Why Shepherding Is Messy

This is a sobering yet hope-filled episode. I sit down with Summer Vinson Berger and Adam Paa to discuss the pain, complexity, and redemptive potential of shepherding care in the local church. From owning massive failures in 2015 to building a robust, gospel-centered care framework at The Village Church, we discuss stories, strategies, and heartfelt convictions about what real, redemptive care looks like when the church chooses humility over image.

Whether you’re walking through trauma, burnout, addiction, or just longing for your church to care better—you’ll find wisdom and honesty here. This episode is a call to take the mess seriously, to listen better, and to believe that Jesus still heals through His body.

In This Episode

• The Weight of Shepherding
• 2015: Owning the Failures of Care
• Introducing Summer Berger and Adam Paa
• Building a Comprehensive Care Ministry
• What Is Redemptive Care?
• Why Recovery Must Stay Messy
• The Three Buckets of Recovery
• Ministry through Recovery: A Front Door to the Church
• Integrating Gospel and Therapy
• Psychology Catching Up to Scripture
• Gratitude, Paul, and Neuroscience
• Common Grace and Counseling
• When Churches Resist Therapeutic Tools
• Why Shepherding Is So Complex
• Trust, Time, and Trauma Recovery
• The Risk of Mislabeling Problems
• The Weight and Cost of Church Hurt
• Training Churches to Respond Better
• A Call to Action for Pastors and the Broken

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This episode of The Overcomers is sponsored by Acts 29, with an invitation to the Acts 29 Conference this coming October in Dallas. To learn more and register, visit acts29.com/conference. Overcomers listeners will receive a special discount of $20 off registration prices using the code OVERCOMERS in all caps anytime before October 1.

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Editing and support by The Good Podcast Co. 

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