Where were you first when it came to your fellowship?

I started out as the sound man of our church.

Like, I would be fixing your mic right now if you came to my church.

And I was in music production, and I did music and all of those things.

And I started out running sound, and this is the key, serving people.

And I have not stopped serving people from that time on.

And I think that's the thing that people miss.

Do

Good morning, Pastor Todd.

Good morning, Rickey.

And good morning to the Rickey Smiley Morning Show family.

My name is Pastor Michael Todd, and I'm so excited to start this morning out going to God with you, for you, and let's see what He has to say about the great day we're about to have.

Father, we thank you for who you are, and we thank you that in this moment we are not alone.

For every person who is struggling to do the things that they have to do today, I thank you that you are giving them strength.

Your word says that you give strength in the midst of storms for those who wait upon the Lord.

Speaking of prime TZ, Deion Sanders shares an amazing story about how his stepfather was another one of those prime reasons that motivated him to be great in life.

Good morning, Pastor Todd.

Good morning, Ricky, and good morning to the Ricky Smiley Morning Show family.

My name is Pastor Michael Todd, and I'm so excited to start this morning out going to God with you, for you, and let's see what He has to say about the great day we're about to have.

Father, we thank you for who you are, and we thank you that in this moment we are not alone.

For every person who is struggling to do the things that they have to do today, I thank you that you are giving them strength.

Your word says that you give strength in the midst of storms for those who wait upon the Lord.

And right now we are waiting.

Good morning, Pastor Todd.

What's going on, Ricky? And good morning to the Ricky Smiley Morning Show family.

My name is Pastor Michael Todd from Tulsa, Oklahoma Transformation Church, and today I would love to pray with you.

Hey, today I wanna pray for people who are dealing with grief, and I believe that the heaviness is gonna get lighter.

Let's go to our Father.

Father, in the name of Jesus, I pray right now for my brothers and sisters who are going through so many different situations that they didn't plan for, that they weren't ready for, and honestly, that some of them just can't handle.

Father, the loss of a loved one, the loss of a job, the loss of a season, the loss, Father God, of a dream.

Good morning, Pastor Todd.

What's going on, Ricky? And good morning to The Ricky Smiley Morning Show family.

My name is Pastor Michael Todd from Tulsa, Oklahoma Transformation Church, and today I would love to pray with you.

Hey, today I wanna pray for people who are dealing with grief, and I believe that the heaviness is gonna get lighter.

Let's go to our Father.

Father, in the name of Jesus, I pray right now for my brothers and sisters who are going through so many different situations that they didn't plan for, that they weren't ready for, and honestly, that some of them just can't handle.

Father, the loss of a loved one, the loss of a job, the loss of a season, the loss, Father God, of a dream.

Good morning, Pastor Todd.

What's going on, Ricky? Good morning, brother, and good morning to everybody that's in the Ricky Smiley Morning Show family.

My name is Pastor Michael Todd from Tulsa, Oklahoma.

And today, I want to pray that God give you more life.

Yeah, that's right.

We're going to pray that your life become full and vibrant because that's what God desires for you.

Thank you, Father God, for this day, the day that you have made and the day that we choose to rejoice and be glad in.

For info on these stories and more, go to rickysmileymorningshow.com. Now, here's a look at sports.

Good morning, Pastor Todd.

What's going on, Ricky? Good morning, brother, and good morning to everybody that's in The Ricky Smiley Morning Show family.

My name is Pastor Michael Todd from Tulsa, Oklahoma, and today I want to pray that God give you more life.

Yeah, that's right.

We're going to pray that your life become full and vibrant because that's what God desires for you.

Thank you, Father God, for this day, the day that you have made and the day that we choose to rejoice and be glad in.

Today, God, I pray for my brothers and sisters that are listening from all over the world, and I thank you, God, that if their life seems dull, if their life seems, uh, mundane, if their life seems, Father God, full of woes and only bad, today, God, I thank you that you are coming into their life to bring life and life to the full.

I gotta go buy all the wear.

Good morning, Pastor Todd.

Hey, good morning, Ricky, and good morning to the Ricky Smiley family.

I am so grateful to be here with you.

My name is Michael Todd and I am a pastor in Tulsa, Oklahoma at Transformation Church, and I have the privilege of praying with you today.

So wherever you are, whatever's going on, I'm telling you, your day is about to get better because we're about to go to the one who created the day.

Father, in the name of Jesus, I thank you for the peace that passes all understanding.

My brothers and sisters and I are going through stuff that we don't even understand.

Mm-hmm.

"Well, what can I do?" And like that then is deepening that relationship.

I think that you need to have, um, common faith goals.

I think for me, a lot of things that I've found in relationship is a lot of people like each other, but what their, their faith is founded on are two totally different things, and I think you should be equally compatible in the things that you believe.

And, and when you do that, it's easier to have conversations about how to raise children-

[laughs]

Love, love o- offers forgiveness.

L- Love, oh, love is long suffering.

Is it six people?

So then it was, yeah, the four band mates, usually a, um, a tour manager, and then a friend, Quam, selling merch.

That was the general.

It grew from there, of course.

And actually, if you wanna know what really pushed that world into, like, the full-time touring, needing to, you know, get well all the time, it was when I started losing a lot of the responsibility.

The more responsibility I gave away or, like, we successed out of, you know? We started having to hire somebody because I didn't know how to read the contracts ab- above a certain complexity of, you know.

So there's, like, a line of professionalism where y- you know, things like hiring union people to, to work shows and stuff.

