Triumph Wrapped In Trauma // End in Triumph: Damaged But Not Destroyed (Part 13) // 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. Do today's message well, Merry

Christmas everybody, and just so grateful. Man. As I look around the

room and I see so many people, I see all different types of faces.

I see all different types of pain. I see all different types of

problems. Some of you have gated neighborhood problems. Oh, y'all, come

on, the dog is too loud. Some of us have apartment problems,

second floor apartment problems. Some of us have father problems, and some of

us just have feeling forgotten problems. And everybody's in the house today. Isn't

it beautiful that Jesus can bring everybody together like no, no, no,

no, I just need you to understand. The only other place that looks

this diverse right now is the mall. But we're in the House of God

today and people have come and put aside all the frantic for a moment to

tune into their faith. And in a holiday season where Christ is the first

part of the word Christmas, isn't it beautiful that we came here to say

God, we're gonna acknowledge you first, before the presence, before the Christmas

ornaments, before the crazy family. We God, We're gonna say, Jesus,

You're welcome. I just want to thank our church for being a faithful

church. The crazy thing about this is this is what happens every Sunday here

that people have just BESI you know what, if I'm a live in a

crazy world, I'm not gonna do it out Jesus. And nobody's perfect here.

They dress up nice, but everybody jacked up under this. We've been

in a series for over twelve weeks called damage but not destroy it realizing that

the value that God put on us, no matter what has happened, it's

still in us. And today I just wanted to, as your pastor,

just say thank you. This has been a year of triumph for Transformation Church.

The only way you know that you've grown is you get weight put on

you, and this year a whole bunch of weight. See a lot of

people think that weight or trials or tribulations or a sign of God abandoning them.

It's actually proof that He's been with you. The whole time, and

now you get to lift what He has giving you the grace to lift.

And this year, I'm just so grateful for everybody who's given and prayed and

served, and I just believe the truth of the matter is, is we

end in triumph. Somebody say end in triumph? Come on, say it

with faith, end in triumph. We're about to start something crazy in twenty

twenty four. Now only four people had faith to believe. I'm gonna say

it one more time and give you an opportunity. Were about to start something

crazy in twenty twenty four. Come on personally, for your life, for

your business, for your family, for this church, for this community,

for our city, for your city. And so I just want to tell

you that next week, next week, we ain't gonna be here. So

if you show up here next week, it will be you and the Holy

Spirit and He'll meet you right here. Okay, but them doors will be

locked because we want you to spend a Sunday with your family like I know

churches like oh, I on to church. We are the church, and

I would I would, I would love for you to gather with your family

around breakfast and pray this this next year is gonna be a year of maturity

for the Body of Christ. It's not gonna be the church spoon feeding you

what you need to get closer to God. I'm gonna give you them ingredients.

You gonna dice it, cut it, grill it yourself. Okay,

some of y'all they're like, uh, no more, no more. But

next week we'll be doing the end of the year review and you can watch

it online and your pajamas. And then the week after that, I feel

a burden to preach the first Sunday in January in a brand new series we're

calling Start Sharp, the revelation God has given me about Starting twenty twenty four

Sharp. Everybody say sharp, I'm talking about have you ever I had a

knife so sharp? Cooking all my cook and somebody who's like, yeah,

when I shank that food, not killing anybody, cooking, hunting, you

know what I'm saying. But there's a level of knife you can have that

is so sharp that it takes very little effort. I just believe if we

spend more time sharpening our spiritual tools this year, it won't be so hard

to deal with the things that come in our life this year. Everybody says,

start sharp. We're gonna start sharp, and the next day we're gonna

start twenty one days of prayer and fasting. Now, I know some of

y'all is like I'm about to eat this week. Go ahead, do your

thing, but come January, we are going to put into practice giving God

the first of our years so that he'll bless the rest of it. And

I'm just looking forward to what God is about to do in our church and

through it, and I'm just so grateful for you to be a part of

it. I have a word today and it's not gonna be long, but

it shall be strong. Get your notepads out, get your smartphones and your

dumb phones. We accept androids here. All are welcome, all right,

she said, I thought you said, and in triumph, we're getting you

affle here soon. I want to read a passage of scripture that is read

in the Christmas Story a lot. You've heard it a couple times today,

but it hit me different. And we've been talking about our trauma and our

drama, and let's just go ahead and make the room feel even right now.

If you know there's an area of your life that still has trauma and

drama surrounding it. Would you please raise your hand so the neighbor that you're

sitting next to doesn't think that you're better than them. If your hand is

not up, I have a Christmas present for you. You're a liar.

The truth of the matter is all of us have something that we're still working

through, and we will be working through that, not maybe the same thing,

but something until the day that Jesus comes back. Let me help you.

