He left the Church of Scotland and for a while ministered in John Dunmore Lang's schismatic sect, eventually ending his career at a non-denominational Bethel Union congregation.
He was formally ordained by the United Secession Church in early 1829, and received offers from congregations in Glasgow (Nicholson Street) and Edinburgh (Cowgate).
In March 1833, Reid dramatically resigned his post, reading a brief statement instead of a sermon and then walking out of the church, "to the astonishment and grief of the whole congregation".
[4] After leaving Dalry, Reid moved to Edinburgh and took over the pulpit of an independent congregation, St Mary Magdalene's Chapel, which had been founded by his future brother-in-law Thomas Crybbace.
Shortly after his arrival, the sect voted to rejoin the established Church of Scotland, and the Bathgate congregation followed despite local opposition.
[6] In April 1845, Reid moved to Liverpool, England, to take over the Scots Church on Oldham Street, a "prosperous expatriate congregation with its fair share of ship-owners and merchants".
He ministered on board the ship Martin Luther, and 156 passengers signed a petition thanking him for his chaplaincy.
[7] Reid arrived in Melbourne on 10 March 1852, and on 7 July took over the Second Scots Church, which met in a hall on Queen Street.
He translated to St John's, Essendon, in April 1853,[7] and then to a congregation in North Melbourne in March 1856, where he remained until February 1858.
[9] A few years earlier he had come into contact with the synod's founder, John Dunmore Lang, who told him that he was seeking another Scottish-trained minister.
He filled the positions of "seamen's chaplain" and minister of the nondenominational Mariners' Church in George Street.
[10] He was widely considered to have had a successful tenure, expanding the congregation, establishing a temperance society, and holding lecture series.
He aspired to return to a rural parish, unsuccessfully applying for positions in Shoalhaven and Ipswich, Queensland.