Here's the truth: sometimes it's hard to admit we don't have all the answers. Or that we don't have it all together. Or even something as simple as "I'm just too tired to think about that right now." We want to prove we can do it all! Like our friend Ronnie Brown once said, we like to pretend we have a big red "S" on our shirts.
But... we don't. And we can't do it all. And that's not a bad thing, that's actually the way God planned it. On today's episode, Mandy Smith joins us again to talk about how vulnerable pastors lead teams, recruit leaders, and manage their time. Mandy brings so much depth and wisdom to the podcast and we know that you'll be encouraged and challenged by her story and experience. Mandy Smith is the Senior Pastor of University Christian Church in Cincinnati OH. For more with Mandy, check out episode 184 where she shares about her book, The Vulnerable Pastor, and be sure tocheck out more of her work at Missio Alliance as part of their writing collective! You won't want to miss out on next week's episode featuring Jemar Tisby of the Reformed African American Network. We had a great conversation with him that we can't wait to share with you! Until then, enjoy episode 223 and thanks for pastoring people in Kingdom living in your 200church! 
Pastor Mandy Smith
The Straight Dope: the plain, unvarnished truth, especially something that's hard to hear. Well, that's pretty clear, and that's what Matt Frey is delivering in the area of discipleship in the local church, and in the life of the Christian!
If you want to get a bead on Matt, check out his Men's Ministry Invitation video here. Matt is the Discipleship Pastor at Pathway Church in Beaver Falls, PA. When Matt, Jeff, and Jonny recorded this episode, Matt and Jeff had not talked in over 25 years. Like any old friend, you pick right up where you left off, without skipping a beat! The magic of this episode is that Matt is able to talk to all of us pastors in smaller churches, the straight dope - on discipleship! Very practical, very encouraging! More than 25 years ago, Jeff and Matt worked together on a belt at UPS. Back then, neither one of them could even imagine podcasting, let alone think that they'd be talking to each other over two decades later, encouraging thousands of pastors all over the world. And yet here we are! Matt Frey joins us today to talk about his 11 years as a Discipleship Pastor in Beaver Falls, PA and give some awesome insight into how we can think about and encourage discipleship in our small churches! If you've ever struggled with Sunday school, small groups, or just the big idea of discipleship in general, today's podcast will help you think in fresh ways and have a huge impact on your ministry. 
Pastor Matt & Jolynn Frey
On today's podcast, Jeff has a conversation with Robin Boda, from Bridge of Hope, an urban missionary in St. Louis, MO. Robin shares stories and insights from years of working in and for her community and is realistic about the difficulties and the incredible benefits of committing yourself to your community.
We have talked on this topic many times, but some of our favorite conversations were episode 159 where we talk about growing your community impact, and episode 127 with Karl Vaters where we discuss making an impact beyond the four walls of your church! If Robin's conversation got you thinking about cultivating diversity in your church, we ALWAYS point people back to episode 86 with Christena Cleveland and her discussion of the book "Disunity in Christ." We hope that this episode has been encouraging to you and your ministry!
Jeff & Jonny encourage you to feel free to bless Steve and Robin and their team at Bridge of Hope Ministries! You can donate here!
John Chandler from the SermonSmith Podcast, joins us to talk about sermon craft, bi-vocational ministry, missional ministry, and family/ministry balance, among much else!
John is a bivocational pastor, church planter, web developer, and homiletician. John talks with us about a whole range of ministry stuff from a small church/church planter perspective - you'll love John! You will be encouraged to keep pressing forward in your own 200church! Connect with John on Facebook! Check out the Sermonsmith Podcast iTunes Preview Page here! 
John "The Animal" Chandler!
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