There are some things that will never ever be like, oh, I'll

do, I'll no, no, no no. There are some things that

we're going to have to rely on God to help us with for the rest

of our life. And I know that Jack's a lot of people up because

you want to be independent, but God wants you dependent on him. And

so as we deal and wrestle through our trauma and our drama, I started

thinking about the Christmas story and how beautiful it was for Jesus to be born

in Isaiah chapter nine, verse six. This scripture, I mean, is

so beautiful on cards. It's so majestic when you put nice music behind it.

Matter of fact, do I have a musician still back there? Would

you put some strings on, some kind of symphonic Christmas strings for me,

real quick, something that gets them in the mood of good tidings and good

cheer quickly. Unto us, a child is born. Unto us, a

son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders, and he

will be called wonderful counselor Mighty God, everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Merry Christmas. Cut the music. We read that scripture, so pretty,

so tied up in the bow, so beautiful. But I started reading through

all the accounts of the Christmas story, and this story was an episode Season

one of Jerry Springer. This is the most trauma field jacked up way to

have a baby in history. Now, I know you don't get it yet

because you see little white porcelain baby Jesus in the manger with the wise men

and all, and that's where you see the scripture. But can I break

it down with the little little remix on it, with reality of what actually

happened in this story. Because I found that there's something in the character of

God that I want to give you a cheat code. Understand. He's wise

enough to many times convenient conveniently conceal the potential confusion that your promise is wrapped

up in. I'm gonna say it one more time that our God many times

conveniently conceals potential confusion that your promise is wrapped up in because he knows if

he told you all of the crap you would have to go through to get

it, you wouldn't even go. Isaiah prophesies unto us a child. He

prophesies this beautiful moment seven hundred years before Jesus. So, I mean,

I'm thinking that it's just gonna be some beautiful sorry night like we see and

the light is gonna shine and all this stuff. But do y'all understand what

happens? Watch this? This is the the MLT remix version. Okay.

For unto us, a child is born after nine months to a teenage mom.

For unto us, a son is given to a dad that don't know

if it's his. Okay, y'all be so boogie. This is baby Mama

drama. You're pregnant by who the Holy Spirit? Where are you? Okay?

And the government shall be on his shoulders. After the government tries to

assassinate him as a newborn, he had a hit out on his life from

the time he said when and you talking about haters. Okay, and he

will be called wonderful counselor Mighty God, everlasting Father, Prince of peace,

that couldn't find room in the worst motel, so he was born in a

barn. Many times, if God told you all of the confusion that was

around, your promise wouldn't even show up. And I came to encourage somebody

who's felt like this year has been that, like your year, like you

made a plan in twenty twenty three and now you just need to cross out

the three and put forth because none of your plans. Come on, Let's

be honest. It's gonna start a business, was gonna lose weight, was

gonna forgive, it was gonna stop cussing, cust them out this morning on

the way, y'all gotta be happy Jesus' birthday. Okay, y'all gonna be

faking here today. Was gonna start serving, was gonna read the Bible,

was gonna was you were going to do the things that you said to yourself

you wanted to do. But somehow this year has been filled with confusion and

crisis. What I came to tell you today, the title of my sermon

is Triumph is usually wrapped in trauma. Triumph, the victory, the wind

is usually wrapped in something traumatic. Sit with it. I don't know any

marriage who's good fifty years down the road and ain't had nothing bad happen.

The best marriages, if you dig deep into them, there is something traumatic

that they had to walk through together that brought them to a place that said,

ain't not gonna break us from here on out. The triumph was wrapped

in trauma. There's no business that you see being great. Tesla was on

the verge of losing everything two years before it became the largest electric company.

They had to go through trauma. And today I just want to hopefully help

you reframe your situation because some of you are about to give up and you're

right on the brink of the greatest breakthrough of your whole life. And I

came to tell you it had to go that way. No, no,

no, no, no, no. You gotta hear me right now.

It had to go that way. If it didn't go that way, you

would have got the glory out of your life. But because God gonna bring

you back from that, only he gets the glory out of your life.

Oh okay, how come to help you. Why are you saying this?

Because when I look at the Christmas story, I got to keep this jacket

undone. I'm about to come out of it because I'm getting excited right now.

I found out that Christ was born into a trauma field situation. But

I got to see that Christ excels in crisis. You got a crisis,

you need Christ? Why? Because he can beat any crisis. He can

literally have his power work through a situation to the point that you even forget

about the pain the way it was when it was happening. Okay, I

gotta keep moving. It's his mo it's his steelo, it's his swag.

He sees crisis and he says, I'll step right into the middle of that.

