Trench Talk

Contact us . We’d love to serve you Request a stay at a Shepherd’s House Location Give financially to support the work of helping pastors thrive Write a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify Purchase tickets for the Advancing the Church Equip Conference taking place September 10-11, 2026 in New Albany, IN. Find our newest book release, Pastor, what are you wearing? Learning the Unspoken, Powerful Me...

Brian Croft talks with pastor Kyle McClellan about his new book "Pastor, What Are You Wearing?", launching the Thriving Pastors series. They unpack why clergy attire matters, five guiding principles for what pastors wear, historical context, and practical wardrobe guidance.

(02:33) Launching the topic: caring for widows and widowers in the church (03:33) Key biblical texts: Psalm 68:5, James 1:27, 1 Timothy 5, Job (04:30) Acts 6, the poor–orphan–widow triad, and modern neglect of widows (07:17) Why widows seem less vulnerable today (social safety nets, insurance, work) (09:49) First-century context, global poverty, and defining widow/widower (12:51) Physical needs, d...

Contact us. We’d love to serve you Give financially to support the work of helping pastors thrive Write a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify Register for the Advancing the Church Equip Conference! (02:09) Theological framework: plurality of elders and pastors as sheep (04:50) Acts 20:28 – “Pay careful attention to yourselves” and the danger of wolves (07:20) Assumptions about fellow elders and tr...

Contact us. We’d love to serve you Give financially to support the work of helping pastors thrive Write a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify Register for the Advancing the Church Equip Conference! (02:39) Framing the question: Can a pastor stay too long? (02:46) Acts 20 & 2 Timothy 4 – finishing your course in ministry (05:31) 1 Corinthians 16 – “open door” and “many adversaries” as stay/leav...

Contact us. We’d love to serve you Request a stay at a Shepherd’s House Location Give financially to support the work of helping pastors thrive Write a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify (03:30) Hebrews 13:7 and the Call to Remember Our Leaders (06:30) Biography of Pastor Al Martin & His Ministry Path (11:00) How Pastor Martin Shaped Jim’s Life and Theology (16:00) Memorable Preaching Stories...

Contact us . We’d love to serve you Give financially to support the work of helping pastors thrive Write a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify Explore taking a renewal retreat at The Shepherds House (02:00) Sean’s Role at Practical Shepherding & Transition to Oklahoma (04:30) Why Tell This Story: When a Church Doesn’t Revitalize ? (06:30) First Impressions of the Church: Few People, Limited Ru...

Contact us . We’d love to serve you Give financially to support the work of helping pastors thrive Write a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify Explore taking a renewal retreat at The Shepherds House (01:40) Framing the Church Calendar Discussion (02:38) Regulative vs. Normative Principle of Worship (06:08) Cultural Context & Story of July 4th (07:40) Processing the July 4th Conflict (09:56) Se...

Join us September 10-11 for the Advancing the Church Equip Conference! Contact us. We’d love to serve you Give financially to support the work of helping pastors thrive Write a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify (02:30) Setting up the topic and biblical foundation (04:45) Biblical Ideal of Loving Everyone (05:40) Sheep vs. Wolves – Setting Parameters (08:45) Levels of Difficulty – From Mild Criti...

Contact us. We’d love to serve you Request a stay at a Shepherd’s House Location Give financially to support the work of helping pastors thrive Write a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify Find out more about the Advancing the Church Equip Conference taking place September 10-11, 2026 in New Albany, IN. (03:40) Setting up the topic "life-giving activities" for pastors and broaden definition to peop...

Contact us. We’d love to serve you Write a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify Resources Give financially to support the work of helping pastors thrive (02:20) Ronnie’s Transition: leaving his lead-pastor role, and new full-time role with Harbor Network and pastor-in-residence duties. (05:00) Recent Creative Work: Ronnie’s devotional release, music projects (08:00) New Podcast & Harbor Network...

(2:40) Biblical Foundations for Discipleship (5:15) How Discipleship Actually Happens in the Local Church (9:00) “Caught, Not Taught” – Organic, Life-on-Life Discipleship (12:00) The Rise of Small Groups / Community Groups (16:00) Balancing Capacity, Culture, and Methods (20:00) The Case for a Midweek Prayer Meeting (24:55) Comparing Prayer Meetings and Community Groups (29:00) Hospitality as a Di...

