Would You Help Me Grow the More Than a Pastor Show?

Have you ever been in a situation when you really needed to ask someone for help with something? But you hated to have to ask because you didn’t want to put them out? In the end, you did ask. And it felt good. Because you got the help you really needed, and others were truly blessed by the opportunity to help you?

I had a situation just like that when our oldest son was diagnosed with a brain tumor. This was more than 20 years ago. And our son was 3-½ years old.

For a number of weeks, maybe even a couple of months, we knew something was wrong with him, but no matter how many times we took him to our doctor or the ER, they could never find anything wrong with him.

Until the day - June 15 of 2000 - when I brought him to the hospital for a CT scan. And the technician asked us to wait, and wait, and wait, because a doctor was going to take a look at the scan.

Finally, the doctor came in and told me that he needed to admit my son right away because he had a brain tumor the size of a small orange, and it needed to be removed as soon as possible.

And yes, I did say that I took him, and he was my son…and not me and my wife or our son…because my wife was about 9-months pregnant with our 3rd child, so she could not come into the Radiology department and stayed home.

And I had to call her and ask, “Umm Honey, are you sitting down…?”

So what does this have to do with asking for help?

Well you see, a couple of weeks before the tumor diagnosis, I had begun building a play fort for our growing family. When finished, it would feature a climbing wall, slide, swings, and more. And during the 5 weeks our son was hospitalized and had two brain surgeries, I just didn’t have the energy to finish it.

Until it was time for our son to come home.

But it wasn’t just about finishing the play fort. There was also a couple yards of wood chips that needed to be spread in that whole play area in our back yard.

I knew I needed help to git er done. But I didn’t want to ask for help.

Have you been there? I think as pastors, we are so used to being the ones who give, and serve, and help. And we feel that our needs aren’t so great, or more important than the needs of others. So we don’t ask for help.

Or maybe it’s just the sin of pride. That we’re above asking others to help us.

Either way, I’m grateful that I was able to overcome my hesitancy to ask for help. I shared the need with a friend, and they got in touch with a few others, and within minutes we had several volunteers who were more than happy to come and help us finish our back yard project.

They came that next Saturday. It was very moving to see everyone arrive, ready to get to work. It ended up being a ton of fun that day. And the work got done in no time. And probably better than if I had just done it myself.

But only because I admitted that I needed help, and overcome my hesitancy of asking others if they would be willing to help me.

One lesson I’ll never forget is how everyone was blessed that day. My family was blessed by the generosity of the people who came to help. And THEY were blessed by the opportunity to serve and create a blessing for us.

That’s just how God’s kingdom works doesn’t it? Helping and blessing others is a two-way street.

Help Me Grow My Show?

So…today I’d like to admit to you that I need a little help with growing my podcast, the More Than a Pastor show.

I don’t know how long you’ve been listening, or how you found out about the show. But someone you found it and gave me a listen. And unless this is your first episode, you came back for more.

You might have noticed that I started this podcast back in the summer of 2020, and created 10 episodes. And then I podfaded, and took a break for about a year. And now since February of 2022 I’ve tried to create new episodes twice a month.

The fact that you’re listening to this episode means a lot. I appreciate you showing up.

My desire is to create new episodes every week from here on out. For a couple of reasons:

I want to grow my show and help as many pastors as possible discover how to create income outside the church so they can serve God and provide for their family, no matter what.

I feel like I owe it to you, the listener, to be consistent in creating content on a regular basis. If you enjoy the show and want to listen regularly, you deserve to know that every week on the same day, at the same time, there will be a new show to listen to.

September Challenge: New Podcast Episodes Every Day

In order to do that, I’ve challenged myself in the month of September to create new content not every week…but every day.

I know, it sounds super crazy, doesn’t it, if I can’t be consistent in creating a new episode every week, how can I create new content every day?

Well, what I want to do is get into the habit of creating every day, and not overthinking what I want to share, or delaying in putting it out there.