He literally steps out of heaven. Y'all, don't even want to leave

your house. And he sees humanity in crisis, and he said, you

know what, let me put on this nasty skin and let me and he

steps into our situation, literally put the word Christmas up there. I saw

this completely different for the first time. Like when I was thinking about how

Christ steps into chrisis, what is the main word of Christmas? What is

the main word of Christmas? So it's Christ. Must split it apart from

me real quick, just so I can see it Christmas. And then I

was looking at I just wrote it down on my paper, like this christ

Mus. And then I started thinking, like it could be say that Christ

is attracted to our mess. Whenever I see Christmas, I should see Christ

plus r mess. Tomorrow, you're about to go to a christ Mus dinner

or a christ Mess dinner. Come on. Some of our families are jacked,

and you're thinking of everybody else and there thinking of you. It's a

mess. A lot of unforgiveness, a lot of pain, a lot of

secrets, a lot of unspoken expectations, a lot of failed formulas that worked

for them but don't work for y'all. A lot of son in laws who

don't talk to the father in laws, a lot of mother in laws who

mean to the daughter in laws, a lot a lot of pain due to

pedophilia. Okay, it was your uncle, but a lot of secrets.

It's a mess. And the crazy thing is you're still trying to do this

without Christ. Like you're literally in here planning another year of mess and going

to ask Christ at the end of it, would you please sprinkle some blessing

on it. He said, no, no, no, I'll let you

have your mess until you put me in front of it. Put me in

front of it. I do my best work with mess. I do my

best work with mess. Today, I need you to understand that Christmas is

honestly the story. Let me say it like this, put it down in

a point. The story of Christmas is the beginning of Christ dealing with our

mess. Anytime you think of Christmas, that's God's plan for saying, you

know what, I'm gonna deal with humanity's mess. So what I'm gonna do,

I'm gonna just come down and save the day. No, I'm gonna

make it be born in the messiest place ever, a barn. Do you

see all the symbolism. There's literal dirty animals everywhere, and God allows there

to be no available room in decent places so that he could foreshadow all of

us feeling like we needed to clean ourselves up first before we No, no,

no, no, I actually was born into mess, so that you

know that I'll clean you up from wherever you are. Oh my, the

revelation, And I don't know if y'all have like a boogie Christmas spirit today

or you think like somehow your life don't stink. But I was grateful to

know my Savior was not allergic to a messy situation. Because when I was

dealing in pornography, when I was jacked up in my mind, when I

was disobedient, I always tried to clean myself up before I came to God,

and some time and somehow, every time I ended up at the ultar,

I was still a mess. But the fact that our Christ loves crisis

and was born into a mess means that whatever you're going through right now,

I feel my health coming on. This is his favorite type of work.

It's his nature. Part of his first smell is crap. Okay, y'all,

y'all don't read the Bible like donkeys. Y'all see the Nativity scene.

What do horses, donkeys and pigs do? Okay, use a use a

PG word right now. They make a mess. So literally, whew,

oh oh, my lord. I guess I gotta get used to this.

For the next thirty three years, I'm gonna have a mess around me,

and then when I go to do the finished work, I'm gonna be dealing

with people's messes for the rest of eternity. I do my best work in

mess. This is the Christmas Story, okay, all right, And the

truth of the matter is some of us this year have made a mess of

our finances. Okay, I'm not trying to be I didn't want you to

come for a Christmas service and then be like leave and be like, oh

that was fun. I wanted you to come and know that there's a solution

to the messages that were still in some of us. You're sitting next to

your spouse, but your relationship is really a mess. Some of us.

Our confidence is a mess. You ain't been you in three years. The

stuff you used to do. Very simply, you're timid, you're scared,

you're in You feel inferior in things that you know your called to do.

For some of us, our emotions are a mess. Three things I learned

from the Christmas Story, and I found like twenty eight and I just decided

that some of y'all still have Christmas shopping to do. Solemnly, give you

how many? Okay, just real quick, just show off hands, real

quick. We're gone in twenty two minutes. Okay, real quick. How

many of y'all have ever thought? Let me deal with this mess before I

bring it to Jesus. I'm in the right room today. That's all I

just wanted. I just wanted to make sure you know you can't. I

spent so many years trying to fix the things that I had no power to

fix without the power of the Holy Spirit, and I just want to save

you another year of frustration. Don't do it without him. This will be

your best year if it is your best year spiritually. And some of you

have put so much energy and effort into a plan that has no power because

it's not been submitted to the King yet. And I want to say,

I'm just gonna save you in the balcony. I want to save you another

year of getting the twenty twenty four. I thought it was supposed to be

more twenty twenty four. Did I pick the wrong door? Because everybody about

to start chance the next seven days. Watch the chance. The chants are

about to come. Twenty four? You got one? What's yours? Huh?

Why am I so poor? It's funny, but the truth of the

matter is for many of us, it'll be true because we won't put Christ

in front of the Okay. Three things I learned from the Christmas story,

write it down. Triumph is usually wrapped in trauma pastor ain't at the title.

Yeah, I don't want you to forget it. I'm gonna put it

in there two times because scientists tell us that reputation, repetition helps you be

able to get something. Okay, Matthew, Chapter one, verse eighteen,

just go here. The literal underscore says, Joseph accepts Jesus as his son.

