For bivocational and busy ministers, time is a precious commodity. Balancing the demands of a congregation, a job, and often a family can be overwhelming. Sermon preparation, a vital aspect of pastoral ministry, can sometimes feel like a daunting task amidst the busyness of life. However, with strategic planning and the right resources, preparing impactful …
Preaching is a divine calling, a sacred task entrusted to those who have dedicated their lives to sharing the Word of God. The pulpit is a place of profound responsibility, where preachers stand as messengers of the Almighty, conveying His truth and grace to the congregation. While many preachers rely on meticulously prepared notes or …
Preaching Without Notes: Trusting in Preparation and the Holy Spirit Read More »
The art of preaching is as old as Christianity itself, and throughout history, preachers have grappled with the question of how best to deliver their message. One of the fundamental debates within this realm is whether to preach from an outline or a manuscript. Each approach has its merits, and the choice between the two …
Whether to Preach from an Outline or a Manuscript Read More »
This article originally appeared on my blog, pastorhuff.org. I’ve rewritten it somewhat for this site. One of the first tasks in preparing a sermon is simply selecting the biblical text to preach from. While it seems like such a simple thing, it can often be a monumental task. The text will determine the message. Preaching from …
How to Prepare a Sermon: Selecting the Sermon Text Read More »
Once you’ve selected a passage to use as the text for the sermon, it’s time to study. While there are some preachers who pride themselves in preaching extemporaneously, without notes, it would still be foolish to do so without first studying the text to be preached. Even if you ultimately decide not to take notes with …
There are many places to get experience preaching. Some will be easier to arrange than others, and some places will be more comfortable than others, but all of them will allow you to practice preaching and give you some great feedback on your sermons. 1. Preach at Church Probably the most obvious place to get …
I have a notebook in my Evernote account with topics that I’d like to incorporate into future sermons. Sometimes they’re one-liners, other times they’re fairly developed ideas. I also have a notebook of illustrations. Some are hilarious jokes that I can’t wait to use. Others are incredibly touching stories. I’ve even attached some of them to specific verses of …
One of the best things you can do to improve your preaching is simply to write everyday. This post is a little different from other posts that I’ve been writing about sermon preparation. It’s less about the process of preparing a sermon, and more about just getting better at preparing sermons. I know that probably makes …
There are a number of things that we need to do as we prepare sermons. We need to select a passage of Scripture. We need to study that passage. We (generally) need to write down our thoughts and organize them. But I think before you even start to prepare a sermon, you need to prepare …
There are many types of preachers out there. Some are loud and charismatic, others are quiet and reverent. Others seem to be all over the place. And certainly different environments call for different styles of preaching and preachers. Sometimes when we look at all of these styles of preaching, and we see how some have …
