

you know I know broke millionaires?

No?

No, I personally know people who have millions of dollars

and live like they have hundreds of dollars. Because the

principles are the same at every level. Everybody say distraction.

I only sit when I'm stressed, got real quiet. I

only sit when I'm just.

Sip.

I only drink when I'm stressed. God Live, somebody's in denial.

Everybody say denial. I'm not an alcoholic, they're an alcoholic.

I know an alcoholic when I see an acoholic. My

dad was an alcoholic, my mom was an alcohol my

aunt was an alcoholic.

I only when I'm stressed.

Everybody say destruction, a life of addiction. When you're in

denial about something, it can lead to a life that

has you completely bound. Everybody say distraction. Me and my

wife don't prioritize spending time together, no date nights. I mean,

it's really about the kids. We had all these kids,

you know what I'm saying, So we just do the

kid thing. Everybody say denial. We have a lot going

on and it'll get better in a different season.

I mean, we have a lot.

Going on right now. They're just young, or they're just

in sports, or they're just in college, or they're just

living with us. Still, let's be honest, there's always gonna

be a season. Everybody say destruction. No intimacy and loss

of connection in a marriage that God designed. Just last one,

last one, last one. Everybody say distraction. You're doom scrolling.

Y'all know what I'm talking about. Just on Facebook, Just Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, come.

On what else?

My Space, black playet Interest. I like it, thank you

because some of y'all's comparison and insecurity gets so flared

up just on Pinterest. Why can't my house look like this?

Because that's a picture.

Everybody say denial, It's not that deep.

Everybody does it.

I'm trying to give you a formula because I'm like,

why are you going with it? Because I need you

to know everybody in here has something they're in denial about.

When I was overweight, I was in I was like, this,

don't look that big, buying three x's and four xes

because that made me look how I thought I looked.

But I knew how I.

Looked with none of the look on.

But years of my health journey was delayed because I

was in denial. My wife ended up telling me one

time because I don't know if she was blinded by

my charm or blind and I appreciate, thank you Lord,

But at some moment we were doing something, she was like,

that was a lot. And I remember her saying that

was a lot, Like I'm a lot, Like I'm a lot.

You're saying I'm a lot because it was only me

and you here, So that was a lot. Mean, I

you think i'm and then you start asking you think

I'm a lot. I'm just trying to be hot, humble

over in the train. Years of my life was delayed

because I was in denight. And this is this is

what the enemy would love to do. He would love

to keep you distracted and in denial because just give

it a little time, you're gonna find a doorway that

leads to destruction. Yeah, yeah, the doorway to destruction.

What's behind the door? Is anybody back there? Hello?

Why would a door just be here? Okay, I'm gonna

keep reaching. But that door has now become a distraction

because I focused on it one time. Yeah, it's been

up here the whole time. But I've been focused on

the camera. I've been focused on the faces. I've been focused.

I've been focused on what I was assigned to do.

But at the moment, the moment, the moment that I

took my eyes off of the focus, I now have

a distraction. All right, dor stay right there. This is

what happens in Samson's life Samson was born to be

a deliverer to the children of Israel who had been

allowed to be captive. Now, this is a whole nother

thing that messes with your theology when you don't obey God.

In the Old Testament, he would allow your enemy to

capture you because it was the only way to bring

you back to a place of desperation to call on him.

Thank God for the New Covenant, because he won't do

that to us no more. He sends us to Jesus

to be able to be the propitiation for all of

our sins, so we can go back to Him and

actually get right. But back in the day, he said,

they don't get it. I've given them laws, I've told

them what to do. Go get them and allows God

his chosen people to be taken captive by a group

of people called the Philistines.

And because of this, the.

Philistines were ruling, reigning and putting slavery conditions on the

people of Israel. They begin to cry out for God

out of desperation because their situation was so bad. You

got to read back for the whole context. That's why

this is in the Book of Judges. This is a

season where there was no kings. They did not make

God their king, and there was no kings on earth,

and so they begin to cry out for a deliverer.

When they cried out for a deliverer, God said, I'm

gonna answer your prayer, but I'm not going to talk

to you about it. And he made a woman who

was barren pregnant, Which is a point right there. Sometimes

you're crying out for something that you're going to have

to wait a little bit longer because God answered you,

but it takes a moment for it to actually be birthed.

