Faith in the Field - Interview with Missionary Rancher Jesse Colón from @RanchoCincoTalentosAngus

Devotional

Day 1: Leaving Comfort to Shepherd Unseen Fields

When God calls us beyond security, He often asks us to release what feels essential—salaried positions, cultural familiarity, even our sense of identity. Jesse’s journey from California’s car lots to Mexico’s mission field mirrors Abraham’s departure from Ur, trading certainty for obedience. True ministry begins when we let go of the life we’ve built to embrace the harvest we’ve not yet seen. [19:19]

“Now the Lord said to Abram, ‘Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you.’”
(Genesis 12:1, ESV)

Reflection: What “comfortable land” has God asked you to leave behind? How might clinging to safety hinder your capacity to trust His unseen provision?

Day 2: When Mercy Isn’t in Your Vocabulary

Learning a language for profit is one thing; speaking it for eternal purpose is another. Jesse discovered that business Spanish lacked words like “mercy” and “grace,” forcing him to relearn communication through Scripture. Our mouths often reveal what our hearts prioritize—worldly transactions or gospel transformation. [05:01]

“How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching?”
(Romans 10:14–15, ESV)

Reflection: Where has God placed you to speak His “foreign” language of grace? Are you willing to sound awkward to make His mercy known?

Day 3: Sitting with Sheep Before Speaking to Saints

Ministry often begins not with preaching but with presence. Jesse’s first “congregation” was a flock of sheep, a humbling apprenticeship in patience. Like David tending flocks before leading Israel, God uses mundane faithfulness to prepare us for sacred work. Spiritual authority grows in hidden fields, not spotlighted platforms. [28:06]

“So Paul, standing in the midst of the Areopagus, said: ‘Men of Athens, I perceive that in every way you are very religious. For as I passed along and observed the objects of your worship, I found also an altar with this inscription: “To the unknown god.”’”
(Acts 17:22–23, ESV)

Reflection: What “sheep” has God given you to tend quietly? How is this preparation shaping your heart for greater stewardship?

Day 4: The Gift of Never Feeling Qualified

Imposter syndrome plagued Jesse, yet it drove him to depend on Scripture rather than credentials. God’s call often exceeds our résumés, not to shame us but to bind us to His sufficiency. True ministry flows from daily surrender, not seminary degrees. [12:44]

“Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God, who has made us sufficient to be ministers of a new covenant.”
(2 Corinthians 3:5–6, ESV)

Reflection: Where do you feel unqualified? How might this insecurity be God’s invitation to lean deeper into His competence?

Day 5: Planting Seeds in Drought Seasons

Farming during Mexico’s droughts taught Jesse to labor while trusting unseen harvests. Like Joseph storing grain in famine, God multiplies faithful sowing in barren seasons. Ministry requires hands dirty with today’s work and eyes fixed on tomorrow’s promise. [46:20]

“And let them gather all the food of these good years that are coming and store up grain under the authority of Pharaoh for food in the cities, and let them keep it. That food shall be a reserve for the land against the seven years of famine that are to occur in the land of Egypt.”
(Genesis 41:35–36, ESV)

Reflection: Where are you planting in a spiritual “drought”? How can you cultivate patience for God’s timing to bring rain?

Sermon Summary

The call to discipleship begins with a personal decision to follow Jesus, not with borrowed faith from parents or church culture. Jesse’s years in the world exposed the lie that money, cars, success, and the whole pull of the world can satisfy a soul. The Lord used that empty road to bring him back at twenty-six with a desire to know what he believed and why he believed it.

The Spanish language became part of that calling. The same effort once spent learning Spanish for a job became a conviction to learn the language of grace, mercy, forgiveness, and the gospel for the sake of making disciples. The Lord turned a reluctant translation opportunity into a hunger for Scripture, bilingual study, and ministry preparation.

The path into ministry came through apprenticeship, study, insecurity, and service under faithful leadership. The tension between formal training and hands-on ministry did not excuse ignorance, but it showed that God can train His servants through classrooms, self-study, and close labor alongside experienced pastors. The insecurity of not having every credential became a pressure that kept Jesse praying, studying, and depending on the Lord rather than leaning on accomplishments.

The missionary call required placing even good gifts on the altar. A salaried ministry position, insurance, comfort, and trusted relationships were real blessings, yet they could not become reasons to refuse the next step of obedience. The Lord also joined Jesse and his wife in a shared calling, giving their marriage a readiness to serve, live simply, avoid unnecessary debt, and go where God sent them.

The work in Zacatecas began not with a packed church calendar but with becoming a student of the culture. The first years exposed how little could be understood through short visits and how much patience church planting requires. The Lord built a church from a neighbor, a Facebook contact, the Gospel of Matthew, and the slow work of answering real questions with biblical conviction.

