The Wilderness Is Not a Detour (featuring Dustin Kleinschmidt)

Most ministry leaders expect relief after stepping away. What they don’t expect is the wilderness to begin after the resignation.

In this honest conversation, Dustin Kleinschmidt shares how years of crisis leadership, misaligned values, and unresolved grief led to burnout, anxiety, and a deep reckoning with faith.

Rather than rushing toward resolution, Dustin invites leaders to reconsider what the wilderness is actually for.

This episode reframes suffering, challenges Christian shortcuts around pain, and offers language for leaders who feel stuck between obedience and disappointment.

If you’ve ever wondered whether you missed God or why healing is taking so long, this conversation meets you right where you are.

Key Takeaways

• Burnout is often the result of long-term erosion, not one failure
• Healthy systems can’t sustain you in an unhealthy environment
• The wilderness often begins after the role ends
• Spiritual bypassing keeps leaders disconnected from their real pain
• Value misalignment creates invisible but constant friction
• Healing doesn’t mean closure or clarity
• God’s presence in the wilderness matters more than getting out of it

Chapter Markers

• 00:00 – Dustin’s ministry journey and early formation
• 03:30 – Crisis leadership and long-term erosion
• 06:20 – When sustainability quietly disappears
• 09:30 – Why good systems still fail in toxic environments
• 11:20 – Entering the wilderness after resignation
• 15:20 – Spiritual bypassing and emotional honesty
• 18:30 – The Exodus, expectations, and disappointment with God
• 24:00 – Living faithfully without resolution
• 28:15 – The Wilderness Way: book, workbook, and music

If you’re in the wilderness and looking for faithful companions along the way, explore The Wilderness Way and Ministry Transitions. Together, they offer resources to help you live honestly with God in hard seasons and engage Scripture with deeper historical and spiritual clarity. Learn more at https://thewildernessway.com and https://thejewishroad.com.