Pastor Writer: Conversations on Reading, Writing, and the Christian Life

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 can learn more about the book at asharpcompassion.com.It would mean a lot to me if you would pick up a copy of the book. Buy a copy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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 own lives. It would mean a lot to me if you would consider buying a copy and recommending it to friends. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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 of Chicago.Jerry's writing has appeared in Time, Reader's Digest, Parade, Guideposts, and dozens of Christian periodicals. Twenty-one of his books have reached The New York Times best-seller list (seven debuting number one).Jerry owns the Jerry Jenkins Writers Guild, through which he trains writers online at www.JerryJenkins.com.A few years ago, I came across his book Writing for the Soul. It is wise and helpful, full of craft, and particularly for Christian writers. I'm excited to bring you my conversation with Jerry on the life of the writer. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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 serves as Pastor for Preaching and the Director of the Pastoral Training Center at Liberty Baptist Church in Liberty, Missouri and as an Assistant Professor of Pastoral Ministry and Author in Residence at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Kansas City, Missouri.Jared is a great writer, and it's been my honor to have him on the podcast before. Today, he joins me to talk about one of his new releases, The Storied Life: Christian Writing as Art and Worship. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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 What's Next. His other books include The Grasshopper Myth and Small Church Essentials.Karl also hosts a bi-weekly podcast, The Church Lobby: Conversations on Faith & Ministry, featuring in-depth interviews about topics that concern pastors, especially those who minister in a small church context.Karl has served in small-church ministry for over 40 years, so he speaks and writes from decades of hands-on pastoral experience. He and his wife, Shelley have three children and two grandkids. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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, Discipels and Scribe; a commentary on Acts, The Ascension of Christ; and The Kigndom of God and the Glory of the Cross.Patrick joins me on today's episode to discuss his new book, The Transfiguration of Christ: An Exegetical and Theological Reading. We take a closer look at Jesus's transfiguration and why it matters for how we read the gospels and think about Christ. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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 Professor at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.Ronnie Martin is founder and lead pastor of Substance Church (EFCA) in Ashland, Ohio. Before pastoral ministry, Ronnie was an internationally known recording artist, producing and releasing over 15 albums for the Tooth and Nail Records label. In addition to pastoring Substance, Ronnie is also the Director of Leader Renewal for Harbor Network, a church planting collective based out of Louisville, Kentucky. He has authored 6 books, including The God Who Is With Us, and regularly speaks at conferences for pastors and church planters.Brian and Ronnie join me to discuss their new book on the unhurried pastor and how we can redefine productivity for a more sustainable ministry. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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 the “Faith at Home” movement.In over a decade serving as Adjunct Professor at Liberty University, he has taught more than 1,500 students the course he helped to design, “Theology of the Family.” Ryan currently teaches Doctoral students in the Marriage and Family program at Dallas Theological Seminary.Ryan is a graduate of Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary and holds a PhD in Christian leadership with a ministry concentration from the Cook School at Dallas Baptist University.He is the author of several books, Home on Time, Why Everybody’s Stuck, and his latest book, Restore the Table: Discovering the Powerful Connections of Meaningful Mealtimes. In today's conversation, we'll be exploring the place of tables in the ministry of Jesus and how meals are an important part of the Christian calling. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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 contributor to The Gospel Coalition. He lives in Jacksonville Beach, Florida with his wife and two children.In our conversation, we explore the Christian call to contentment in a restless world. How can Christians experience contentment, and how can we, as Christian writers, do our work without the restless anxiety it often causes? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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 literature, Catechism, and Classical Education, and how we can be intentional about teaching our children the language and the theology of our faith.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices