Ministry is inherently unpredictable. Pastors must regularly move from one conversation, crisis, or circumstance to another, learning to navigate the various contexts and demands of life. In Shepherding Time, Rush Witt and Joe Keller offer pastors a practical and thoughtful guide to managing time while remaining faithful to the calling of ministry.
Presence, Substance, and Sensitivity
The authors argue that shepherding time well requires more than simply creating schedules or becoming more productive. A pastor must learn to shepherd with presence, feed his people with substance, and shepherd with sensitivity. Because ministry involves people and relationships, pastors must recognize that all of life provides a context for making and multiplying disciples. At the same time, the sheep under our care have expectations, needs, and demands that require wisdom in how we steward our limited time.
I was most challenged to read eight ways pastors can misuse their time. The authors identify social media crusades and digital distractions among the potential dangers. Their discussion of guilt is particularly helpful. Pastors must learn to distinguish true guilt, which calls us to respond rightly to actual sin, from false guilt, which leaves us feeling like failures over things that God has not required of us.
Wisdom, Flexibility, and Faithfulness
I was most helped by learning how to master “time pivots”—the ability to transition effectively from one responsibility or interaction to another without losing sight of the people and priorities before us. This is essential for pastoral effectiveness, but it also contributes to spiritual health.
The book concludes by helping pastors think more intentionally about planning their time while also encouraging them to view time seasonally and with an eternal perspective. Ministry will always involve competing demands, unexpected interruptions, and seasons that require different priorities. Rather than allowing these realities to control us, Shepherding Time shows how pastors can learn to steward their time with wisdom, flexibility, and faithfulness.
I received a media copy of Shepherding Time (Amazon, 5% off your entire order always with code DIVEINDIGDEEP at Westminster Bookstore) and this is my honest review. Find more of my book reviews and follow Dive In, Dig Deep on Instagram - my account dedicated to Bibles and books to see the beauty of the Bible and the role of reading in the Christian life. To read all of my book reviews and to receive all of the free eBooks I find on the web, subscribe to my free newsletter.