Greatheart's Table

With this episode we begin another two part Rainy Day Conversation. These are quarterly conversations with smart and gracious people whose wisdom is brought to bear upon life and ministry and the church. The focus of this conversation, with Dr. Trey Martin, is how we as Christians and as pastors think about our affections in the wake of the late Dr. Tim Keller's helpful, but potentially confusing, teaching about idolatry. Are we over or under applying this teaching? I'm grateful to Dr. Martin, a man who has thought deeply about this, for joining in this conversation. The question is how the concept of idolatry can be helpful, and at times unhelpful, personally as we live our lives before God and pastorally as we lead our congregations to love and follow Jesus. In some quarters of the church it has become popular to label many things as ‘idols'. But are they? What might be gained, or lost, by seeing them in that way? How ought we to understand our affections? Can we love a thing without it being a god in place of God? In this first half of the conversation, we'll lay the groundwork for the practical application which will come in the second. We encourage you to also subscribe to our newsletter where, on third Mondays and at other times there may be additional content. You can do so here. You can help support this podcast by supporting us on Patreon. You can do so here. EPISODE NOTES Notes and resources relevant to this episode: For an explanation of the name and intention of these occasional interviews, read this, or listen to it here or here. Dr. Trey Martin The article that stimulated this conversation: A COUNTERFEIT IDOL: RESIGNATION AND FAITH IN TIMOTHY KELLER'S COUNTERFEIT GODS, by Dr. Trey Martin. Used by the kind permission from Covenant Theological Seminary. For information about the academic-pastoral journal Presbyterion, go to https://www.covenantseminary.edu/publications. Timothy Keller, The Reason for God Timothy Keller, Counterfeit Gods Søren Kierkegaard, Fear and Trembling C. S. Lewis, The Four Loves Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Life Together Sinclair Ferguson, The Whole Christ When you buy a book using a link on this page, Greatheart's Table receives a commission. Thank you for supporting this work! Podcast music provided by Cool Hand Luke and used with permission.Intro: “Holy Vanguard” / LyricsOutro: “Wonder Tour” / Lyrics / Video To find our more about Greatheart's Table, visit us here.

This last episode of 2025 lands just a few days before Christmas. And while the content may not seem very Christmas-y, it actually is. With the incarnation, God sets the trajectory that leads to the cross. The two are linked, and are both motivated by the same love of God for his people. For you. For me. But how do we understand that love? I sense a great divide however in the church, though we treasure the same doctrine. That divide falls along an understanding of who God is, and who we are before him. Let's explore that a bit. It's good to have you here. Please follow on your streaming platform and let others know that we are here. We encourage you to also subscribe to our newsletter where, on third Mondays and at other times there may be additional content. You can do so here. You can help support this podcast by supporting us on Patreon. You can do so here. EPISODE NOTES Notes and resources relevant to this episode: Are You My Mother? Podcast music provided by Cool Hand Luke and used with permission.Intro: “Holy Vanguard” / LyricsOutro: “Wonder Tour” / Lyrics / Video To find our more about Greatheart's Table, visit us here.

Hey, welcome to another “Rainy Day Conversation around Greatheart's Table.” Unlike the normal short episodes, these are longer conversations in which I invite men and women with insight into issues of concern for pastors and those who care for them to talk about their areas of expertise. I hope you find value here. This is part two of a conversation we began earlier with two experienced pastors, Paul Joiner and Mike Osborne, concerning factors that can help pastors stay pastors. I'd love to hear what your think Please follow, rate, and review this podcast and, most importantly, refer others to it. Become a subscriber to the newsletter at Substack, and, if you are able, support what we do here at Patreon. As always, thanks for joining us around Greatheart's Table. We encourage you to also subscribe to our newsletter where, on third Mondays and at other times there may be additional content. You can do so here. You can help support this podcast by supporting us on Patreon. You can do so here. EPISODE NOTES Notes and resources relevant to this episode: For an explanation of the name and intention of these occasional interviews, read this. The studies mentioned are referenced below: Hartford Institute Study: “I'm Exhausted All the Time” Deshon and Quinn study on competencies Resources available for pastors: Geneva Benefits Standing Stone Leaders Collective The Rest Initiative Bent Tree Books mentioned include Marshall Shelley Ministering to Problem People in Your Church: What to Do with Well-Intentioned Dragons J. I. Packer, Knowing God Richard Lovelace, Dynamics of Spiritual Life: An Evangelical Theology of Renewal When you buy a book using a link on this page, Greatheart's Table receives a commission. Thank you for supporting this work! Podcast music provided by Cool Hand Luke and used with permission.Intro: “Holy Vanguard” / LyricsOutro: “Wonder Tour” / Lyrics / Video To find our more about Greatheart's Table, visit us here.

