Amanda Cheatwood
Sep 1, 2025
How Pastor Colby Shoats found his calling through divine encounters and is now bringing hope to communities worldwide
It started with a text from a friend.
“You’ve got to interview Pastor Colby Shoats,” Catherine Cates told me. “Trust me—you’ll want to hear his testimony.”
That’s all I needed to hear. But I didn’t expect it to be such a vivid picture of what it looks like to live for the Kingdom in the middle of real, everyday life.
Colby pastors Kaleo Columbia in Louisiana with his wife, Taylor. Their church is part of Kaleo International, a global network founded by Josh Muse. But this isn’t just a story about impressive ministry connections or faraway mission trips—it’s about a man who’s learned how to walk in two worlds at the same time, bringing the reality of Heaven into the grit of everyday life.
How God Wove the Pieces Together
The way our conversation came about was a story of divine connections in itself. Years earlier, Taylor had attended a Harvest School with Iris Global, where she met Don and Jackie Ragland of Kaleo Ministries. Don became Colby’s spiritual father, and through his friendship with Dino and Catherine Cates in Tennessee, our paths eventually crossed. I had lived in Tennessee for just over three years, where Don was my veterinarian and Dino and Catherine were not only my realtors but also my life group leaders—friendships I still treasure today.
When I asked Colby about the moment he knew God was calling him into ministry, he smiled. “Well, actually, it’s a really unique story. I had a crazy encounter with Jesus in my second year of college—completely changed my life—and it ended up moving me here to Columbia, Louisiana, where I met my wife.”
From the day I learned who Holy Spirit was, I believe that’s the day I was called into full-time ministry—because every one of us are. You don’t have to be on a church payroll to live it. It’s a lifestyle. It’s your identity.
Today, Colby runs two businesses in Columbia, but he sees no divide between work and ministry. “From the day I learned who Holy Spirit was, I believe that’s the day I was called into full-time ministry—because every one of us are. You don’t have to be on a church payroll to live it. It’s a lifestyle. It’s your identity.”
The word “Kaleo” means “to be sent,” and that’s the foundation for everything Colby does. “We’ve been commissioned by God to be ministers of reconciliation,” he said. “Nothing we do is meant to be contained in a building.”
Living in Two Realms
We talked about the tension of living as a kingdom citizen while still navigating a world that plays by different rules. “We can live in the Babylonian system or we can live in the Kingdom of Heaven,” I said, “and pride will always push us toward the wrong one.”
Colby nodded. When he talks about “seeing the kingdom of God released,” he’s not speaking in abstract terms—it’s about bringing Heaven’s reality into real-world situations. And he’s seen it firsthand, from rural Louisiana to mountaintops in Kenya.
A Night on the Mountain in Kenya
Colby’s second trip to Kenya led to one of the most unforgettable nights of his life.
The plan was to minister in a rural mountain village. The “road” turned out to be a motorcycle trail, and the big Humvee they were in slid along cliff edges so steep you could look out the window and see straight down. “I was just praying in the Spirit as we bumped and slid our way up,” Colby laughed.
They arrived three and a half hours late to find a small tent church still in worship. The only problem—they had 15 minutes before the drive back would be too dangerous in the dark. The team leader looked at him: “We need to preach the gospel, introduce people to the Holy Spirit, and Jesus wants to move in power. And you’ve got 15 minutes.” Colby just said, “Okay, come Holy Spirit.”
We prayed for those receiving salvation, then people started pouring forward for the infilling of the Holy Spirit—people were falling out in the Spirit left and right.
What happened next could have been pulled from the book of Acts. In that short window, 15–20 people gave their hearts to Jesus. “The Holy Spirit’s power just began to fall in this little dirt floor church,” Colby said. “We prayed for those receiving salvation, then people started pouring forward for the infilling of the Holy Spirit—people were falling out in the Spirit left and right.”
In the middle of it, a woman began manifesting demons. They cast them out, and she was immediately filled with the Holy Spirit.
Then came the call for healing. An elderly farmer, hunched over from decades of hoeing, shuffled forward. “His back was frozen at a 90-degree angle—he couldn’t even look up,” Colby said. They laid hands on him, commanded healing in Jesus’ name, and heat flooded his body. He stood straight for the first time in years, tears streaming, then began to dance.
And then—he ran off. “We were all wondering where he went,” Colby said, smiling. A few minutes later, the man came back carrying three live chickens as an offering. Those chickens fed the entire team that night.
