On episode 269, our guest this week is Dr. Austin Carty, an award-winning author, pastor of Boulevard Baptist Church, and a respected theologian. In this conversation, Dr. Carty shares his insights on the importance of reading (both fiction and non-fiction) and how it can enhance your preaching, leadership, pastoral visitation and all-around ministry. He also talks about his personal journey as a reader and some of the books that have had the greatest impact on him.
As a lover of theology and the arts, Dr. Carty believes that reading is an essential tool for preachers who want to develop a broader and more empathetic understanding of the human condition. Through reading, preachers can gain a deeper insight into the struggles and triumphs of humanity and use that knowledge to deliver sermons that resonate with their congregations.
During the conversation, Mike also shares a spoiler for the second half of the book “Dune” by Frank Herbert, so consider yourself warned.
So, if you’re a preacher looking to improve your skills and enhance your pastoral care, tune in to this episode and learn from Dr. Austin Carty. His insights on reading and preaching are sure to inspire and inform.
Registration for our next in-person training event is live. This is the link that will take you straight to the registration page if you want to book yourself in for our two day preachers training event in Austin Texas June 2-3
Early bird $70 for the month of March, then April1-15th $80, April 15-onwards $90 per person.
https://expositorscollective.regfox.com/expositors-texas
This is an investment that will bear fruit in your life. Maybe you want to bring your team, women’s ministry director, youth pastor, interns, anyone who wants to grow in their personal study and public proclamation of God’s word will benefit from this.
Austin Texas June 2-3
[ Save the date: Indianapolis Indiana October 27th and 28th]
Purchase Austin’s book The Pastor’s Bookshelf Why Reading Matters for Ministry here: https://www.eerdmans.com/Products/7910/the-pastors-bookshelf.aspx
Praise for The Pastor’s Bookshelf:
AWARDS and RECOGNITIONS
Hearts & Minds Best Books List (2022)
Christianity Today Award of Merit in Church & Pastoral Leadership (2023)
“Austin Carty writes with great conviction on a truly significant topic: the need for pastors to be avid readers. He also writes with clarity, consistency, and grace. The church needs this vital book.”
— Cornelius Plantinga
“Christians are a people of the Word, yet we are formed more and more today by wanton, careless words. Those who will lead the church well will be those who are formed by good words—those who know the power words have over our hearts and minds. Those who read good books well will be such leaders. Pastors who read and live by the wisdom in this book will be changed, as will their ministries and the people to whom they minister. This book belongs on every pastor’s shelf.”
— Karen Swallow Prior
“Reading is crucial for ministry, not as a mine for anecdotes and illustrations, but as an apprenticeship of the imagination. In this warm and wise book, Austin Carty invites pastors to develop capacious reading habits, as wide and curious and wonderful as the world in which they serve. I hope this book is an occasion for many pastors to build new shelves of poetry and fiction, biography and memoir, all of them adventures in understanding humanity.”
— James K. A. Smith
Recommended Episodes:
Robert Fergusson : The Power of Story https://www.expositorscollective.com/podcast/2022/10/11/the-power-of-story-with-robert-fergusson-rebroadcast
Don Sunukjian : Oral Clarity https://www.expositorscollective.com/podcast/2022/7/19/oral-clarity-and-establishing-relevance-by-rummaging-through-peoples-lives-with-don-sunukjian
Gerald Bray : Pastoral Care and Reading Chrysostom https://www.expositorscollective.com/podcast/2021/11/30/pastoral-preaching-brevity-and-john-chrysostom-gerald-bray
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The Expositors Collective podcast is part of the CGNMedia, Working together to proclaim the Gospel, make disciples, and plant churches. For more content like this, visit https://cgnmedia.org/