Welcome to Living My Faith, a weekly show that celebrates the everyday believers who are walking with Jesus not just on Sundays, but in every area of their lives. From relationships and parenting to health, habits, and home, our guests share how they keep their faith at the center of it all. Hosted in Jacksonville, Florida and supported by Christ-centered partners, Living My Faith is a space where real life meets real faith. Today our hosts, Della Sellers and Morgan Allen spoke with Joshua Delp.
Joshua Delp
Owner at Rising Leadership
Website Address: https://www.risingleadership.org/
Short company description:
I help Christian men and mission-driven leaders break through what’s holding them back and step into the next level of their God-given purpose in life and leadership.
What is the most important lesson you’ve learned over your career?
Self awareness is the make or break in life and leadership. Your blindspots and the inner world can take you out or see you last.
What nonprofit do you have a heart for and how do you support it?
The Church of 1122 is our home church. We tithefiathfully and serve where we can ( which is much less with two small children than in seasons past. Okoa Refuge. We give as often as we can to their efforts
What’s your favorite way to get involved in the community?
We love to host and gather people. People don’t gather as often since 2020.
If you could be remembered for one thing, what would it be?
Jesus Christ is Lord of all. And He has created with you a purpose that only you can do in the earth. He saved you AND called you to work with Him in the redemption and co-creation of the future.
Transcript:
Morgan
Welcome back to another episode of On a Mission, where we highlight those who are on a mission to make Kingdom impact. I’m Morgan Allen, joined today by Dallas Sellers with Girls of Virtue, our co-host. Hi, thank you for being here.
Della
It’s a pleasure.
Morgan
Thank you. Yes. And we also have Joshua Delp with The Risen Project. Joshua, thank you for joining us.
Joshua
It’s an honor to be with you ladies. Yes.
Morgan
So Joshua, give us the rundown. What is The Risen Project all about?
Joshua
So we say it like this. We exist to help ministries, nonprofits, and Kingdom-minded businesses build something that lasts through strengthening the three pillars of this type: worship, leadership, and communication, or marketing if you like that word.
Because what we found is 95% of businesses don’t make it five years, 99% of churches never break 153 members, and most don’t last past ten years. And so we want to see the Kingdom of God advance.
Usually one of those three is lacking. You’ve got to be a leader worth following, you have to actually be able to lead, and you have to be able to get the word out in an effective, authentic, and integrous way.
Morgan
Absolutely. So Della, as you’re running a nonprofit and you are helping nonprofit leaders, I’m sure you have so many questions.
Della
My head was already going. Can I hire him? What is this going to look like?
So one of the things—and maybe I can ask a question if it’s okay with you—you know, hopefully maybe some other people that are walking along the walk of doing ministry and trying to do that work. What are some of the key elements that you think we need to put in that allow us to have the foundation for success?
Joshua
Yeah. So we were playing around with the word discipleship or character. And the reality is when you’re building a thing, it’s easy to get focused on everything you’re doing, doing, doing, and stop focusing on your own walk with the Lord.
Ministry can become about what you do instead of who you are and whose you are, if you could use that cliché.
But also just your character. As you grow a thing, the demands on your character, the stresses of life, the skill sets you have to develop—it can be easy to stop growing in Christlike character.
And unfortunately, I’m someone who sometimes falls into that trap. It’s an easy place to get when you’re just focused on what you do and not who you are.
So a few of the key character skill sets I would say are: one, just trying to grow in godliness and Christlikeness. But then there’s also some practical stuff.
Resilience—we were talking about that before we jumped on. Having a rhythm of life that’s sustainable. It is easy when the pressure is on to get out of a sustainable way of life.
And I’ll give you this one because I’ve seen this make or break leaders: emotional intelligence and self-awareness. Some leaders are so focused on the results they’re getting from what they do and say that they don’t realize the wake of their leadership, the impact it’s having on the people around them.