The ranch became another unexpected provision from the Lord. A family dream, pandemic restrictions, financial uncertainty, cattle, drought, and YouTube videos became part of a tentmaking model that provided work, credibility, and support for ministry. The ranch also opened a door to show that faith is not vague optimism, but trust in Jesus while laboring honestly, praying for rain, and caring for people.

The church in Hères eventually reached the point where local leaders could flourish without constant missionary control. The release of that church made room for a new work in Zacatecas City and a vision to raise Mexican believers as missionaries to unreached places. The kingdom grows through patient seed-planting, faithful presence, shared labor, and the courage to give God room to show His glory.

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Key Takeaways

1. Borrowed faith cannot sustain discipleship. Personal history in church can give someone real tastes of God’s goodness without yet producing settled faith. The decision to follow Christ must become personal, especially when the world offers money, status, and pleasure as competing masters. God does not merely rescue people from consequences; He calls them into a faith with substance. [08:19]
2. Good blessings belong on the altar. Security, salary, comfort, and respected ministry roles can all be gifts from God. Those gifts become dangerous when they quietly keep someone from obeying the next thing God has made clear. Surrender is not despising the blessing, but trusting the Giver more than the blessing. [19:32]
3. Mission work requires patient cultural humility. Heritage, language ability, and childhood visits do not equal deep understanding of a people or place. The call to become a student of the culture protects ministry from rushing in with assumptions and imported answers. Patient presence often prepares the ground for faithful gospel work. [26:33]
4. Faithful ministry grows through slow planting. Big events can proclaim the gospel to many people, yet steady friendship often carries the weight of lasting discipleship. Years of invitations, conversations, and ordinary care can become the road by which God breaks down resistance. The Lord uses different people to reach different people, just as each part of the body has its own work. [58:34]
5. Wisdom needs courage to become obedience. Knowing God’s will does not automatically produce the strength to carry it out. Fear of failure, public embarrassment, and uncertainty can paralyze a person who already sees the next faithful step. Godly ambition asks for wisdom first and then strength to act for God’s glory.

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Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[00:17] - Meeting Pastor Jesse Cologne
[01:20] - Growing Up in Southern California
[03:42] - Returning to the Lord
[05:37] - Faith, Doubt, and Ministry Training
[13:33] - Serving at Calvary Chapel Downey
[14:34] - From Missions Pastor to Missionary
[20:10] - Marriage and a Shared Calling
[26:21] - Learning Culture and Planting a Church
[29:59] - Discouragement and Comparison on the Field
[32:25] - Releasing Leaders and Starting Again
[38:32] - The Ranch and Tentmaking Ministry
[43:23] - Pandemic Provision and Regenerative Ranching
[48:13] - Ranching, Faith, and Gospel Influence
[57:03] - Slow Faithfulness and Making Disciples
[61:25] - Support, Prayer, Wisdom, and Strength

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading

James 4:17 — “So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.” [23:36]

Matthew 9:37-38 — “Then he said to his disciples, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.’” [17:04]

Exodus 4:2 — “The Lord said to him, ‘What is that in your hand?’ He said, ‘A staff.’” [45:30]

Observation questions

In Matthew 9:37-38, what does Jesus say is plentiful, what is few, and what does He tell His disciples to do?
What comforts and blessings made it difficult to leave a salaried ministry role and step into missionary work? [19:15]
What did becoming “a student of the culture” look like during the first months in Zacatecas? [26:33]
What resources and relationships did God use to begin the church plant, and what Scripture book did the first group study together? [28:47]

Interpretation questions

James 4:17 teaches that failing to do what a person knows is right can be sin. How can a believer tell the difference between a clear step of obedience and a personal ambition or passing desire? [23:36]
Jesus tells His disciples to pray for laborers, then sends them into the harvest. What does this show about the connection between praying for God’s work and being willing to participate in it? [17:02]
Why might cultural humility be important for a believer serving in a new community, even when that believer shares the language, family background, or general culture of that place? [26:42]
In Exodus 4:2, God begins with what Moses already has in his hand. What does this suggest about how God may use ordinary skills, work, possessions, and life experience for His purposes? [45:29]