Hold On, why would he have to accept Jesus as his son?

It's because, well, you'll see, this is how the birth of Jesus

the Messiah came about. His mother, Mary was pledged to be married to

Joseph. They was engaged, but before they came together. Before they came

together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. Hold up,

found my baby, Mama found was found pregnant. You don't know what

happened. You have no clue you are You were sleep and you were found.

This is not normal. As much as we read these Bible scriptures,

this is some wild stuff. But this was the rapping that God chose for

Mary and Joseph to strategically go through to give him glory and bring the savior.

Of the world into this realm. Can I help you? The thing

that you hate may be the very thing God chose to get a promise into

this world. Marry Christmas. Do you think Joseph wanted this to happen?

Do you think I mean? Literally? At this time? It is an

embarrassment above all embarrassments to not have a child or a son with your name,

and then to be with the woman still and the whole community knows that.

Y'all ain't even okay? Ok? But why did I always find it

interesting that Joseph? I think Joseph is a great man of faith, crazy

faith, because he stayed committed to God's plan even though it felt confusing.

This is the place where most of us give up. Don't make no sense

to me. I'm gonna just go do my own thing. Oh, come

on you. God was asking you to wait on him to allow the plan

to be unwrapped, and you couldn't wait no time because it got too confusing.

What if Joseph would have done? What most what what I would have

done? Can I be honest? That comes to me? We engage.

I'm like, baby, I already got the ring. Don't even worry about

it. Oh, wet night. I'm gonna lay hands on you. And

she was like, my I'm like, what, but you got gas?

What's happening? Is it? What's happening? The Holy Spirit of visiting me?

But that's funny. I mean, what do you mean visited? I'm

pregnant. You're you're what I'm pregnant. There's no way you could be pregnant

because we church hub, you can't be pregnant. I'm telling you, I

felt the power, hold on, the power, hold on. Okay,

let me stop. I would have left the room. I'm just telling you,

in my humanity, I would have left the room. Mary and whoever

her baby daddy is would I had to figure that situation out. Now y'all

sitting up here judging me. But the truth of the matter is God had

to visit Joseph as well. And this really don't make it no better because

now God's saying it was me, Like I just want you to okay,

I want you to imagine with me. Don't worry. She was telling the

truth. It was me, first woman, last woman in history that this

is gonna happen to. You'll never really be able to measure up Joseph.

But this is what I want you to know. You don't get to name

the baby. She don't get to do anything you want to do. But

stay committed, even though it's confusing. Stay committed, even though it's confusing.

Stay committed, even though it doesn't fully make sense to me, Stay

committed even though I don't understand why you would allow us to. To me,

there's one hundred other people that this could have happened to stay committed.

The story of Christmas could have been over at Joseph, but he stayed committed

because his triumph was wrapped in trauma. Okay, second thing, we don't

want to tell you we're almost done. Favor can be wrapped. Watch this,

this encouragement in foolishness. Your favor can be wrapped in a foolish situation.

Okay, Luke, Chapter one, oh, verse twenty nine. Oh.

The reason I'm so passionate about this because I came to encourage people today

that didn't have a perfect year. I came to encourage the people who are

kind of not even really looking forward to twenty twenty four because you don't know

how it's gonna change between now and then. Okay, and I know you

steeped in presents and Amazon packages. But there's no amount of gifts that you

could buy, no amount of trips you could take. Know about a money

you can make that will feel the emptiness of not actually allowing Christ to deal

with your mess. So what I found in mary situation is favor can be

wrapped in foolishness. Luke, Chapter one, verse twenty nine. When she

saw the angel, she was troubled at his words. She thought about what

had been said. The angel said to her, Mary, don't be afraid.

Are you kidding me? You are an angel. I don't know what

you look like. I don't know how where did you come? Did you

walk through the wall? Y'all get scared of people you know is in the

room? Okay, come on, have you ever like gone to the bathroom?

Your husband or wife or brother sister saw you go to the bathroom.

Then they come out like, why didn't you tell me you saw me?

Now when angel is about to come talk to me, and he said,

don't be afraid, but look at his next sentence. Don't be afraid why

because you have found favor with God? This is what favorite feel, right?

Because this feel pretty foolish to me. This this what favorite feel they

let me go. I don't work there no more. I don't have no

job. This you have found favor with God. No no, no,

no no no no no no, no, no no no. They not

my friend no more. They stopped answering the phone and they were my bestie,

missus Westy they they why why are we not? You have found everything

you lost wasn't a loss. I need everybody to hear me say this.

