Two-year anniversary of Gleaning Mustard Seeds

I like birthdays, anniversaries, and parties!

Last week marked two years of the Gleaning Mustard Seeds podcast.

Thank you for listening, telling others about the podcast, and your encouragement.

What’s been amazing to me is how people from all over the world hear about this podcast and listen.

There have been downloads from 89 countries and territories, 1,223 cities.

Here are the top 10 episodes for the past year, actually 11.

There was a tie for #10.

#10

What preachers wish elders knew about preachers — this episode tells how one preacher answered that question:  https://www.buzzsprout.com/2369804/episodes/17675906

Observations on a preacher moving — details I noted after talking with 16 churches over a period of four months while I was moving from one congregation to another:  https://www.buzzsprout.com/2369804/episodes/17508626

#9

Suicide questions — how’s a good way to respond to someone who tells you they’re thinking about killing themselves? How do we answer the question about where a person goes in eternity after suicide?:  https://www.buzzsprout.com/2369804/episodes/18196159

#8

Is your preacher the PASTOR? — Often we object to calling our preacher, the pastor, what if he, in fact, is the main person who shepherds the sheep?:  https://www.buzzsprout.com/2369804/episodes/17210209

#7

Fleecy Clouds, forward and introduction — this is the recording of the audio version of Gail’s book about her life, read by our daughter Christi Parsons:  https://www.buzzsprout.com/2369804/episodes/17154505

#6

If you appoint a new elder, I’ll quit — this is a practice I began after moving in 1988, following conversations with 16 congregations:  https://www.buzzsprout.com/2369804/episodes/17509382

#5

12 leadership ideas — 12 ideas that you may not’ve thought about that can improve leadership in a local church:  https://www.buzzsprout.com/2369804/episodes/17563946

#4

First aid for gossip — where you find conflict in a church, you’ll also find gossip. How should we deal with that?: https://www.buzzsprout.com/2369804/episodes/17567229

#3

You look weird!!! — one of the most unusual, upsetting elders meetings I ever attended. I had nightmares for three of the next four nights after the elders made a very unusual observation:  https://www.buzzsprout.com/2369804/episodes/17133181

#2

Elder’s job description — one way I’ve observed elderships decline in effectiveness is by not holding one another accountable. One reason they don’t hold each other accountable is that they don’t define their expectations. This episode deals with a way to improve that situation:  https://www.buzzsprout.com/2369804/episodes/17634402

#1

Dealing with difficult people — using myself as a bad example, I reflect on the way that I’ve dealt with difficult people during my 65 years of preaching: https://www.buzzsprout.com/2369804/episodes/18392255

Fan Mail

Messages I’ve received from the podcast website during the past year. Names have been changed to the Doe family.

Thank you to every person who has taken time to send me Fan mail. Others have sent encouragement through email, text, Facebook, and in person.

Here are the messages from Fan mail.

Jerrie, you covered many pertinent areas that need to be discussed between elders and future preachers. It was refreshing to hear members included in the discussion. I’m in my 70’s and have never heard a sermon or class exploring the issues involved in this subject.

Jerrie, great mustard seed about group guidelines

This is John Doe from the Anywhere Church of Christ. I wanted to thank you for sending me the link to Gleaning Mustard Seeds back when you started. I have been encouraged listening to them. I should have sent a note sooner but in this week’s episode you said you work better with encouragement and I felt it was past time for me to offer some encouragement to you. I like the short and to the point lessons and look forward to hearing them every Monday. Sometimes it’s late when I get to them and sometimes time gets away and I have to do some catching up but I always enjoy them. May God continue to bless you and your family in the work in the Kingdom.

Good afternoon. My name is John Doe. I attend a congregation in central Somestate. My wife and I moved to the area 13 years ago. The congregation has been without elders for 15 years. I have often discussed our need to reestablishing elders in our “business meetings”, but I can’t seem to generate any desire with the men. Can you point me in a direction or offer some advice to help us in this goal? I feel I am ready to serve, but of course can not do this alone. We desperately need elders to shepherd the flock.

Hello Jerry. After listening to this podcast on starting a new congregation, I was wondering what you felt about the split in our church? Thanks for your thoughts. This is Jane Doe

I so enjoy hearing about your experiences and how they helped to mold you!!

hearing the voices of Christie & Braydon brings me joy. Jerrie’s voice brings me courage. I believe I am the most devoted follower. Listening is sacramental to me

I learned a long time ago that very little ground is gained on the battlefield of arguments by words. I have developed the technique of remaining silent and listening intently as the other side holds forth. Often I say that I am trying to understand their position and ask them to limit their words to those that they think would help me. Thus I often gain the upper hand

Those of the words of some of you kind listeners during the past year.

Often, people like to give gifts for birthdays and anniversaries. I’d like to suggest two gifts I’d like to receive from you who listen to my podcast.

Gift number one: Please reflect on one of the most interesting episodes of this podcast you’ve enjoyed and send the link or the title to two friends who might also enjoy that episode. You may have to help some of your friends learn how to download and listen to a podcast — or have your grandchildren to do that.

Gift number two: please leave a review on the page or in the app where you listen to Gleaning Mustard Seeds.

Thank you for your encouragement over the past two years. My commitment is that as long as I’m able and at least one person downloads an episode each week, I’ll keep talking.

I’m putting links in my Buzzprout website transcript to the top 10 episodes. You can find those in the transcript at that website or send me a text, email, or phone call.

Thank you again for reading and listening, and let’s keep gathering and planting mustard seeds!