PODCAST · religion
The Everyday Pastor
by Matt Smethurst, Ligon Duncan
The Everyday Pastor is a new podcast from TGC on the nuts and bolts of ministry. Hosted by Ligon Duncan, with nearly 20 years of pastoral experience, and Matt Smethurst, who planted a church three years ago, it seeks to model how ministers of different generations, levels of experience, and even denominations can apply God’s never-changing Word in a fast-changing world. Tune in for wisdom, encouragement, and practical insights to help you navigate the trenches of ministry with fortitude and joy.
Episodes
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Pastoring Difficult Sheep
How do you pastor people who consistently drain your time, create relational tension, or seem to make every issue their issue? Matt Smethurst and Ligon Duncan talk candidly about the challenge of shepherding difficult sheep. They discuss church members who lack social awareness, monopolize…
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The Pastor and Discouragement
Pastoral ministry can be deeply joyful, but it can also be profoundly discouraging. What happens when the church isn’t growing, conflict won’t resolve, your family is hurting, or one difficult relationship begins to overshadow everything else? RESOURCES MENTIONED: The Screwtape Letters by C. S....
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Planning a Preaching Calendar
How should a pastor decide what to preach next, and how far ahead should he plan? Matt Smethurst and Ligon Duncan discuss the pastoral wisdom behind planning a preaching calendar, from choosing books of the Bible and balancing the Old and New Testaments to determining the length and pace of a...
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Planting a Church
What does it actually take to plant a healthy church? Matt Smethurst and Ligon Duncan discuss the joys, challenges, and realities of church planting. Drawing from Matt’s experience planting River City Baptist Church in Richmond, Virginia, they explore everything from assessing a call to church...
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How to Preach the Gospel
How do pastors faithfully preach the gospel in every sermon without forcing Jesus into passages where he doesn’t belong? Matt Smethurst and Ligon Duncan tackle one of the most important questions in pastoral ministry: How do you preach Christ from all of Scripture? They discuss preaching Jesus…
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The Power of the Pulpit (with H. B. Charles, Jr.)
What keeps a pastor preaching faithfully when ministry feels discouraging? In this episode, H.B. Charles joins Matt Smethurst and Ligon Duncan to talk about expository preaching, sermon preparation, pastoral application, grief, perseverance, and why the power for ministry is still found in the…
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How to Use Confessions and Church Covenants in Ministry
Confessions of faith and church covenants can sound outdated—but they may be more important than ever. Matt Smethurst and Ligon Duncan explore the historic role of confessions, how they protect churches from theological drift, and why church covenants help Christians live together as a real...
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How to Talk About Jesus in a Post-Christian Age (with Glen Scrivener)
How do you talk about Jesus when people don’t share your assumptions anymore? Glen Scrivener joins Matt Smethurst and Ligon Duncan to help pastors navigate evangelism in a post-Christian culture. They explore how secular people are still shaped by Christian ideas, why believers shouldn’t feel...
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What Is the Gospel?
What is the gospel—really? In this episode, Matt Smethurst and Ligon Duncan tackle the confusion surrounding one of the most important words in Christianity. They explain why the gospel isn’t self-help advice or vague spiritual encouragement, but the good news of what God has done in Jesus Christ...
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How to Preach Evangelistically (with Garrett Kell)
Should Sunday sermons be evangelistic—or focused on believers? In this episode, Matt Smethurst, Ligon Duncan, and Garrett Kell tackle a false dichotomy: faithful preaching should do both. They explore how pastors can preach in a way that honors God, builds up the church, and clearly calls...
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Practical Effects of 'Big God' Theology
What practical difference does a high view of God’s sovereignty actually make in everyday ministry? In this episode, Ligon Duncan and Matt Smethurst reflect on the doctrines of grace—often associated with Calvinism—and explore how a “big God” theology shapes assurance, prayer, evangelism…
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How to Handle Conflict and Controversy in Ministry
Conflict is inevitable in pastoral ministry—but how pastors handle it shapes the health of their church. In this episode, Ligon Duncan and Matt Smethurst explore theological controversy, denominational tension, and local church conflict, offering biblical wisdom for leading with courage…
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Spiritual Warfare in Ministry
Spiritual warfare is real in ministry—but often misunderstood. Matt Smethurst and Ligon Duncan help pastors think biblically and pastorally about Satan’s schemes, the Spirit’s indwelling power, and how to resist discouragement while persevering in faithful ministry. RESOURCES MENTIONED: Precious...
