Greatheart's Table
Encouragement for Pastors and Those Who Care for Them
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Encouragement for Pastors and Those Who Care for Them
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I’m excited to introduce you to Jen Michel. Jen is the author of five books, with the sixth to be released on September 8. Jen has agreed to talk with me about that book, A Rule for the Rest of Us: An Ancient Practice for Making the Daily Decisions that Shape Faithful Lives. Jen has a deep concern for nurturing and guiding ordinary Christians into the practices that constitute faithful Christian living among a modern Christianity which has lost, as she puts it, an appetite for sainthood. We encourage you to also subscribe to our newsletter where, on third Mondays and at other times there may b
Third Monday / August, ’26 Hello! Third Monday posts are more incidental, personal, and situational updates touching on my life in general and on the possibilities and circumstances of ministry. We encourage you to also subscribe to our newsletter. You can do so here. You can help support this podcast by supporting us on Patreon. You can do so here. EPISODE NOTES Notes and resources relevant to this episode: Jen Pollack Michel, A Rule for the Rest of Us: An Ancient Practice for Making the Daily Decisions that Shape Faithful Lives When you buy a book using a link on this page, Greatheart’s Tabl
Someone somewhere has said that “comparison is the thief of joy.” It is also the seedbed of all kinds of misery and is the source of a toxicity that has been the ruin of many. It’s hard, especially for those laboring in small churches in small places to believe they share the same validity of those with large churches and large platforms. But, thankfully, we do. We encourage you to also subscribe to our newsletter where, on third Mondays and at other times there may be additional content. You can do so here. You can help support this podcast by supporting us on Patreon. You can do so here. EPI
I like to think of myself as very orthodox in my Christian ethics, and admitted coward in the face of real or perceived conflict. So, when I am asked the question whether I would or would not tell a sinner to repent, the latter reality can overwhelm the former. But the answer to that question in some ways is not primarily one about orthodoxy or fear, though it will be shaped by both. It is, rather, primarily about the Christian’s calling in the world. Ant that is worth thinking about. We encourage you to also subscribe to our newsletter where, on third Mondays and at other times there may be a
This is part two of my interview with Wayne Jacobsen and Tobie Van der Westhuizen concerning their book Just Love: How One Mistranslation Distorted the Gospel. In this half of the interview we hear how Wayne and Tobie understand the law of God, particularly as it is written upon the Christian’s heart. More than that, we get to hear something of what is on their hearts. We encourage you to also subscribe to our newsletter where, on third Mondays and at other times there may be additional content. You can do so here. You can help support this podcast by supporting us on Patreon. You can do so he
We are joined by two authors who have written a book called Just Love, Wayne Jacobsen of California and Tobie Vander Westhuizen of South Africa. After we recorded the conversation, Wayne told me, “I love that you can engage in conversation without having to agree on every point.” Which is true. I don’t agree with every point. But it is good to hear the stories of these men, and to appreciate their hearts. Our goals are the same: to love God and others. I found the book to be both a polemic and plea. In speaking with the authors, it became clear that they aren’t concerned that readers accept th
I’m delighted here to introduce you to a friend of mine, Hannah Lane. Hannah is a 2026 Masters of Biblical Studies graduate of Reformed Theological Seminary in Orlando, Florida. She is a gifted writer and a thoughtful Christian who will soon begin work on a PhD at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland. Hannah is a poet whose work can be found at her Substack, Witness and Wonder. The link is in the show notes. Here she turns her formidable talents toward a subject that plagues pastors and others alike: imposter syndrome. We encourage you to also subscribe to our newsletter where, on third Mon
When friends gather around a table, the conversation can be boisterous and full of laughter. Other times may call for quiet as a burden of sadness is shared around that same table. For some of us, this is a time for the latter. But in such times, we need the company of others. Not conversation, not a pocket promise book of Bible passages, but just the companionship of those who love us. We cannot fix what is broken, but we know that what is broken will be healed. We grieve, and must grieve, but we cannot do so as those without hope. And for that I am grateful. This is for Karyn, my cheerleader
I’ve said that what I like to do here is to “think sideways.” That’s a weird idea, but what I mean is that I want to think about issues affecting pastors and others not from an automatic embrace of traditional answers, nor from a knee jerk rejection of those answers. Nor am I looking for a middle ground. I’m trying, if I may steal an old Apple tag line, to “Think different.” Of course, when one does that, he runs the risk of being misunderstood. So, with this one and the next in particular, bear with me! We encourage you to also subscribe to our newsletter where, on third Mondays and at other
