By Lindsay Peyton

Rev. Kefentse Risher was searching for a new way to reach others – and landed on starting a podcast. Now, in addition to listening to him in the pulpit of FUMC College Station, you can find him by tuning in to his latest episodes.

“The Vision Project” features in-depth conversations. Risher interviews individuals from all backgrounds who he finds inspiring. His hope is that by sharing stories, listeners will find new meaning, inspiration and purpose. 

“The whole vision was to talk to different people of all walks of life, break bread and have good conversation,” he said. “You’d be surprised what can happen over a good, open conversation.”

The podcast’s roots stretch into the pandemic, a time when churches were getting creative to preserve fellowship and creating new ways to engage in prayer.

At the time, Risher was serving a two-point charge in Huntsville, as Senior Pastor of St. Paul and Pleasant Grove UMCs. “We weren’t in the building,” he said. “But I wanted to keep the congregation together.”

Risher decided to start a daily prayer call. At 6 a.m. each morning, congregants could dial into a conference call. The pastor would greet everyone, give a brief devotional, and the prayer began.

“I would get it all done in 15 minutes, and then you could start your day,” Risher said.

The whole thing happened again at noon – giving two options for parishioners to connect with faith and their church families.

The prayer call became a big hit. “We had into the thousands of people calling in on a regular basis,” Risher said.

And not everyone was a member of the churches – or even in the same city. Callers came from Dallas, Chicago, Florida and Georgia.

When in-person worship resumed, Risher wanted to preserve the essence of the prayer call. “How can we keep this going in a fresh way?” he asked.

Several parishioners suggested, “Pastor, you should do a podcast.”

Risher began to brainstorm. “Maybe there’s something to it,” he thought.

He enjoyed listening to a couple of podcasts – and he saw potential in the format to reach more people. For instance, those uncomfortable stepping onto a church campus would be able to easily listen to a podcast instead.

The only challenge was that Risher knew nothing about audio production. “I had to start from scratch,” he said.

Two of the regulars on his prayer call – husband and wife team Dr. Helen and Dr. Richard Watkins offered a solution. They connected their pastor to their daughter Monica Watkins, who produces podcasts.

“She helped me put everything together,” Risher said. “She produced it all.”

The pastor already had a name in mind – the Vision Project. He had been kicking the title around for a while. Initially, he felt called to start a nonprofit with the moniker – with the mission of helping young men and boys crystalize their vision.

“I wanted to help them know what they could do to make a mark on the world,” Risher said. “But the fact is that everyone, in some shape or form, has to zero in on what their vision is.”

He took inspiration from Proverbs 29:18: “Where there is no vision, the people perish.”

Risher wanted to focus his podcast on visionaries – “people who were able to start something with just an idea and have God grow it.”

He was certain that by shining a light on these forces in the community, the podcast could inspire others. “It’s feeding people – just in a different way,” he said.

In the process, Risher also wanted to show that pastors are approachable. “They can be like, ‘This pastor is conversational,’” he explained.

After all, that’s what happened with the prayer call. When listeners dialed in, they got a sense of Risher’s personality – and that made them more likely to call him for pastoral care.

The podcast’s first episode, which was released in August 2021, featured Asheva Phillips, director of Vaughn Gage Adult Wellness Center. The facility cares for those with Alzheimer’s, dementia, multiple sclerosis and Parkinson’s disease. She is also the former President and CEO of Senior Citizens Bureau, a national non-profit organization that provides information, education and support to senior adults and caregivers.

Risher went on to interview Imani Monica McCullough, speaker, author and life coach, and then Pastor Robert Glenn Johnson, author of “Jesus Unchained: How to Rise Above the Agendas, Find Peace, and Be Set Free.”

At first, Risher admits to feeling a little nervous about the interviews. “But I really enjoy talking to people,” he said. “Nothing moves me more than good conversation.”

The Vision Project was placed on hold when Risher was appointed to FUMC College Station.

“Now, it’s time to start gearing up again,” he said.

He already has a few visionaries on the list – and his dream interview is with Maya Moore, a former WNBA star who stopped her career to help free a wrongly incarcerated man, Jonathan Irons.

In the meantime, Risher hopes that his podcast will help others realize their own potential and power within. His passion is helping others “find their purpose through open and honest exploration of the soul” and showing others that “there is enough God available for everyone.”

“God is infinite,” Risher said. “And I refuse to believe that there is only one door to reach Him. God reaches so many people in so many ways.”

He added, “Everybody doesn’t get saved at the altar, or even at church. God is so available to you. God might even reach you through a podcast. You just never know.”