Samantha Macklin

LOS ANGELES – Across the country, churches are navigating a changing landscape. Many young adults are questioning their faith and sense of community. In that landscape, Ally Voshall, a 28-year-old California native, was recently appointed college ministry co-leader at Vintage Church LA, a non-denominational congregation in Santa Monica. Her work focuses on walking with young people, ages 18 to 25, through small groups, worship nights, and mentorship programs, connecting faith to life in LA.

Voshall didn’t grow up in faith. “My childhood often looked like playing outside. We were your average family,” she said. “I didn’t know of Jesus until I was 18 years old.”

Before discovering her calling, she pictured her future in law. As an environmental science major at UCLA, she planned to become an attorney. Voshall began volunteering with Bridges International Ministry on campus, and her path changed significantly. “I realized I loved being with people,” she said. “I helped with a ministry at UCLA that worked with international students and saw people come to Christ. That nudged me towards ministry.”

That experience led Voshall to Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, where she graduated in June of this year. “I think I realized when I went into seminary, I built my faith on this one specific version of what it means to be a Christian,” she said.

Her studies took her to moments of personal and spiritual challenge. “I worked for a team that had a complementarian view and didn’t believe that women should be pastors,” she says. But continues, “I really did keep feeling these nudges to follow the call of what God has told me to do.”

At Vintage Church LA, Voshall reports to Kristen Maynard, who oversees the College and Young Adult Ministry. “Kristen has been such an answer to prayer, and that I have someone who is ahead of me, that is also a woman.”

Following this very message, Ally reminds herself and others of a deeper truth.

“I think God has reminded me again and again, the gospel is so radical in the sense that people that I really disagree with, I’m flawed, and I’m forgiven, and so are they,” she said. “I need to see them in a light that God does.”

Voshall’s passion for mentoring young women has grown through her role at Vintage. Taking students out to coffee and even hosting discipleship groups.

“Everyone says these are your glory days,” she said. “The world is telling you so many things, it’s just so much pressure.” She paused before adding, “I feel like there is so much relief, specifically for women, in Jesus.”

Voshall oversees over 200 college-aged students from UCLA, USC, and LMU. Alongside young adults in LA, pursuing their dreams. “There are so many different schools, all within reach of Vintage,” Voshall explains. “And beyond that, so many young adults are coming to LA to chase their dreams. That mix makes this city such a unique place for ministry.”

Her team often meets students over coffee or in campus courtyards, alongside their monthly gatherings of worship and teaching. Ally approaches her students in a way that helps them see the bigger picture. “I never want someone to feel like I’m there just to convert them,” she said. “I often say, it totally makes sense that this sounds crazy to you.”

The early experiences Voshall has had shape how she approaches leadership today. She often recalls the story of Mary and Martha in Luke 10. She is reminding herself and others that discipleship looks different for everyone.

Voshall explains: “At the time, Martha was busy serving and fulfilling the expectations of what women were supposed to do. But Mary broke tradition and sat at Jesus’ feet. A place that was reserved for male disciples,” she says. “Martha wasn’t doing anything wrong; she was honoring Jesus the way she was supposed to. But Mary’s choice shows us that proximity to Jesus matters more than perfection.”

Voshall tells herself and the ones she mentors that, “I’m just trying to do what I am supposed to be doing. Jesus is telling us what Mary started: What I really want for you is just you,” she says. “Soak in my presence.”

Voshall believes Gen Z is shaping what faith looks like in today’s church. “This generation is so accepting. They know how to embrace difference,” she said. “And when you pair that with the love of Jesus, it’s so powerful. They’re passionate, and they’re not unafraid to have hard conversations.”

Her leadership is centered on believing not only in Jesus but also empathy, in a flawed society. “True Christian community doesn’t require you to check a box or meet a standard to belong,” she said. “If people are truly loving like Jesus loves, that involves everyone, especially the outcasts. That’s the heart of the gospel.”

Looking ahead, early in her career, Voshall says, “I’m learning so much right now, from my coworkers, mentors, and students I walk with,” she says. “My prayer is that God keep growing me into the leader He’s called me to be.”

Voshall’s vision is to lead others with a genuine intention, rooted in the knowledge that she is just emerging from young adulthood herself. “Leading others who are walking behind me is so fulfilling because I’m just a few steps ahead of them.”