We increasingly live in an age of skepticism. People do not trust institutions, and often they do not trust the church or pastors. Moral failures and corrupted leaders have violated the trust of many followers. But trust is one of the foundations of a healthy and vibrant community. In this episode, Pastor Jim describes how leaders can build trust, how they can lose trust, and why trust matters for the communities we're a part of. 

Today, we’re talking about boundaries. There can be a lot of expectations in life and ministry. How do you know when to say yes and when to say no? Boundaries are important, but when can they also become boundaries to work God might be calling us to? Pastor Jim explores how we should manage our lives and our commitments as ministers and as Christians. 

For decades, Pastor Jim has led multigenerational churches. Today, serving at Central Assembly, the church is known for its multigenerational approach to ministry and worship. Pastor Jim explores both the challenges and rewards of serving all ages and offers practical advice on how pastors can serve their own multigenerational congregations. 

Forming a friendship can be difficult. Life and ministry can be full of loneliness. In today's conversation, Pastor Jim and I discuss the value of relationships and how we can be more intentional in forming them. Pastor Jim offers advice from his own experiences and helps us think more deeply about our relational needs. 

At the center of the Christian message is the claim that Jesus rose from the dead. But the gospel makes an even bigger claim. Because of Jesus's resurrection, we too will be resurrected. In this week's episode, we discuss why the resurrection matters and how it should change the way we live as followers of Jesus.

Ministry is full of both great joys and often great challenges. Today, we're answering listeners' questions about the most challenging lessons of ministry. We'll look at how challenges often change from the early years of ministry to lessons that tend to emerge later in life. We hope the conversations also prove to be an encouragement for the challenges you may be facing even now. 

It's a common adage that leaders are readers. In this week's episode, Pastor Jim and I discuss some of our favorite books and how we stay disciplined in our reading. We hope our conversation helps you pick up a new book and helps you incorporate reading into your spiritual disciplines. 

Too many people are hurt by the church and pastoral abuses. The consequences are real, but the greatest loss is the loss of faith that often follows hurt. In our conversation today, Pastor Jim and I discussed the need for the church to do better and how Christians can both serve the church and guard their faith against its failures. We also hope the conversation can help church leaders better care for those who have experienced hurt. It's an important topic that's too big for one episode, but we hope our conversation can be both helpful and encouraging to those looking for a way forward. 

In today's episodes, we are answering a listener's questions about studying in the Holy Land. Though it has not previously come up on the podcast, it's a topic both Pastor Jim and Chase are passionate about. We'll discuss how it can impact your study of scripture and answer some common questions and concerns about the trip. 

We never know how long God will keep us in one place. God often calls leaders to new work and new places, but there are both benefits and challenges to staying in one calling for a long time. In this episode, Pastor Jim discusses his own transitions in ministry and why longevity can be both a gift and a benefit to a church.