It's not my point. But what I'm trying to tell

you right now is Samson is born to a woman

that declares that if I can have a child because

I was barren, I will dedicate this child to you.

Samson is born under a Nazarite vow, which says simply

that he is to eat no pork, touch anything that

is dead, don't have any strong drink, and never cut

his hair. He said, as long as he does this,

he will have super empowered strength from God on high.

The boy is born and taught this daily every time,

but then he started doing crazy stuff like being able

to just beat up people and change things and move things.

And I'm gonna show you an example, but I need

you to understand he knew there was a standard, the

same way you know there's a standard. And if you're

in denial that you know it's wrong to have sex

outside of marriage, you know that. You know that from

a medical standpoint. Let's not even go to scripture. Yet

you know you know it from an emotional standpoint. You've

seen enough stories, You're watch enough Housewives of wherever. You've

seen what happens when families are born in broken situ.

You know.

You know gossip doesn't do nothing but tear people down.

Yet we still find ourselves, like Samson, many times, flirting

with the doorway that would lead us to destruction. My

last big chunk of scripture Judge is fourteen five. It

says Sampson went down to Timna together with his father

and mother. As they approached the vineyards of Timna, suddenly

a young lion came roaring towards them.

Now, this is just scary.

I need you because sometime we read these stories like

it's not real. People. I just want you to imagine you,

your mama and daddy taking a walk. I just want

to put you in the scene and a lot move

fassa come and they said, okay, like comes charging at you. Now,

what would be your response? Everybody in this room would run.

Look what Samson does because the spirit of the Lord

came powerfully upon him. So he tore the lion apart

with his bare hands. This is crazy to me, as

he might have torn a young goat. Now who tearing.

Gots apart with their bare head? Y'all see what I'm saying?

Like his strength is so crazy. It's like, yeah, it

was crazy he did it with the lion, but like

a goat is like no.

But they're trying to give you.

The contrast of how strong to you? How watch this

gifted he was because some of us are just super

Have you ever met somebody that's just super gifted at

something for no reason? It kind of makes you sick,

Like it's kind of like ill. So what.

This is Samson? And this is some of us?

It said. Then he went down to talk with the

woman he liked her. Verse eight sometime later what was

it sometime? Dang that keeps coming up? When he went

back to marry this girl, he turned aside. He lost focus.

He got distracted, and he took a look at the

lion's carcass, And somehow the lion's carcass had a swarm

of bees and some honey in it. He scooped out

the honey with his hands and ate it as he

went along.

When he rejoined his.

Parents, he gave them some too.

And they too ate it.

But he did not tell them that he had taken

the honey from an unclean animal. Remember the Nazarit vow

don't touch nothing dead, but because something dead had something

sweet next to it. Oh my god, there are too

many believers that are touching dead things because there's something.

Sweet next to it.

There are too many believers that are staying in dead

places because I did a sweet killing when I get there.

There are too many people that are living their life

in a dead place because they had one sweet season

and there was a boundary. And all he did.

Was go to the.

Doorway that would lead.

To his destruction.

But I don't want you to get it twisted. It

wasn't that he killed the lion. He had killed the

lion already. He touched it when it was alive. No no, no,

no no no. The first time he touched the lion

was when it was alive, he killed it, left it,

walked away. But when he was traveling back, he got

distracted and went to the He should have never saw

the honey, but because he turned and looked at watched

this the victory of yesterday, and saw that something good

was over there, he went to it and he touched

the dead thing, which was the first time we know

of that. He walked through a door of distraction that

led him to another door. What I'm trying to tell

you is that the first door of distraction. It's important

that you don't open this one. Important that you don't

try to find out what's behind it. Because every door

of distraction you go into. Watch this, you become desensitized.

It becomes easier that one had a little but you

lean into a door, you use your strength to get

into some doors. Samson walks into this door of distraction,

and it's the first time. Now I need you all

to remember this is before Delilah. Delilah's going to be

the culmination of his destruction. But his destruction started with

a distraction that.

Was a door to another distraction.

