Your Lowest Season Could Be Your Greatest Breakthrough
Dylan Pahman
Position: President and founder of the St. Nicholas Cabasilas Institute for Orthodoxy & Liberty
Meet Our Guest
Dylan Pahman, PhD is president and founder of the St. Nicholas Cabasilas Institute for Orthodoxy & Liberty and a research fellow at the Acton Institute. He is the author of The Kingdom of God and the Common Good and Foundations of a Free & Virtuous Society. With John C. Pinheiro, he is also the co-editor of The Christian Roots of American Liberty.
From the Factory Floor to the Altar of Grace
Have you ever felt completely lost? Like you are driving down a dark, unfamiliar road, your gas light is blinking, and you have absolutely no clue where you are heading? That is exactly where Dylan Pahman found himself when he was 18 years old. He was stuck working a grueling third-shift factory job. His mind was totally exhausted, his heart felt empty, and his life felt completely aimless and groundless. He had stopped going to church, drifted away from his childhood faith, and felt caught in a deep rut.
But Jesus is the absolute master of the rescue mission. Right there in the middle of the heavy factory machines and mental exhaustion, God knocked on Dylan’s heart. He realized he needed a total life cleanup. He quit that job, stepped back into church, and through the guidance of godly mentors, made the bold decision to enroll in Bible college. It wasn’t an easy transition, but when you surrender your broken pieces to Christ, He begins to build a masterpiece. Dylan went from being an unfocused teenager to an incredibly motivated student. He discovered that when Jesus becomes your anchor, your empty wandering turns into a clear, divine mission.
Leading Like Jesus in a Broken World
When we look at leadership in the world today, we often think of powerful bosses, loud voices, and strict rulebooks. But Dylan’s definition of leadership was completely transformed when he stepped inside an Orthodox Christian service and witnessed something beautiful. Right in the middle of a formal, solemn service, the head chanter completely lost his place. He actually had to stop the entire liturgy to look at the priest and ask for help. Instead of getting angry, embarrassed, or scolding him for messing up, the priest simply stopped what he was doing, walked over with pure kindness, helped the chanter find his place, and calmly went right back to serving God.
That is Christ-centered leadership in action. It is a leadership that is entirely built on grace, patience, and humility. Dylan brings this exact same spirit into his professional life as a scholar and research fellow. True leadership isn't about proving you are the smartest person in the room or enforcing rigid, unforgiving rules. It is about catching people when they stumble, breaking down complex truths into simple concepts, and building a community where people feel safe to learn, grow, and even fail. It reminds us that if our leadership doesn’t look like the gentle grace of Jesus, we are doing it completely wrong.
Bringing the Holy Spirit into the Marketplace
A lot of people think that faith belongs strictly on Sundays and business belongs strictly on Mondays. They treat them like two completely different worlds that should never touch. But Dylan’s life work—especially through his 15 years at the Acton Institute—is to completely shatter that myth. Business isn't just about making money or climbing the corporate ladder; it is a sacred calling. As the Bible reminds us, earning a living and providing for our families is a deeply spiritual duty.
Dylan’s daily job focuses on the beautiful intersection of faith and economics. He helps business leaders, academics, and pastors understand that if you do not view human beings the way Jesus views them—as precious, valuable creatures made in the image of God—then you will get your business, your policies, and your workplace culture completely wrong. When we invite the anointing of the Holy Spirit into our everyday jobs, our work becomes an act of worship. Your cubicle, your retail store, or your boardroom can become the exact place where the Kingdom of God comes alive.
Building a Business on Ancient Foundations
Dylan is not just a scholar who sits behind a desk reading old books; he is also a kingdom entrepreneur. He recently founded a brand-new nonprofit called the St. Nicholas Cabasilas Institute for Orthodoxy & Liberty. Starting a new venture takes an incredible amount of courage, energy, and risk. However, Dylan’s leadership style is deeply rooted in ancient spiritual habits that keep him perfectly grounded through the stress of building an organization.
Instead of relying on modern business hype or panic, Dylan uses ancient Christian habits like the "Jesus Prayer". He matches his breathing to the words: Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner. He practices fasting, silence, and giving to those in need. These habits aren't just religious chores; they are heavy-duty training for the soul. They teach him to stay completely calm, to control his anxiety, and to ensure his business decisions are led by the Holy Spirit rather than greed. He shows us that the best way to build a successful future is to anchor our business strategies in the timeless, unshakeable peace of Jesus.
Tearing Down Walls and Finding True Unity
If you look across the Christian world today, it is easy to feel heartbroken over how divided we are. We have so many different denominations, arguments, and walls built between us. David and Dylan shared a beautiful, emotional moment reflecting on this exact pain. Dylan grew up Evangelical, spent time in Charismatic environments, and eventually embraced the ancient traditions of the Orthodox Church. Yet, through all of it, his love for Christians of all backgrounds only grew deeper.
Christianity isn't a single, monochromatic color—it is like a beautiful rainbow, full of different expressions, traditions, and worship styles. But the core light that creates the rainbow is always Jesus Christ. If we declare with our mouths that Jesus became human, died on the cross for our sins, and rose again on the third day, we are united by the exact same Holy Spirit. Dylan’s story challenges us to stop focusing on our minor differences and start locking arms to win souls for God. When we stop judging and start loving, we become the one, true, united Church that Jesus prayed we would be.
Author: Jovilyn Abella
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“...if you don’t get who human beings are right, you’re going to get all those other things wrong.”
