Is it possible to push changes to a remote repository without commiting to the master branch? I use the remote repo just for deploying.
No, there is no way to do that, as it would completely oppose the whole "git strategy", I guess. I don't know about your deployment system, but I guess a good way to do what you are trying to is to work on different branches (that is, on for development and one which gets deployed when pushed to), and merging the changes you want to be deployed from your development-branch into your live branch.