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Shepherding Time: Daily Summaries Delivered
by Joe Keller and Rush Witt
A podcast that guides pastors and ministry leaders to steward time with biblical intention. Hosted by Joe Keller and Rush Witt, each episode features a short conversation with a pastor, counselor, or ministry leader. They discuss how to lead well without losing your soul to the clock.
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- 2 weeks ago9 min
Ryan Robertson — Cross-Cultural Time | The Strategic Drop | Invaluable Assistance
How does a missionary shepherd time when every culture keeps a different clock? On this episode of The Shepherding Time podcast, Rush Witt and Joe Keller talk with Ryan Robertson, president of Reaching and Teaching International, about time management across cultures and what it takes to steward time well when your own expectations are not the standard. Ryan explains how his missionaries learn the time expectations of each new culture and put to death their own. A pastor who walks into the lecture fifteen minutes late from tea time is not disrespecting the teacher. He is prioritizing the people in front of him, and Ryan shows how humility about time protects your ability to care for people. He shares his own lessons from teaching in India and sub-Saharan Africa, and from a multicultural church in Canada where a German member and a member from the global South keep very different clocks. Ryan also introduces the "strategic drop" (deciding what will not get done so the right things do), describes the Global Cities project and its partnerships to see healthy churches in every major city, and gives one tangible tip for improving your time effectiveness: use an assistant well. About Ryan Robertson: Ryan Robertson is the president of Reaching and Teaching International, a missions organization that helps local churches make mature disciples, establish healthy churches, and train local leaders around the world. He also serves as a lay elder in his local church. This episode is a companion to the book Shepherding Time: A Pastor's Guide to Time Management by Rush Witt and Joe Keller (New Growth Press). Get your copy: New Growth Press [https://newgrowthpress.com/upcoming-books/shepherding-time-a-pastor-s-guide-to-time-management/] Amazon [https://www.amazon.com/Shepherding-Time-Pastors-Guide-Management/dp/1645076555/] RESOURCES MENTIONED Reaching and Teaching International [https://www.reachingandteaching.org] Global Cities project (Reaching and Teaching) Partner ministries named: Desiring God, 9Marks, Simeon Trust, The Pillar Network, Radius International Shepherding Time: A Pastor's Guide to Time Management, NGP and Amazon links above Subscribe to The Shepherding Time wherever you listen, and share this episode with a pastor who needs it.
- 4 weeks ago6 min
Jonathan Holmes — Cultural Values | Half-Hour Meetings | Priorities That Get Pushed Aside
How do you lead a team of twelve through deep work in thirty minutes? On this episode of The Shepherding Time podcast, Rush Witt and Joe Keller talk with Jonathan Holmes, executive director of CCEF, about how he shepherds his time while stepping into a new ministry leadership role. Jonathan describes a cultural values project he launched early in his time at CCEF: a team of twelve meeting for half an hour at a time. The tight window forces everyone to prepare well and use the meeting well, and the group has gotten far more done than he expected. He explains why culture matters so much to him (culture is simply how things get done) and why he wants CCEF's work together to be as grounded in biblical values as the content it produces. He also admits which priorities keep slipping, the HR and organizational details that don't get him out of bed in the morning, and what does: serving a historic ministry he has long admired and helping shape its future. About Jonathan Holmes: Jonathan Holmes is the executive director of CCEF, a ministry known for its biblical counseling resources and training. He is a friend of the podcast and is currently leading CCEF through a season of transition and organizational development. This episode is a companion to the book Shepherding Time: A Pastor's Guide to Time Management by Rush Witt and Joe Keller (New Growth Press). Get your copy: New Growth Press [https://newgrowthpress.com/upcoming-books/shepherding-time-a-pastor-s-guide-to-time-management/] Amazon [https://www.amazon.com/Shepherding-Time-Pastors-Guide-Management/dp/1645076555/] Subscribe to The Shepherding Time wherever you listen, and share this episode with a pastor who needs it. RESOURCES MENTIONED CCEF [https://www.ccef.org]
- Oct 2, 202614 min
Nate Akin — Best vs. Good Priorities | Sacrificing Sleep | Honest Friends Who Call You Out
Why do church planters tend to overwork themselves more than almost anyone else in ministry? On this episode of The Shepherding Time podcast, Rush Witt and Joe Keller talk with Nate Akin, executive director of the Pillar Network and founder of Baptist 21, about the unique time pressures of pioneering ministry — and what he's learned, often the hard way, about managing them. Nate gets candid about what he sacrifices most in his own life: not family time, but sleep, doing PhD work at 4am so he doesn't cheat his kids out of time with him. He and Rush unpack why church planters in particular tend to feel like everything rests on their shoulders — and why that feeling, while understandable, needs to be confronted with a right understanding of identity and stewardship. A key theme throughout: the difference between good things and best things, illustrated by advice Nate's seminary-president father gave students — it matters more that you lead your family well than that you ace a theology