Okay, I need to bring up one thing just real quick,

as I'm trying to really close because this thing is

bothering me. Because people don't think you can still be

used powerfully by God and still make dumb decisions. Yeah

you can, Robo Kolski Taya Basa should have bought a

bowtide like, you can do all of that and stand

still be distracted, it says, and the power of the

spirit of God came mightily upon Samson to work in

his gift.

And right after he worked in his gift, he.

Snuck into a distraction and I was like, this, look good, honey.

Don't even fill you up.

I just need It's so beautiful that they used honey,

because honey is not even something that makes your appetite

feel like it's being serviced. Honey is literally just for desire.

This was not going to give him sustenance to go

then do something else, and he had the audacity to

give and incriminate his parents by taking his the result

of his distraction to others. How many times has God

told us we're not supposed to do something, and then

we actually go through the doorway of distraction and then

we're like, hey, y'all found something out that's kind of cool.

Found some honey around.

This dead thing. Pastor Mike, why are you saying this?

It's just some honey. But there's something you missed in

the scripture. I need you to see that. Out of

all of this, the scripture tells us that he did

not tell them he had taken the honey from the

lion's carcass. That means when he went into this doorway

of distraction, I already knew it was something he was

not supposed to do. He took the honey from it,

and somehow he thought it was a good idea to

give his parents, the ones who had given him to God. Okay,

why is this important? Because full disclosure is the opposite

of denial. I think Samson would have closed some of

these doors if he would have been like, y'all, my bad,

I just did some stupid y'all. Remember the line I

told I killed came back honey. This honey is actually

from the line I touched it. Maybe there could have

been a consecration, maybe there could have been repentance, maybe

there could have been something. But because he did not

give full disclosure, I'm tired of I'm tired of believers

telling us the part of the testimony you think we

want to hear.

Escape.

I escaped this relationship that, but you didn't tell us

the other side.

You didn't tell us your part in.

You didn't give us none of the and so now

we're believing for something without full disclosure. In full disclosure,

some of y'all want want something that you sold seeds

the wrong way to get So when people come to

us for marriage counseling or do there like our relationship

is just not working, you didn't tell us you cheated

on them. So now we're praying that God would reconcile something.

But there was like there's some.

Real damage there. Pastor Mike, why are.

You saying this?

Because most people are in denial that they got to

tell the full truth. And I'm just telling you right now,

I tried to walk that journey. I tried to be

faithful to my wife and tell her half the truth.

I tried, And some of y'all like, let the dead

bodies lay.

Let I don't even know the analogy, but just leave.

Alonge, leave alone. But a lie always keeps disconnection. Passor Mike,

you really asking me either we gonna live this Christian

life in truth and integrity and actually do what God's saying,

or you're going to have no power. This is and

this is why we keep going through these doors. Okay,

here we go, passor Mike, what are you trying to

say to us today? The problem is you, like Samson,

you keep playing with what almost killed you. He goes

back over to the lion that could have killed him.

Let's be clear, move fossa Simba scar. They could have

tooken his life, but only because the spirit of God

came on him. He was able to do this, and

somehow he confused the gifting with the God who gave

the gifts. Somehow he thought like, yeah, I can beat

lions up. I can get through this, I can go

through these relationships and not be I can do this,

I can make this happen. And he forgot the only

reason he was able to come out of that situation

with a lion was because God did something. But the

reason he got distracted is because he kept playing with

what almost killed him. Is there any area in your

life where you're still playing with a distraction that has

almost killed you? Is there any area in your life

that you keep going through the doors. And the matter

of fact, what happens is when you go through these doors.

It gets so easy for you now that you you

know not you don't say anything. It's like, Yo, what

y'all doing in here? Okay, I'll be back walking to

this other door. I'll be back. Y'all be good. I'll

be back. And what happens is the door stay open.

There's nothing that's keeping me. There is nothing that's stopping me.

It's very simple for people now to walk through doors

that I've already opened. It's easy for them to see

what's happening because nobody's ever doing what I'm asking you

to do today on all your distractions. Shut the door,

passor Mike, what are you saying to every distraction in

your life? Shut it, don't leave it cracked, don't have

it kind of open. Shut the door. I don't know

if you grew up like I did, but when it

was hot outside and we was running in and out

of the house, sometimes we would leave the door open

and then you would hear this voice come from heaven

and they'd like, bye, shut.

The door. I feel Heaven.

