Mandy Smith, lead pastor of University Christian Church in Cincinnati OH first came on our radar on an episode of the Theology On Mission podcast. Then we discovered her book titled, The Vulnerable Pastor - How Human Limitations Empower Our Ministry.
When we realized Mandy was the lead pastor of her 200church, Jonny said, "We have to get Mandy on the podcast!" I asked him to "make it happen", and he did! What a great conversation we had with her about what it means to be vulnerable as a lead or senior pastor. Of course, this applies to anyone, but our talk was in the context of pastoral ministry, especially with a team of people. Small churches are all about a team - sometimes the whole church is a team! We hope you are encouraged to offer your weaknesses and limitations to the God who made you with them! When we are vulnerable, God shows his strength to be more than sufficient to the task. As with every episode, this one was created with deep commitment and love for you as a pastor of a small (hear normal) church, a "200church". We hope that it encourages and equips you for the hard and holy work of ministry! With a little humor thrown in for good measure, of course! :-)
We had a great, very practical conversation with Jerret Hammons, who started leading worship at a very small church at age 13! Jarret shared some very dynamic ideas about doing worship in a small church setting.
Jerret Hammons is a husband, father, and worship leader at ElevateMonroe in Monroe MI, and founder of 100worship.com. Enjoy! A great episode to share with your worship leader!
Jerret Hammons... leading worship and having fun!
Links on Episode 183 from Jerret!
Family is so important!
The family is so important in the life of the pastor. Whether the pastor is the Mom or the Dad, the family is the pastor's first priority and most important responsibility. God never calls us into a ministry and then asks us to forsake our family. The gift of martyrdom might be one exception, but then again, you only use that gift once - and it should not be practiced on the altar of ministry! While we don't number them all as we go along, Dave Jacobs joins us to share 8 warning signs that our ministry/family balance is out of whack! Dave Jacobs is the Man! Dave is the founder of SmallChurchPastor.com and has a full time ministry coaching pastors - mainly pastors of small churches. He also blogs at DaveJacobs.net and is a fairly regular contributor right here on the 200churches Podcast - where our goal is to provide ministry encouragement to pastors of small churches. If you need coaching as a pastor, are in crisis, or just want to do a ministry tune-up, Dave is the guy for you! If you want your church leadership board to receive coaching, Dave does that as well! Don't wait until you are drowning in a crisis - email Dave today! Rather than listing the 8 Warning Signs here, grab a pen while you listen and see if you can list them all... this episode is very practical. 
Michael Nations Returns For Another Episode!
Michael Nations, founder of The Vital Initiative, joins the guys to once again proclaim the value and importance of small church ministry! He first joined us on episode 176.
Michael has been the pastor of Clyde Church of God in North Carolina for the past 23 years. Pastor Nations was frustrated and disillusioned when all around him he heard the success stories of the large church pastors and mega church pastors. He had tried and tried, and yet his church would not break the 100 barrier. Coming to the end of himself and his ministry, God met him "in the shower" after his son challenged his attitude of not wanting to attend some church meetings. He shares this story with us, and what ultimately became the impetus for The Vital Initiative! Michael is with the Church of God Cleveland, and he travels around the U.S. encouraging pastors of smaller churches. Michael shares his own story of frustration and feelings of failure, and how he turned this around to achieve great influence in encouraging other pastors of small churches in his own denomination. He is recognized by his national denominational leaders as a pastor of value and encouragement to the Church of God! Michael talked about small church stories - at this link called Ministry on the Margins. 
Jeff & Michael Nations. Brothers from another denomination!
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