I think it will be fun to challenge and push myself to create every day, but not worry that each episode needs to be a certain length. Some may be longer…others may be really short.

But hopefully, each episode will contain content that will encourage, entertain, and bless you in some way.

Now, you may not be up for listening to me every day…and that’s cool. Listen when you can. If a show title and description sounds interesting to you, give it a listen. If not, skip it for now. Maybe you’ll come back to it another time when you need something to binge listen to.

And do you want to know what’s funny? I’m already late. I didn't get started recording until September 5!

But here’s where I’d like to ask for your help. My goals for the month of September are to…

1. Develop the habit of consistency in producing shows on a regular basis. I think this will result in a higher quality listening experience for you. And help more pastors discover how they can create income outside the church, so they can serve God and provide for their family no matter what.
2. Double the number of episodes so I can break the 50 episode barrier. I think it’ll feel so great to get to the point of having more than 50 episodes, and it will really help me create more momentum for the show, and help more people to find it.
3. Grow my More Than a Pastor private Facebook group from 30 members to 100. I want my Facebook group to be a place where pastors who are on the same journey to create income outside the church can connect together, encourage and support one another, ask questions and get answers, discover new ideas, and more. I’d like to get in the habit of sharing content there that is only for members of the group.

Here’s where you come in, and can help me grow my show and achieve my goals:

1. Would you take a minute to join my private Facebook community? It’s free. You can find it at morethanapastor.com/facebook. If this is all you do, it would be enough. Because I’d love to connect with you over there and get to know you.
2. Would you be sure you’re subscribed to the show so you can be notified when new episodes are available?
3. Would you think of someone who ought to know about the show, and take a moment to share it with them? Maybe you’ve got a friend in ministry who is struggling financially and are wondering how to create more income to make ends meet. Or maybe someone who’s got three side hustles going already…and maybe they’d love to connect with other pastors doing the same.
4. Would you take a minute to give me some feedback on the show? You can do that in a couple of ways: You can leave me a review on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen. That’d be a huge help. Or you can share feedback in the More than a pastor community on Facebook. Or you can email me at [email protected]. Specifically, I’d love to know what you like about the show. What you don’t like. And suggestions for topics you’d like to see me cover in future episodes.

I know I’m asking a lot. But hey, at least I’m no longer afraid to ask for help.

And maybe that’s the biggest thing that’s been holding me back in all of this…

Fear…

• Fear Of Failure…That I might fail at this…that no one will listen to the show or that the content I’m producing won’t really help anyone
• Fear Of success…That, to achieve the kind of success I want means that I might need to change and grow and become the person who is worthy of achieving the success I’ve envisioned as a podcaster, coach, and guide. We want the end result, but we don’t want to become the person we need to become in order to achieve the end result.

I don’t know…maybe you can relate.

So, thanks for taking the time to listen today, it really means a lot to me.

Hey before we go, during this month of September, 2022, I want to give away 3 free copies of The Wealth of Connection by my friend Vincent Pugliese. And I’d love for you to be one of the winners!

The Wealth of Connection is an awesome book that will open your eyes to the power of connection and generosity. I know we already know this as pastors. But this book impacted me in ways I didn’t expect. And I think it will impact you too.

Here’s how to enter to win:

1. Go over to the More Than a Pastor Community on Facebook and introduce yourself, share how you found the show, ask a question, or share one of your biggest questions or challenges or hopes about creating income outside of the church through your own business or side hustle.
2. During the month of September 2022, three winners will be selected to receive a copy of the book. When the selections are made, winners will be contacted by direct message so I can get their mailing address and send them the book. 

Hey, before we go…do you believe it’s possible to get out of life whatever you want? Or are things pretty much fixed, and you’re going to get what you’re going to get? We’ll talk about that in the next episode, I hope you’ll join me.

Until then, remember that you are more than a pastor, saying yes to God’s call doesn’t mean you have to say yes to feeling stuck, broke or unfulfilled in your life or ministry. Let’s work together to help you create the life impact and income you were made for.