The Pastor in the Middle

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-Jonathan-Akin/dp/0692360158?ref_=ast_author_dp&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.98chky2lBln-P9gZ_r2T25SSu_N7IgFMHLC3H-96GyXHP2IucYcI3sZXSg-v6w5A.XJMPiCUoyb3ifKGHdMbAES7OewcjGHApD6Wpi9cmUE4&dib_tag=AUTHOR

2. "Exalting Jesus in Ecclesiastes": https://www.amazon.com/Exalting-Ecclesiastes-Christ-Centered-Exposition-Commentary-ebook/dp/B077JLW843?ref_=ast_author_dp&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.98chky2lBln-P9gZ_r2T25SSu_N7IgFMHLC3H-96GyXHP2IucYcI3sZXSg-v6w5A.XJMPiCUoyb3ifKGHdMbAES7OewcjGHApD6Wpi9cmUE4&dib_tag=AUTHOR

3. "Exalting Jesus in Proverbs": https://www.amazon.com/Exalting-Proverbs-Christ-Centered-Exposition-Commentary-ebook/dp/B076MLP74M?ref_=ast_author_dp&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.98chky2lBln-P9gZ_r2T25SSu_N7IgFMHLC3H-96GyXHP2IucYcI3sZXSg-v6w5A.XJMPiCUoyb3ifKGHdMbAES7OewcjGHApD6Wpi9cmUE4&dib_tag=AUTHOR

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

Here's the Amazon link to Raleigh's first book, "Vulnerable: Rethinking Human Trafficking": https://www.amazon.com/Vulnerable-Rethinking-Trafficking-Raleigh-Sadler/dp/1535917970/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2NRZIRGN2X2IY&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.dmNVzKSMSvoTfdPN6mEPRQ.3MxEzWP6Rw3-CKHQun9pHVz1dvyt-NrV2IaIUHSMhJs&dib_tag=se&keywords=vulnerable+rethinking+human+trafficking&qid=1729379174&sprefix=vulnerable+re%2Caps%2C139&sr=8-1

Here's the link to Raleigh's podcast, MercyCast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/mercycast/id1669610161

Thank you for listening!

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.com/Interpreting-Pauline-Epistles-Thomas-Schreiner/dp/080103812X/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=interpreting+the+pauline+epistles+by+thomas+r.+schreiner&qid=1686631775&sprefix=interpreting+the+pauline+e%2Caps%2C153&sr=8-1

And here is the link Dr. Schreiner posted online with the relevant chapter from his book:

http://d3pi8hptl0qhh4.cloudfront.net/documents/tschreiner/book_IPE_chapter6.pdf

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.