Calling somebody in here that has been distracted by things

that they have walked into in different seasons and allowed

to be there. This is the time where God is

saying shut. I'm shutting it on abuse and lying and insecurity.

I'm coming to this and I'm doing what shut the door.

I'm shutting it on comparison, perversion and addiction, and God's

calling some of y'all to shut the door. I will

be everything God called me to be. I will shut

the door to the enemy, and I will stand up

and be focused by faith. Somebody give God a shot

of praise.

In this place.

This is what it's gonna look like. Somebody say, I'm

shutting the door standing all over this place.

Cust the mic.

You didn't tell us the title of your message. It's

very simple. No, it's not shut the door. It probably

should have been, but the sentiment, that's the answer. But

I just want you to know there's always a doorway

to distraction. Like hear me, Everybody listen, this is always

gonna be there. You're one click away from ruining a

place in your brain that can look at your spouse.

In a healthy way.

There'll always be here. But the Bible says there's no temptation,

no distractions. This is common to man, he said, And

God always provides a way of a or you could

say it a different way.

There's always another door.

See at the moment that I could go through.

The door of distraction, there is the door Romans six

's one.

Well, then should we keep going through these the lords

of distraction, keep on sinning, so that God can show

us more and more of his wonderful grace. Of course not,

since we have died to sind. How can we continue

to live in it? How we gonna keep them doors cracked?

Or have you forgotten that you when you were joined

with Christ Jesus and Baptism, we joined him in his death.

For we died and were buried with Christ by baptism.

And just as Christ was raised from the dead by

the glorious power of the Father, now we also watch

this may live new lives.

I don't care how far you've been down the doors

of distraction.

If you find yourself at a door right now, there's

more infinite amount of doors that lead to your death.

Because the wages of sin is the wages of going

down this road of distraction is death. Wherever you are,

the only thing that can change you is that you turn.

Biblical word, for that is repent.

God. I've been stuck at this door for years, and Father,

I don't see myself living without this substance.

I don't know what to do with what's going.

On in my heart. Father, God, and I've messed up

so many things. Could you ever use anybody like me? Father?

In this moment right now? I'm broken, I'm hurting, I'm embarrassed.

I don't even feel like it's worth trying to go

back over there for all of the people that I'm

gonna have to convince I'm not what I did. God.

I made careers by this. I'm known on social media

for this. God, I am a bad person there. They

can pull up tape on me. I have bodies everywhere,

I have lies everywhere. There's so much God, what can

you do with somebody like God. I ruined the church. God,

I didn't do what you said for me to do. God,

I'll ruin my marriage. God. I don't know what to do.

I feel like I might as well keep going the

other way. Today I hear the Holy Spirit saying, all

it takes is you turning and standing by faith and

looking at everything that could be and shutting the door.

And God's gonna give you people in tribes and in

a church that are gonna be cheering for you. I

see this whole section over here. Can y'all tell me

to come out, come on, tell me to come out.

See right now, in the midst of my moment, and

I don't know what to do. I see some light

at the end of the tunnel. Have you been through

this too? Have you gone through things like this? Can

God give you a new life? Okay, I'm coming and

I'm gonna shut the door on this. I don't know

if I can really make the whole change. I don't

know if God can use anybody like me. Has anybody

ever lived in alternate lifestyle? Has anybody ever dealt with

these things? Has anybody had these secrets? But there's somebody

continuing to pray for me, and there's somebody that's saying

you can do this. And I don't know what my

life would be without this stuff. But right now I'm

making a decision by saying to not look back and

to shut the door.

And turn.

To the only door that can save me. Yeah, what

will this mean for me? A new life? Old things

will pass away, and behold, he will make everything everybody

shot at me new. One scripture for those because this

is ministring to somebody. John ten nine says, I am

the door. This is what Jesus says about himself. Somebody

say I am the door. So for every door of distraction,

God said, that's a door. But I am the door.

If anyone enters by me through Jesus, he will be

saved and will go in and out and find pastor.

John fourteen six said Jesus answer, did I am the Way,

the Truth and the light. Today if you've been tempted

by the door of distractions, today, I want to introduce

you to the door.

His name is.

