It Only Gets Brighter From Here (PART 1) / The D.I.G. / Bible Study

#miketodd #transformationchurch #transformationworship

Discover the deeper meaning of Christmas in this thought-provoking Bible study. While Christmas has roots in pagan traditions, it now symbolizes the turning point brought by Christ—a promise of brighter days ahead, both naturally and supernaturally. In a world that can often feel dark with challenges like loss and depression, Jesus shines as the good news, offering peace, love, and kindness. Explore how His birth brought true light to the earth and how you can keep your hope alive. Learn how hope starts in your head, moves to your heart, and shows up in your hands. SCRIPTURE REFERENCE John 1:1 Romans 12:2 ABOUT US We Exist to REPRESENT God to the lost & found for Transformation in Christ. This is the vision of Transformation Church, led by Pastor Michael Todd & based in Tulsa, Oklahoma. GIVE To support this ministry & help us continue to reach people all around the world: https://transformchurch.us/give/ STAY CONNECTED

NEXT STEPS

#transformationchurch #transformationworship #liveworship #sermon #preaching #onlinechurch #miketodd #livesermon #bible #theology #michaeltodd #tcnation #sermon #church #onlineexperience

[Music]

well hello happy holidays Merry

Christmas my name is Charles and uh I

want to greet you your friends your

family and I hope you’re doing well I

want to welcome you to the dig something

we do here at Transformation Church it

stands for deeper in God and really

centers around this idea of us trying to

grow and our spiritual walk with Christ

how can we become more like him and so

traditionally every single week We

Gather at our Tulsa campus in the room

and online around the world and we spend

time in prayer and also reading his word

and studying the Bible and uh for the

next two weeks we’re doing something a

little different we are in my home uh my

kiddo is here Arlo hanging out with us I

got a little dog named cappuccino he

might run through the screen we don’t

know what could happen but I want to

invite you into my home for the next

couple of weeks as we discuss the most

beautiful story of all time and that’s

the story of the birth of Jesus Christ

we’re going to take a moment and we’re

going to dive into that story the kind

of layout of today it’s going to be uh

12 or so minutes depending on how long I

talk you know we’ll see what happens but

uh I’m going to read from the Bible and

then I’m going to teach share a little

thought and then I actually want to read

a prayer over you and then pray for you

as you go into this holiday season so to

get things started off let’s take a

moment and pray together Lord God we

love you so much I thank you for what

this time represents and that is you

coming into the Earth to give all of us

a new start I pray for anybody who is

under the sound of my voice that your

spirit would comfort them that in this

holiday season whether they are

experiencing Joy or turmoil whether they

are on the Mountaintop or in the valley

that they would feel El Shai The God Who

is present Emmanuel God With Us so God

we thank you for it in Jesus name we

pray amen Hey listen I want to talk to

you today around this this

idea the title of the talk that we’ll

spend the next few moments on is it only

gets brighter from here it only gets

brighter from here you know um you may

not know this but uh Christmas has an

interesting history Christmas actually

started off you may or may not know this

and some of y’all uh holy Saints might

be like how dare you say that but just

calm down I’ve done my study Christmas

started off as a pagan holiday now by

Pagan some people exchange the word

Pagan for satanic that’s not what that

means Pagan just means I ain’t serving

Yahweh I don’t have a God I don’t like

I’m not serving that way and so it was a

tradition that people had and here was

the idea people were preparing for

winter so what would they do they would

store up all the food throughout the

fall they would begin to store their

wines and they would begin to uh will

start off as juice and it would become

wine everything was fermenting the meat

would be soft Ed and begin to be cured

and what would happen is the people

would come to this day December

21st and what December 21st was was a

couple of things it was the celebration

that the storehouse was full it was the

celebration that the wine was ready and

here was the big part it was the

celebration of the shortest day of

Darkness of the Year December 21st it

was the you know the weather changes and

the season change and the time change

and it starts to get really really dark

and December 21st for the people who

celebrated this holiday represented hey

it’s the darkest day but it’s also the

shortest Darkest Day and here’s what at

that Festival when they’re celebrating

and drinking good wine and eating good