Hi, and welcome to Greatheart's Table, the podcast for baseball lovers and those who care for them. Wait. That's a bit skewed. But let's run with it. Having grown up with baseball, I often see parallels between the sport and the Christian life. People tend to groan when I do mention baseball, so with this episode I want to work from a place where all can agree: that baseball is boring. So pull up a seat, and let's see where that thought will take us. Greatheart's Table is written and produced by me, Randy Greenwald, but it is marketed by you. As we aim for a new year, please reach out to a couple, or a couple dozen, friends and encourage them to subscribe. Thank you for doing so, and for listening. We encourage you to also subscribe to our newsletter where, on third Mondays and at other times there may be additional content. You can do so here. You can help support this podcast by supporting us on Patreon. You can do so here. EPISODE NOTES Notes and resources relevant to this episode: https://medium.com/joeblogs/baseball-night-in-america-2a3077ff1e05 Podcast music provided by Cool Hand Luke and used with permission.Intro: “Holy Vanguard” / LyricsOutro: “Wonder Tour” / Lyrics / Video To find our more about Greatheart's Table, visit us here.

Hi. Thanks for pulling up a chair around Greatheart's Table, a community of pastors and others considering life in general, and life in the church particularly. This episode, a reset of one first aired four years ago, applies widely to men and women in all stages and walks of life: get out, detach, and let your mind roam freely. It's hard, I know. But fruitful. Greatheart's Table is supported by patrons – those who choose to support what we do here. If you want to join that cadre of sustainers, you can do so at Patreon dot come. But the greatest way you can support this work is to follow us on your streaming platform, and urge others to do the same. We are glad to have you here around Greatheart's Table. We encourage you to also subscribe to our newsletter where, on third Mondays and at other times there may be additional content. You can do so here. You can help support this podcast by supporting us on Patreon. You can do so here. EPISODE NOTES Notes and resources relevant to this episode: Letters of Samuel Rutherford (United States: The Banner of Truth Trust, 1984), p. ii. Psychologist Alter is Professor of Marketing at New York University's Stern School of Business and the author of the book Irresistible: The Rise of Addictive Technology and the Business of Keeping Us Hooked.  Podcast music provided by Cool Hand Luke and used with permission.Intro: “Holy Vanguard” / LyricsOutro: “Wonder Tour” / Lyrics / Video To find our more about Greatheart's Table, visit us here.

Hello everyone. Welcome to Greatheart's Table. I'm Randy Greenwald. And welcome to the week of Thanksgiving, in the U. S. at least. This has put me in a playful mood. Perhaps you will judge this to be trivial. It may be. But I think Thanksgiving is a good time to back off from taking ourselves so seriously. It is a time to eat, drink, and be merry, together, for we are on a journey together. I trust you'll join me in some of my own merriment. I'm thankful for you who listen, and for those of you who, kindly have supported Greatheart's Table at Patreon. If you listen regularly, please follow the podcast, and rate and review it. Please share this with others. And this Thanksgiving share your joy with those close to you. We encourage you to also subscribe to our newsletter where, on third Mondays and at other times there may be additional content. You can do so here. You can help support this podcast by supporting us on Patreon. You can do so here. EPISODE NOTES Notes and resources relevant to this episode: https://doublethejoy.substack.com Podcast music provided by Cool Hand Luke and used with permission.Intro: “Holy Vanguard” / LyricsOutro: “Wonder Tour” / Lyrics / Video To find our more about Greatheart's Table, visit us here.

