As a child, Ethan Hollis never dreamed of a life in vocational ministry, but Baptist Student Ministry, an internship and a church-based Calling Out the Called program changed that.
Hollis grew up with inconsistent attendance in church and little understanding of the gospel.
However, after a friend invited him to youth group, he became more engaged with both.
Hollis recalled accepting Christ at a youth camp in middle school, but he said, “The things of the world really choked up my faith.”
Halfway through his first semester at Sam Houston State University, Hollis encountered God in his dorm room after he “hit rock bottom” from years of living a worldly lifestyle.
“I remember praying to God, crying and saying, ‘God, I don’t have anywhere else to go. I don’t have any other reason for life. I need help, and I need you,’” Hollis said.
Gradually ‘fell in love with doing ministry’
A few days later, Hollis received an invitation to the Baptist Student Ministry from a family friend and attended a Thursday night worship service there. He was “immediately welcomed” into the BSM by three “godly young men who are still some of my best friends today.”
“I sat with them week after week, ended up getting discipled, and they just taught me what it looks like to follow Jesus and that being a Christian means accepting forgiveness and loving God and pursuing him,” said Hollis. “My life really changed after that.”
Hollis said he was deeply impacted by how the BSM modeled discipleship and Christ-like community.
“I grew up in a church that was mainly older folks. There just weren’t a lot of young people who were genuine Christians. So, it was hard to follow the Lord during my high school years, [because] I just didn’t know what it was like,” Hollis said.
“But being able to see it modeled … it deeply impacted me. With just one semester, I think everything changed because of the intentionality that they had.”
Gradually, during his time at the BSM, Hollis said he “fell in love with doing ministry.”
Church-based programs formative
Hollis transferred to Stephen F. Austin State University in August 2021 for his sophomore year. His friend Jackson VanDover, now youth minister at First Baptist Church Center, told him First Baptist Church in Nacogdoches was searching for a youth ministry intern.
Hollis felt God had given him a desire to teach the Bible, so he seized the opportunity and served as the youth ministry intern from January 2022 to April 2024.
He now considers his role as youth ministry intern as formative in further discerning the call he felt God had given him to vocational ministry.
After his time as youth ministry intern, Hollis began the Calling Out the Called program at First Baptist in Nacogdoches.
The program allows young adults who feel called to pastoral ministry to attend seminary fully funded, be discipled and trained by the church’s leadership to eventually be sent out to pastor their own congregations.
Hollis said God has used his time being mentored by Pastor Noel Dear and Associate Pastor Mark McLendon to spur on his desire for pastoring.
“I think that God has used great models like them, church leader models, to create in me a deep desire to [preach],” Hollis said.
“It’s just crazy that God can do something like that in a person and just completely change around everything that you want to do. And [preaching] is the only thing I want to do.”
Making contacts with veteran ministers
Last August, Hollis and a couple of his Calling out the Called classmates attended Discipleship Collective in Mount Pleasant, a ministry of Texas Baptists’ Center for Church Health.
“One of the greatest [takeaways] was I got to hear [about] the importance and effectiveness of the small-groups settings in churches,” Hollis said.
He also was grateful for the connections he made with seasoned pastors at the event.
“I feel that I can reach out to [these pastors] one day when I become a young, inexperienced pastor … [to] get their wisdom on what to do in certain situations,” he said.
Hollis said he would advise other young people discerning a call to vocational ministry to meditate on Scripture “day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it” (Joshua 1:8 NIV). He also encouraged others to take the time to learn how to be faithful to Christ and the church.
“I think [this] especially [applies to] people who are aspiring to be ministers, because … we can’t lead a church in any capacity if we are not soaked and marinated in God’s word,” Hollis said.
“Take your time. Not all of us should be teachers, but we should all be exemplary Christians. I think one way to learn to do that is just be a faithful member of the church, be a faithful Christian. It takes time to grow and [discern] those desires.”
Hollis also said it is essential for aspiring ministers to seek God and pray for the Lord to build them up in the character and integrity of a “biblically qualified” minister.
He expressed gratitude to all who helped shape his faith and help him discern his call to ministry.
“I’m thankful for Texas Baptists and everything that they do. I’m thankful for the BSM and for the way it has changed so many lives on campuses,” he said.
EDITOR’S NOTE — This story was written by Jessica King and originally published by Baptist Standard.
