from the PASTOR
from the PASTOR
If you came here looking for church-as-usual, I’ll be honest—
you might be in the wrong place.
But if you’ve been searching for something deeper—
something truer—
you just might be home.
My name is Damon Blakeley. I’m a pastor, a builder, a believer in second chances and sacred disruption. I’ve lived long enough to be wounded by the very institutions I love. And I’ve led long enough to know that people are not transformed by performances—they’re transformed by presence.
At Joshua Chapel, we are not curating a Sunday morning experience. We are cultivating a soul movement.
A place where the weary can breathe.
Where the gifted can grow.
Where faith is not reduced to spectacle, but restored to substance.
I know what it feels like to walk into a room and feel invisible.
To carry questions that don’t fit in a bulletin.
To long for community but wonder if there’s a place for you.
That’s why I preach what I preach.
That’s why I lead how I lead.
That’s why this church will go the extra mile to make sure you don’t just attend—you belong.
We are unapologetically rooted in the historic richness of the AME Church. But we are also relentlessly committed to reimagining what faith can look like right now—in a world fractured by disconnection, distrust, and fatigue.
This isn’t about religion.
This is about resurrection.
This is about discovering the God who still meets us in the middle of our mess—who still calls us forward, not in shame but in love.
So wherever you are in your journey—deconstructing, rebuilding, wrestling, reaching—there’s room here for you.
We call it My Joshua.
Because here, faith becomes yours again.
And so does purpose.
And so does joy.
I invite you to step in. To bring your full self. To expect more.
Let’s create something sacred together.
Pastor Blakeley
meet pastor BLAKELEY
Rev. Blakeley
Pastor
Rev. Damon L. Blakeley is a visionary leader, sacred storyteller, and transformational pastor with a gift for blending biblical truth, theological depth, and emotional honesty. A theologian by training and a creative by nature, Pastor Blakeley draws from a rich tapestry of pastoral leadership, human development, and spiritual formation to help others discover meaning, identity, and purpose.
Before accepting the call to lead Joshua Chapel, he served more than two decades in ministry and brings with him a heart for reviving the relevance of the church, not by repeating tradition, but by reimagining transformation. His voice is prophetic, his preaching cinematic, and his leadership grounded in authenticity, empathy, and a deep belief that God still changes lives.
Pastor Blakeley is known for building bridges—between faith and real life, between old truths and new expressions, between where people are and where God is calling them next. He leads with both fire and tenderness, calling the church to embody radical love, spiritual resilience, and extreme hospitality.
When he’s not preaching or pastoring, you’ll find him mentoring leaders, writing, or building new models of ministry that speak to the heart of this generation’s deepest questions.
“To know him is to know that transformation is not just what he preaches—it’s how he lives.”