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How to Prepare – Know the Congregation
The preacher's preparation must include attention to the congregation. As far as possible, the preacher should have a knowledge of the congregation and current events therein.
You may think that this is simply being idealistic, but it really is not. How can the preacher get this knowledge? The preacher learns about the congregation by observation during worship, or prior conversations. In addition, the preacher can explicitly speak to members of the congregation as well as the pastoral staff to gain an understanding of the congregation to be addressed.
When you are on this fact finding mission, please discover if the church is a traditional church or a contemporary hip-hop oriented church. This will affect your presentation to that congregation. Determine if the church is made up largely of youth, age, or a mix. And remember that adequate sermonic preparation makes it possible to change things like the introduction or close on the basis of these observations. The more you know your sermon, the more you can improvise over it to adequately address the needs of the congregation.
How to Prepare – Preach to the Occasion
One of the best ways to show the congregation that you prepare is to preach to the occasion. If it is youth day, preach to the youth. Youth sermons may prove to be the hardest sermons to perform because they involve all of the intense exegetical and theological work of any other sermon, but they also require another big step. Youth sermons require one to posit intensely deep messages in language and life experiences that children can understand.
If you are asked to preach at the Usher's annual day, preach about that, likewise for Men’s day, Easter and the like. A minister friend of mine often jokes about attending a sunrise Easter service in which all of the preachers kept preaching Good Friday texts, and continually going to the cross out of habit. He said to me “man don’t these folks know Friday was two days ago, it’s Sunday, and today He got UP.” Likewise, we don’t want the congregation saying, "Doesn’t the preacher know what today is? Men’s day was last month and today is Women’s day."
To conclude, if you have been called to preach a sermon, preparation means that you know the occasion otherwise you are opening yourself up to certain embarrassment.
Prophet or Psychic
Early in the morning I turned on the television to hopefully cure some insomnia. On this day, I found what looked like one of those Psychics. Only upon further reflection, I found some well known Christian personalities supporting the person. Then I found out that although the preacher was using the techniques of psychics he was a Christian minister, a "prophet."
The prophet told us that if we give him a call, he will tell us our personal prophecy. If we call him, we will be assigned a personal prophet who will help us. The program told us that we should not ever have want for financial resources. God would take care of us if we would only follow the instructions that God had provided in God's word. Then a well known Christian author supported the "prophet."
Using the Devil's Formula
There were two things that really surprised me about this. First was the use of the psychics formula to sell these aleged prophecies from God. We see the prophet asking us to give him a call for his personal "prophecy," Very much like the personal "reading" that the psychic gives those who call. It was a very disorienting thing to see a prophet using the mechanisms of the demonic to prop up and sell his prophecies.
In addition, what was surprising was the belief that when you are right with God you will be right with your money. These "prophets" are telling us that if you have money problems you are doing something wrong. When you get diseases you have done something incorrect. When everything is not right in your life, then you need to straighten up so that God can "bless" you.
No One Wants to Hear the Truth
These prophets will always have an audience because no one wants to hear the truth which is that sometimes you can follow all the principles and laws of God that you should, and you still don't get the new car. Sometimes you can cast out the demon of poverty and find that your bank account is still empty. Certainly we should pray without ceasing, but grandma may still die. That is the simple truth. We know it experientially, but we still hope that the new "prophet" can give us the word that sidesteps the Biblical word that all who will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution. (2 Timothy 3:12)
Yes there will be those who can guarantee money, fame, and fortune, but one must always be careful, for Satan himself promised fortune and a kingdom to Christ in the temptations in the wilderness. One must be careful of the "prophets" that you listen to for even Satan himself shall be transformed into an angel of light. (2 Corinthians 11:14)
God With Us not Someone's Empty Promise
God's promise is that God will be with us in the pain and heartache. Let's accept this truth as the Psalmist who said, "yea though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death...thou art with me" (Psalm 23:4). I would rather have the true God with me in the shadow of death, than an empty belief in a flimsy promise by a so-called "prophet."
How to Prepare – Know the Church and Pastor
Another way to be prepared is to practice properly established protocol. One should have rehearsed citing:
- The church’s name
- The pastor’s name
- The name of the auxiliary which extended the invitation.
- The occasion that brought forth your invitation
I can recall with dread being asked to preach for a pastor in a surrounding city. This pastor was the president of the state convention, and so I addressed him accordingly, however, I mispronounced his name! I felt like a clown when the congregation communally corrected me. It was like a public chastisement. Previously, only he and I knew that I was a novice preacher, but after that moment everyone knew. It was an uphill battle trying to deliver the message because my lack of preparation ushered in an extreme sense of nervousness.
How To Prepare - Re-Read Your Manuscript
OK, we all know that we should prepare, but how do you prepare? Many put forth much effort into creating a strong manuscript, and then step into the pulpit having spent little time reading the document.
Know Your Manuscript
In contrast, great preacher's review their sermon several times before arriving at the appointed place. My mentor, the Rev. G.L. Parks, has suggested that one reads their manuscript no less than 10 times prior to preaching it. The preacher should especially pay attention to details like spelling and grammatical concerns. Such efforts will help to ensure that the preacher doesn’t stumble over or mispronounce words.