Jesus, and all you have to do is open up

your heart and accept him. But where are all the

other doors? You don't need any more doors, because this

one door can change your whole life. I need about

ten thousand people who have experienced transformation to let somebody

who's decided know that Jesus can change everything. My last

point is Jesus is the only door to destiny. You

want to do what God's called you to do, no

more distraction. You can even be saved and try to

come over here. And today God's calling you back. Come

back through the door, Come back through the Way, the

Truth and the life. I have a very strong altar

call today. Not actually, I feel like the Holy Spirit

confirmed it earlier as I was in the back. Today,

if you know that there are distractions in your life

that you want to shut the door on once and

for all, I need you to make a step of faith,

and I need you to come.

To this alter. And this is not a long thing.

This is not but today you're shutting the door.

It's okay.

People will let you out the aisle, just say excuse me.

Come all the way to the front.

Come on. I don't care if you're a pastor or leader,

a musician, you have your own choice if church. If

there are distractions that you know you need to shut

the door on today, I want you to come. Come

on all the way up, y'all. This alter is gonna

be food. This is a moment. I don't care if

your husband comes. I don't care if your wife comes.

I don't care if your boyfriend comes. I don't care

if your girlfriend comes. This is for you.

And there are some.

Things that have been distractions that today you're.

Saying, I'm shutting the door. Come on.

I hear the Holy Spirit he's moving, and please we'll

be all up the aisles and our well, there's nonspace

for me. God knows my heart. Yeah, you're still in denial.

I'm not saying the alter changes you. But there's something

that happens when you make a sign, when you say

I don't care if anybody knows. I want the healing

that God provides. I'm gonna I'm gonna say it. I'm

giving a second, I'm staying. I'm pausing right here because

some people's pride is getting in the way right now,

and I just I just hear the Holy Spirit telling

me to do something. I'm gonna shut all these doors

one more time. I'm not even gonna say nothing that

this is a prophetic symbol of what God is about

to do in your life. Some of this stuff has

been opened and been opened generationally, but I believe get

used to the sound. Get used to the sound. Get

used to the sound, Get used to the sound.

Hands lifted all over this altar. If you're at home,

the spirit of God is with us.

I want you to know there's people all over this place,

down the aisle in the middle. Father God, this is

our sign of surrender and Holy Spirit. I am praying

for every person under the sound of my voice that

today is a turning point, a point of repentance from

the pastor Father God all the way to the person

who just came to faith. I thank you that in

this moment we will no longer agree with our distractions.

We cut ties with our distraction Today, Father God, we

are making a decision. We want the destiny that you

designed for us. Father Sam was supposed to be a

deliverer and got taken out by his distractions. Today, Father,

I rebuke the lies that tell us that our distractions

are going to be the thing of our downfall. Today, Father,

I thank you for divine focus. Come on right now,

begin to pray. Father, I thank you that every person

that has made this faith.

Step to come up.

Father, whether we've been distracted by others, distracted by our

own thoughts, distracted Father God, by entertainment, distracted by money,

distracted Father God by fear. In the name of Jesus,

I declare that today your supernatural power will come on

us like never before to literally shut the.

Door on the lies of the enemy.

And I pray specifically for us who have been in denial. Father,

if there have been places in our hearts and our

minds where we wouldn't even allow ourselves to be open

to seeing a new truth. Father God, I thank you

that we would remove pride and walk in humility right

now in the name of Jesus, Father God, this is

not about self improvement. This is like about life transformation. God.

We're not just trying to do better. We're trying to

be who You've created us to be. So, Father, for

every tear that is flowing, and for every person who

has found theirselves in such a place in destruction, I

thank you for hope rising right now in the name

of Jesus. I declare and I believe in the name

of Jesus, that you are bringing us into a place,

Father God, where we will walk into the abundance of

what our destiny looks like, not BeTrapped in the cycles

of distraction that lead to destruction. I pray, Father God,

that there would be a gentle spirit, that we would

be empathetic with ourself and others as we walk into

new seasons. Give us the grace to not think that

everything changes overnight, but give us the grace to stay

consistent on the journey. And Father, I thank you that

you would reveal to us beyond Sunday, how we practically

put death to these distractions. Today by the way, spirit,

we shut the door, and we thank you for freedom

in the name of Jesus.

Thank you.

