Why North American Church May Be in Winter

What season is your life with God currently in? Discover more how God moves in the Spring, Summer, Fall and Winter of our lives with this episode’s guest, Matt Erickson, senior pastor of Eastbrook Church in Milwaukee. He and Dave discuss a renewed vision for pastoral ministry drawn from Matt’s upcoming book, “The Pastor as Gardener”. Erickson shares about how “God must increase, I must decrease” and that fruitful ministry best comes from an overflow of life with God—describing decreasing as cooperating with God through prayer, listening, and releasing control. Erickson reflects on the church’s “winter” season of decline and disorientation as an invitation to return to first things. Through scripture and the influence of other theologians like Eugene Peterson, he shares more on Jesus’ “gardener” imagery in John as a new creation. As always, the episode closes with a led prayer for rootedness and fruitfulness.

Takeaways:

• Fruitful Ministry Flows from Life with God - Matt emphasizes that the most meaningful work for God flows out of a deep life with God. Echoing John the Baptist’s words, “He must increase, I must decrease,” true fruitfulness comes not from striving but from surrender and dependence.
  • Action: Identify one area where you may be striving in your own strength. Practice “decreasing” by bringing it to God in prayer and asking Him to lead instead.
• Discern the Season You’re In - Drawing from the rhythms of creation, Matt Erickson reminds us that our lives with God move through seasons—spring, summer, fall, and winter. Each season has its own purpose, whether growth, fruitfulness, pruning, or rest.
  • Action: Take time this week to reflect on which spiritual season you may be in right now. Ask God, “What are You inviting me to receive or learn in this season?”
• Cultivate the Soil of Your Soul - Drawing on the image of the pastor as gardener, Matt reminds us that growth takes place when we cultivate the conditions for life with God—through listening, prayer, and openness to the Spirit’s work.
  • Action: Choose one way to “tend the soil” of your spiritual life this week: spend time in silence, journal about where God is at work, or take a reflective walk outdoors while praying.
• God is the Ultimate Gardener - We see throughout scripture, from Genesis to Revelation, a recurring theme of the garden. Matt touches on some of those examples, reminding us of the slow, organic work that God does first that we can join in.
  • Action: Reflect this week on what the image of God as a Gardener says to you? Where do you need God to plant, tend, harvest or prune in the garden of your life right now?
• Trust God’s Subterranean Work in Winter - Matt describes winter as a season when the ground lies fallow. It may look barren, but unseen work is happening beneath the surface. In the same way, seasons of decline or uncertainty—both in our lives and in the North American church—may be times when God is quietly preparing the ground for renewal.
  • Action: If you’re in a winter season, resist the urge to force growth. Instead, ask God what unseen work He may be doing beneath the surface of your life or community.

Quote of the Show:

• “ Don't spend so much time trying to force fruit. Send your roots down deep into God and let the fruit come. It is a natural thing. ” - Matt Erickson

Links:

• Website: https://mwerickson.com/ 
• Book Link: https://www.eerdmans.com/9780802884145/the-pastor-as-gardener/ 
• Podcast: https://mwerickson.com/podcast/