Know Your Biblical Text
For those who opt to preach without a script, familiarizing one’s self with the introduction, major points transitions, and the close is helpful. Regardless of how one presents the material, a good way to be prepared is to be familiar with the text. Many seasoned pastors suggest that one knows their text well enough to cite it from memory. This is a good idea, and one should be familiar with the text enough to put emphasis where necessary in the text. Also having the proper pronunciation for difficult proper names is also a good way of demonstrating competence through preparation.
Thus preparing a strong manuscript is just the beginning, preparation includes knowing the Biblical text as well as one's manuscript very well.
The Advantages of Preparation
We cannot say enough about preparation. Some sage once said that proper preparation prevents poor performance. This is especially true in the preaching moment.
Preparation Lowers Preacher's Fears
My fellow preachers, I have observed a few advantages of being prepared and will delineate some of them in this article. First, being prepared helps to ease nervousness. For the associate minister and the visiting minister alike preaching in a foreign pulpit can be a terror-filled experience. However, being prepared will help the preacher lesson this "terror."
Preparation Lowers Congregational Apprehension
Let's be real, most of the time people come to church expecting to hear a word through their pastor. Many have joined the church because they appreciate the ministry of their pastor. Often these people are taken aback when they see another where the pastor "should be." Being prepared helps the preacher by allowing the preacher to become a willing and energetic participant in all of the service. The preacher can read the text, sing the congregational hymn and participate in other visible ways. This participation can help the preacher get a feel for the congregation and help to lower the apprehension of the people.
Conclusion
Thus preparation helps both the preacher and the congregation. If you have an especially horror filled moment, remember you prepared and say a quick prayer to God as you participate in the praise of the worship service. Perhaps your fear will be overtaken by your praise.
SoulPreaching is a Black Web Award Nominee
SoulPreaching is proud to announce that it is a finalist in the Black Web Awards. I would encourage all of our visitors who enjoy this site to go and vote for us at the Black Web Awards site.
Teresa Fry Brown and Charles Adams Preaching Dos and Don'ts
This is the final post in the series discussing notes on Dr. Charles Adams' class entitled "Preaching, Black and White." Specifically the lecture entitled "do's and don'ts." Teresa Fry Brown wrote up notes from that lecture on page 164 and 165 of her book Weary Throats and New Songs. We have had nine articles in the series:
- Avoiding a Dull Sermon - How to avoid being dull in preaching effectively.
- Don't Apologize for the Message - When God gives you a message, don't be afraid of it, stand up and preach it if you are to be an effective preacher.
- Preachers must Protect the Voice - If you are to be an effective preacher you must not abuse your voice.
- Your Voice is an Instrument - Preach like It - Don't preach in a monotonous way, use changes in dynamics, tone, and rhythm.
- Preach with the People - Don't preach above or below the people, but to them.
- Stealing Another Person's Sermon - What It Says About You?
- What are the results when we steal other people's sermons.- On the Reuse of Sermons - How to Re-use a sermon.
- Should You Imitate Other Preachers? - What happens when you imitate other preachers?
- How Long to Preach? - How Long should your sermon be?
These tips can help any preacher become a much more effective one. You can read any of the above articles simply by clicking the article titles.
Dr. Brad Braxton and Riverside Church
Dr. Braxton is a pastor, preacher, and scholar. He has greatly helped me in my preaching and I am very happy to have learned from him. I am sure that God will continue to work through him in his future endeavors.
How Long to Preach
However, this is a personal thing. I have heard some strong preachers preach on a very interesting topic for an hour and have wondered where the time went. I have also heard dry ponderous presentations that felt like 2 hours when it was really 30 minutes. So I guess we have two points. The first point is to say something significant and needed and helpful. If you present something significant in an interesting way, then you will have few people disappointed in your length.
However your average preacher would do better to preach shorter sermons because it is easier for the people to process and it is easier for the preacher to stay interesting.
The Stages of Exegesis
- Prayer - You should not open the Bible without praying for the guidance of the Spirit in understanding the principles found in the text.
- Initial Read - Now before you really get into thinking deeply about the text you want to get the initial impressions. Read the text and simply note whatever comes to your mind. A title may come to your mind, a theme may come to your mind, and even a gospel song or hymn. Whatever comes to your mind write it down. Here you are at your most creative point. However you will need to refine these observations later.
Dr. Caeser Clark - Passes Away
Thanks to the resurrection of Jesus, we know that those who have died are only asleep, and in a little while, we shall hear the trumpet of God waking the resting, and the dead in Christ shall rise first, and then we who are a live an remain shall meet the Lord in the air and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
We pray that God will protect the ashes of this man of God till the mortal takes on immortality. Here is the AP Story, and here is another story.
Should You Imitate Other Preachers?
