Pastor Writer: Conversations on Reading, Writing, and the Christian Life
Episodes
241 episodes
Matt Erickson — The Image of A Pastor
"We are not machines; we are living things. And the church is not a factory; it is a garden."What are the images that shape your ministry? For many leaders, the dominant metaphors are often corporate or industrial—efficiency, scal...
Chase Replgole — My Favorite Books from 2025
Every year at this time, I go back through my Amazon orders, my Audible subscription, and my bookshelf to reflect on everything I’ve read. It is a fantastic exercise to see what has occupied your mind over the past twelve months. Reviewing also...
Doug Basler — Finding Novels for the New Year
Doug Basler is married to his wife, Katie, and is the father of Addie, Jackson, and Isaac. He currently serves as pastor of Union Park Presbyterian Church in Des Moines and First Presbyterian Church of Grimes. His pastoral ministry has also tak...
Tommy Brown — Why the Bible Calls us to a Quiet Life
Author Tommy Brown joins me to talk about his new book, The Speed of Soul: Four Rhythms for a Quiet Life. We explore what it means to love deeply, live quietly, mind our own affairs, and work with our hands. We all feel like the speed of life is ...
Janet Kobobel Grant — Your Book Needs a Better Hook
Janet Kobobel Grant is the President and Founder of Books & Such Literary management. She is also an experienced writer and has experience within top publishing positions.Janet and I have had the privilege of working together on several publishing...
Katherine González — Sailing, Writing &Lessons in Faith
From the Graveyard of the Pacific to the paradise of the Polynesian Islands…This is the true story of a journey with real people, real places, and the adventures that inevitably follow.Katherine and Andrés leave lucrative jobs and a stable life to...
Karen Stiller — Reclaiming a Life of Holiness
These days, brokenness feels more comfortable to discuss than holiness. It’s easier to say that we are messy than holy, that healing is a long way off. To say that we are holy seems like one step away from holier than thou, and no one ever wants t...
Aaron Renn — Christianity and Culture in the Negative World
From Life in the Negative World:Learning how to live in today's new social and cultural environment will require examination, trial and error, and adaptation over time. But there are ways to live with integrity and follow Christ today, even in a n...
My Favorite Books from 2024
As we close out the year and finish our Christmas shopping amidst a flurry of holiday parties, I took a moment to reflect on my reading over the past twelve months. Each year, I enjoy compiling a list of my reads, as it helps me appreciate the wor...
Why Now Might be the Right Time to Try Logos
The Judeo-Christian faith has long been formed by books and reading. From synagogue scrolls to circulating letters, believers have been nurtured, disciplined, and matured through ongoing conversations in the form of written words. We are people of...
Mike & Daniel Blackaby — Communicating the Gospel to a Culture of Emotions
Mike Blackaby is a pastor and church planter in Victoria, BC, Canada. He earned a PhD in worldview and apologetics from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and was formerly a pastor to young adults and current church planter.Daniel Blackaby ...
Justin Gravitt — The Missing Culture of Disciplemaking
Justin Gravitt is a disciple making leader and writer. Justin has served with The Navigators since 2000 and is the founder and executive director of the Dayton Disciple Makers Network, as well as the host of the popular Practitioners’ Podcast. He’...
A Sharp Compassion: Today is the Day!
I'm excited for today to be the official release of A Sharp Compassion. It's now available wherever books are sold. In our episode today, I'm reading from the final pages of the book and suggesting a couple of ways you can help with sharing the bo...
Chapter 3: Insecurity
Over the last few weeks, I've be releasing the first three chapters of A Sharp Compassion in audio form on the podcast. I hope its been a chance for you to learn more about the book and to better understand the significance of offense in the Bible...
Chapter 2: Offense
Over the next few weeks, I'll be releasing the first three chapters of A Sharp Compassion in audio form on the podcast. I hope its a chance for you to learn more about the book and to better understand the significance of offense in the Bible. You...
Chapter 1: Hard Words to Hear
Over the next few weeks, I'll be releasing the first three chapters of A Sharp Compassion in audio form on the podcast. I hope its a chance for you to learn more about the book and to better understand the significance of offense in the Bible. You...
My New Book — Offense, Insecurity, and the Hard Words of Jesus
On September 10th, I’m releasing a new book entitled A Sharp Compassion: 7 Hard Words to Heal Our Insecurities and Free Us from Offense. I think it’s an important conversation for learning to recognize the insecurity within our culture and in our ...
Jerry Jenkins — A Conversation on the Writing Life
Author of more than 200 books with sales of over 70 million copies, including the best-selling Left Behind series, Jerry Jenkins is the former vice president for publishing and former chairman of the board of trustees for the Moody Bible Institute...
Jared Wilson — Christian Writing as Art and Worship
Jared Wilson is an award-winning author of over 20 books and a popular speaker at churches and conferences around the world. A 30-year ministry veteran, he is especially known for his passionate gospel-centered teaching.Jared serve...
Karl Vaters — De-sizing the Church
Karl produces resources for Helping Small Churches Thrive at KarlVaters.com.He's the author of five books on church leadership, including his newest, De-Sizing the Church: How Church Growth Became a Science, Then an Obsession, and Wh...
Patrick Schreiner — What to Make of the Transfiguration
Patrick Schreiner is an associate professor of New Testament and Biblical theology at Midwestern baptist Theological Seminary. He is also an elder at Emmaus Church in Kansas City, Missouri. He is the author numerous books, including Matthew...
Brian Croft & Ronnie Martin — Redefining Productivity for a More Sustainable Ministry
Brian Croft is the former Senior Pastor of Au-burn-dale Baptist Church in Louisville, Kentucky and is the Founder of Practical Shepherding. He is also Senior Fellow for the Mathena Center for Church Revitalization and an Adjunct Professo...
Ryan Rush — Meals, Tables, and the Ministry of Jesus
Ryan Rush, serves as pastor of Kingsland Baptist Church, in Katy, Texas.He has spent more than 20 years working in ministry, and during that time, he has been on a mission to connect church and home life, becoming a national voice for th...
David Kaywood — A Call to Contentment in a Restless World
David Kaywood is a senior pastor at Eastside Community Church in Jacksonville, Florida. He is the author of A Call to Contentment: Pursuing Godly Satisfaction in a Restless World. He is the founder of gospelrelevance.com and a contribu...
Todd Hains & Natasha Kennedy — Catechism and Children’s Literature
I'm joined on today's podcast by Editor Todd Hains and Illustrator Natasha Kennedy. Together, they have been working on Lexham's new series of children's books, known as the FatCat series. We discuss the current state of Christian children's li...