The situation surrounding your situation may be foolish right now, but I came to

tell some people you have found favor with God. See, you are to

become a mother and have a son. You are to give him the name

Jesus. If I was married, I'd be sitting there like this cannot be

really happening. I'm about to lose my relationship because I don't think Joseph built

like that. I didn't ask for this, and now I got to carry

a baby for nine months. We're all the mothers in the room. Okay,

Look they start claughing for themselves. They like we are mothers. Hear

us roar. I ain't even say in the clap, I just said,

we're all the mother But the truth of the matter is if you are a

mother for nine months, no matter what you feel, you are baking a

baby to the point that some of y'all lose y'all mind. And then you

had a baby and you gain it back and you do it again. Mary

is sitting here with no choice at this moment except to surrender to a situation

that seems completely foolish. But God called the foolish thing a favorable situation.

I just came today to ask you to look at your situation with the new

lens, the thing that you have been calling foolish all year. Could it

be God's favor some situations in my life that's been going on, And I'm

like, God, why would you allow this to happen? He said,

Look again, don't be too quick to label what's not over. Mary and

Joseph at this moment would have been like this the worst time of my life

for the rest of her life. She's like, my baby, Jesus,

think about it. You talk about your son Blake, he just can play

basketball this Jesus, at this. At one moment it's like I cannot believe

this. At another moment is like I cannot believe this. I bet she

felt that way when she turned. When she told Jesus turn the water into

wine. Y'all remember his first miracle. Jesus was like, my time has

not come. She said, boy, please, I carried you for nine

months. Do whatever Jesus say, Do whatever he says. You're like Mary,

he got the certain nay of in her cracket. She's like, that's

now, I just you know, I'm just But at one moment it's horrible.

And then God says, it's my favor. I just came to encourage

somebody on this Christmas Eve service. It may look foolish, but look again,

this is God's favor. I need you to hear me say this.

This is a prophetic word for somebody right now. I know the business didn't

do what you thought it was gonna do. Look again, was God trying

to work something in you ooh? Or was he trying to work something out

of you? You've been so prideful. He had to let it fail so

humility could come to your life. Look again, this is God's favor.

They had to leave your life because you would never know who you were without

them. If they would have stayed, you would have just been a puppy

and a robot behind them. But I called you something powerful and I want

everything I put out of you. Look again, Uh, it might be

God's favor. Look at your neighbors, say look again. Mary and Joseph

had to look again, and you know they found out that there was so

much favor wrapped in a situation that was foolish. Matter of fact. I

just I need I need somebody help me. Who will help me with the

example, real quick, Just somebody that that would help me, just real

quick. Hand let me see. She said, ooh ooh, you help

me right here in the black, right there with the glad. Yeah yeah,

come here, come here, come here. I want to give you

a gift for Christmas. Y'all bring me this gift. Come here, y'all

want to give you a gift. Oh yeah, look at the search.

People don't even know if they should clap. They're like, ugh, why

they called? Why he called her? What's your name? Meredith? You

have the perfect Christmas name. Here we go. I want you to go

ahead and unwrap this gift in front of everybody. Yes, this is awkward,

but just go ahead. And now I need you to unwrap it like

your two year old kids. And you really wanted. Oh snap, hold

on, there's another layer. Go again. Yeah, oh, struggle,

process, frustration, muscles. Come on, Meredith, come on, you

didn't know you was coming for all this today. Come on, unwrap it.

Come on, there you go. Another layer? Go ahead, another

layer? Oh God now mostly yeah, come on, Meredith, y'all support

her? Come on? Yeah? All right? Another layer? What's going

on? Church? Family? Come on, We're trying to get everybody in

here here. I love you, I love you. I love you.

If you're watching on YouTube, if you're watching on Instagram, if this is

going to Facebook, wherever you're at, I just want to let you know

we love you. Here. I'm gonna try to get some of this on

here. I came to the house and I'm in my den. I ain't

changed clothes. I'm here. Nothing can stop what God is trying to do.

I want you to share this with everybody. If you're watching online Transformation

Nation, I love you. I'm about to address what happened in the middle

of service for everybody that's been praying, everybody that's been watching. We are

in the middle of a miracle. And I'm gonna finish this message right now.

And so I wanted to let everybody know if you don't know what's happening

or what happened. We were in the middle of the most amazing Christmas Eve

service and we had to abruptly in service and evacuate the building. And I

want to let you know why. It was out of the abundance of caution.

And I want to let you know, as a pastor and a leader

with our amazing team, we care about you and your family and everything that

God is doing, and we care about your safety. So out of the

abundance of caution, we had a verified threat from our authorities, and at

that moment, we could have either finished service or worried about everybody being safe

with their children and making sure that this was a merry Christmas. And so,

because we love and care about everybody that is a part of Transformation Church,

every visitor, every person that is faithful of we decided that we were

going to in service. God's with us all the time, and we were

going to end service and make sure that everybody was safe. And we are

thankful, so thankful that our team, along with the authorities in our area,

just did such an amazing job evacuating thousands of people in the matter of

moments, and so we are just so grateful for everybody that's still working with

our team. But I'm gonna finish this message. And I did not know

that the message was going to get a live example. But if you're just

joining us right now, I want to let you know that trauma is usually

the thing that is the setting for triumph. And I've been preaching a message

and i only have one more point at one more point left, So I'm

not going to end this year unfinished. I'm going to end in triumph.

