LovePastors kicks off SEASON TWO of our podcast conversations checking in with Don Lichi, a life-long counselor, speaker, author, and encourager to ministry leaders around the world. Dr. Lichi has served as a professional Christian counselor, therapist, professor, and community leader for decades at EMERGE Counseling Ministries, located in Akron, Ohio and serving followers of Jesus around the world. Whether it's an "in person breakfast" or a conference speaking engagement in front of thousands of pastors, Don brings heart, humility, and wisdom to Christian leaders who crave and need support.

Our LovePastors founder and host, Gary Underwood, has spent considerable time learning and supporting pastors alongside Dr. Lichi and is thrilled to connect Don's experience, heart, and advice for pastors with us in this episode.

LOVEPASTORS is a relatively new ministry to GIVE LIFE TO THE LIFE-GIVERS! We create life-giving experiences and friendships for Pastors and their families. Today's podcast will be one of those, and we hope you'll share it with your pastor friends! Please follow/like LOVEPASTORS on Instagram, Facebook, and of course LovePastors.com! https://lovepastors.com/

Christmas 2025 is here! Today’s episode welcomes a check-in with Pastor Knute Larson as he’s recovering from the flu and reflecting on pastoring at Christmas. Our host Gary Underwood opens up about losing his family’s dog the week before Christmas and being in need of Jesus and the Good News Christmas brings.

Knute talks about keeping Christ and His Mission at the center of a church Christmas and how Jesus’ nearness, understanding, love, and hope is what we need most in life. These pastors also reflect on Christmas church services and some takes on making those meaningful to people.

We want to thank all of you pastors and your families for helping people see Jesus and celebrate Christ’s birth and salvation this time of year!

Check out LovePastors.com to learn about our mission and ministry to pastors and their families! Let’s give life to the life-givers!

In this insightful and grounded conversation, our podcast host, Gary Underwood, sits down with Pastor Ross Miller from Evermore Church in Hartville, Ohio—a steady, thoughtful shepherd with a deep heart for spiritual formation and community. Together they unpack what ministry looks like in a rapidly changing world, the emotional and spiritual weight pastors carry, and the importance of leading with authenticity rather than performance.

Ross shares stories from his journey at Evermore, what it means to slow down and pay attention to God’s work in ordinary places, and why rootedness in community matters more than ever. Gary and Ross also dive into the realities of pastoral life: the grind, the joys, the hidden pressures, and the moments God uses to remind us that we’re not alone in the work.

The conversation is warm, honest, and encouraging—two friends talking ministry in the heart of Northeast Ohio, shining a light on God’s faithfulness in the everyday.

• Leading with presence, not pressure

• The beauty of slow, faithful ministry

• Life and leadership in Hartville

• How community shapes a pastor’s soul

• Staying rooted when the world is unstable

• Encouragement for pastors who feel tired, hidden, or stretched

• “Sometimes the holiest thing we can do as leaders is slow down enough to notice the people God put right in front of us.”

• “Hartville might be a small town, but God does big things in small places.”

• “Pastoring isn’t about producing; it’s about shepherding.”

In this heartfelt episode, Gary sits down with longtime friend and ministry partner Dave Pacheco to talk about their shared years of pastoring together, the highs and heartbreaks of church leadership, and how God’s call often shifts in unexpected ways.

Dave opens up about his journey from youth and associate pastor to lead pastor at Delaware Grace, and how learning to step away didn’t mean stepping out of ministry. Together, Gary and Dave reflect on El Salvador trips with Compassion International, the power of friendship through hard seasons, and what it really means to love pastors well.

Now serving with Encompass World Partners, Dave shares how his heart for people and the gospel has only grown—moving from one local church to a global mission. Whether you’re a pastor, church leader, or someone who loves your local shepherds, this conversation is a deep breath of encouragement and perspective.

In this episode, Gary from LovePastors sits down over lunch at Gervasi Vineyard with Brandon Marshall, Lead Pastor of The Chapel in North Canton, Ohio. Brandon shares what it was like stepping into leadership right before COVID, navigating fifteen wild months of uncertainty, and how his church loved him well through it all.

They talk about the gift of a pastoral sabbatical, rebuilding life rhythms, and what it means to be a shepherd, not just a ministry machine. You’ll hear honest reflection, laughter, and even a quick cameo from their server, Evan, who kept the conversation fueled with good food and better timing.