I'd like to welcome you to another “Rainy Day Conversation around Greatheart's Table.” This episode first aired just after Christmas in 2024 and addresses those factors that help pastors persevere for the long haul, and those challenges that can cut that short. This is part one of my conversation with two experienced pastors, Mike Osborne and Paul Joiner. Part two will be released soon. If there are others you think I should invite into these conversations, or topics I should explore, let me know at randy at greatheartstable dot com. Please rate and review this podcast and, most importantly, refer others to it. Become a subscriber to the newsletter at Substack, and, if you are able, support what we do here at Patreon. As always, thanks for joining us around Greatheart's Table. We encourage you to also subscribe to our newsletter where, on third Mondays and at other times there may be additional content. You can do so here. You can help support this podcast by supporting us on Patreon. You can do so here. EPISODE NOTES Notes and resources relevant to this episode: For an explanation of the name and intention of these occasional interviews, read this. The studies mentioned are referenced below: Hartford Institute Study: “I'm Exhausted All the Time” Deshon and Quinn study on competencies Resources available for pastors: Geneva Benefits Standing Stone Leaders Collective The Rest Initiative Bent Tree Books mentioned include Marshall Shelley Ministering to Problem People in Your Church: What to Do with Well-Intentioned Dragons J. I. Packer, Knowing God Richard Lovelace, Dynamics of Spiritual Life: An Evangelical Theology of Renewal When you buy a book using a link on this page, Greatheart's Table receives a commission. Thank you for supporting this work! Podcast music provided by Cool Hand Luke and used with permission.Intro: “Holy Vanguard” / LyricsOutro: “Wonder Tour” / Lyrics / Video To find our more about Greatheart's Table, visit us here.

This post applies far beyond the pastoral office. We are a technological people. “Applied science,” as C. S. Lewis names it, has so shaped us that we never question it. We tend always to baptize it as good. It has been welcomed into our churches and homes and schools, not simply in the form of […]

Today the words and voice that follow will not be mine, but that of a wise friend of mine. Mike Osborne and I have known each other since seminary. For the past fifteen years we've pastored churches in the same town. He's a gift. Over lunch a few months ago, Mike, who now supports pastors […]

The triple negative in the title of this episode is more than a gimmick. We have power, we are not to seek power, and we revel in our weakness. And that can be confusing. Pastors for the past forty years, in my experience, have been battered and attacked by vocal critics for not being more […]

Hello, and welcome to this episode of Rainy Day Conversations around Greatheart's Table. I'm Randy Greenwald. This is part two of our two part conversation with Dr. Jessie Swigart of Covenant Theological Seminary regarding professional identity formation. In the first part we began to discuss how a pastor comes to think, feel, and act as […]

Ministry, like life, can be beautiful, and at other times confusingly messy. Sometimes we are given the opportunity to see the fruit of our labors. But at other times, we see no fruit, and we only sense the weight of what feels like futility. This is a reset of an episode first aired in November […]

I mentioned some time ago of my intention to work slowly through the pastorally-suggestive book of 2 Chronicles. This episode is a part of that. Honest pastors know that the interpretation of the Bible is not always straightforward. There are pitfalls and byways, and among those is what I've playfully named, from an image in […]

Hi! I'm Randy Greenwald, and welcome to this episode of what I call “Rainy Day Conversations around Greatheart's Table.” I am always on the lookout for generous, gracious, and thoughtful people who have insight into the work of pastors and into the interaction pastors have with their congregations. In this episode, being released in two […]

Recently we've revisited the question of when a pastor should possibly leave one church for another. Those episodes were resets first written nearly four years ago. I find that now I'm getting asked a question I was not being asked back then: “When do you think you'll retire?”  That's a great question for which I've […]

Hello, all. Welcome again to another Rainy Day Conversation around Greatheart's Table. This is the second half of an episode that first aired in September of 2024. The first half aired a few weeks ago.  I'm reprising this conversation because of the value of addressing the often overlooked but challenging role of being the spouse […]

This episode of Greatheart's Table is the third of three which are here reset from when they originally aired in the fall of 2021.  One of our objectives here is to encourage pastors to stay in ministry and, if possible, to stay at their churches. But also, we realize, that is not always possible or […]

This is the second of three resets from the fall of 2021 exploring the question of when a pastor might want or need to leave his church. A part of that question is why we stay? Why do we hang around doing a job that is admittedly hard with people who can be inexplicably difficult? […]