I want you to put it in the chat. I feel my help coming

on. I'm taking my sweater off. I'm about to preach the rest of

this in this den. We are going to end in triumph. I hate

the devil, I hate what he would try to do in our service,

but this is the message. This is the example that no matter what happens,

God has put in a resilience on the inside of us. To be

able to believe Him in the mixed midst of a messy situation, to be

able to trust Him in the midst of a mess in the midst of evacuation,

still be able to praise the eternal God. We are going to end

in triumph, and the story of Jesus is just this. It's Christ coming

through a crisis. And as our whole church was used as a sermon illustration,

today, I want to let you know, wherever you are, no

matter how broken your situation may seem, no matter how much you want to

forget what has happened this year, God is saying to you like he's saying

to me, and my faith is being encouraged right in the moment where I

could have doubted, or been mad, or have feared, God said Michael.

I'm telling you right now that this is going to be a triumphant situation,

but it may come through some trauma. Point one of the message which

triumph is usually rapped in trauma. Point two is favor can be rapped in

foolishness. And point three this is the last point, Promises can be wrapped

in pain. Write that down, put it in the chat. Promises are

many times rapped in pain. Luke chapter two, verse six, it says

while they were there, the time came for the baby to be born,

and she gave birth to her first son, her firstborn son. She rapped

him. Remember we talked about it being rapped. She rapped him and clothed

and placed him in a major because there was no room available for them.

There are many of you right now in the middle of a situation just like

Mary and Joseph, that it is a painful situation right now, Can I

encourage you that there is a promise attached to that pain, and the whole

goal would be for you to get almost to the point and give up.

I want you to realize how many painful situations that Mary and Joseph had literally

walked through in this whole situation. I mean, think about it, the

pain of their promise. They had the pain of embarrassment, like literally having

a child out of wedlock, literally being shamed and shunned by the community.

If anybody finds out they had the pain of childbirth. Come on, mothers,

come on, let's be honest in here. Children would not be born

if men had to actually be the ones to give birth, because the truth

of the matter is that pain that you go through giving childbirth with all your

organs and everything moving and everything going, This is the same pain many of

us have in birthing a vision out. And I know I'm talking to somebody

right now because I'm experiencing the pain of birthing a vision out, the pain

of not being in control of everything, the pain of having to move around

problems. But I'm telling you the baby is coming. I'm telling you that

God is going to get glory on the other side of this pain. But

you gotta hold on to the promise. Mary and Joseph had pain because their

family wasn't even there. Think about it. It was her first son,

her firstborn son. This is where everybody would gather and be excited. They

were in an entirely different city, on the run when Jesus was born,

no family, no friends around, pain of being isolated, pain of being

alone. They had the literal physical pain of a ninety mile trip on a

donkey. Now, can we okay, let's just be honest right now.

If you're pregnant and somebody tells you we going on a trip on a donkey

for ninety miles from Nazareth to Bethlehem, there's physical pain that went along to

seeing this promise come to pass, from the cultural judgment to literally the pain

of rejection of not even having anywhere to have this baby. Mary and Joseph

go through this, but despite all of the pain, and this is what

I came to encourage you with. They, as I believe you will too,

they still receive the promise. This is the story of Christmas, the

pain, the frustration, the trauma. It is the platform for God to

get you to the promise. Luke, chapter nineteen verse ten. Ugh Luke,

chapter nineteen verse ten. It says, for the son of Man came

to seek and to save those who were lost. The whole reason Jesus came,

the whole reason that he was put through this crisis. We get Christ

out of the crisis, the whole reason you went through everything you went through,

the whole reason that this is a type in a shadow, the whole

reason that Mary and Joseph went through all of this. I need you to

understand that the promise that we have of salvation, it was in Mary's pain.

It was in Mary's pain that we get Christ. But it was a

type and a shower or foreshadowing of the pain that Jesus would endure so that

we could receive salvation. See, I need you to see what just happened.

Mary had to go through the pain because she had to be the forerunner,

because Jesus was gonna go to the pain to produce a promise, which

is our salvation. This was Christmas's whole intent. This is why you don't

have to live the same way. This is why you don't have to keep

doing the same thing and going to the same places and live the Mess or

Christmass, Christmas. You don't gotta do it no more. It's because somebody

already took the pain. But it started with Mary and Joseph birthing the promise

out of pain, so that Jesus one day could birth the promise of salvation

out of his pain on the cross Luke nineteen ten. For the Son of

Man, Jesus came to seek and to say those who were lost. You

know, this story took a brand new meaning for me this summer. And

I'm gonna tell this story and we're gonna enjoy our Christmas. And I thank

you Transformation Nation for rocking with me. The one thing, I don't care

what happens if I gotta set up on the side of a corner. We

are gonna represent God to the lost and found for transformation in Christ. And

this whole situation that fired me up on a whole other level. And I'm

telling you that we are gonna see God do something so powerful because we're gonna

be steadfast and committed to the promise, even if it comes with some pain.