Contact us. We’d love to serve you Request a stay at a Shepherd’s House Location Give financially to support the work of helping pastors thrive Write a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify Resources (01:57) Biblical Framework for Handling Differences (03:52) The Tension: Bold Preaching with Great Patience (04:21) Scenario 1 – Entering an Established Church with Different Views (06:45) Text-Driven,...

(02:36) Biblical Framework for Unity and Disagreement (05:00) Different Kinds of Elders & Influence vs. Authority (08:12) Helping Quieter / Younger Elders Speak Up (10:14 Categories of Decisions: Must Agree vs. May Differ (11:39) Decisions that Require Unanimous Agreement (13:38) Membership and Church Documents (14:49) Pulpit Access and Preaching Priority (17:41) When Majority Rule Is Appropri...

Contact us. We’d love to serve you Write a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify Resources Grow in your ministry preparation through the FREE Practically Trained Pastors Cohort. Give financially to support the work of helping pastors thrive (01:59) Big Picture of Titus 2 (05:48) Why Two Men Talking About Women in Titus 2? (06:56) Positive Vision for Women’s Ministry (11:04) Equal Value, Different Ro...

Contact us. We’d love to serve you Give financially to support the work of helping pastors thrive Write a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify Find out more about the Seasoned Pastor Collective (01:33) Biblical Foundation for Older Men Investing in Younger Men (04:54) Larry Riley’s Story and Early Mentoring Burden (06:38) Key Mentors in Larry’s Life (07:41) Jim Savastio’s Conversion and Formative M...

Contact us. We’d love to serve you Request a stay at a Shepherd’s House Location Give financially to support the work of helping pastors thrive Write a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify Resources Find more information about the Practically Trained Pastors Cohort (01:56) Biblical Framework for Caring for Younger Men (04:30) The Crisis of Masculinity and Young Men Today (06:32) Why This Crisis Is...

Contact us. We’d love to serve you Request a stay at a Shepherd’s House Location Give financially to support the work of helping pastors thrive Write a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify Resources 2:14 – Setting the topic: How should pastors care for older men? Reference to Titus 2 and issues of generational/masculinity crisis 4:21 – Examining Titus 2: Practical framework for church life and lead...

Contact us. We’d love to serve you Request a stay at a Shepherd’s House Location Give financially to support the work of helping pastors thrive Write a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify Resources (00:43) Introducing the Topic: Christian friendship, especially among pastors (2:00) Biblical foundations: Proverbs 17:17, Ecclesiastes 4, Jonathan & David (04:54) Challenges for men in forming clos...

(01:16) The challenge of mending broken relationships within church communities. (02:47) Scriptural and theological foundation for unity, drawing from both Old and New Testaments. (06:38) Real-life examples and historical anecdotes on church conflicts. (10:00) Causes of relational breakdown: disappointment, neglect, unresolved conflict, political/personal differences. (15:00) Practical ways pastor...

(01:00) Pressures Pastors Face in January: Discussion on new year challenges, unique pressures, and planning. (02:12) Biblical Foundations: Proverbs 16 and James 4 applied to planning and reliance on God's guidance. (05:00) Melancholy and Societal Pressure: Addressing the emotional and practical challenges pastors face at the year's start. (10:00) Preaching Pressure: Balancing expectations, routin...

Contact us. We’d love to serve you Write a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify Resources Grow in your ministry preparation through the FREE Practically Trained Pastors Cohort. Give financially to support the work of helping pastors thrive (02:25) Personal Experiences — Both hosts share stories about being young pastors among older leaders and the unique challenges faced. (03:00) Framing the Issue...

Contact us. We’d love to serve you Give financially to support the work of helping pastors thrive Write a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify Resources Grow in your ministry preparation through the FREE Practically Trained Pastors Cohort. (02:00) Pastoral Failings & Faithfulness – Discussion on the burden of pastors’ moral failings and burnout. (03:20) Biblical Foundations – Exploring Proverbs...

Contact us. We’d love to serve you Give financially to support the work of helping pastors thrive Write a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify Resources (02:42) Scriptural perspectives on caring about opinions (05:29) Tensions in pastoral reputation—Paul’s examples (06:30) Brian and Jim reflect from personal experience of caring too much and not enough (13:03) Signs of caring too much (19:13) Signs...

Contact us. We’d love to serve you Give financially to support the work of helping pastors thrive Write a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify Resources (00:50) Setting up the topic: Cultivating joy in church communities (02:30) Biblical texts on joy: 2 Corinthians 1, Philippians 1, First Peter (05:15) The relational and gospel roots of joy (08:30) Joy as motivation for perseverance and healthy chu...