November 1, 2026
PABLO, Mont. — Animosity smolders in 1855 when three Native American tribes are herded onto one newly created Indian reservation. The tension increases when in 1904, non-Natives are given part of that Native land by government decree.
Add Native boarding school abuses that stretched across North America from the late 1800s to the 1970s, and what you have are some pretty huge cross-cultural challenges and barriers to the gospel, says self-funded North American Mission Board evangelism catalyst Kelly Mitchell.
“We have soberly come to the conclusion that there are no answers to the problems we face here, other than Jesus,” said Mitchell, now in his 15th year of ministry at Pablo Baptist Church on the Flathead Indian Reservation, speaking of the prevalence of trauma, abuse, grinding poverty, addiction, crime, and more.
“Seeing that brokenness all around us at such high levels has really helped us to have an increased burden and compassion for our neighbors,” Mitchell continued. “We have to find ways to share the gospel with our people groups who are resistant to receive it, because Jesus really is their only hope.”
What Native Americans dealt with on Montana’s Flathead Indian Reservation is similar to the experiences of every other Native American tribe across the United States, starting with the first reservation – New Jersey, 1758 – and continuing until the most recent full federal recognition was granted in 2025 after a century of legal stumbling blocks for Natives connected with the Lumbee tribe in North Carolina.
Native Americans often have responded by bolstering their culture rather than accepting the “white man’s” lifestyle (and in most cases, his religion).
Among typical Native American worldview perspectives: The interconnectedness and interdependence of all living beings, spirituality embedded in all elements of life, and maintaining harmony with the natural world.
Mitchell and his wife Erika in what was his first pastorate quickly learned compassion wasn’t enough when ministering within a Native American community. Mitchell researched Native peoples, asked questions of other Native ministry leaders and sought the advice of state convention staff members and missionaries attending state convention annual meetings.
Mitchell was searching for help when, “out of the blue,” he said, he received an invitation to the IMB’s Missions College in January 2023. It was an event designed to familiarize church leaders with ways of connecting cross-culturally during international mission trips.
“As soon as we get there, immediately it felt like I was at home, even though we were not fitting that same mold [of missions pastors looking outside the U.S.],” Mitchell said. “You go from these big meetings where it seems like nobody gets it, to being surrounded by people who completely understand everything you’re talking about.
“It was as though the Lord was giving me a big fat hug too,” Mitchell added, his voice breaking.
Gateway Seminary later in 2023 hosted a Missions College on its Ontario, Calif., campus. Michell and his wife Erika went to that one.
“We get home, and we’re pumped,” Mitchell said. “We adjust how we’re doing things. That’s when we began to rely heavily on storying and began to adapt everything we do to match more of an international missions model, to implement the resources we brought home. We’re learning, and we’re excited at this possibility to not just use this [information] for ourselves but all across the state.”
Barrett Duke, then the state convention’s executive director, informally tasked Steve Fowler, a Montana church planting specialist, as liaison with Native ministry leaders.
“It just kind of developed,” Fowler said. “Barrett had a concern and heart for Native American work, and my heart was, ‘we’ve got to raise up indigenous leaders.’
Cross-cultural training became key. Training sessions across the state were led by Southern Baptist missionaries with experience in similar ministries. “Think like a missionary” was one of the first lessons.
Another session was on developing a strategy for reaching the people living on a reservation or even in an urban setting who maintain their worldview and cultural consciousness.
Bruce Plummer, who, with the help of out-of-state mission teams for years, has led multiple sports camps and vacation Bible schools each summer as well as pow wow ministry in villages on several Montana reservations, said he has attended each of the state’s six (so far) training sessions for Native ministry leaders.
It’s important to understand Native Americans are still a tribal people, Plummer said, “who could be reached with the gospel of God if it’s presented in a cultural and contextual manner, which would enable my people to be saved by the grace of God.”
Fowler said he believes the training is helping.
“There’s a good fellowship being restored and moving forward,” he said. “The training – how to reach and raise up leaders in Native American communities – is moving forward in a positive way.”
This style of cross-cultural impact appears to be spreading.
“I know there’s a need in more than just Montana,” Mitchell said. “My heart is that what we’re doing will benefit all of us in Native ministry. … We’re connecting the dots to meet the need, and God’s in it.”
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This article appeared in Baptist Press.
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