Every servant of God goes through a desert. Moses spent 40 years there, Paul spent three, and Jesus spent 40 days in the wilderness before his public ministry began.

In this episode, Pastor Joshua Kelly of Helotes Independent Baptist Church talks about leaving a decade-long career in law enforcement to go into full-time ministry, and about the two-year desert season that followed. He speaks openly about money trouble, the loneliness of the move, and nearly quitting. He also shares what God taught him in that time and how it prepared him to pastor.

This conversation is for missionaries, ministry students, and anyone in a hard season right now.

In this episode:

Going from police detective to assistant pastor

Why every servant of God goes through a desert

Moses, Elijah, Jesus and Paul in the wilderness

Choosing to get better instead of bitter

Why godly friendships matter before you need them

“Accept the hit”: getting your heart ready for hard ministry

“Elijah’s a man who was alone with God before he stood before kings.”

Resources mentioned:

A Tale of Three Kings by Gene Edwards

The Well-Worn Path podcast (Helotes Independent Baptist Church), available on Spotify and other podcast apps

Subscribe for more conversations that encourage and equip missionaries: youtube.com/@VBMintl

#Missions #Ministry #DesertSeason #ChristianPodcast #FaithfulGod

Learn More About Vision Baptist Missions

👉 https://visionmissions.com

If this episode encouraged you, be sure to:

👍 Like the video

💬 Leave a comment

🔔 Subscribe for more missions-focused content

Quotes

“I’ve never regretted serving God. I’ve sometimes, like everyone else, wondered what God’s doing — but I’ve never regretted serving the Lord.”

“Elijah’s a man who was alone with God before he stood before kings.”

“God says you’ll get alone with me first. And it’s not always comfortable, but you learn a lot of good things from it.”

“He’ll put you at the very edge — but he will not push you over it.”

“Don’t go through it enduring. Go through it looking to learn.”

“You can either get bitter or better.”

“When you go into the ministry, you should just accept that it’s going to be hard. Once you accept something, it’s so much easier to endure it.”

“It’s good to have godly influences that will hold you up when you can’t hold yourself up.”

“I don’t know your situation, but I’ve been through a desert — and let me tell you about a faithful God.”

“I don’t know that I can help you, but I know a God who can.”

How do you find young people to train for ministry, and how do you keep investing in them once you have? Pastor Jim Roberts spent ten years as a missionary in India and planted four churches there that are still going. Now he pastors Holly Springs Baptist Church in Pickens, South Carolina, and he shares the simple, practical approach to discipleship he has used on both fields.

Jim arrived in India without knowing a word of Hindi. He prayed for a man to disciple, and within days he met Das, a new believer who had come to faith after searching “Who is Jesus?” on Google. Das became Jim’s language tutor and his first disciple. Jim’s lessons with him grew into a small group of Das’s friends, and that group became a church.

In this episode:

-Why prayer is the first step in finding someone to disciple

-The “fisherman’s approach”: keep inviting people and don’t overthink it

-What to ask in a first discipleship meeting

-How to tell who is ready to grow, and when to move on

-Serving people on their schedule, even if that means meeting at 5:45 a.m.

-Starting with Bible reading when someone isn’t in the Word

-How to set priorities so ministry busyness doesn’t crowd out discipleship

-Why missions only lasts if nationals are trained to reach their own people

“We can all drown in the sea of busyness… but if you prioritize and you plan your days, then you will actually get something accomplished.”

📍 Holly Springs Baptist Church, Pickens, SC

Learn More About Vision Baptist Missions

👉 https://visionmissions.com

If this episode encouraged you, be sure to:

👍 Like the video

💬 Leave a comment

🔔 Subscribe for more missions-focused content

#Discipleship #Missions #Ministry #ChurchPlanting #India #Pastor #Missionary #Gospel

How do you know when it’s time to move on to your next church plant? In this final installment of our series on multiple church planting, Jeffrey Bush sits down with missionary Jason Holt to discuss the reality of launching and multiplying local churches in major global cities like Santiago, Chile.

We break down why single mega-churches rarely work in dense urban settings, why attendance numbers shouldn't determine your readiness to launch a new plant, and how to navigate the hard personal transition of letting go of a ministry you built.

If you’re preparing for the mission field, currently serving overseas, or pursuing biblical church multiplication, this episode gives you practical frameworks for disciple-making leadership.

Learn More About Vision Baptist Missions

👉 https://visionmissions.com

If this episode encouraged you, be sure to:

👍 Like the video

💬 Leave a comment

🔔 Subscribe for more missions-focused content

📌 In this episode, we cover:

The practical math of urban church planting in dense populations.

Why training prepared leaders matters more than hitting attendance targets.

How to hand over leadership smoothly to national pastors.

Finding your personal identity in Christ rather than in the local church you planted.

Preparing your wife and children positively for ministry transitions.

⏱️ TIMESTAMPS / CHAPTERS

00:00 - Introduction & Setting Up Episode 3

01:30 - Why We Need Multiple Churches in Dense Urban Cities

03:45 - The Urban Layout: Santiago, Chile Case Study

05:55 - Setting Attendance Goals vs. Preparing National Leaders

08:20 - Redefining Missionary Success Beyond Sunday Numbers

09:40 - The Challenge of Handing Off a Church Plant

11:35 - Finding Your Identity in Christ, Not the Church

13:10 - How to Transition Your Family Well to the Next Plant

15:00 - Closing Remarks & Wrap-Up

🔗 RESOURCES & LINKS

Subscribe to our channel for more foreign missions training and podcasts: [Insert Link]

Learn more about Vision Baptist Missions / Our Ministry: [Insert Link]

Connect with Jason Holt: [Insert Link]

💬 QUESTION FOR YOU:

What is the biggest challenge you face when thinking about multiplying churches or training leadership? Let us know in the comments below!

👍 If this episode encouraged or challenged you, please Like, Subscribe, and Share it with someone preparing for the mission field!

Quotes

"We have no biblical reason to think attendance is the goal—the goal is having someone prepared to lead."

"A touchdown for a missionary isn't numerical attendance; it's raising up someone for ministry."

"We find our identity in Christ, not in the church we’ve planted."

"We're not there to be remembered or honored—the goal is that Jesus is remembered."

"Frame the move as an opportunity to build God’s kingdom, and your family will catch the vision."

#ChurchPlanting #Missions #MissionaryLife #ChurchMultiplication