food here’s what the conversation would

have been it only gets brighter from

here that would have been the idea that

it literally would only get brighter

there’s G the sun is slowly going to

return the warm WEA weather is slowly

going to return we’re going to continue

to eat through the winter but the summer

and the sun is coming I want to use that

as a launching pad for you today and our

lives today as we stand out a little bit

aways from Christmas um you need to know

it only gets brighter from here as a

matter of fact kind of the thesis idea

that I’m working with today is this

because of Christ Christmas is the

turning point for a brighter tomorrow

because of Christ because of Jesus

because of the story of him being born

into this Earth we can take a posture

that around this Christmas season it

only gets brighter from here I said that

but this holiday started off Pagan but

what I love about Christians what Jesus

did and the early church is the early

church was known for taking and

redeeming it started off in Rome you

know Christians were highly persecuted

in r Rome and then there was a time

where Rome became Christian and what

happened is all the temples that were

dedicated to these other gods the church

came in and said yeah yeah yeah I know

you built this to another God but I’m

taking it and I’m redeeming it and from

this day forward we worship yah away in

this Temple they did this with so many

other holays Hol uh different holidays

they did this with Christmas they said I

know this was just a celebration of the

shortest Darkest Day and of being

fulfilled and having your storehouse

fool but what the Christians said is

we’re going to take this day and we’re

going to redeem it because it only gets

brighter from here not just in the

natural but in the Supernatural you see

the pagans they started celebrating just

the physical light but the Christian

Church they took this holiday and we are

celebrating the light of all light and

that is Jesus I want to read you a

scripture out of John it’s John chapter

1 and it says this in the beginning the

word already existed the word word was

with God the Word was God he existed in

the beginning with God God created

everything and everything was created

through him and nothing was created

except through him the word gave life to

everything that was created and his life

brought light to everyone verse five the

light shines in the darkness and the

Darkness can never extinguish it you

need to know friend in this Christmas

season I am very aware that life can

present

Darkness Darkness can show up as

heaviness can show up as

depression Darkness can show up as the

loss of a loved one Darkness can show up

as a strained

relationship Darkness can show up as

living in the penthouse but having no

one to share it with Darkness shows up

in many ways but you need to know we can

have hope today we can say it only gets

brighter from here because the Bible

tells us in John that Jesus was the

light of all men that when Jesus showed

up on the scene as a little baby boy

wrapped in swaddling clothes that the

True Light entered the Earth the story

of the Bible is really the story of man

wandering through the darkness looking

for a light you need to know today that

you don’t have to search any longer for

that light as we are preparing for

Christmas my hope my desire my prayer is

that you would get your hopes up and if

it’s felt like a dark season if it’s

felt like it’s been rough if it felt

like you’re tired if you feel weary

Jesus says come to all all come all to

me who are weary and heavy burden and

I’ll give you rest for your soul so

today if you’ve been F feeling like

you’re in a dark season you’ve been

feeling like there’s no light in the

situation years ago

when Christmas Christmas wasn’t even

about God and the Christians took it and

redeemed it you can say as they did it

only gets brighter from here there’s

good news friend your life is going to

get brighter I believe you’re going to

experience more peace you’re going to

experience more hope you’re going to

experience more love more kindness more

power more provision it only gets

brighter from here I want to give you a

few thoughts as we close on how to keep

your hopes up the first thing you need

to know about Hope is Hope starts in

your head I think many times we think a

situation will bring us hope but you can

actually decide in your head when you

get an understanding of Jesus when you

get a picture of him coming into this

Earth and being the True Light of all

men you can say you know what I have

hope in my mind the Bible says this

don’t be conformed to the pattern of

this world but be transformed by the

renewing of not your actions not the

renewing of your church membership card

but by the the renewing of your mind my

prayer for you as you get ready for this

holiday season as we’re in this holiday

