200churches Podcast: Ministry Encouragement for Pastors of Small Churches

Jeff and Jonny talk with David Craig, Jonny's pastor father, about his decades-long silent struggle with Depression. David shares the good, the bad, and the ugly, and offers hope to you if you have also been a silent struggler. It's time for you to get help! (He also tells a good story about when Jonny was a little boy!)

Jonny and Jeff talk with their friend, Erik Anderson - a pastor in St. Paul, MN. Erik talks about getting to the edge of complete burnout, and how he was able to avoid falling off the cliff - and work himself back to good personal health in ministry.

Jeff and Jonny talk with author and professor Christena Cleveland about the message of her book, Disunity In Christ - Uncovering the Hidden Forces That Keep Us Apart. We talked with Christena in person in St. Paul, MN. This is a phenomenal conversation about the wonder of the Body of Christ and why we should actively pursue diversity in churches, in every area, even our own small church!

Can you have a great church, even though it might be a small church? Karl Vaters from NewSmallChurch.com joins Jeff and Jonny, and the three of them insist, YES! Greatness is within your grasp as a small church - a 200church! There are significant leadership and ministry principles shared in this episode - enjoy.

Jeff and Jonny get personal and talk about their vision for the future of 200churches. After more than a year and a half, their passion for small churches could not be stronger! No guests today - just Jeff and Jonny, from the heart.

Nathan Stob joins Jonny and Jeff live in the 200churches Studio for this episode. Nathan is a social worker, community leader, father of triplets, and director of an organization committed to helping people back onto the road of life! Together, these guys reveal the two steps that are absolutely necessary to rid yourself of pornography addiction.

From the start of this episode, Jonny and Jeff are joined by Small Church Pastor Coach Dave Jacobs - where they talk about how to develop a more outward focused church. This just does not happen naturally, unfortunately. Surprisingly, the first person we need to work on is the pastor - ourselves!

Angela, the voice of the 200churches Podcast comes on to talk about what it was like for her and her husband to church shop when they moved to our town, and why they eventually chose our church. Lots of humor and insight for small church pastors!

Jonny and Jeff again team up with Dan "the Enforcer" Reiland! This is a content-rich episode that will leave you thinking, and give you fresh ideas on how to be a great pastor/leader in your 200church! You'll love this episode, we did!

Jonny and Jeff visit their District Superintendent and ask him all the questions you would have asked if you were in the room with them. Doug Grogan was called out of a four-month retirement at 65 to re-engage as a District Superintendent. The man is a sage!

Small Churches dot the globe, taking the Kingdom everywhere. It is God's amazing strategy. We have many problems we must deal with in our 200churches, but being small is not one of them. Karl Vaters talks with Jeff and Jonny about the astonishing power of small churches!

Jeff is sans Jonny on this episode, but he makes it through with the help of his Pastoral Coach, Dave Jacobs! Dave shares in this episode the inside scoop on what he does with small church pastors and their boards every day of the week. Have you ever considered having a pastoral coach? You should!

In his 26th year of pastoral ministry in the same church, Scott "The Leader" Carson shares practical pastoral wisdom that has served him and his church well. He talks with Jonny and Jeff about change, community involvement, raising kids in ministry, the challenge of staying fresh, and more. YOU are about to be encouraged!

What a great and inspiring conversation this is with Dan Reiland, the Pastor's Coach. We had a blast talking with Dan about how to approach problem solving in a small church, in ways that actually solve problems! If you are a small church pastor, this is for you baby! Dan gives such killer leadership advice tailored to the small church pastor - no translation or adaption needed. You'll l...

Jeff and Jonny talk with John Pletcher, another attendee of the Super-Secret Pastor's Retreat Jeff attended. John's book, Henry's Glory: A Story for Discovering Lasting Significance in Your Daily Work, is the topic of their conversation. It's an awesome episode that will motivate you to unleash your people as workplace missionaries!

Karl "the Shark" Vaters talks with Jonny and Jeff yet again about why some churches simply will never break the 200 barrier - and Karl hates that word "barrier". As small church pastors, we can never hear enough how important and vital our churches are to the Kingdom of God! Jeff also talks about their elder's meeting the night before...

Jeff & Jonny share a very fun intro, then Jeff talks with Air Force Lieutenant Colonel Dave Ronan about leadership in a small church. Dave is a former missionary, seminary professor, and current teacher of Air Force foreign military advisors. He has some great lessons for pastors in new ministry positions!

Jonny and Jeff talk with Dave Jacobs, ministry coach to small church pastors, about the struggles pastors face when financial pressures are present in their small church. Don't face your financial burdens alone! Jeff and Jonny challenge you to find an advisor who can walk with you through the struggles.

This episode contains perspectives from two laymen that will challenge and encourage you, as well as give you ideas for your own 200church ministry. A conversation with Pastor Mark Meyers and his guys Steve Etcher, and Tory Vestal from Grace Bible Church in Warrenton, MO.

Jeff recounts his exclusive pastor's retreat experience and Jonny's attempted coup in his absence. Karl Vaters then joins the guys to talk about the one condition for small churches to be healthy and effective! Yes, YOUR church can do awesome Kingdom business right in your community by meeting this one condition...

Jonny and Jeff talk with Dave Jacobs about how in the world to set priorities as a small church pastor - in an encouraging and liberating way! Dave lays out a great plan than any one of us could follow. Encouraging, practical, and helpful!

This episode is applicable to all pastors, but is intentionally directed to the YOUNG PASTORS who listen to the podcast. We talk with Dan Reiland about starting smart as a young leader, and also add a lot of content for young pastors on either end of our conversation with Dan.

Jonny and Jeff talk to Kevin Pringle about his inner city church and how he survived burnout only to equip his church family to do real ministry! This is an encouraging story of how God answered this pastor's cry for help.

Karl "The Shark" Vaters joins us as we discuss megachurches, why we love them, and how we can benefit from them without feeling inferior... or small! Some great ways to think about megachurches!

Jonny and Jeff have a conversation with the author of The Cure, John Lynch. They talk at length about a pastor's struggles, and the secret to breaking the power of sin and temptation.