And I tell you what, that can make or break your leadership. So those would be a few off the top of my head.
Morgan
That is beautiful. So it’s really about being leadership-focused but plugging your spiritual vacuum, if you will, into the source first—to God.
Joshua
To receive.
Morgan
Before going out into the day. So what is it that you do in your walk with the Lord before you go into your day?
Joshua
I’ll be honest with you. I wish I was like a perfect shining example full of spiritual discipline and intimacy with God. But working from home and having two small babies can look like pure insanity at times. It’s beautiful chaos.
But I’ll say it like this. One of the scriptures I built my life on is “Seek first the Kingdom of God and everything else will be added unto you.”
Practically, I try to get my lazy butt out of bed before the babies do and get in the Word and pray. Sometimes that doesn’t happen because the babies are up all night.
So I try to have a moment before the day starts—even when the babies are awake—and just set my heart on God. I just say, “Father,” and He’s like, “Yes sir, I’m right here.”
Setting my heart on God first.
Here’s a good example. We’ve got a lot going on in the business right now. I opened my phone and the anxious effort started. I thought, “Let’s see the emails.”
And I had to ask myself, “Is that my source?” You used that word.
So instead I shut all that down and went to God’s Word first. I try to make seeking Him first not just a spiritual idea but practical. When we give Him our first and our best through our time, that’s a practical way of putting Him first.
So I try to make the spiritual as practical as I can and put Him first in practical ways.
Morgan
Yeah, absolutely. And it’s such a good reminder for parents these days that no matter what, you are making time with just you and the Lord. But it can also be holding the baby, praying over the baby in that special prayer time.
Joshua
It looks like when I’m getting the baby down now. There are those quiet breaks in the back. I try to lean into those moments.
It can actually be really special because you’ve got these quiet moments when you feel like you need to be busy, but the Lord has slowed you down with this little life. Those become most of my prayer times.
We pray or worship at other times as well, but seeking Him first isn’t just about a discipline first thing in the morning—although I like it when it is. Sometimes you have to adapt.
Della
That scripture is actually the same scripture I built both my ministries and my company off of.
It’s the idea of rhythm. If the day starts with that, it makes things sustainable. As an entrepreneur running ministry full-time, learning that rhythm was one of the key things that made it sustainable for me.
A lot of people don’t realize I run a ministry and was running a company at the same time. That rhythm made it sustainable.
The best day is when I wake up with a journal, a Bible, and nobody talking to me for an hour. But if not, it looks like walking into a meeting saying, “God, welcome into this.”
What does that look like? How do I honor You here?
And it’s neat that you said that—how we begin to walk into the day honoring God in the decisions that we make.
Joshua
Yeah. One of the make-or-break skills in leadership is whether you’re leading reactively or leading with intention.
Slowing down enough not to live reactively and pausing to give the Lord breathing room before critical moments—walking into meetings like this.
Just breathe. Not next thing, next thing, next thing.
Giving Him just a little breathing room to speak in.
Della
That proactive versus reactive idea has been my statement for a while, especially when it comes to our children.
We need to get proactive and intentional about what everybody needs instead of just reacting to everything the world, the flesh, and the enemy throw at us constantly.
Joshua
Right.
Della
Well, I think we’re out of time, are we?
Morgan
Unfortunately, time—
Della
Flies when we—
Morgan
Talk about the Lord.
Della
Yeah. I look forward to continuing this conversation. I’m excited again.
When it comes to ministry leaders and what you offer, there is great opportunity. Before we close out, if people want to know more about how to connect with you, where should they go?
Joshua
TheRisenProject on Instagram or TheRisenProject.com.
Morgan
Perfect. Thank you both so much for joining the show today. It’s been an absolute pleasure.
And viewers, thank you for tuning in to another episode. If you want more information on The Risen Project, head on over to LivingMyFaith.com.
We’ll see you in the next episode of On a Mission.
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