The thought here is to strive to be yourself. Certainly one can learn from other preachers. I have written about this in many other articles. Just as the Jazz musician listens to other musicians, certainly we will listen to preachers and gain something from them. However, it is very problematic to imitate someone, especially when one has heard the one that you are copying. The people have come to hear you preach so you preach. God has called us to preach in our own gender, ethnicity, and denominational tradition. Copying will short circuit your creativity and make you redundant. If I want some big name preacher to preach, I will get them, but if I have called you, I want you. Let God speak to the people with your voice.
On the Reuse of Sermons
The book argues that we should not repeat a sermon unless we "filter" it. I have heard homiletics instructors argue over this topic. One of my homiletics teachers stated that you should never re-use a sermon. In this instructors mind, the sermon is so tied to circumstances and situations that it can not legitimately be used again in another circumstance and situation. Certainly there is some truth here. The vast majority of sermons are so closely tied to this situation that it cannot be used again verbatim.
However, as one of my other professors stated, if it is worth preaching once, it is worth preaching again. However that professor would agree with Adams, through Brown, who states that "new experience, new information, [and] new communication" require that the sermon be recast into the new situation.
Simple Preaching Survival Strategies - Be Punctual
In this article we continue discussing simple strategies that will greatly increase your effectiveness as a preacher. The next one is something of special interest to those of us who are especially prone to CP (Colored People) Time. I don't necessarily believe that there is a correlation between melanin and tardiness, but there is amongst us an ongoing realization that too often we are not on time. To increase your effectiveness, you must be punctual.
Why Being on Time is Important?
We cannot say enough about being on time. Being on time is a necessity. It informs members of the congregation that you take ministry and their time seriously. While it is true that circumstances arise in all of our lives that force us to be a little late at times, but timeliness in the matter of preaching ought to be our habit. Arriving late makes it seem as if you were preoccupied with more pressing matters than both the Gospel and the people; what could be more important than these things?
Conclusion
To Conclude, being on time will demonstrate to the people that you take your role as a preacher seriously and that you think that their time is important. If at all possible be on time and watch your effectiveness as a preacher increase.
Simple Preaching Survival Strategies - Be Present
While God plays the most significant role in the preaching task, the preacher must aid God in the work. Preachers can follow some simple strategies that will greatly aid the preaching moment. In the next 4 posts we will look at a few of these simple strategies. The first is to simply be present.
Arriving is a Statement
Simply arriving at a preaching engagement, is a powerful statement. As a minister, or ambassador of Christ we face many arduous circumstances, hindrances, and devilish detours all aimed at derailing us from spreading the gospel. Thus in a very real sense simply showing up and being present at the preaching moment is a powerful proclamation of God's keeping power. Showing up also demonstrates that the preacher sees the preaching moment as more important than creaturely comfort. So be present because when you show up you are saying, "God is more powerful than Satan, and Good is more powerful than evil."
Do we Need the Black Church? - Napoleon Harris
Acts 4:20 (KJV) For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard.I believe that these words uttered in antiquity by Peter and John have much to offer those of us wrestling with the pressing circumstances of modernity. Particularly the quandary pertaining to the necessity of the Black church. There are those who seem to believe that the institution known as the Black church has run its course, and is no longer necessary. This paradigm seems to make sense, after all there is little doubt that African Americans, as a collective, have achieved wealth and social status equal to any other ethnic group within the United States. In addition, society has seemingly erased the color line. There is no longer legislated segregation. Hence the question arises, why do we segregate ourselves, particularly on Sunday morning; is there a need for the Black church?
Stealing Another Person's Sermon - What It Says About You?
One lacks homiletical integrity, authority, creativity, character, calm, and spirituality if one's entire preaching life is stolen.Brown notes that one should at least credit a source if one uses another's introduction, alliteration, or other device. Stealing sermons hurts you because as you steal, you slowly lose your own creativity to put together strong sermons. In addition, there is a great possibility to lose credibility with the people. I remember hearing a particularly strong sermon from a well-regarded preacher. Later in my seminary study, I was reading a book of sermons and found that sermon word for word. This brought into question all of the sermons that he had preached.
Preach With the People
Brown notes: "We preach with people not at, over, or under them." That is a very compact and powerful statement that deserves some unpacking. First, we do not preach at the people. Preaching at, over, or under the people would seem to infer that the people do not play the proper role in the sermon creation as well as sermon delivery. We all have heard the preachers who do not take the people into account in their preaching. Sometimes the preachers use language that does not help, but hinders the reception. Some preachers seem to attempt to prove their intelligence or their preparation time. They are always throwing greek terms in their sermons and using technical terms from their seminary days. While I think that Greek should be an intimate part of your preparation, in presentation we should attempt to translate the ideas into language understood by the people.
In addition, there are those who preach under the people. Some preachers never give the people anything but milk and never attempt meat. They never attempt to give the people the things that will push them to a higher level in Jesus. In addition, there are those who preach as if they are talking to children. Your sermons should take into account who is in your audience.
Yes the we must preach with the people. That means that when the people tell you something is hard to understand (maybe through puzzled looks or even vocally) then you should expand on that point. when people tell you that they want to linger there a little bit more, go ahead and linger. Sure you must preach what God has given you to preach, but the preaching must be WITH the people and not TO them. If you preach with the people, your presentations will be much more effective communications of the gospel.
