The Pastor in the Middle

Fred and Matt welcome Dr. Brian Carmichael back to the podcast. In this episode, they discuss the use of AI (artificial intelligence) in pastoral ministry.

Fred and Matt interview their friend, David Bledsoe, on how the local church can better serve the cause of fulfilling the Great Commission. David and his wife Laurie are missionaries with the International Mission Board. [We apologize for the audio quality on this episode. We had an issue with our main recording device and had to rely on the audio from our video recording.]

Fred and Matt discuss the process of hiring church staff - especially associate ministerial staff.

We are BACK! After a summer hiatus, Fred and Matt are recording new episodes again. In this episode, they interview their friend Lee Smith, founding and lead pastor of Greater Experience Community Church in Southaven, Mississippi. Their main focus was bi-vocational (or co-vocational) ministry.

[Repost due to summer schedules. One update: Reginald Taylor is now DOCTOR Taylor, having completed the PhD work we discussed in this episode.] PART TWO: Fred and Matt interview Pastor Reginald Taylor of The Rock Church in Memphis. Reginald is writing a PhD dissertation at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary on the doctrinal preaching of Adrian Rogers. In this second of a two-part series, Regi...

On this episode, Fred and Matt discuss the church merger that Fred led in 2021, with Ellendale Baptist Church and Agape Church coming together as one.

Fred and Matt interview Dr. Danny Sinquefield on the value and blessing of churches partnering together. Danny is the pastor emeritus of Faith Baptist Church in Bartlett, TN, after having pastored there for over 27 years. He now serves as the Harvest Field Team Leader for Region 1 of the Tennessee Baptist Convention, helping to encourage pastors and coordinate cooperative ministry all over West Te...

Fred and Matt work through the use of humor in preaching - its benefits and potential pitfalls.

Fred and Matt discuss the importance of humility in the life and heart of the pastor. They work through some of the root causes of the problem, a biblical perspective on it, and some practical help for defeating this insidious temptation.

For their December 2024 episode, Fred and Matt talk through 10 habits for pastors to incorporate into their ministries in 2025. Merry Christmas!

Fred and Matt interview Dr. Jon Akin, Vice President for Church Relations & Campus Ministries at Carson-Newman University in Jefferson City, Tennessee. Jon has a PhD in Old Testament and has written several books on preaching in a Christ-centered way. Links to his books (some discussed in the episode) are below: 1. "Preaching Christ from Proverbs": https://www.amazon.com/Preaching-Christ-Proverbs-...

At a Mid-South Baptist Association pastors meeting in Memphis, Fred and Matt recently had the opportunity to interview Raleigh Sadler, founder and director of Let My People Go ( lmpg.org ). LMPG helps churches engage in the fight against human trafficking. Please check out their website! The free e-book that Raleigh references during the episode can be found here: https://www.lmpg.org/handbook Her...

Fred and Matt return from their podcast hiatus to (fittingly!) talk about - sabbaticals! Fred just took a sabbatical after 10 years of serving at Ellendale Baptist Church. Podcast episodes will now come on a monthly basis, but each individual episode should be longer. Thanks for listening!

[REPOST FROM EPISODE 34.] Fred and Matt interview Pastor Reginald Taylor of The Rock Church in Memphis. Reginald is writing a PhD dissertation at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary on the doctrinal preaching of Adrian Rogers. In this first of a two-part series, Reginald discusses hermeneutical method. Here is the link for Dr. Tom Schreiner's book mentioned in this episode: https://www.amazon....

Fred and Matt COMPLETE their PITM series on preaching through different genres of Scripture. In this final episode in the series, they dive into New Testament Prophecy - the book of Revelation. Please listen and share!

[REPOST FROM EPISODE 32 DUE TO SUMMER SCHEDULES.] Fred and Matt invite Dr. Gerson Garros, Associate Pastor at Trinity Baptist Church in Cordova, Tennessee, onto the podcast to discuss his vision and experience leading international ministries in the city of Memphis.

Fred and Matt discuss short-term mission trips, which have been important and influential in their spiritual growth and their ministries. They talk through blessings, goals, and pitfalls to avoid in these types of mission endeavors.

[REPOST FROM EPISODE 27 due to summer traveling.] Fred and Matt discuss the importance of effective sermon illustrations, as well as methods for collecting, tagging, and utilizing them.

Fred and Matt have one more discussion with Steve Reynolds, President Emeritus of Baptist Memorial Healthcare in the Mid-South. Baptist Healthcare is an explicitly Christian organization with many non-Christian employees, customers, and organizational partners. On this episode, Steve shares wisdom from his experience of living out his faith in this environment.

Fred and Matt continue their discussion with Steve Reynolds, President Emeritus and Senior Consultant for Baptist Memorial Healthcare in the Mid-South (23 hospitals in Tennessee, Arkansas, and Mississippi). Steve was President and CEO of Baptist Memorial Healthcare for 20 years. This is Part 2 of a two-part discussion on Christian leadership. Thanks for listening!

Fred and Matt sit down with Steve Reynolds, President Emeritus and Senior Consultant for Baptist Memorial Healthcare in the Mid-South (23 hospitals in Tennessee, Arkansas, and Mississippi). Steve was President and CEO of Baptist Memorial Healthcare for 20 years. This is Part 1 of a two-part discussion on Christian leadership. Thanks for listening!

Fred and Matt continue their series on preaching through different biblical genres. This week they discuss preaching through the Epistles of the New Testament.

Fred and Matt discuss creative preaching with Dr. Brian Carmichael, pastor of Holy Temple Missionary Baptist Church in Memphis. Dr. Carmichael also serves as the Black Church Specialist for the Tennessee Baptist Convention and as a Dean at Union University's MCUTS campus in Memphis. Dr. Carmichael wrote a PhD dissertation on creative preaching, and he shares his insights in this episode. Thanks fo...

For a second episode, Fred and Matt are joined by their friend, Dr. Brian Carmichael, pastor of Holy Temple Missionary Baptist Church in Memphis. Dr. Carmichael also serves as the Black Church Specialist for the Tennessee Baptist Convention and as a Dean at Union University's MCUTS campus in Memphis. At Holy Temple, Dr. Carmichael followed his own father, who had been the founding pastor. This is...

Fred and Matt are joined by their friend, Dr. Brian Carmichael, pastor of Holy Temple Missionary Baptist Church in Memphis. Dr. Carmichael also serves as the Black Church Specialist for the Tennessee Baptist Convention and as a Dean at Union University's MCUTS campus in Memphis. At Holy Temple, Dr. Carmichael followed his own father, who had been the founding pastor. He tells his story over this a...