When was the first time you got heroin?

... weekend?

So it, it, most people think arm wrestling's just this redneck bar room sport.

Um, it has been an organized sport for years, but even those, those events that people may have attended, that's like going to a parking lot wrestling promotion, and what you're coming here is gonna be going to the WWE.

This is UFC level production.

This is highest quality production in the world.

The best athletes on the planet in Little Rock, Arkansas.

State House Convention Center.

Okay.

He's not afraid of me.

So, uh, w- you know, just whoever wants to come out tonight, just kinda...

It's a big push for the event that we're bringing to Little Rock.

It's called East versus West 24.

Uh, it's the largest arm wrestling promotion in the world.

It's the UFC of arm wrestling.

Uh, if you've ever been to an arm wrestling event, you think that's what's coming, that's like going to your, uh, parking lot wrestling promotion and really going to WWE.

Mm-hmm.

Why is this such a big deal, this arm wrestling tournament coming to Arkansas, coming to Little Rock in a few weeks?

Well, what's so big about this event is arm wrestling has had massive growth since COVID.

People didn't have a lot of sports that went on the Internet.

They found arm wrestling.

A handful of us guys ended up getting really big following.

Arm wrestling now has people who pay to come watch arm wrestling events.

So the East versus West is basically the UFC of arm wrestling.

uh but uh i want to know is that movie is that pretty close to what's happening and have you ever been a part of seeing somebody's arm broken or have you broken their arm

We're so glad you're here, and wherever you're listening from, we believe God will transform your life through today's message.

All right, get out your notes.

I got a quick assignment.

Um, 'cause I'm uniquely positioned in these type of conferences 'cause I've been in them all my life.

[laughs] I've seen it all.

I've seen, I've seen, I've seen a lot.

And after I became a pastor, I realized that there's something happening in the body of Christ right now that doesn't get addressed as directly as it should be.

Organized by Cultúis and Belfast City Council.

Mm-hmm.

Like, and there are some people that are like, "Well, let me stop way over here, and let me go over here." But if we were riding in the same car together, we would have to go on the same road, on the same highway, getting to the same place because our purpose was to go to this destination.

I think a big part, um, of my burden for our generation when it comes to business partnerships, relationships, all those things, is to pick partners for purpose, not just for pleasure.

There'd be no divorce

...

there would be no divorce if it... [laughs] And, and, and that's why I say, again, in Relationship Goals, like, there is a formula that, and a pattern that I believe that has been set out that has worked from generation to generation to generation, that i- if you get the right relationships right first, if you get the relationship right with yourself, the relationship right with God, and then you can get the relationship right with, with somebody else, then that pattern takes you to where you need to be.

[laughs]

And I just remember seeing the eggs, and he says, "So when did you have, um, when did you decide that your standard for this life was greater than God's?" And I was like, "What are you talking about?" And because I'm a person of faith, we, we look at the Bible as principles and practical things that we can use to live our lives by.

He said, "Remember in creation?" He said, "In the beginning, God created the heavens and the Earth and the star, and he told the ocean how far it could come and created land and did all of these things, and he looked back at his work, and he said, 'It's good.'"He created the, the solar system and the galaxies and all the animals, and then he looked back at it and said, "It's good." And he does all this creating.

On the sixth day, he creates man and woman, and he looks at them and say, "This, this is good." He said, "If God's standard is good, why is your standard great?"

Yeah.

How do you ...

It, th- there, how do you beat all your competitors and you don't wanna live? Like, we've seen that story 100 times, and we always chop it up like, "Man, that's sad for them," but we don't realize that if we don't deal with the things that, that, that we got stuffed back in the closet of our lives and how our parents treated us and, and, and how, how we didn't get picked for certain things.

And I, I'm, I'm not trying to, um, give anybody their story, but what I am saying is that, um, for all of us, if we live in this world, there is something that has happened to us.

Mm-hmm.

And so, um, grateful for that.

And this is what we're gonna do.

We're gonna pray that everybody wins in relationships.

So God, me and Natalie, we come here with Charlamagne, Lauren, DJ Envy, Father God, and Jess, and we're asking that you would make all of us better in relationships.

God, I'm asking that every marriage, every single season, every situationship-

Friendships

... everything, Father God, that is, um, hurting or hard right now, I thank you that you would speak into it and bring hope, life, and transformation.

Yeah.

Like honestly this is not about anything, but I want you to win in relationships, and it's very hard to be what you can't see.

And me and Nat wanted to just use what we've been through, not perfect, put it in a book, be vulnerable, and hopefully somebody can move into the next layer of their relationships so they can win, become okay with their singleness, actually get out of a toxic or abusive relationship.

Friendships

... everything, Father God, that is, um, hurting or hard right now, I thank you that you would speak into it and bring hope, life, and transformation.

Today, Father, for the person who feels lonely, I thank you that you would be a comforter.

Father, for the person who feels forgotten, I thank you, Father, that you're sending right relationships into their life.

And God, for the person who's in a relationship and they don't know if it needs to end or not, would you send them confirmation? God, I thank you that you would use this platform to bring people ultimately closer to you, because you should be everybody's number one relationship goal.

Man.

And she's the only woman that sees me fully.

And when I say fully, she sees my insecurities, she sees my faults, she sees my lacks.

Mm.

She sees my successes.

And God gave her m- to me- Mm ... to be a mirror.

She don't care about none of this.

You know what I mean? [laughs]