Podcast Summary: Habits and Hustle – Best of Habits & Hustle: Touré Roberts (ONE Church LA Founder)

Host: Jennifer Cohen
Guest: Touré Roberts
Episode: 520
Release Date: January 16, 2026

Overview

This episode features Touré Roberts, founding pastor of ONE Church LA (now known as “One”), bestselling author, entrepreneur, and a prominent figure in spiritual empowerment. Roberts shares his unique life journey, insights into modern faith leadership, how he found his purpose, the relationship between failure and growth, building real balance, and actionable advice on resilience and setting boundaries. The episode weaves Roberts's personal stories—often raw and humorous—with practical wisdom for anyone seeking fulfillment, focus, and impact.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Touré’s Unconventional Path to Ministry

• From Business & Tech to Faith:
  Touré started in business and technology, running a successful data center company. Despite external success, he felt “internally a mess”—experiencing pride, emptiness, and crisis when his marriage failed.

  “Externally, things were fantastic… but internally I was a mess. I was puffed up and proud.” (01:43)

• A Spiritual Awakening:

  • A personal crisis (marital breakup, self-reflection) led to a quest for spiritual truth.
  • Attended a new church, experienced a deep resonance with messages, and had recurring dreams that clarified his calling.

  “I didn’t really choose ministry. Ministry was the organic overflow of what was happening in my life personally.” (06:25)

• The Dream That Became His Calling:
  In a vivid dream, he helped his daughter discover she could fly—learning his gift was to help others realize their own "wings.”

  “My gift is to see the wings that other people have and to communicate...compel their wings, and they will fly.” (09:10)

2. Authenticity and Relevance in Faith

• Relatable Leadership:
  Touré emphasizes remaining authentic, swearing when natural ("I was a person before I was a pastor"), and relating faith to real life, attracting a younger, non-traditional demographic.

  “My audience are a bunch of cussers...They just want something that’s real. They don’t mind faith as long as faith can fit their lives.” (03:35–04:25)

• Diversity and Inclusion:
  His vision for spiritual community was always non-sectarian, ethnically and socioeconomically diverse, emphasizing unity and practical value.

  “God’s kingdom is this big, beautiful, diverse kingdom or else I couldn’t serve a God who wasn’t diverse.” (21:11)

3. Intuition, Grit, and Resilience

• Learning to Trust Intuition:
  Distinguishes between childhood "gut feelings" in unsafe environments (growing up in Watts) and spiritual intuition—an “organ of perception” one learns to trust through experience.

  “It almost becomes unnatural to suppress it. It’s the fruit of following it or the pain of not following it that puts you in a place to trust it.” (15:39)

• Surviving and Learning from Adversity:
  Shot in a drive-by at 16 (16:18), Touré credits intuition and his mother’s guidance for his survival, and advocates learning from every misstep.

4. Building and Scaling a Modern Spiritual Movement

• Bootstrapping ONE Church:
  Started by renting hotel rooms, making his own flyers (“atrocious!”), and giving speeches—80 people came to the first gathering.

  “I didn’t even know it was a church…I just want to reach people.” (19:00–20:12)

• Explosive Growth and Influence:
  Growth accelerated after relocating to North Hollywood, attracting “young Hollywood”, creatives, and those disillusioned with traditional religion.

  • Many attendees went on to major success (e.g., Brian Kennedy, Leslie Odom Jr.).
  • His church became a hub for innovative, influential, and often vulnerable young professionals.

• Big Lessons in Outreach:

  • Marketing efforts failed; organic word-of-mouth and being "real" created the community’s foundation.

  "I really felt God say, this is not going to happen by human effort...I stopped [marketing] and people just started walking in." (23:08)

5. Lessons from Loss, Failure, and Resilience

• Public Setbacks (TV Show, Business Deals):
  Roberts recounts how losing a major network show (despite high-profile backing) and a failed acquisition humbled him.

  “I only knew how to win…I didn’t know how to lose. Sometimes for the sake of development, it’s better to lose than to win.” (35:43)

• How to Get Back Up:

  • Step 1: Give yourself “permission to say ouch” and acknowledge the pain.
  • Step 2: “Do an autopsy” on the experience, searching for lessons without ego or blame.

  “If you don’t acknowledge it hurt, there’s no chance to get that wound healed. You’re gonna be a victim forever until you say ouch.” (40:10)

6. Defining and Achieving Balance

• A Radical New Definition of Balance:
  Not juggling or dividing time, but striving to be whole and giving your best self in sequence—not all at once.

  “Balance isn’t dividing yourself up—it’s becoming all of yourself and giving your best self to things in sequence.” (48:37)

• Signs You’re Out of Balance:

  • Stagnation; weariness beyond normal tiredness; growing envy/jealousy; declining thought life.