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Union with Christ: The Most Underrated Doctrine (with Sam Allberry)
What is true of Christ becomes true of us. Matt Smethurst and Ligon Duncan are joined by Sam Allberry to discuss his book One with My Lord: The Life-Changing Reality of Being in Christ and explore how pastors can recover the often overlooked doctrine of union with Christ and share it with their...
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Teach People How to Read Their Bibles
One of a pastor’s primary responsibilities is not only to teach Scripture, but also to help his people learn how to read the Bible for themselves. Matt Smethurst and Ligon Duncan share how pastors can encourage their congregations to engage deeply with God’s Word, meditate on how he has revealed...
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Giving & Budgeting (with Jamie Dunlop)
A church budget is not primarily a financial tool, but a spiritual one. Jamie Dunlop joins Matt Smethurst and Ligon Duncan to discuss how pastors can encourage generous giving with theological clarity, and steward their church’s budget in a way that models trusted leadership and God-honoring…
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How to Stay Sharp As a Pastor
Pastors are expected to keep learning—just like doctors, teachers, and counselors. In this episode, Matt Smethurst and Ligon Duncan unpack formal and informal ways to stay sharp: carving out daily reading, using journals and courses, attending conferences, leaning on study Bibles, pursuing study...
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Preparing Believers to Suffer
Suffering is not a glitch in the Christian life—it’s part of it. In this conversation, Matt Smethurst and Ligon Duncan talk about how pastors can prepare their people to face pain with faith and endurance. They discuss what it means to view hardship through God’s providence, why the “victorious...
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Effective Church Administration (with Jamie Dunlop)
Many pastors enter ministry to preach and shepherd, not manage spreadsheets—but good administration is deeply spiritual work. Matt Smethurst and Ligon Duncan talk with Jamie Dunlop (Capitol Hill Baptist Church) about how faithful administration protects unity, supports preaching, and strengthens...
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The Pastor and Counseling (with Deepak Reju)
Every pastor wants a culture of care, but not every pastor feels equipped to counsel—much less to equip others to counsel one another. In this episode, Deepak Reju—a Delaware pastor who served for nearly 20 years as the counseling pastor at Capitol Hill Baptist Church—joins Ligon Duncan and Matt...
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Prepare People for Church Discipline
Practicing church discipline is a vital biblical responsibility that’s often ignored in our modern age. In this episode, Ligon Duncan and Matt Smethurst discuss what church discipline is (and isn’t), why healthy congregations practice it, and why it’s actually a form of love. Drawing from...
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Preparing Members for Death and Heaven
Ministry is about a lot of things, but central to the task is preparing people to die and face their Creator. This is deeply challenging, though, in a death-denying age. In this episode, Ligon Duncan and Matt Smethurst welcome Matt McCullough—a pastor in Nashville and the author of two excellent...
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Ministry to Children and Youth (with Jared Kennedy)
Every church has the privilege of thinking about how to best serve the children and youth entrusted to its care. In this episode, Jared Kennedy joins Ligon Duncan and Matt Smethurst to discuss various ministry models and best practices, as well as wisdom for equipping parents, selecting…
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The Pastor and Friendships
Real friendship is an irreplaceable gift from God. Without it we will struggle—and shrivel—as humans made for one another. Pastors know this, and yet ministry can be exceedingly lonely. In this episode, Garrett Kell joins Ligon Duncan and Matt Smethurst to discuss how a busy pastor can foster…
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BONUS: Advice for Apologetics (with Wes Huff)
In a special crossover episode of The Everyday Pastor and Gospelbound, Wesley Huff joins Lig, Matt, and Collin to discuss the role of apologetics in pastoral ministry. How can pastors excel in giving a compelling reason for the hope within us—and train others to do the same? Drawing from both...
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Live: Listener Questions!
How do you prioritize health? How do you stay sharp? Can you be friends with church members? How do you care for your wife? When’s a time you were wrong? How do you choose what to preach? And many, many more questions pastors may be asking. In this special episode of The Everyday Pastor, Matt...