Application questions

Has your faith become personally settled, or are there areas where you have mainly relied on your family background, church culture, or someone else’s convictions? What is one question about what you believe and why you believe it that you need to take seriously? [07:21]
The world promises fulfillment through money, success, possessions, and status, but it cannot satisfy the soul. What competing promise of the world has the strongest pull on you right now? How can you bring that desire honestly before Jesus? [06:47]
Good gifts can become excuses for avoiding obedience when security, comfort, income, or familiarity matter more to us than the Lord’s direction. Is there a good gift in your life that you are holding too tightly? What would it look like to place it on the altar without despising it? [19:36]
Is there a need in the church, neighborhood, workplace, or family that you have noticed and wished someone would address? Could the Lord be inviting you to pray and take one faithful step toward serving in that need? [15:19]
Where might you need to become a more patient student of people before trying to give answers, lead, or fix problems? What could listening, learning, and building trust look like this week? [26:56]
God often grows lasting ministry through ordinary friendships, steady Bible reading, and patient conversations. Who is one person you can keep loving, inviting, and praying for without measuring the results too quickly? [28:50]
What is already “in your hand”—a skill, job, language, home, hobby, hardship, or relationship—that God may use as a doorway for gospel witness and practical service? [45:30]

Sermon Clips

“I think a lot of times we know what God wants us to do. We just fear not being able to do it. We feel fear failure. And I think that's one thing that paralyzes the church today. Nobody wants to fail. Nobody wants to fail now with in the area of social media. Everybody's so scared. I want to do this, but everybody's going to see if it doesn't work out.” [01:03:36]

“so forth. So, it was like it was that very thing that I had to put on the altar, that thing that was a blessing that raised me, I had to put on the altar and say, "Lord, you know, here we go." And and when we um are willing to surrender to the Lord e even the blessings, you know, as Abraham did with Isaac, you know, that's when we do that, the Lord will show us much more of his faithfulness and he's really not limited by what we can uh just dream of or imagine, you know, he goes and and over above what we can imagine, right?” [00:19:34]

“like I got I got to know what I believe and why I believe it. You know, uh my pastor used to always say, "God doesn't have grandchildren." You know, each one of us need to make that step of faith.” [00:08:19]

“prodal, one of the convictions was I was willing to speak Spanish and learn and struggle flounder through a bad accent um in order to make money. And the Lord was was challenging me if I'd be willing to uh to do that to to make disciples to share the gospel.” [00:03:56]

“I didn't know how to plant a church from zero. Um, and I started with a neighbor next door and somebody I met on Facebook and we started we started just going through the book of Matthew and started teaching and the Lord added to the church.” [00:28:46]

“Right. Right. You know uh God often works like that and this is very helpful for our our listeners and our viewers to hear how so often when God puts something on our heart like oh this needs to be done. Why doesn't somebody do that? often um if we'll listen to the Lord, he he'll he's trying to tell us you're the one to do that.” [00:16:33]

“evangelism, disciplehip, those are big priorities. We never want to lose the focus on those things. But you know what? There's also a very legitimate place for us to just do good in Jesus' name in our community. And and we we shouldn't think that we're failing it.” [00:57:00]

“What what I tell people a lot is that it's important for pastors to be trained to be educated. Yes. Uh God isn't glorified by ignorant ministry, but there's a lot of different ways that people can get trained and get educated. And and look, seminary and Bible colleges and schools of ministry, that's one way. And if God leads a person that way, praise the Lord, that's wonderful. But there's also a lot that a person can learn by apprenticeship in ministry.” [00:11:52]

“Yes, when you get out there, you're coming from a big church and a lot of activities. The first thing you need to do is become a student of the culture and and just don't start ministry for at least at least 3 months to a year.” [00:26:25]

“Yeah. The Lord told his disciples, "Pray to the Lord of the harvest that he would send labors and the ve very few next verses he's sending them."” [00:17:02]

“There there's a lot of people and this is a common testimony for people that they realize that they'll make certain sacrifices or put forth energy for the things of the world. But what why won't they put forth the same things for the kingdom of God and that man that's a very effective way that the Lord speaks to our heart, isn't it?” [00:04:16]

“but you know what? That pushed me to always want to study and secondguess myself and and go to the Lord and and pray and cry out and uh yeah, I think I think I think the Lord deals with each one according to how he knows his sheep and and knowing my tendency of pridefulness and my sense of accomplishment. I'm very kind of OCD and I like accomplishing things. So, there's been some things in my life that I haven't been able to accomplish that I always have that You know, and that's made me more of a student of the word with that kind of insecurity that God can use.” [00:12:49]

“wait, I went out to Mexico and man, we're a couple years in and we got 20, 30 people, you know, and so it's just like I had to learn not to compare u which is so hard. Um it's so so hard even to admit that uh you know that I would come back and compare my ministry with others. Um and and the struggle was was internal.” [00:30:49]

“I started saying, "Okay, you guys decide what you want to do," then I started to see more more of their their own creativity and and their own knowledge of their own community start to factor in when they'd make decisions. And so, I just felt like, wow, they're flourishing.” [00:34:58]

“first our first call is to our ministry of serving the Lord and then our ministry one to another and then the ministry outside of the house. And so yes in that time we you is when we fell in love and we fell in love with the calling that the Lord would have us uh to serve each other.” [00:22:48]

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