exam. Nate also makes the case for cultivating relationships with people who will be honest with you, asking specific diagnostic questions rather than generic "how are you doing" check-ins, because without that kind of honesty, burnout is inevitable. About Nate Akin: Nate Akin is the executive director of the Pillar Network, a rapidly growing church planting network, and a founder of Baptist 21. He is currently pursuing PhD studies alongside his ministry work. This episode is a companion to the book Shepherding Time: A Pastor's Guide to Time Management by Rush Witt and Joe Keller (New Growth Press). Get your copy: New Growth Press [https://newgrowthpress.com/upcoming-books/shepherding-time-a-pastor-s-guide-to-time-management/] Amazon [https://www.amazon.com/Shepherding-Time-Pastors-Guide-Management/dp/1645076555/] RESOURCES MENTIONED The Pillar Network — thepillarnetwork.com Baptist 21 Instruments in the Redeemer's Hands by Paul Tripp Subscribe to The Shepherding Time wherever you listen, and share this episode with a pastor who needs it.
- Sep 22, 20269 min
Tim Challies — Foundational Time Management Principles | Family as the Priority | Empty Nest Season
What happens when the life hacks stop working? On this episode of The Shepherding Time podcast, Rush Witt and Joe Keller talk with Tim Challies — pastor, author, and one of the most prolific voices in Christian blogging — about the season roughly a decade ago when his time management fully broke down, and what it took to rebuild it from the ground up. Tim describes hitting a wall while juggling full-time church staff work, full-time blogging, and family life — and how quick fixes never held. The real change came from going back to foundational questions: why productivity matters biblically, and what's morally at stake when we fail to steward our time well. He and Rush dig into the principle that has shaped his ministry ever since — that we're qualified for ministry only if we're properly caring for our family — and the concrete rhythms that lived it out, like rotating Saturday breakfasts with each of his kids and hard stop times between work and home. Tim also opens up about the new season he and his wife are navigating as recent empty nesters, including a surprising discovery: now that they're free to travel more, they mostly just want to stay home. About Tim Challies: Tim Challies is a pastor, author, and blogger at Challies.com, widely regarded as one of the most influential voices in Christian publishing. He wrote the foreword to Shepherding Time: A Pastor's Guide to Time Management. This episode is a companion to the book Shepherding Time: A Pastor's Guide to Time Management by Rush Witt and Joe Keller (New Growth Press). Get your copy: New Growth Press [https://newgrowthpress.com/upcoming-books/shepherding-time-a-pastor-s-guide-to-time-management/] Amazon [https://www.amazon.com/Shepherding-Time-Pastors-Guide-Management/dp/1645076555/] Subscribe to The Shepherding Time wherever you listen, and share this episode with a pastor who needs it. RESOURCES MENTIONED Challies.com Matt Perman's writing on productivity CJ Mahaney's focus on biblical productivity Shepherding Time: A Pastor's Guide to Time Management — NGP and Amazon links above
- Sep 17, 202616 min
Ben Gladd — Encouraging Texts | Lunch with Awkward People | Transactional vs. Transformational Relationships
What does discipleship look like when most of your work happens alone at a desk? On this episode of The Shepherding Time podcast, Rush Witt and Joe Keller talk with Dr. Ben Gladd, executive director of the Carson Center for Theological Renewal, about how he stays relationally connected while working remotely on some of evangelicalism's biggest publishing projects. Ben shares two simple, practical habits: sending quick encouraging texts to friends old and new, and intentionally going to lunch with local pastors and professors — including people he doesn't naturally click with, because the awkward relationships are often the ones that need it most. He and Rush unpack the difference between transactional relationships (task in, task out) and transformational ones (caring about who someone is, not just what they do), and Ben explains a small communication habit — a few extra seconds of warmth in every email or Slack message — that has changed how people relate to him over his whole career. He closes with a window into how he manages dozens of writing and editing projects at once, using a filter borrowed from D.A. Carson: only take on work the church needs, or work the church doesn't yet know it needs. About Ben Gladd: Dr. Ben Gladd is the executive director of the Carson Center for Theological Renewal and a widely published New Testament scholar and editor, known for his work connecting Scripture across the biblical storyline. He is currently finishing a major commentary on Mark and co-leading an Old Testament companion to his Connecting Scripture project with Michael Morales. This episode is a companion to the book Shepherding Time: A Pastor's Guide to Time Management by Rush Witt and Joe Keller (New Growth Press). Get your copy: New Growth Press [https://newgrowthpress.com/upcoming-books/shepherding-time-a-pastor-s-guide-to-time-management/] Amazon [https://www.amazon.com/Shepherding-Time-Pastors-Guide-Management/dp/1645076555/] RESOURCES MENTIONED Connecting Scripture (New Testament) — Ben Gladd Old Testament companion to Connecting Scripture — Ben Gladd and Michael Morales The Gospel Coalition (TGC) [https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/] Carson Center for Theological Renewal [https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/the-carson-center/] Subscribe to The Shepherding Time wherever you listen, and share this episode with a pastor who needs it.