Look at me, some of you, I'm giving you permission

to grief. Hear me, hear me, hear me. Listen, listen

while I'm saying that, because some of you these things

have been so familiar, you've been so distracted by being

the victim that you never could see yourself having victory.

I want you to go ahead. It's okay that you grieve, but.

We're not going back.

No.

Hear me, hear me what I'm saying. And there are

practical things.

There are practical things some of you need to do

to shut the door. I said, spiritually, we're shut the door.

For some of you.

To shut the door, you need an entirely new phone

and a.

New phone number.

There's no way, my man like dad come here like goddag.

I just got the phone sixteen god dog. You need

cause because because that door opens at two in the morning,

three in the morning, six in the morning, it there's

too much access some of us, some of us need

to have a conversation. And this is what I'm gonna

say to you, some of y'all don't need to have

a conversation because your distraction knows just what to say

and just how to make you. And girl, I thought

we was in we it needs to be boo boo boom,

sorry this customer, that's what it needs. That's I'm gonna

go deeper. Some of you have to move out of

the place that you're staying. No, no, no, I'm not

saying that it may not be the best fiscal situation

for you right now, but staying with that roommate and

the things are staying with that boyfriend or girlfriend are

staying with that family is just toxic for you.

You would be better off.

In a situation you don't like, then in a situation

that feels comfortable and is killing you. For others of you,

I need you to hear me. We're almost done, y'all.

You need to come clean. I'm encouraging everybody to get.

In a tribe. Sign up today, sign up.

Next week, because there's people who are just like you

that have gone through what you're going through or something

similar and have wisdom. But if it doesn't come out

of you, it kills you from the inside out? How

are you going to shut the door to the distraction.

I believe the whole Spirit's gonna ask you to do

something that is uncomfortable. Some of you no social.

Media for the rest of the year.

Past what they're gonna do when they can't see what

I'm doing the same thing they was.

Doing the pastor why are you saying that?

Because it's a distraction of everything that happens politically, and

then you gotta tell your five followers how you feel

about it and make.

A video and do all.

God's trying to give you a solution to something, but

you're so distracted. Some of y'all are gonna have to

take I'm talking to moms and dads. You're gonna have

to change your schedule because you have no time for

God to pour into you and you're pouring out all day.

The kids don't have to do extreme fencing. I'm just saying,

they're in basketball, soccer, they're in ballet, they're in the

A extreme fin They're not gonna have a career in

extreme fancy.

Y'all get my point.

I'm just saying, maybe you take an out claim an

hour back to actually do the things that matter husband's

and wife date each other. Remember why you fell in love.

Talk about the things that are on your heart so

they don't fester and become something else. If you're divorced,

hear me, go to counseling and tell somebody the places

you were in denial, not just the places they were

in denial. Healing. It's what God wants from us. And

we're gonna walk out and shut the door on every distraction.

If you were in this room, I feel the sweet

presence of God in this place, y'all. Something that's about

to happen, even in this moment. I need to pray

for salvation right here because somebody's choosing right now to

choose the way. And if you're watching me online or

you're in this room right now, on the counter three,

if you want to make Jesus Christ your personal Lord

and savior, and you want to repent and go through

this door, and I'm saying you may have done it before,

but you wasn't serious. And God's saying right now I

want you to make a fresh commitment. If that's you

on the counter of three, I just want you to

slip your hand in the air. One you're making the

greatest decision you've ever made. Too. God is with you,

and your name is going to be written in the

Lamb book. Alike. I see you, my brother, I see

you my sister. Oh, y'all got to shout better than that,

I see you, I see you, Broth and more than that,

God sees you. God sees you, God sees you, God

sees you. Hey, listen online, this is the moment.

God sees you.

A transformation. In church, we're a family. Nobody prays alone.

So if one of those brothers and sisters were near you,

just slip your hand on them, and then everybody else

let's pray.

Say God, thank you for sending Jesus just for me. Today.

I repent and I turn to you.

I believe you lived, you die, and you rose again

with all power just for me. Use me, change me,

renew me. I'm yours forever. I will no longer be

distracted by anything, but I will be focused on you

in Jesus' name.

Amen.

Can we give God some praise in this place?

Oh?

Come on, halleuja. I want to welcome everybody who made

that decision to the family, and I want you to

text save to eight to eight two now before everybody

at the altars move and wait a minute, wait a minute,

we're about to love it.