Something that is rarely discussed, it seems to me, is when pastors should leave a church. Rarely discussed, of course, does not mean rarely thought about. I'm an advocate of long pastorates in single places. But not every place is suited for that. There may come a time when it's time for a pastor to […]

Hello, everyone. Welcome to another Greatheart's Table Conversation for Rainy Day People, which is actually a reprise of our original conversation first posted in September of 2024. In this conversation I speak with three women with a wealth of ministry experience to discuss the unique challenges and joys of serving as the spouse of a […]

This episode invites us to consider the leadership models we as pastors, but as those filling any role, really, adopt and promote. Authoritarian leadership styles seem to be sweeping the world by storm, and these are trends which pastors particularly must stand against. Why? Because if we are followers of Jesus, he, not the demands […]

This is the third of three episodes drawn from the content of the retreat I offer for parents of off-script kids, the adult children of Christian parents who have made life choices troubling to their parents. In the retreat I help parents unlearn the toxic teaching which has loaded great guilt upon them, and I […]

Those who know me know how skeptical I am about the use of statistics by pastors, and how much I mistrust a certain oft-quoted polling organization based in California.  But my concern is not statistics per se, but the fact that if we are not careful the pulpit, instead of being a place of truth, […]

As many know, on the first, second, and third Mondays of each month I reproduce here an audio version of my Substack newsletter, for those who prefer their content in audio form. But on the third and fifth Mondays I release audio only conversations with others who have insight into concerns relevant to pastors. This […]

I love good children's books. This is so well known, that a 9 year old member of our church recently took great joy in giving me Volume 1 of a collection of Mo Willems' Elephant and Piggie books. She was beaming, and so was I. Books like these ought to be read for the sheer […]

The content of this episode is excerpted from my retreat addressing what I call “off-script kids.” I explained this in a post a few weeks ago. The retreat is linked in the show notes. Parents of off-script kids carry many different emotions. But what they should not have to carry is the burden of guilt, […]

Ordinarily you only hear me on these episodes. But periodically I like to drop into the mix longer conversations with men and women who have insight into pastoral well-being or practice. Rainy Day People are, as suggested by Gordon Lightfoot's song of that name, those who know what to say, and do so with care […]

Inasmuch as the title and conceit of this podcast and the newsletter on which it is based is drawn from the allegory Pilgrim's Progress, I trust you will allow me occasional flights of fancy, such as is this one. Is it a dream? I'm not sure. I have been pondering, though, the repeated emphasis in […]

If you are a pastor, you could probably list thirty-two things that ministry requires that you don't believe you are good at. We are harsh self critics. But what if we need to be just “okay” at these things? What if it is enough to be “good enough?” What if the pressure to excel at […]

Many of you may know that one of my concerns has been and is the guilt and shame of parents whose adult children have made choices troubling to their parents. This sends many parents into an emotional free fall, and often they are in churches where this common situation is neither acknowledged or validated. Consequently […]

In the U. S., today is Memorial Day, a day for remembering those who have given their lives on behalf of their country. I have distinct memories of, as a child, visiting a cemetery on this day and listening to the sound of taps being played, the bugle in the distance and the notes weaving […]

Hello! Welcome to this unusual, audio only, third Monday edition of Greatheart's Table. This is the third and last of our Rainy Day Conversation with my two friends, Adam and Byron discussing books. And though our initial focus was on pastoral reading habits, all of these conversations apply widely to all Christians.  In this episode […]

Pastors are always having to decide what to do. In our day of political turmoil, especially, touching as it does on a plethora of deeply meaningful moral concerns many of us feel that we need to do something, and if we don't, our parishioners as well as internet pundits press their agenda upon us. Being […]

The following episode was first aired in September of 2021. The frustration, hopelessness, and caution, it touches upon remain relevant today for pastors and others. We are urged to do something! We are told to act! But what does that mean? What are we to do? What can we? It's worth thinking about. The underlying […]

Hello. I'm Randy, and I pastor a small church. That, of course, is meant to sound like the stereotyped introduction of an AA meeting.  But this is not an admission that this idea of “Small Church Thinking” which has occupied us recently arises from my being hooked on churches being small. The truth is the […]

