Pastor Highlight: Rio Taylor - From Hurt to Discipleship

For a pastor, there will always

be the “calling.” The “calling” is their purpose,

the reason they are on call 24 hours day. The calling is the reason some willing be heading out on vacation and will turn around because of a member of their church just passed away. The calling keeps them in the pulpit each week and develop vision. The “calling” isn’t to a particular church, event, or to the job. The “calling” is to surrender to Jesus’s authority as a minister of the church. The day a pastor feels this calling, is the day their life changed. Their salvation is the single most prominent day in their life when Jesus saved them from their depravity and wretchedness. However, the day they were called to be a pastor as they follow Jesus is a close second. For some it changes the trajectory of their life. For some, they try to outrun it, but it sticks with them. It’s the calling that keeps them going in the hard seasons and their praises are louder than most in the joyous times.

For my friend Rio, a pastor that has been through so much, it is the calling that reminded him to keep going during a season of heartache, anxiousness, and a feeling of doubt.

Rio’s ministry journey began when he was a teenager. Like most teens called to ministry in the state of Oklahoma, he felt the calling into ministry at a church camp off exit 51 on I-35 near Turner Falls named Falls Creek. Falls Creek is the largest youth Christian camps in the world. If you can imagine 4,000 teens and 1,000 adults in one auditorium praising and worship Jessus for eight weeks during the summer, this is Falls Creek.

Each summer Oklahoma Baptists and a few other denominations take their teens down to Falls Creek to spend several hours in the Word of God, playing volleyball (as the main rec attraction), and each evening have tabernacle time. They worship the Lord together as one and listen to the main preacher speak on the word of God. Each year there are several decisions made for salvation, rededication, and call to ministry. In 2024 Falls Creek had 560 teens surrender to the call to ministry.

Rio recalls that night when he was just fifteen sitting in the tabernacle listening to a call, he didn’t want,

“I had no desire to speak in front of people, was uncomfortable in groups larger than 3-4 people, and had told the Lord the Monday Night of Falls Creek that I would serve him as a faithful deacon and whatever profession he called me to. Still, I did not want him to call me into the ministry. The next night, the Lord placed 1 Peter 5:1-4 on my heart, a passage I had not memorized but it replaced my hang-ups and fears with a desire to preach and shepherd His people. In that moment, I could do nothing but say yes to His call.”

Throughout Rio’s tenure as a pastor, he has served as a youth pastor, interim pastor, and has served several churches in Oklahoma and Kentucky as senior pastor. Just like many pastors, there are vicissitudes throughout his ministry. There are many pastors who do not come back from the type of issues that Rio faced in one of his churches. Some would even step away from churches all together. According to Barna, 56% of pastors considered quitting their position in 2022 because of the immense pressure of the job.

 One thing I have known about Rio is his tenacity to continue through his ups and downs. A few years ago, Rio had faced one of his toughest challenges yet as a pastor. It left him feeling anxious, worn, and defeated. Rio then turned to the only source he knew to go to for inspiration, and the was scripture.

“During my quiet time one morning, I read Psalm 115:3, “But our God is in the heavens; He does whatever He pleases.” The Lord used that verse to convict me that I either believe he is sovereign, or I do not. From that mment on, the anxiety went away, and while it wants to rear its ugly head at times, my anchor is the sovereignty of God. Once the Lord convicted me that I was not trusting His sovereignty, I saw Him move swiftly. He took care of the problem and caused a season of joy and growth to come. He reminded me that He is in control and all I need to do is be still and know that He is God (Psalm 46:10).”

Spiritual and mental trauma is a very real endeavor to overcome. This was only the beginning for Rio as he began to seek out counseling to learn to navigate his feelings of betrayal and distrust. He had to learn to over bitterness and anger, 4but it was through therapy he began to realize this season of trauma and church hurt doesn’t define his story “only the Lord does that.” Rio would say.

Today, Rio and his family live in Grayson, KY and serve at First Baptist Church as senior pastor. Rio is a visionary pastor. Every couple of years he will cast a vision for the church to get excited about and use a plethora of visuals to tell the visions story. You can tell discipleship is at the heart of his ministry whereas he has different men of his congregation come to preach on Monday evenings and has done that at most of the churches he has been pastor.

I asked Rio, how would you describe the heartbeat or mission of you church in this season, Rio simply responded,

“In this season, we are preparing ourselves for God to move among us and t be ready to disciple those He saved through the ministry of the church.”

Discipleship matters to Rio because without it, he wouldn’t be where he is at. It is the men, the mentors, professors, previous pastors that have poured into him to show him the Word of God. Rio knows how important discipleship because without that foundation, he wouldn’t be where he is today. Continuing to preach, continuing to disciple, continuing to pastor. Rio stays grounded by staying connected with other pastors and accountability partners. With his community he can continue to be a healthy pastor today.

I asked Rio, How do you balance being both a shepherd to others and someone who also needs spiritual care?

“My pastoral friendships have been the most effective way for me to balance my own spiritual needs.  I have an accountability partner with whom I talk almost every day, and a few other friends with whom I try to have intentional conversations to discuss our spiritual health, needs, and struggles. I also feed my soul with the preaching of others. Currently, I try to listen to four other pastors every week.”

It is evident that God has called Rio to pastor. I have watched Rio over the years grow and mature in the faith to where he is at today. I know the spotlight in this article is on Rio, but I would be remiss to say the glory goes to God. What Rio has accomplished and what he has done in his tenure as pastor continues to flourish and show what God is doing. From overcoming trials, trauma, and hurts to continuing to pastor. The odds were against Rio, but, he came out on the other side with God’s help, and continues to do what he loves today.