season is that you would get a hope that

starts in your head that starts with a

perspective shift that starts with a

mindset this just you know what I’m

ready for what God wants to do I’m

believing my life is going to be better

I’m believing my life is going to be

brighter I’m believing this is going to

be the most Joy I’ve had I’m believing

that as I end this year this is the best

ending to the year I’m GNA experience

you can have hope to say it only gets

brighter from here and it starts in your

head the next thing is when you make a

decision in your head it slowly makes

its way down to your heart it has been

my experience that sometimes I’m looking

for a feeling and that feeling doesn’t

show up until I decide but what you’ll

start to see is as you decide in your

head there will be something that

happens in your heart you see hope in

your heart does something beautiful it

makes you stand up straight it makes you

dream for a better tomorrow it makes you

believe that this christas everybody can

be around the table together and even

though we’re different we may have voted

differently and we may have different

belief system we can still come together

and all collectively say in our heart we

put our trust in God and our faith in

him so it only gets brighter from here

hope starts in your head and makes its

way to your heart and ultimately it

shows up in your hands my prayer for you

as you go into this season that hope

would show up in your hands that you

would live with the perspective and the

action of hope that hope would change

the way you walk into your home hope

would change as you’re running around in

this busy season and you got to go to

Walmart and Walgreens and Target and

some last minute Christmas shopping

instead of being stressed and anxious

and worried and defeated may it show up

in your actions hey I’ve got hope today

hey I’m expected for today today’s going

to be a great day I’m I’m I’m looking

forward and here’s the thing this is not

fake positivity or just acting like

everything’s okay no this is a true

source of hope it’s the well that

doesn’t run dry Jesus says that out of

your belly shall flow rivers of Living

Water we are not like other people that

just try to manifest and say oh yeah I’m

just pretending like everything’s okay

no no no because of Jesus I have an

anchor for my soul we have this hope as

an anchor for our soul and that hope is

Jesus so as we move from this moment my

prayer for you for your friends for your

family whether you’re gather gather with

a lot of people or maybe it’s just you

this holiday season that you would look

at your

situation no matter how dark and there

will be a flicker of Hope one spark one

candle one moment and that one moment

would produce something that changes how

you live and you would be able to say it

only gets brighter from here I want to

take a moment as we close out and pray

for you

I have this book it’s a book of ancient

prayers and I find it really helpful

sometimes when maybe I don’t know what

to pray or how to pray that I’ll take a

moment and I’ll open up this book and

just read and these are prayers from

Christians from thousands of years ago

and I want to read one to you today it

says this it’s a uh written by an

ancient monk some of you heard the word

Monk and like calm down that’s okay they

can pray too and it can help us here’s

what it says hail gladdening

light light of pure Glory poured out he

is the immortal father Heavenly he is

blessed holy and holy Jesus Christ Our

Lord now we are come to the sun’s hour

of rest the lights evening round us

shine we hymn and sing to the Father the

Son and the Holy Spirit Divine worthiest

are you to be sung you have an undefiled

tongue son of our God you are The Giver

of Life

alone therefore in all the world we see

your glory yours alone would you take a

moment right where you are and pray with

me Lord God right now I thank you you

are the source of all light you are the

source of of all joy for anyone

listening right now Lord that feels

Darkness heaviness fear worry anything

that is not you I Pray by your spirit

you would intervene on their behalf May

there may there be a joy that shows up a

peace that shows up and Lord ultimately

would there be a hope for a brighter

tomorrow I pray that you would bless

them that you would keep them that you

would watch them as they come and as

they go it’s in Jesus name we pray

amen Hey listen I want to say thank you

so much for joining us for this dig uh

this time where we got to read the word

and pray and I hope you have a beautiful

day as you’re doing your Christmas

shopping make sure you don’t yell at

anybody as you’re going for the parking

spot maybe give it to the old lady I

don’t know it’s just an idea we love you

so much we’re grateful for you and we’ll

see you next time here at the Dig

[Music]