This summer, as our family took a trip. We decided to go

on a trip as a family. And I call it a trip because there

is a difference between a vacation and a trip. And let me be very

clear of vacation is mom and dad going somewhere. If the kids is there

and there's backpacks and diaper bags and all that, it is a family trip.

Just that's free game for all my new parents out here. Do not

call it a vacation if all your kids is with you. Anyway, we

went on a family trip and we were in the Dallas airport and my little

Bella and my oldest daughter, she wasn't paying attention, but she was with

us, and we had to get on the tram to catch our next flight,

and at the moment that it was time for the doors to close,

she was on the outside of the tram and she looked, I mean,

we're this close. And she looked and her mom's like, oh my goodness,

and I'm trying to incredible holpe the doors and open them. Up and

they wouldn't open. And I literally looked at Bella in her face as the

tram started to move, and I said, stay right here. And I

didn't know if she fully heard me or saw me. But that was the

longest seven minutes of my life because as a father, I had to wait

for the tram to get to the next stop and literally run across and get

on the next tram and ride it back. And all I could think did

somebody take my daughter? All I could think is is she gone? Did

she walk away? All I could think is did she Did somebody come in

and lead her away? She's impressionable? Did she? Is she far from

me? Is she gonna be where I left her? Is she? And

all I could think is my daughter is lost? And as a father,

in that moment, I started thinking about, let me be honest, killing

everybody. I started thinking like, I'm gonna have to literally run through every

person in this airport. My what was his name? That Leah Nilsen,

Mea and the taking guy I was about to I have some unique talents that

I was about to go because I could not imagine myself separated from my child

for the first time in my life. I understood what Luke nineteen ten really

meant, because it was God's plan at Christmas to send Jesus. But that

was the beginning of him saving all of humanity. And he said, the

reason I had to do it is because I have to seek and save those

who had lost my children, who were lost. As I got off that

tram, I saw Bella standing right where I told her to stay, and

I was behind her now, And all I did was I said her name.

I said Bella, and she turned around and saw me, and she

just started crying and she ran to her father. Because the whole time,

the whole plan was for us to be united. The story of Christmas was

actually our triumph that was wrapped in the trauma of the birth of Jesus.

Today, I just want to offer you the greatest gift that could ever be

given to anybody that has already been given. The question is will you receive

it? Will you receive it? I know people are going through all kinds

of stuff. I know people are maxing out credit cards. I know that

people have deep emotional grieving pain, people are missing loved ones. I know

that people are in the middle of making huge decisions. But would you like

Christ to step in the middle of your mess on this Christmas because He's the

only one that specializes in bringing triumph out of trauma. I want to pray

with you there's another deepening in me right now to really know that God is

at work within our church and in this moment I'm humbled to stand here in

this moment and lead us through this because I really do believe that in this

Christmas season God is trying to bring us to a place of trusting Him in

the trauma. I'm gonna say it one more time. God is literally letting

things fall apart all around you because He's just saying, will you trust me?

Will you trust me in the middle of your trauma? And that's what

Christmas is Mary and Joseph trusting God in the middle of their trauma. It

is the same invitation that you are being given right now. Christmas is the

beginning of Christ doing anything to get back to you this Christmas. I want

you to know what was all about you. The gift to humanity is Jesus

from God because he wants a relationship with you. Will you receive it?

Emmanuel means God with us. He had to be born into pain, so

he lets you know I'm with you. I know what that feels like.

I know what it feels like to be betrayed. I know what it feels

like to go through hard situation. I know what it feels like for the

plan not to work out. He's a manual God with us. Will you

receive the full benefit what Jesus has for you today? I want to pray

with you if on this Christmas Eve or Christmas whenever you're watching this, you

want to make a decision to make Jesus Christ your personal Lord and savior.

Today, I'm want to let you know there's no greater gift, because the

gift has already been given. All you have to do is receive it wherever

you are, in your home, in your car, some people are still

in traffic, getting through people getting out of our church. I just wherever

it is. God said, this is your moment. This is the chaos

that I'm about to birth this promise into. This is the place where I'm

about to become a lord of your life. Yes, I had to drive

to my house and come to my den to finish this message. But God,

said Michael end in Triumph, show him what it feels like to have

every odd I didn't even have the logins to the YouTube and the Instagram.