It's twelve fifteen.

We're out of here, okay, But I just need you

to decide what you're leaving at this altar. I'm not

about to I'm gonna tell the praise team to just worship.

Service about to be over right after this hear in

just about fifteen twenty minutes, we're gonna do a meet

the pastor and I'm gonna be over there with some

of our leaders and pastors. And I would love if

this is your first time, or you came in or

you're part of TC and Bennie, you wanted to meet us.

And we're gonna we're gonna talk to you. I'mnna hug you.

I'm gonna kiss you. I love that.

I'm not gonna kiss you, but I'm gonna hug you.

And I really want to meet you. But I just

I just don't want you to lead this moment too fast,

trying to get to something to distract you.

I'm hungry, Pastor. I've been faster for twenty one days.

Hold on, wait, it's the Yeah, I get it, but

some of us don't even need to go back to

what we was doing. You say that habit.

I want to be altered here read the altar.

H I'm ready for change. Goodbye Yesterday.

Why because he's calling my name? We say, I want

to be all here, Come on, hands lifted, we're about

to go. But I'm ready for Chase.

Say I'm ready for j goodbye, yes, today, goodbye yesterday.

It's all in my name. He's calling in my name.

How wanta be all?

You're at the just w turn.

I'm ready for Chase, saying dom ready.

Good bye, yes, goodbye, Yes, it's calling my name.

Oh, just one more time. Something is changing. This is

our confession this week.

Don't open the door to the distraction. Okay, I'm gonna

teach you next week how we walk this out practically.

I only you'll only give me about an hour. Okay,

so I but but but today we made a decision.

Next week, I'm gonna teach you how.

We do this.

But I'm telling you you know, because the spirit lives

inside you. So when the spirit says stuff like don't

answer the phone, I want you to see yourself doing this.

Bring ring dope you Hey, don't go out with them.

But it's their birthday. That doesn't matter for you. You

they can't be your client. Okay, whoo, it's money, I

need them. You can't work with them. Hey, hey, don't

tell them about your problem because everybody you feel comfortable

with does not have wisdom for your future. I keep

slamming it because some of us have to make a

decision that this is not something that's a quiet thing.

I want the people around me to hear. Oh, he

did it again. He closed the door, and this is

the thing when you close the door to the distraction.

Oh I need another week.

What used to be the thing that leads to destruction

actually becomes protection. So if anything's trying to get to me,

I have layers of protection. I am grateful that God

has brought this word, and I don't want it to

be a moment. I want it to be the beginning

of a movement. Today. I want you to practice this

when you get to your house. I just want you

to slam a door. Yeah, I'm not playing. I'm not playing. Now,

whichever door you're more comfortable with. It could be your

car door, it could be your house door. Kids, if

you live with your parents, tell them what you're about.

To do be PASTERBD told me, because I don't want

you to get to beat this but just by faith,

and we're gonna post this all over social media. I

just want you to just walk over to a door

and maybe you can write on a piece of tape

what it was, what's you're shutting? You might have some

names on that, Mom demand Dequon Dessante, Ah, how's some

Mike White? Because sometimes those little prophetic statements they change

the way you look at what's happening. Father, bless these people.

Thank you that you're you brought us through this twenty

one days.

Of prayer and fasting.

God, and I thank you that you're giving us the

faith to focus. Thank you that this will be a

week Father God, that distractions will not be the thing

that lead us anywhere to destruction. But we trust you,

we believe you, and we focus on you until next week. Father,

Thank you that you'll keep doing this work. This was

just the start. Who thank you for altering us at

this altar in Jesus' name, everybody say we agree. We

expect amen go out and live a transformed life. If

you need prayer, we're here, y'all. My God. Goodbye. He

is calling. He is calling mine. I want to want

to wanna happy. Also here all to home, what shame?

Thank you for joining us today. If you said that

prayer and accept it Jesus into your heart, it's the

best decision you could ever make.

We want to.

Celebrate with you, and we have some tools to help

you on your journey. Text saved to A two A

two A two and to find out more about TC

text connect to a two A two A two. Be

sure to subscribe and share this podcast with your friends.

Thanks for listening. Now go out and live a transform life.