Deeper Experiences with God Seeds, Seasons & Soil: A Conversation on the Pastor as Gardener with Matt Erickson - Deeper Experiences with God - Episode 18
Mar 12, 2026
Matt Erickson, senior pastor, author and doctoral graduate focused on discipleship and spiritual formation. He discusses pastoral ministry as gardening, spiritual seasons (spring, summer, fall, winter), decreasing self to let God increase, cultivating rooted, multiracial congregational life, and planting hope for future generations.
53:21
Fruitful Ministry Comes From Overflow
- Fruitful ministry flows from the overflow of a pastor's own life with God.
- Matt Erickson says ministry can't be merely techniques or books; deep personal communion produces natural fruitfulness.
Pause And Release Control In Pastoral Care
- Decrease control and listen before acting in pastoral conversations.
- Matt pauses internally in pastoral moments to ask if his impulse is from God or his own agenda and then releases control to listen.
Eastbrook’s Multicultural Urban Identity
- Eastbrook Church developed a multiracial, multiethnic, intergenerational identity by staying in Milwaukee and serving international students.
- Matt describes people from ~30 nations, founders aging, and a recent influx of young families shaping ministry needs.
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Intro
00:00 • 2min
Guiding Sentences for Life and Ministry
01:55 • 3min
What Decreasing Looks Like Practically
04:31 • 3min
Fruitful Ministry from Rooted Spiritual Life
07:46 • 2min
Eastbrook Church: Multiracial, Missional Community
09:21 • 3min
Engagement, Curiosity, and Alpha Groups
12:37 • 3min
Eugene Peterson's Influence on Pastoral Vision
15:42 • 4min
Why 'Pastor as Gardener' Reframes Ministry
19:42 • 3min
Cultural Soil: Secular Age Challenges
22:21 • 4min
Assessing Personal and Congregational Soil
26:07 • 2min
Seasons of the Spiritual Life
28:08 • 4min
Why North American Church May Be in Winter
31:43 • 4min
Planting for Future Generations
35:30 • 2min
Jesus as Gardener and New Creation
37:20 • 4min
Matt's Evolving Experience with God
41:20 • 6min
Led Prayer for Rootedness and Fruitfulness
47:40 • 4min
Outro
51:20 • 2min
#13600
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The man who planted trees
Jean Giono
The story follows Elzéard Bouffier, a shepherd who dedicates his life to reforesting a barren valley in the French Alps.
Over forty years, his persistent efforts transform the landscape, bringing life and prosperity to the area.
The narrative highlights the power of individual action in environmental regeneration.
#34070
• Mentioned in 2 episodes
Working the Angles
The Shape of Pastoral Integrity
Eugene Peterson
#3573
• Mentioned in 13 episodes
A long obedience in the same direction
discipleship in an instant society
Eugene Peterson
In 'A Long Obedience in the Same Direction', Eugene H. Peterson explores the Psalms of Ascent (Psalms 120-134) to provide a framework for Christian discipleship.
The book emphasizes the need for patience, persistence, and faithfulness in a world that often seeks quick fixes and immediate results.
Peterson argues that true spiritual growth and maturity come from a long-term commitment to following God's path.
#1230
• Mentioned in 32 episodes
The Message
Ta Nehisi Coates
In 'The Message', Ta-Nehisi Coates delves into the intersections of race, power, and identity through three intertwining essays.
The book is part memoir, part travelogue, and part writing primer.
Coates reflects on his visits to Dakar, Senegal, where he grapples with his Afrocentric roots; Columbia, South Carolina, where he examines the backlash against historical reckoning and book banning; and Palestine, where he critiques nationalist narratives and their impact on reality.
The book emphasizes the urgent need to untangle destructive myths and embrace difficult truths to create a more just future.
#46264
The Pastor in a Secular Age
Andrew Root
#84813
A Burning of My Bones
Eugene Peterson (biographer: Winn Collier)
Winn Collier's biography offers a detailed account of Eugene Peterson’s life, ministry, and influence as a pastor and writer, tracing his development and the context for works like The Message.
The book examines Peterson’s theological commitments, pastoral practices, and literary craftsmanship, situating him within late 20th‑century American Christianity.
Collier draws on interviews, correspondence, and archival material to render an intimate portrait of Peterson’s interior life and vocational struggles.
The biography highlights Peterson’s emphasis on spiritual formation, conversational pastoral care, and the 'unforced rhythms of grace' that shaped his writing and mentorship.
It serves as both a scholarly and pastoral resource for understanding Peterson’s enduring impact.
#25023
• Mentioned in 2 episodes
The Pastor as Gardener
A Renewed Vision for Ministry
Matt Erickson
Matt Erickson draws on Scripture, pastoral tradition, and contemporary cultural analysis to propose the metaphor of the pastor as gardener for renewed ministry.
The book explores agrarian imagery (including 1 Corinthians 3 and John’s gardener scene), attention to soil and seasons, and time‑tested pastoral practices focused on prayer, listening, and formation.
Erickson weaves influences from Eugene Peterson, Wendell Berry, and others to critique managerial/reductionist models and encourage ministry that cultivates deep roots in God. He offers practical theological reflection for pastors and congregations navigating a secular age and a perceived winter season for North American churches.
The book invites patient, hope‑filled planting and tending, trusting God as the one who brings growth.
#44403
Under the Unpredictable Plant
Eugene Peterson
Eugene Peterson’s 'Under the Unpredictable Plant' uses biblical and pastoral reflection to explore how spiritual growth and ministry unfold in often unseen, organic ways.
Peterson emphasizes patience, listening, and the Holy Spirit’s work rather than human control or success metrics, drawing on agrarian imagery and pastoral experience.
The book seeks to free pastors and Christians from performance‑driven ministry, advocating for formation that grows up over time under God’s care.
Peterson’s poetic language and theological depth have made the work influential for those embracing contemplative and incarnational ministry practices.
It complements his broader corpus encouraging 'unforced rhythms of grace. '
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/