Pastor Writer: Conversations on Reading, Writing, and the Christian Life

Andrew Peterson is an award-winning singer, songwriter, and author of the Wingfeather Saga. He’s also the founder of The Rabbit Room, an organization that fosters community through story, art, and music. Andrew and his wife, Jamie, have two sons, Aeden and Asher, and one daughter, Skye. They live in the Nashville, Tennessee, area on a wooded hill in a little house they call the Warren—where they are generally safe from bumpy digtoads and toothy cows. The Wingfeather Saga is being released...

Robert Wolgemuth has been in the media business for thirty-nine years. A former president of Thomas Nelson Publishers, he is the founder of Wolgemuth & Associates, a literary agency exclusively representing the writing work of more than one hundred authors. Robert is a speaker and best-selling author of over twenty books. Among his professional accomplishments, he has served two terms as the Chairman of the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association. He is a 1969 graduate of Taylor...

Collin Hansen serves as vice president for content and editor-in-chief of The Gospel Coalition, as well as executive director of The Keller Center for Cultural Apologetics. He hosts the Gospelbound podcast and has written and contributed to many books, most recently Timothy Keller: His Spiritual and Intellectual Formation and Rediscover Church: Why the Body of Christ Is Essential. He has published with the New York Times and the Washington Post and offered commentary for CNN, Fox News, NPR,...

David Kim is the discipleship pastor at WestGate Church in Silicon Valley, California and author of Made To Belong: Five Practices for Cultivating Community in a Disconnected. He completed M.Div and Th.M from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary and his children's book on dealing with change was selected for Oprah's Favorite Things list. He cares deeply about the intersection of spiritual formation, theology, mental health, and the cultivation of authentic Christian communities. He lives with...

Terry Glaspey is a writer, an editor, a creative mentor, and someone who finds various forms of art—painting, films, novels, poetry, and music—to be some of the places where he most deeply connects with God. He has a master’s degree in history from the University of Oregon, as well as undergraduate degrees emphasizing counseling and pastoral studies. He has written over a dozen books and has been the recipient of several major national awards for his writing. In December, he released a new...

Brian Smith is on staff with Athletes in Action. A former track and cross-country athlete while in college, he now spends his time ministering to athletes. He writes regularly for athletesinaction.org. He likes the Detroit Lions probably a little too much, and graduated with a degree in Communications and Journalism from Wake Forest University. He joins me to talk about his recent book, The Christian Athlete: Glorifying God in Sports

It’s been my tradition to spend the last episode of the year looking back on my favorite reads from the past twelve months. This time of year, just about everyone is putting out their top list of books and awards. What I want to offer you are the 10 books that have impacted my thinking most this year. They aren’t necessarily the best books I have read or even the most important, but they are the books that have been shaping my own life and thinking this past year. What I’d love to hear is...

Andrew Arndt is the lead pastor of New Life East, one of seven congregations of New Life Church in Colorado Springs. Prior to joining New Life's team, he served as the lead pastor of Bloom Church, a network of house churches in Denver. He is the host of the Essential Church podcast, a weekly conversation designed to strengthen the thinking of church and ministry leaders. Andrew received his MDiv from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School and is currently working on his DMin with Western...

Jonathan Hardy has a passion for helping local churches reach their communities. He has served in various pastoral roles and now helps lead two online platforms, training and equipping pastors and local churches: Leaders.church and Church University. Jonathan recently released his first book, Arrow Striker: Live with Purpose and Leave an Eternal Impact… Every single Day. He joins me to talk about the book and how as believers, we can recognize and make the most out of every God-given...

Aaron Damiani serves as the lead pastor of Immanuel Anglican Church in Chicago and is the author of Earth Filled with Heaven: Finding Life in Liturgy, Sacraments and other Ancient Practices of the Church. Aaron writes and regularly speaks about spiritual formation, leadership, and recovering the gifts of the ancient church for today’s challenges. Aaron and his wife Laura live with their four kids in Chicago’s Irving Park neighborhood.