Welcome to this third Monday edition of a “Rainy Day Conversation around Greatheart's Table.”  This episode is a continuation of a conversation that began on March 31 on the reading life of pastors (and other humans). If you missed that first episode you can go back and listen to it first, or you can dive […]

Hi! Thanks for joining us around Greatheart's Table. If you are new, I particularly welcome you. Our goal is to start and sustain conversations that help pastors thrive, but we find that these things have meaning for people in all life situations. So whatever your role in life or in the church, we welcome you. […]

Hello! I'm Randy Greenwald, and welcome to Greatheart's Table.  Cue the celebratory music! This begins year five of Greatheart's Table. When I began I wasn't sure I had enough material to last a year, and here we are pressing on with enough ideas in the vault to keep us going for some time to come. […]

Hello, everyone. Welcome to another “Rainy Day Conversation around Greatheart's Table.” Unlike the short content that is normal for this space, in these conversations I invite other voices to share their observations and expertise regarding pastoral practice, ministry, or the Christian life in general.  These have been fun to produce, and they have introduced me […]

Hello! Welcome to Greatheart's Table, the podcast for pastors and those who care for them. I'm Randy Greenwald. Surprisingly, to me, with this episode we wrap up four years of episodes. If you've been with us for a short time or for the entire journey, I'm glad you are here. We have no plans to […]

This episode is a reset of one which originally aired in September of 2021. That was a heavy time, and this, a consideration of pastoral playfulness, seemed particularly necessary. That necessity, sadly, remains. There is so much that can weigh us down, that we forget that God has created us for joy. There is much […]

I mentioned in a previous Third Monday post my intention of now and then spending some time reflecting on the insights into pastoral ministry from the unlikely source of 2 Chronicles. I want to ease into that by considering the spirit and tone of the whole book and particularly the faith of its author. He […]

Hello. I'm Randy Greenwald. Welcome to Greatheart's Table. Imagine John Lennon as a pastor. It's easy, if you try. Okay, maybe it's not that easy. But it's easy to imagine the song he might have written had he been a pastor: You may say that I'm a cynic,but I'm not the only one. It's not […]

If you're new, head back to episode 67 to find what's up here. That episode is titled “Mr. Greatheart and his Metaphorical Table.” In short, our desire is to encourage pastors. But we find that the net that is cast is much broader, and that many others in ministry, as well as those not in […]

I write to encourage pastors, particularly those weary or beaten down, those needing to be reminded of the value of what they do regardless of the unrelenting expectations of modern church culture.  As pastors we fill a prophetic role. What to speak, how to speak it, and when, are questions that concern us all.  It […]

Those feelings of doubt and disorientation which we've come to know by the name of “imposter syndrome” are not the exclusive experience of one profession or activity. But they're well known to pastors. Pastors of small or struggling congregations may feel these things with particular intensity, but they plague all at some level. Comparison and […]

Once each month or so I re-post previous installments. This one was first released in August of 2021. Consequently, some of the issues referenced may seem old to us now. I've left those unedited, however, if only to show how quickly the issues on which pastors, or others, are expected to be expert come and […]

I don't need to tell you that I'm not Tim Keller or Beth Moore or John Owen or any other Christian celebrity living or dead. I don't need to tell you, and I don't need to tell God, but I do need to remind myself of this now and then. We all enter ministry and […]

“Rainy Day Conversation around Greatheart's Table” are audio interviews that I have with men and women who have insight on topics of concern to the Greatheart's Table community. For this conversation I've invited two men with a great deal of pastoral experience (60+ years between them) to speak into the subject of sustaining pastors in […]

Merry Christmas, everyone! Welcome to Greatheart's Table. I'm Randy Greenwald, one wearied by the ubiquitous Christmas playlists found in stores and coffee shops this time of year. I can only stand so much rockin' around the Christmas tree. On the other hand, were I to be enveloped in a steady diet of the hymns of […]

Pastoral ministry is serious business. And, as we know from the Spiderman movies, with great seriousness comes great responsibility (or something like that). I suggest here that we are responsible from time to time to lighten up. A congregation needs a pastor with a good sense of humor if either are going to thrive. God […]