- Sep 12, 202612 min
Reagan Rose — Morning Routines | Sabbath Rest | The Four Kinds of Time
How should a pastor think about time when just being "more efficient" isn't enough? On this episode of The Shepherding Time podcast, hosts Rush Witt and Joe Keller sit down with Reagan Rose — the Bible teacher behind Redeeming Productivity — to talk pastoral time management from a biblical, stewardship-first perspective. Reagan shares how a seminary classroom full of overwhelmed future pastors first pushed him to write about time management, then walks through two of the highest-leverage habits in his own life: a fifteen-year morning routine built around a simple acronym (POWER: Prayer, Organize, Word, Exercise, Reading) and a growing conviction about Sabbath rest as a spiritual discipline that makes the rest of the week more productive, not less. The conversation turns to a framework Reagan's been developing for pastors who feel the pull to always do more: four kinds of time — Goal time, Grow time, Grit time, and Gift time — and why most time management advice only ever addresses one of them. If you lead a church, plant a church, or shepherd people day to day, this episode will give you real categories for stewarding your whole life, not just your calendar. About Reagan Rose: Reagan Rose is the founder of Redeeming Productivity, where he teaches personal productivity from a Christian worldview through articles, videos, and a growing YouTube channel. Find his work at redeemingproductivity.com or search "Redeeming Productivity" on YouTube. This episode is a companion to the book Shepherding Time: A Pastor's Guide to Time Management by Rush Witt and Joe Keller (New Growth Press). Get your copy: [order link] Subscribe to The Shepherding Time wherever you listen, and share this episode with a pastor who needs it. RESOURCES MENTIONED * Redeeming Productivity — Youtube [https://www.youtube.com/@redeemingproductivity] * redeemingproductivity.com * Deep Work by Cal Newport (referenced) * Shepherding Time: A Pastor's Guide to Time Management — Available at: New Growth Press [https://newgrowthpress.com/upcoming-books/shepherding-time-a-pastor-s-guide-to-time-management/] Amazon [https://www.amazon.com/Shepherding-Time-Pastors-Guide-Management/dp/1645076555/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1TE7Q2QZ52PHZ&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.LrM-DfFzV8tomEaPl4LPRiEi5MVAAYYixhpQiT66KMLgayUjNXj_yasMQgLv3UhYxA2kHBc9Pgj4vbZfUjb8VJMWUYQtHRAYh5kjxwvd3WACRb5mR8uZAydDKj8uxrNcXGF0qCp-IJPf4UPaaVUyhMLOA54fwQf8yd9h2Emm9k_nuV5VM5ertTA8Ha_WIhjsuC3xi6BxWm-YEYjE9WBqYutNX62Xf0WyVDd9QO9COxo.hNO1bY4wNWxP8mr6esvyuc5VcN7YBE_Mim9HFsC1lak&dib_tag=se&keywords=shepherding%2Btime&qid=1789067617&sprefix=shepherding%2Bti%2Caps%2C213&sr=8-1]
About Shepherding Time
A podcast that guides pastors and ministry leaders to steward time with biblical intention. Hosted by Joe Keller and Rush Witt, each episode features a short conversation with a pastor, counselor, or ministry leader. They discuss how to lead well without losing your soul to the clock.
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