Welcome back to this Rainy Day Conversation around Greatheart’s Table with Dr. Elizabeth Pennock, the the Director of the Master of Arts in Clinical Mental Health Counseling Program at Western Theological Seminary in Holland, Michigan. Dr. Pennock specializes in trauma and particularly how churches can care for the victims of trauma. She brings a great deal of compassion and warmth to this difficult subject. If you’ve not listened to the first part of this interview, I encourage you to do so. In the previous installment of this interview with Dr. Pennock, one of her points was that the ability
We are joined in this episode by Dr. Elizabeth Pennock. Dr. Pennock is the Director of the Master of Arts in Clinical Mental Health Counseling Program at Western Theological Seminary in Holland, Michigan. She received her PhD at the University of Central Florida and her dissertation was titled “Trauma-Informed Clergy: An Investigation of Factors Predicting […]
Welcome to Greatheart’s Table, the podcast for pastors and those who care for them. And really, to be frank, this is for anyone who likes to think just a little bit sideways about life and ministry. This episode may seem like it’s not really about anything, but maybe it’s about a great deal – about […]
Welcome to Greatheart’s Table. Pull up a chair as we revisit an episode first aired in early 2022. My concern then as now is that as critical as evangelism and kingdom growth and the Great Commission are, none of that trumps the importance of the Great Commandment. We have, it seems to me, been dancing […]
Today we welcome a guest author to the table. Rob Edenfield has been the pastor of Treasure Coast Presbyterian Church in Stuart, Florida, for nearly a decade. He is astute and cares deeply for his people. And like us all, he very much wants to hear and in fact needs to hear the gospel on […]
There is an image from the now ancient TV show Gomer Pyle of a drill sergeant in the face of his recruit berating him for his stupidity, and Gomer, the recruit, is smiling as if this is the sweetest language he’d ever heard. Without question, pastors are not to be the drill sergeant in this […]
One of the most suggestive songs by the band Over the Rhine is titled “All My Favorite People Are Broken.” In a sense, it expresses the heart behind this podcast, that pastors are not immune from brokenness. But pastors are not supposed to be broken. We think we are supposed to be strong, not weak, […]
This is part two of our conversation with Dr. Hans Madueme regarding mental illness and the church. In this part we turn to how then the church can care for those suffering from a mental disorder. I’m grateful to Dr. Madueme for his time, and for you for joining us. We encourage you to also […]
Welcome to another Rainy Day Conversation around Greatheart’s Table. This time we welcome Dr. Hans Madueme, Professor of Theology and Biblical Studies at Covenant College, in Lookout Mountain, Georgia to help us explore the intersection between mental illness and the church. This is part one of a two part conversation. I hope you are able […]
I’m Randy Greenwald and I’m a pastor. My job is to remind others that there is complete acceptance by the kindness of a merciful God. That those who belong to Christ have received grace, a gift of forgiveness and adoption into the family of God. That this is as real today as it was when […]
This is part two of the conversation we began last time with Dan, Diana, and Adria from Called to Peace Ministries. As some of you know, the namesake for this podcast is one Mr. Greatheart, a character from Part Two of John Bunyan’s allegory Pilgrim’s Progress. Mr. Greatheart is a guide, one charged with the […]
There are women in our congregations who are suffering under the heavy hand of domestic abuse. Oh, they may not have bruises to show for it, not ones that we can see, anyway. But domestic abuse, or as I’m preferring to call it, coercive control, even when not physical, doing grave damage to sheep under […]
Life and pastoring can be exhausting. And that exhaustion grows when we fail to distinguish between ourselves and God. A friend shared with me this week a new song by singer/songwriter Jess Ray called I Am Not God. My screen saver since the beginning of the year is a message: “Relax. You are not the […]
Hello! Welcome to this unusual, audio only, third Monday edition of Greatheart’s Table. This is the third and last of our Rainy Day Conversation with my two friends, Adam and Byron discussing books. And though our initial focus was on pastoral reading habits, all of these conversations apply widely to all Christians. In this episode […]
Welcome to this third Monday edition of a “Rainy Day Conversation around Greatheart’s Table.” This episode is a continuation of a conversation that began previously on the reading life of pastors (and other humans). If you missed that first episode you can go back and listen to it first, or you can dive right in […]
Hi. Welcome to Greatheart’s Table, a podcast for pastors and those who care for them. Actually, I’ve found that many more than pastors have an interest in what we talk about here. So please pass this on to others, whether they are pastors or not. Certainly, the subject of this episode—the intersection of sexual fidelity […]