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Funerals
“Walk to a wedding, but run to a funeral.” So advised an older pastor to a young Ligon Duncan. In this episode of The Everyday Pastor, Ligon Duncan and Matt Smethurst discuss the powerful opportunity that funerals present to hold out gospel hope, as well as common pitfalls and practical advice…
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How to Care for Sufferers (with Joni Eareckson Tada)
Joni Eareckson Tada knows a thing or two about suffering. Ever since a diving accident left her paralyzed nearly 60 years ago, she has given eloquent testimony to the sovereign goodness of our Savior. In this powerful episode of The Everyday Pastor, Joni joins Matt Smethurst and Ligon Duncan to...
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Weddings
Every pastor has the joy (at least usually it’s a joy) of officiating Christian weddings, which can be a beautiful picture of the gospel. In this episode of The Everyday Pastor, Ligon Duncan and Matt Smethurst offer practical advice for stewarding these opportunities and making the most of a...
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Ministry Lessons from Tim Keller
Two years ago today, Tim Keller went to be with the Lord. Using Matt’s new book—Tim Keller on the Christian Life, published by Crossway—as a discussion guide, Ligon Duncan and Matt Smethurst reflect on underappreciated teachings from Tim’s body of work. If you're ready to go deeper, Southern...
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Women’s Ministry in the Church
Ministering to the women in our churches and equipping them to disciple one another is a privilege. But how can pastors do this well? In this episode of The Everyday Pastor, Ligon Duncan and Matt Smethurst welcome Melissa Kruger and Courtney Doctor to the podcast. They draw from extensive...
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Why You Need Good Deacons
Show us a church with distracted elders, and we’ll show you a church without effective deacons. For better or worse, deacons are difference-makers in congregational life. But when it comes to this topic, too many churches are operating from custom and tradition—with Bibles closed. In this episode...
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Working with Fellow Elders (Part 2)
Last week, we considered what elders are, biblically speaking, and which traits should characterize a candidate for the office. In this follow-up episode of The Everyday Pastor, Matt Smethurst and Ligon Duncan get even more “nuts and boltsy,” discussing tips for working with fellow elders…
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Working with Fellow Elders (Part 1)
There are few greater gifts for a pastor than getting to serve with a godly band of brothers. But not every church has multiple elders—and not every elder team functions in a healthy way. In this episode of The Everyday Pastor, Matt Smethurst and Ligon Duncan discuss what elders are, why every...
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Teach People How to Read Their Bibles
It’s the most important book in the universe, but it can also be intimidating. Many of our members may be discouraged to admit that their resolutions have sputtered out—again. As pastors, how can we prepare and motivate our members to dive into God’s Word for themselves? In this episode of The...
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When the Pastor's Family Suffers (with Garrett Kell)
Pastors are called to walk alongside suffering saints, but what about when the pastor is the sufferer? In this episode of The Everyday Pastor, pastor Garrett Kell joins Matt Smethurst and Ligon Duncan to share about a season of family hardship—and what it looked like to receive care from his…
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The Praying Pastor
Every pastor affirms the importance of prayer and likely excels at it publicly, but consistency in private prayer is hard. And it isn't easy to foster a congregation-wide culture of prayer. In this episode of The Everyday Pastor, Matt Smethurst and Ligon Duncan discuss practical tips for…
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How Pastors Should Lead (with Paul Tripp)
Leadership is an art, and many pastors get it wrong—sometimes with devastating results. In this episode of The Everyday Pastor, Paul Tripp joins Matt Smethurst and Ligon Duncan to discuss how a pastor can lead well for the flourishing of the whole church. The conversation touches on the…
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Toward a Theologically Minded Church
Theology is vital for life. We know this as pastors, but do our members? Are we helping them to grow in thinking theologically? In this episode of The Everyday Pastor, Matt Smethurst and Ligon Duncan discuss practical ways to promote deeper love for God’s truth. After all, how our people view him...