  “Stagnation is a sign I’m imbalanced…jealousy, envy, declining thought life.” (50:48)

• First Steps Toward Balance:

  • Stop moving. Touré highlights the power of the Sabbath—the discipline of stopping and silencing distractions.
  • “No one wants to do that. Noisy is normal. Noise is a distraction.” (55:29)

7. Personal Life, Marriage, and Partnership

• Relationship with Sarah Jakes Roberts:

  • The pair connected through a professional introduction; both had previous marriages.
  • Touré saw Sarah’s public potential before she did—he provided her first platform, later becoming partners in ministry and business.

  "Literally, one [church] became the platform that sprung her out." (71:37)

• On Being Partners and ‘Competition’:

  • Their success is complementary, not competitive; they “sharpen each other,” seeking to help, not outpace, one another.

  “When you see one of us, you see both of us…that’s my best friend in the whole world.” (92:13–92:44)

8. Business Savvy in Church and Beyond

• Financial Model and Growth:

  • The church is donation-based; there's no forced membership.
  • COVID led to less overhead and more capacity for outreach.
  • Digital attendance broadened reach but reduced donation averages vs. in-person giving.

• Multiple Business Entities:

  • Runs a multimedia company focusing on music and entertainment production.
  • Touré Enterprises covers books and leadership speaking.
  • Sarah’s "Woman Evolve" is a separate but collaborative platform.

9. Boundaries and the Power of Saying No

• The "90/10 Rule" of No:
  Roberts advocates saying no to opportunities and requests 90% of the time—a filter to preserve energy and ensure the best yeses remain possible.

  “No is everything because yes is expensive…My ‘no’ just qualified the relationship.” (100:16)

Notable Quotes

| Quote | Speaker | Timestamp | |-------|---------|-----------| | “Externally, things were fantastic… but internally I was a mess. I was puffed up and proud.” | Touré Roberts | 01:43 | | “I didn’t really choose ministry. Ministry was the organic overflow of what was happening in my life personally.” | Touré Roberts | 06:25 | | “My gift is to see the wings that other people have and to communicate…compel their wings, and they will fly.” | Touré Roberts | 09:10 | | “My audience are a bunch of cussers...They just want something that’s real. They don’t mind faith as long as faith can fit their lives.” | Touré Roberts | 03:35–04:25 | | “I never saw this coming. If you told me I’d be a pastor, I would have laughed and asked what you were smoking.” | Touré Roberts | 10:13 | | “It almost becomes unnatural to suppress it. It’s the fruit of following it or the pain of not following it that puts you in a place to trust it.” | Touré Roberts | 15:39 | | “I didn’t even know it was a church…I just want to reach people.” | Touré Roberts | 19:00–20:12 | | “Sometimes for the sake of development, it’s better to lose than to win. …Never waste a perfectly good failure.” | Touré Roberts | 35:43 | | “If you don’t acknowledge the fact that it hurt, there’s no chance to get that wound healed. You’re gonna be a victim forever until you say ouch.” | Touré Roberts | 40:10 | | “Balance isn’t dividing yourself up—it’s becoming all of yourself and giving your best self to things in sequence.” | Touré Roberts | 48:37 | | “Stagnation is a sign I’m imbalanced…jealousy, envy, declining thought life.” | Touré Roberts | 50:48 | | “No is everything because yes is expensive…My ‘no’ just qualified the relationship.” | Touré Roberts | 100:16 |

Important Timestamps for Key Segments

• Touré’s Backstory and Spiritual Calling – 01:43–13:59
• Growing ONE Church & Attracting Young Hollywood – 19:00–29:00
• On Failure, Loss, and Resilience – 35:00–44:30
• Writing His Book ‘Balance’ and Overcoming Self-Doubt – 44:31–48:09
• Defining Balance & Recognizing When You’re Off – 48:23–53:10
• How to Get Back in Balance – 53:10–56:02
• Touré & Sarah: How They Met & Work Together – 64:09–71:56
• Business Structures and Church Finance – 75:37–83:00
• On Boundaries and Saying No – 97:58–100:57

Memorable Moments

• The Flying Dream: Touré interprets the call to help others "find their wings."
• Honesty About Being Shot: Touring tells how getting shot at 16 shaped his intuition and resilience.
• The "No" Chapter: The candid rule that “yes is expensive,” and you should cherish your “no.”
• Chemistry with Sarah: The first meeting at the Peninsula and realizing their unique synergy.
• Organic Church Growth: Abandoning marketing, relying on faith and authenticity—and watching the congregation double.

Final Takeaways

• Touré Roberts’s journey is a testament to reinvention, authenticity, and finding purpose through both pain and victory.
• Building a vibrant life and community begins with being whole, learning from losses, and maintaining firm boundaries.
• Roberts’s style is refreshingly candid, relatable, compassionate, and entrepreneurial—making faith accessible and relevant for a new generation.

For more on Touré Roberts:

• YouTube.com/toureroberts
• Book: Balance: Positioning Yourself to Do All Things Well

This summary omits ad reads, intro, and outro content, focusing on substantive discussion for actionable listening.