Whether you’re a pastor catching your breath, a church leader learning how to care for your team, or someone who loves encouraging the encouragers, this one will hit home.

Learn more about our movement to give life to the life-givers at LovePastors.com right now!

pastor encouragement, pastoral sabbatical, church leadership, ministry burnout, soul care, LovePastors podcast, Brandon Marshall, North Canton Chapel, Gervasi Vineyard, pastor health, spiritual rhythms, shepherding, caring for pastors, pastoral ministry, church growth, ministry leadership, Ohio pastors, faith and rest, Gary Underwood

In this heartfelt and often hilarious episode, Tom Burns turns the mic around to interview his longtime friend — and our usual host — Gary Underwood. What unfolds is a candid journey through Gary’s story: growing up in Akron, finding faith after a heartbreak (and a broken kneecap), learning ministry from mentors like Tom Bernardo and Newt Larson, and discovering that friendship and authenticity can change everything.

Gary opens up about the highs and lows of pastoral life — from leading a growing church in Delaware, Ohio, to walking through lawsuits, depression, and the redefining of “success.” Along the way, he shares how mentors, good friends, and even Taco Bell lunches shaped his understanding of what it really means to love pastors and their families.

The episode builds toward the birth of LovePastors — Gary’s nonprofit focused on giving life to the life-givers. He and Tom talk about why so many pastors struggle with loneliness, why friendship is ministry, and how LovePastors exists to pursue pastors simply to encourage them, no strings attached.

Key Moments:

• Gary’s early influences: Jack and Rita Underwood, Tom Bernardo, and a lot of 80s music.

• The moment basketball, girls, and rap music all got taken away — and God broke through.

• From seminary burritos to meeting Jennie.

• The emotional toll and transformation of 11 years as a lead pastor.

• What LovePastors is really about — friendship over formulas, presence over performance.

Listen If You:

• Are a pastor or church leader who feels unseen.

• Want to know what drives the LovePastors mission.

• Enjoy real, laughter-filled stories about faith, calling, and redemption.

Quote:

“Pastors don’t need another report or retreat. They need a friend who shows up, listens, and reminds them they’re loved — no strings attached.” — Gary Underwood

Pastor Appreciation Month felt like the perfect time to sit down with one of our founder's closest friends, Tom Burns—a lifelong learner, former Bible teacher of 25 years, and now full-time teaching pastor. Tom traces his winding path back into local church ministry, the hard lessons from early wounds, and why authentic community (the real, sometimes messy kind) is essential for pastoral health. We talk distributed teaching, resisting the “one voice” model, and Tom’s challenge to leaders and congregations alike: stop doing the relational math and tell the truth to one another. If you’ve ever wondered how to stay in the game when ministry feels like agony and ecstasy in the same week, this one’s for you.

You’ll hear about:

• Leaving comfort for calling—and finding a church that fits over decades, not days

• Why multiple voices from the pulpit can grow a healthier body

• Stop doing “Relational math,” authenticity, and building safe spaces for pastors

• Friendship, accountability, and belonging outside of performance

• Seeing today’s headlines as “light and momentary” compared to future glory

Memorable line: “Pastors need a place where their hearts are naked—and they still belong.”

Keywords: pastor appreciation, authenticity, pastoral health, friendship, distributed leadership, vulnerability, koinonia, Ohio, Life Community Church

Happy Pastor Appreciation Month! Today, we get to hear the faith story and friendship of a leader who loves his pastor - er, friend - and has been a brother in Christ for more than twenty years.

In this episode of the LovePastors Podcast, Gary sits down with longtime Grace Church member, entrepreneur, business owner, author and pastor-encourager Vinnie Fisher. Vinnie shares his powerful testimony of coming to Christ in his late twenties, his journey into spiritual community, and how friendships with pastors like Jeff Bogue have shaped his life.

Together, Gary and Vinnie talk honestly about what it looks like to be a true friend to your pastor—not with hidden agendas or transactional expectations, but with endurance, loyalty, and mutual encouragement. Vinnie shares stories of leading life groups, walking through challenges alongside church leaders, and discovering that the best way to love your pastor is by deepening your own walk with Christ.

This conversation is full of wisdom for anyone who wants to encourage their pastors, invest in the local church, and build friendships that last.

👉 Tune in to hear how to give life back to the life-givers—and why pastors need friends, not fans.

