k college at Minnesota State University in Mankato, Brianna C. Holland married her high school sweetheart, Brett. Upon graduation, the couple returned to their native Hibbing in northeastern Minnesota’s Mesabi Iron Range.

Brianna began working as a surgery nurse and Brett as a high school math teacher. After giving birth to the first of their four children, Brianna put her career on hold to become a stay-at-home mom.

“Being home with the kids gave me the opportunity to spend more time with God,” she says. “I really hadn’t dived into God’s Word in that way before. God spoke to my spirit that it was preparation time for what He had in store.”

Holland sensed God was calling her into ministry, but she didn’t know what form it would take. She pursued classes through the Assemblies of God Minnesota District’s school of ministry and became more involved in her AG congregation, Abundant Life Church (ALC) in Hibbing.

Once credentialed, Holland felt led to full-time pastoral ministry. ALC’s pastor at the time, Dave M. Oler, gave her opportunities to preach. Holland also filled in at other AG churches in the area.

Holland considered planting a church in Virginia, Minnesota, a rural community 25 miles northeast of Hibbing. The AG Minnesota District supported the move, but Holland was wavering.

“I struggled a bit with confidence stepping into what God had called me to do,” Holland says. “I had never served on a staff before, and I wondered how a female lead pastor would be received in the Iron Range. God had to work through some insecurities in me.”

Confirmation came when Brianna and Brett attended district family camp. During an altar call, the speaker said God wanted to affirm a woman in attendance who was questioning her calling. The speaker went on to describe the exact doubts Brianna had shared privately with Brett.

In May 2019, Holland attended a Church Multiplication Network (CMN) Launch Training event. ALC in Hibbing served as parent affiliate of the new plant, Legacy Church in Virginia, Minnesota.

Holland started a home Bible study with core leaders. Legacy Church began meeting in a local hockey rink with 86 attendees during January 2020. Ten weeks later, COVID pandemic disruptions began.

The church held together and since 2022 has been meeting at Plaza 53, a highly visible shopping center. Attendance now averages 120 in the 11,000-square-foot space.

Many of Legacy Church’s congregants are, like the Hollands, millennial parents raising children.

Although the region’s iron ore mining industry is not as robust as it once was, miners represent a significant number of churchgoers. When there is a layoff in the mines, economic impacts ripple across the community. The daughter of a mining engineer, Holland is acquainted with the trade.

Virginia, Minnesota, has a population of just under 8,200, down from 14,000 in 1960. Other rural communities in the area have experienced similar declines.

In 2025, the district approached Holland about overseeing a church that had decreased to 10 attendees in Aurora, an Iron Range town of 1,679 located 26 miles east of Virginia. Under campus pastor Chris Mammenga, Legacy Church East Range now has a weekly attendance of 40.

“God spoke to my spirit that it was preparation time for what He had in store.” — Brianna C. Holland

As a church planter, Parent Affiliated Church (PAC) leader, and CMN cohort facilitator, Holland attends various CMN coaching and training events annually.

“It’s important to help church planters step into their calling,” Holland says.

Holland’s circuitous route to ministry has not diminished her effectiveness.

“There is no timeline to God’s call,” says Melissa J. Alfaro, chair of the AG Network of Women Ministers and an executive presbyter. “Brianna is a great team player, willing to invest in new and future church planters.”

Mark W. Dean, superintendent of the AG Minnesota District, calls Holland a vibrant and strong leader. He says the vigor of Legacy Church convinced the district to ask Holland to oversee the Aurora congregation through a PAC arrangement.

“Not only has she planted a healthy church in Virginia that is reaching young families and children, she has a vision to go beyond the community,” says Dean, who has known Holland since her childhood when he served as a youth pastor. “In that season of taking on Aurora, I saw her wise, visionary leadership, standing on what God put in her heart: to multiply.”

Gerad Strong, CMN director of leadership and training, is impressed with the Hollands as a team. Strong says they articulate life stories in a relatable way during CMN panel discussions.

Authentic sharing has enabled the Hollands to build relationships with other CMN church planters and local residents.

“The intentionality of their experiences has helped them integrate well in their community,” Strong says. “Her nursing background gives her a level of care that endears people to her leadership. And you don’t get much more integrated in a community than being a local schoolteacher.”

Strong notes the couple’s commitment to the people God has called them to reach.

“To make an impact in a rural context in two locations takes work and longevity,” Strong says.

While Brett remains a math teacher, he has taken a more active role in ministering to youth at Legacy Church. In August, he officially became the congregation’s youth director.

Holland is careful to maintain a healthy ministry pace. A sabbatical last year helped her reclaim a sense of balance. She reserves most evenings for time with family, including children Liam, 15; Carter, 13; Henry, 12; and Hazael, 9.

Although Holland has encountered little pushback within her congregation for pastoring as a woman, some churches in the area openly reject female leadership.

“She is totally vested in mobilizing women in ministry, especially in church planting,” Alfaro says of Holland. “She is mentoring the next generation of church planters.”

Lately, Holland has been focusing on leadership development at Legacy. She hopes the church can plant two more congregations in small towns to the north, close to the Canadian border.

“I could have had an easier life as a nurse, but God called me to this,” Holland says. “I feel like I’m on assignment to help others take steps of faith.”