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The Pastor and Purity
When Paul lists elder qualifications, he mentions Satan twice (1 Tim. 3:6–7). Why? The devil loves to stalk and destroy shepherds. And one of his main strategies is tempting us toward little compromises—which never remain little—in the realm of sexual purity. In this episode of The Everyday…
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Teach Gospel Assurance
Assurance of salvation is a deeply precious gift, but many Christians struggle to experience it. Pastors have the unique privilege—and challenge—of being “soul doctors” in our people’s lives. In this episode of The Everyday Pastor, Matt Smethurst and Ligon Duncan discuss how to apply the gospel…
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Prepare Your People For Sunday
Do your members prioritize the Lord’s Day? Are they maximizing their time at church? In a hyper-busy age, we can serve our people by preparing them to come on Sundays ready to grow, ready to serve, and ready to launch. In this episode of The Everyday Pastor, Ligon Duncan and Matt Smethurst offer...
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Supporting Women in the Church
Men and women aren't interchangeable, and God’s gendered design is a beautiful thing. How can pastors encourage and equip the godly women that the Lord entrusts to their care? It has been said, after all, that there’s no such thing as a healthy church in which the men flourish but the women…
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The Value of Theological Triage
Doctrines are more like an interconnected web than an itemized list. So how do we determine which matters are debatable in a church—and which are not? Not all beliefs are equally important, after all. In this episode of The Everyday Pastor, Matt Smethurst and Ligon Duncan encourage pastors to…
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Don’t Underestimate Ministry Philosophy
Have you ever wondered why two churches can be so similar in their doctrinal beliefs but so different in their practices? How can we make sure our methodology is rooted in theology, not mere pragmatism? In this episode of The Everyday Pastor, Matt Smethurst and Ligon Duncan are joined by Michael...
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Build a Culture of Discipleship
If pastors are the supply line, members are the front line. How can pastors equip their sheep to take responsibility for one another’s spiritual well-being? How can pastors foster a culture of relational initiative and deliberate discipleship? In this episode of The Everyday Pastor, Matt…
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The Art of Pastoral Care
Pastoral ministry is far more than preaching. Pastors are fundamentally shepherds, which means we’re called to care for particular sheep. How do we do that well? In this episode of The Everyday Pastor, Matt Smethurst and Ligon Duncan consider specific ways pastors can care for their congregation....
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The Soul of the Pastor
“Keep a close watch on yourself and on the teaching,” Paul exhorts the young pastor Timothy (1 Tim. 4:16). For many of us, it’s dangerously easy to guard our doctrine but not our lives. How can a busy pastor tend to his soul? In this episode of The Everyday Pastor, Matt Smethurst and Ligon Duncan...
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Top Theology Stories of 2024
Join Collin Hansen and Melissa Kruger for their annual discussion as they look back on the top theology stories of 2024. They also share their favorite books from 2024, updates on personal projects, and what they're each looking forward to in life and ministry in 2025. They discuss: The rise in...
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Convey the Glory of the Incarnation
The greatest threat to Christmas isn't secularism or consumerism but our own boredom with the most thrilling story ever told. In this special Christmas episode of The Everyday Pastor, Sinclair Ferguson joins Ligon Duncan and Matt Smethurst to marvel at the miracle of the incarnation. How can...
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
The Everyday Pastor is a new podcast from TGC on the nuts and bolts of ministry. Hosted by Ligon Duncan, with nearly 20 years of pastoral experience, and Matt Smethurst, who planted a church three years ago, it seeks to model how ministers of different generations, levels of experience, and even denominations can apply God’s never-changing Word in a fast-changing world. Tune in for wisdom, encouragement, and practical insights to help you navigate the trenches of ministry with fortitude and joy.
HOSTED BY
Matt Smethurst, Ligon Duncan
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does The Everyday Pastor have?
The Everyday Pastor currently has 57 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is The Everyday Pastor about?
The Everyday Pastor is a new podcast from TGC on the nuts and bolts of ministry. Hosted by Ligon Duncan, with nearly 20 years of pastoral experience, and Matt Smethurst, who planted a church three years ago, it seeks to model how ministers of different generations, levels of experience, and even...
How often does The Everyday Pastor release new episodes?
The Everyday Pastor has 57 episodes. Check the episode list to see recent publication dates and frequency.
Where can I listen to The Everyday Pastor?
You can listen to The Everyday Pastor on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts The Everyday Pastor?
The Everyday Pastor is created and hosted by Matt Smethurst, Ligon Duncan.
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