Monthly Archives: August 2008

by | August 21, 2008

Not a Rule, But a Commitment to Expository Order

I split the preparation process into two.  Stages 1-4 focus on the text.  Stages 5-8 are concerned with forming the message.  Before beginning to think about the message, it is a good idea to consider the listeners (audience analysis).  Until … Continue reading →

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Filed under Audience Analysis, Christianity, Homiletics, How to . . . ?, Preacher's Personal Life, Preaching, Religion, Stage 1 - Passage Selection, Stage 2 - Passage Study, Stage 3 - Passage Purpose, Stage 4 - Passage Idea, Stage 5 - Message Purpose, Stage 6 - Message Idea, Stage 7 - Message Outline, Stage 8 - Message Detail

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by | August 20, 2008

Real Life Is Raw

As I write this post I am sitting in a café working away at my laptop.  I can tune out most of what is going on around me.  But not at the moment.  Two parents and a teenage daughter are … Continue reading →

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Filed under Audience Analysis, Christianity, Delivery, Homiletics, How to . . . ?, Preacher's Personal Life, Preaching, Religion, Stage 8 - Message Detail

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by | August 19, 2008

Word Process the Reading

If you have a Bible reading that stands distinct, either within the sermon or before it, then consider using a word processor.  Why?  Because it is so hard to read well in public.  Simply pasting the text into a document … Continue reading →

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Filed under Christianity, Delivery, Homiletics, How to . . . ?, Preaching, Religion, Stage 7 - Message Outline, Stage 8 - Message Detail

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by | August 18, 2008

The Strength is in the Roots

Back in the 1950’s H. Grady Davis shifted the metaphor for a sermon.  Instead of something constructed by the preacher, a building, it is something grown, akin to a tree.  Here is another quote used in McDill’s book, 12 Essential … Continue reading →

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Filed under Audience Analysis, Christianity, Delivery, Homiletics, How to . . . ?, Preacher's Personal Life, Preaching, Religion, Stage 2 - Passage Study

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by | August 17, 2008

The Generational Dance

Parker Palmer (in The Courage to Teach) writes about when we as teachers lose heart, and how we might recapture the heart to teach.  He begins by raising the issue of those mentors that first stirred the passion to teach … Continue reading →

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by | August 16, 2008

It Can’t Half Touch

When we preach, our desire is for God’s Word to truly mark the lives of those listening.  We want them to learn, certainly, but more than that, we want them to be changed.  We want them to apply the Scripture … Continue reading →

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Filed under Christianity, Homiletics, How to . . . ?, Preacher's Personal Life, Preaching, Religion, Stage 2 - Passage Study, Stage 3 - Passage Purpose, Stage 4 - Passage Idea

by | August 15, 2008

There is Power in a Transition

It’s like a wave crashing onto the beach.  It can be big or small.  It can be obvious or hardly noticed.  But as a preacher you must notice your transitions.  What you can’t afford to do is forget the power … Continue reading →

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Filed under Christianity, Delivery, Homiletics, How to . . . ?, Preaching, Religion, Stage 7 - Message Outline, Stage 8 - Message Detail

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by | August 14, 2008

Process and Forgive First

At times we get angry.  Perhaps justly so.  But remember the advice you give to others.  I would tell others to prayerfully process their feelings and even forgive someone who had offended them before confronting them.  The same applies in … Continue reading →

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by | August 13, 2008

True Liberty in Preaching

Along the same lines as the subject of yesterday’s post, how do we find true liberty in our preaching?  This is Phillips Brooks in his 1877 Lectures on Preaching: In the desire to make a sermon seem free and spontaneous … Continue reading →

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by | August 12, 2008

Is Preparation Spiritual?

Periodically I come across people who think it is wrong to study preaching, or to prepare in any specific way for a sermon.  Perhaps there are more, but they don’t make themselves known to me – quite possible.  I like … Continue reading →

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Filed under Christianity, Homiletics, Preaching, Religion, Stage 1 - Passage Selection, Stage 2 - Passage Study, Stage 3 - Passage Purpose, Stage 4 - Passage Idea, Stage 5 - Message Purpose, Stage 6 - Message Idea, Stage 7 - Message Outline, Stage 8 - Message Detail

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