“I love watching the authentic response when someone encounters the goodness of God,” Colby said.
Colby has seen God’s healing power in all kinds of settings—including three years in the natural gas industry, where every single outside contractor who received prayer at their plant was healed.
The Mystery of Healing
Colby has seen God’s healing power in all kinds of settings—including three years in the natural gas industry, where every single outside contractor who received prayer at their plant was healed. “That’s just what most people would call a secular job,” he said, “but it’s not when you’re a follower of Jesus.”
He’s quick to add that healing isn’t a formula. “If there was one, it would take us out of relationship. Healing is a mystery, and that’s a good thing.”
Healing isn’t a formula. If there was one, it would take us out of relationship [with Him].
Baptized in Fire
If Kenya was a night of God’s power on display, Mexico was the night God changed Colby from the inside out.
It was day four of a three-week leadership school with Kaleo in Reynosa, Mexico, and Colby was worn out—ready to pack it in and go home. But the next morning during worship, the speaker taught on the baptism of fire. Colby had read about it but never experienced it.
I told the Lord, I have no idea how to receive this. I don’t even know what this means, but I know I have to have it.
When the altar call came, he hit his knees and pressed his face to the floor. “I told the Lord, ‘I have no idea how to receive this. I don’t even know what this means, but I know I have to have it.’”
Don Ragland, his spiritual father, put a hand on his back and whispered something he said came straight from the Lord. Colby obeyed—and instantly felt like gasoline had been poured over him and lit. Heat surged through his body until sweat soaked him. Then came a crushing weight, pressing him to the floor so hard he couldn’t move a finger.
What felt like minutes lasted three and a half hours. When it lifted, he felt as if every muscle had been through a car crash. But inside—everything was new. That night, God woke him at 3:30 a.m., and he prayed in the Spirit as if he’d been doing it all night.
The fire had burned up myself—I had died to myself and become fully alive in the Spirit of the living God.
“For the first time, my mind was completely quiet,” he said. “The fire had burned up myself—I had died to myself and become fully alive in the Spirit of the living God.”
The man who had been ready to quit no longer cared about comfort or convenience. “I knew Jesus could ask anything of me and I’d go for it,” he said.
Colby’s takeaway is simple but sobering: “You can receive the baptism or you can stay hooked to your flesh—but not both. It’s terrifyingly wonderful.”
It’s intimacy with Jesus above everything else,” he said. “I’ve got to have Him, talk to Him, fellowship with Him. He’s my best friend.
Staying Grounded
With so much travel and ministry, I asked how he stays rooted. “It’s intimacy with Jesus above everything else,” he said. “I’ve got to have Him, talk to Him, fellowship with Him. He’s my best friend.”
And then, with a grin: “I like to ride dirt bikes through the woods too. I’m not going to take life so seriously—I’m His kid.”
Dreams, Legacy, and a Challenge
Colby dreams of starting sustainable agriculture projects, building clean water systems, and mentoring young men—not just teaching them trades but showing them what godly manhood looks like. “That impacts their families, their communities, and generations to come,” I said. He nodded.
When I asked what challenge he’d give readers, he didn’t hesitate: “Go after Jesus with everything. Don’t let fear, reputation, or comfort keep you from saying yes to Him. Nothing on this side of eternity is worth holding back.”
And when it’s all said and done? Colby hopes people will say two things about him: “He didn’t care about his own life, and he obeyed at all costs.”
If you want to connect with Colby or learn more about Kaleo Columbia and Love Well Ministries, you can find them on Facebook and Instagram under those names—or simply look up Colby Shoats.
Before we wrapped, he prayed:
“Holy Spirit, I pray that they would feel the longing in their hearts to be consumed with the fire of the living God. And that You would raise up evangelists, revivalists, and hungry souls to see Your kingdom come and Your will be done on earth, just as it is in heaven.”
Amanda Cheatwood is the publisher of Revival Magazine and founder of Revival House Publishing. She also hosts the Revival Talk podcast, where she shares conversations with pastors, missionaries, worship leaders, and everyday believers who are carrying revival into their communities. Through publishing, podcasting, and storytelling, Amanda’s heart is to highlight what God is doing in our day and remind readers and listeners alike that revival isn’t a distant dream—it starts with us. Learn more at RevivalMagazine.global