🎙️ Gary sits down with Jeff Bogue (Grace Church) to talk about staying in ministry for the long haul. Jeff shares why friendships and mentors matter, how family rhythms protect the soul, the hard realities of pastoral weight, and practical disciplines that keep pastors healthy and in the fight. Honest, encouraging, and full of practical takeaways.

Gary welcomes longtime pastor and friend Jeff Bogue for a candid conversation about pastoral life that’s rooted in service — not fame. Jeff walks listeners through 30+ years of ministry wisdom: the power of mentors, why pastors need trusted friends who “get it,” family rhythms that protect marriage and kids, and how to stay connected to the lost people that keep ministry meaningful.

Conversation highlights

• Jeff’s personal context: 32 years at the same church, recent granddad joy, and a family-centered leadership life.

• The mentor model: how figures like Newt Larson and Bob Combs took calls, sat with Jeff in crisis, and shaped his pastoral DNA.

• Why pastors “get” pastors: ministry’s unique burdens — funerals, fractured friendships, family fallout — require pastoral peers.

• Rhythms that protect: family Fridays, shared creative family moments (hello Bogue Christmas raps), and physical outlets (mowing, landscaping, Kubota tractor zen).

• Building life-giving friendships: making friendships (don’t wait to “find” them), scheduling connection, and the difference between staff relationships and outside friendships.

• Identity & vocation: “It’s not about being a social-media star — it’s about keeping pastors of smaller churches in the fight.”

• Practical advice for younger pastors: trust the Lord, cultivate life-giving relationships, count your joys, and stay close to lost people.

Memorable lines

• “Ministry is a great way to live and a horrible way to make a living.”

• “Friendship is loyalty, not time.”

• “If you lose your contact with lost people, you’ve lost half the joy of ministry.”

Who this episode is for

• Lead pastors, associate pastors, ministry leaders, pastors’ spouses, and anyone who wants a clearer, kinder view of what long-term ministry looks like.

Resources & links

• Learn more about Grace Church / Jeff Bogue

• LovePastors: subscribe / share / leave a review

Gary sits down with longtime friend Mike Arnold (Executive Pastor, Discovery Christian Church, Pittsburgh) to talk about what still gives him life after 30 years, 6 churches, 3 states. From campus-ministry days in Akron to young-adult ministry in Las Vegas and two decades around Pittsburgh, Mike unpacks how pastors can lead themselves well, carry people’s burdens without losing their identity, and leave churches without hurting the Bride.
Along the way: Whiteheart memories, Browns vs. Steelers banter, club-volleyball dad life, and the poem that shaped Mike’s posture—Sam Shoemaker’s “I Stand by the Door.”

Why listen: honest, practical wisdom on longevity, mentorship, self-leadership, and staying tender to the Spirit when ministry stings.

Highlights

• What still gives life: seeing one more person meet Jesus and churches grow more outward-focused.

• Identity check: “Few things can mess with your identity more than being a pastor”—how Mike keeps his self rooted in Christ, not in a role.

• Transitions hurt: why leaving always stings, and how to exit without “trashing the Bride.”

• Mentors & friends: the gift of a Kevin Delaney-type friend across decades; monthly pastor lunches that carry you through hard seasons.

• Lead yourself first: Mike’s simple dashboard (spiritual, physical, growth, family) and the red-yellow-green honesty that keeps him healthy.

• The door posture: living “at the door” with one hand reaching outward (Sam Shoemaker’s poem).

Memorable lines

• “That moment someone meets Jesus? It never gets old.”

• “If you believe people’s flattery, you’re in trouble. Please the Lord, then go home and be Mike.”

  Mentioned

  • Sam Shoemaker, “I Stand by the Door.”

  • Browns/Steelers rivalry (sanctification through suffering 😂).

  • Whiteheart flashbacks (“Bye Bye Babylon!”).

  Episode flow (rough)

  • Origins & friendship (Akron → Vegas → Pittsburgh)

  • What’s life-giving now

  • Friendships, mentors, and carrying others’ burdens

  • Transitions & leaving well

  • Identity in Christ vs. pastor role

  • Self-leadership: the dashboard habits

  Call to action

  • If this encouraged you, share it with a pastor who needs permission to pace themselves.

  • Subscribe to LovePastors and leave a review to help other pastors find life-giving conversations.