Jim Cymbala has been a pastor for more than fifty years at the Brooklyn Tabernacle. He has a strong burden for the local church and has been blessed with the opportunity to encourage thousands of pastors around the globe. He is the bestselling author of Fresh Wind, Fresh Fire and several other titles. His next book, Fan the Flame, will release in September 2022. He joins me to talk about the book and how pastors can keep their call alive during times of discouragement and burnout. Jim...

Chris Nye is a doctoral student at Duke University’s Divinity School and the author of Distant God and Less of More. For fifteen years, he has served as a local church pastor. His writing has appeared in the Washington Post, Christianity Today, The Gospel Coalition, and various other publications. He recently released a new book, A Captive Mind, Christianity, Ideologies, and Staying Sane in a World Gone Mad. Chris joins me to talk about his new book and how ideologies can impact our faith...

Jonathan Dodson is the founding pastor of City Life Church in Austin, TX which he started with his wife, and a small group of people. He is also the founder of Gospel-Centered Discipleship.com, which produces resources to help make, mature, and multiply disciples of Jesus. He is the author of a number of books, including Here in Spirit, The Unbelievable Gospel and Gospel-Centered Discipleship. He joins me to talk about his most recent project, a new book: The Unwavering Pastor: Leading...

Scott Sauls is senior pastor of Christ Presbyterian Church in Nashville. Before serving in Nashville, he served with Tim Keller at New York City's Redeemer Presbyterian Church as a lead and preaching pastor. In addition to his books, Scott's work has been featured in Christianity Today, Relevant Magazine, The Gospel Coalition, as well as other publications. Scott Joins me to talk about his new book that was just released, Beautiful People Don’t Just Happen: How God Redeems Regret, Hurt, and...

Trevin Wax is vice president of research and resource development at the North American Mission Board and a visiting professor at Wheaton College. A former missionary to Romania, Trevin is a regular columnist at The Gospel Coalition and has contributed to The Washington Post, Religion News Service, World, and Christianity Today, which named him one of 33 millennials shaping the next generation of evangelicals. He is the author of multiple books, including The Multi-Directional Leader,...

I believe it is a truth that a mother is made over a matter of months, but you always become a father in a single moment. I remember that moment well. The birth of our first child was full of complications. Hours of labor were induced by a rising blood pressure, alternating cycles of magnesium and then Pitocin, and platelet levels too low for an epidural. After being diagnosed with preeclampsia and HELLP syndrome, the first dose of magnesium gave my wife enough time to sleep before the...

Jessica Hooten Wilson is Louise Cowan Scholar in Residence at the University of Dallas. She is the author of several books, including Giving the Devil his Due: Flannery O’Connor and The Brothers Karamazov, which received a 2018 Christianity Today book of the year in arts and culture award. She writes on the great books and literature, including O’Connor, Doestovesky, and Walker Percy. She has a new book out entitled, The Scandal of Holiness: Renewing Your imagination In the Company of...

Jay Kim serves as the lead pastor at WestGate Church in the Silicon Valley and on the leadership team of the ReGeneration Project. His writing has been featured in Christianity Today, The Gospel Coalition, Missio Alliance, and Relevant Magazine. He lives in Silicon Valley with his wife and two children. It’s Jay’s second time on the podcast. We previously discussed his first book, Analog Church, a great read. The book won numerous awards including Outreach Resource of the Year and The...

Daniel Grothe is the associate senior pastor at New Life Church in Colorado Springs. He is a pastor, speaker, drummer, and author of Chasing Wisdom and The Power of Place. Daniel and his wife, Lisa, live on a hobby farm outside of Colorado Springs with their three children and a whole lot of animals.

Andrew Klavan is an award-winning writer, screenwriter, and media commentator. An internationally bestselling novelist and two-time Edgar Award winner, Klavan is also a contributing editor to City Journal, the magazine of the Manhattan Institute, and the host of a popular podcast on DailyWire.com, The Andrew Klavan Show. His essays and opeds on politics, religion, movies, and literature have appeared in the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, the Washington Post, and the LA Times. He...