The Preacher's Trust: A Practice for Becoming a Better Preacher
To become a better golfer, there are clear skills one can practice to improve. But what if you want to become a better preacher? The Preacher’s Trust offers ten areas to which preachers can dedicate consistent effort in order to see growth in their life, spirituality, and craft.
What the comical can do for your preaching (a guest post)
The humorous signifies discourse that aims to make us laugh. Period. The humorous links with the human body and its many foibles. By the comical, I refer to a use of humor that seeks something more than laughter; it aims a metanoia. Such, I believe, is what makes the comical worthy of the serious calling to which we have been called.
Four MISSED opportunities to take your sermon from good to great
This is the third of three posts in our blog series about getting unstuck during sermon prep. Today focuses on the opportunities we miss to take our sermons from good to great so that the message we so carefully discerned can truly land in the hearts of our listeners where the Spirit can do her best work.
The nuts and bolts of holy creativity: Two sources inspiring my creative life right now (a guest post)
“I love reading to and listening to other creatives talk about their craft and process. Their perspectives not only provide practical tools and advice for my own work, they help me feel less alone in this strange space of creation. They help me believe the invisible work I do matters. These two gems offer insight on revision, inspiration, and getting to a finished sermon/story/script/etc. that is greater than the sum of its original concepts and drafts.”
Acts 2 Versus The Tower of Babel: The Key to Crafting a Sermon Your Listeners Understand
Just as the backstory of preachers’ lives profoundly influences the way we interpret Scripture, discern a message, and deliver our sermons, the backstories of each listener and the congregation as a whole are influential in what they hear. One skill can help us connect our sermon message to our listeners’ context and existing knowledge so they can receive the sermon the Spirit intends for them.
Preaching Discipleship in a Climate Emergency (A Guest Post)
“Humanity has an extremely short window of time in which we can make a course correction regarding the climate emergency. Preaching discipleship in this time is one of the most critical and effective things that pastors can do to support, encourage, and challenge their people to respond.”
Preaching for Impact: How Understanding Personality Can Help Your Sermons Connect (A Guest Post)
“Each weekend, our churches gather, bringing with them a beautiful mixture of varied experiences, insights, struggles, gifts, tensions, and reactions to the world, which we call ‘personality’… Personality is our strategy to survive and thrive in the world. It is the wise preacher who spends her time learning as much as she can about the nature of personality and learning to speak to the beautiful variety present in the pew. After all, there is no way to guide hearers into a new vision for their place in God’s Kingdom and mission without meeting them, not just where they are, but in who they are.”
Three Homiletical Insights Preachers Can Learn from Howard Thurman (A Guest Post)
Dr. Edgar “Trey” Clark III, Assistant Professor of Preaching at Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, California, offers three practical preaching insights we can learn from Howard Thurman. “While the goal is not to imitate Thurman, I’m convinced he embodies wisdom that can be applied in relevant ways in diverse ministry contexts today.”
Laughing Our Way to the Truth (A Guest Post)
Enjoy this guest post from Rolf Jacobson, Luther Seminary Professor of Old Testament and the Alvin N. Rogness Chair of Scripture, Theology, and Ministry: “Preachers can learn from comedians—especially from stand-up comics. Because like us, they stand up in front of a gathering of people with nothing other than a microphone for protection.”
What Your Parishioners Wish They Could Tell You (A Guest Post)
(A guest post). Ever wonder what your listeners are thinking week to week? Consider these three suggestions from a life-long parishioner to ensure your messages connect at a soul-level.