Josh Williams is the Associate National Director for Evangelism and Justice. Josh grew up in Iowa, with strong family ties in Indianapolis, IN.

In 2004, he headed to the East Coast to study at Yale University in New Haven, CT where he majored in American Studies and Ethnicity, Race and Migration. During his time in undergrad, he was involved in connecting his faith to justice issues on the campus and in the city. That integration continued as he went to Divinity School and got plugged into Elm City Vineyard (ECV), then an eight-month-old church plant in the heart of the city.

During his time at grad school and in the first years of ECV, Josh started several evangelistic prayer groups on Yale’s campus, established an outdoor church for the housed and unhoused, and launched an incarnational inner-city neighborhood ministry that included a sidewalk Sunday school where many kids (now twenty somethings) made first-time commitments for Jesus. Josh saw the connection between the Vineyard’s emphasis of John 5:19 and L-shaped listening and wanted to apply not only in the sanctuary, but also to the streets of his city. As a result, he saw gang members and university students alike follow Jesus for the first time. Right before he graduated with an M.Div in 2011, Josh was ordained as a pastor in the Vineyard. Weeks later, he happily married his wife, Tina (ECV’s Worship Pastor and a regular presence in Vineyard Worship recording projects), in a very musical service followed by a reception with much dancing. In 2014, Josh became ECV’s first full-time Lead Pastor, and he has enjoyed seeing Jesus grow the church in multi-ethnicity, justice, evangelism, spiritual formation, and Holy Spirit ministry over the last seven years. ECV is a sending church, and it has sent out several missionaries (Taiwan, the Middle East, Uganda, and more), one church plant (Princeton, NJ), and countless leaders over its fourteen years.

In the Vineyard, Josh has served as an Area Leader and an Executive Team member since 2017. He has also been on the Vineyard Ethnic Diversity task force since 2019. One of Josh’s favorite Vineyard memories is helping to lead a Diverse Leaders Gathering in 2019 for leaders of color to connect with one another, be refreshed, and be inspired by God’s Spirit to thrive, not just survive in our movement.

Josh and Tina recently celebrated ten years of marriage and are also parents of two adorable little ones, Zoe and Joy. Their favorite family activities are going to waterfalls and beaches in Connecticut, eating ice cream, and singing loudly together.