God said it doesn't matter and in triumph, and I'm telling you, there

is a level of perseverance that I believe that coming up on the inside of

God's people right now that is going to allow you to not be stopped by

the lives of the enemy and the obstacles. God's calling for obedience. You're

gonna birth this promise, even if it's painful. You're gonna find favor,

even if it's foolishness, and your triumph is coming in the middle of trauma.

If you want to accept Jesus Christ today, it's the greatest gift.

It literally is the thing that took me from being a liar, a manipulator,

addicted to pornography, had crazy things in my heart, my head,

I was I had a poverty mentality. All kinds of things were going on.

And more than a poverty mentality, I had a corrupt heart. And

I invited Jesus in and I accepted that gift, and he accepted all of

me. I didn't have to clean my mess up. He helped me clean

my mess up. That's what religion wants you to think is that you need

to get your stuff together and then come to me. And God said,

if you give me your heart, I'll help you change your habits. What

better day then Christmas even we're about to celebrate Christ for you to receive the

gift that He's already given to you. You don't got to bring a gift

to this party. You have to receive the gift and He'll change your life

forever. If that's you watching on Instagram, live, watching on YouTube,

on Facebook, on rebroadcast, We're putting this up. I'm not letting nothing

stop what God has for you. If one person gets saved, we saw

twenty two thousand people plus get saved this year at Transformation Church. You think

the enemy can stop what's happening. He hates it. He hates it,

and he's gonna have to keep hating it, because as long as I have

breadth in my body, we are gonna represent God to the lost and found

for transformation in Christ. Whether it be from this room, whether it be

from a boardroom, whether it be from fifteen nineteen, it does not matter.

You cannot stop what God is doing. And I'm telling you right now,

even though it's painful, the promise is still coming out. This is

the moment where God saying, let me be in this with you today.

I believe destinies are changing today. I believe your family is changing today.

I believe that your mind and your heart is changing as you receive Jesus.

I don't have any music for you. I don't have anything. This is

the rawest realist moment that you could ever have wherever you are. If you

want to accept Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and savior, I want you

to just repeat after me said, God, thank you for sending Jesus on

Christmas to be your plan for my salvation. I believe he lived, he

died, and he rose again so that I could be in right relationship with

you today. I'm handing over control of my life to you. Change me,

renew me, transform me. I'm yours in Jesus' name. Amen,

If you just prayed that prayer, I want you to put your hand up

in the chat right now, and I want you to everybody else. I

want you to start giving God praise right now. Come on, right there,

come on, put your hand up in the chat. I see hands

going up right now. Hall Lujah, Like, this is what it's all

about. If you just gave your life to Jesus. I want you to

head to the TC website after we end this, and I want you to

find resources. We don't have the QR code and all that stuff. I

got all the technology right now. I don't know what number you need to

call, but I need you to come back, and I need you to

plug in. I need you to go find the resources. I need you

to let everybody. Don't tell somebody around you, like, this is what

this church is all about. Today. You just received the greatest gifts you

could ever received. It's the gift of Jesus. And we're about to walk

with you. And I'm telling you that this will be the best year of

your life if it is the best year spiritually. And I'm telling you you

started off right. We're not just starting twenty twenty four. We're ending in

triumph. There's no way. When I was on the way over here,

they're like, what you want to do? You want to just put a

message job. I said, no, I'm ending in triumph. I'm ending

my last sermon of the year preaching. I don't care where it's from.

What God has given has to come out because there are people attached to our

Obedience Transformation Church. I love you, Merry Christmas from my house. I

ain't got no ornaments on the tree. I just came in here to just

say I love you, I'm committed to you. I'm gonna lead you into

the greatest season of our ministry and your growth and your development. A word

of the year God has spoken, but I'm gonna do something different. Next

year. We're going to We're gonna see the greatest year of ministry that we've

ever seen. I want you, if you're just joining us and you on

Instagram or Facebook, I want you to go back and watch the whole message.

In the middle of the message, there's gonna be a cut and it's

just gonna be at my house. Okay, so you just tell people,

but this is still for your salvation and your deliverance. And I'm just so

glad for what God is doing. On January the seventh, put it in

the comments. January seventh. Put it in there. January seventh, We're

starting a brand new series and I'm preaching it called start Sharp Ooh, I

had not wait. Everybody. Put it in the comments. Start Shark January

seven, Start sharp. We are about to go up next Sunday. We

will not be at the physical location we want you to enjoy, and we're

gonna be doing the end of the year review so you can tune in and

watch that. Spend time with your family. From my family family, Thanks

all over the hell from our family to yours. Merry Christmas. We love

you, Transformation Church. We believe God is doing something special in this time.

Thank you. Everybody is safe, everybody is good. I hate the

devil and we gonna see God represent more lives to the lost and the faun

for one reason. What is it Transformation in Christ. Merry Christmas to you

and yours from everybody here at Transformation Church. Go out and live and transform

life. I love you. 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. Tech 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.