Preacher’s Personal Life

Don’t Preach Just ‘Cos

/ Peter Mead / 1 Comment

If you preach regularly, it is easy to get into an unhealthy mindset concerning the ministry. It’s the kind of mindset where you will preach next time because it’s what you do. You did it last week and will do it again this week. I’m sure most of us have experienced this at times. If you feel this Sunday approaching, but a numb feeling inside, take some time to thrash it out with the Lord.

The missing pieces might include a loss of several things: wonder at the person and power of God, sense of the privilege of speaking His Word to others, awareness of the very real and personal needs, or even the peril of the listeners, and the reality of the ongoing spiritual battle in which we currently live.

When I find motivation has faded, or there is a dryness inside, I remember men like David, Job, and Jeremiah. In the Bible we find people who were really honest before God, yet I know my tendency to be superficial and aloof. Perhaps the time will soon come, or maybe it is today, that some of us need to pour out our hearts to the Lord in total honesty. Perhaps we’ll find, like Jeremiah, that once all the emotion is spent, and the energy gone, that there is still a fire in the bones and we must speak for God!

Don’t preach just ‘cos it’s what you do, or you are on the schedule. Preach ‘cos there’s a very deep, God-given and God-captivated, need-motivated, battle-hardened, must-ness in your spirit.

A Life’s Work

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As preachers we have the privilege of intensive Bible study. Most believers have the privilege of Bible study, but few have the added pressure of having to communicate it to others. However, it is easy to fall into the trap of simply meeting the next deadline and preparing the next sermon. This way of functioning can easily get us trapped in a “micro” approach to God’s Word. Instead, I’d like to encourage us all to be “macro” students of the Word.

Bible study requires both micro and macro views. My first professor of hermeneutics used to refer to the analysis-synthesis interchange. This speaks of the moving back and forth between analyzing the details and synthesizing the passage as a whole in its larger context. Details, like words, can only be truly understood in their context or setting.

Three things push us toward micro Bible study. The first thing is preaching itself. We tend to need details that “will preach” in order to make the sermon sound biblical and interesting. The second thing is personal preference. Some of us are more micro-inclined, while apparently fewer are more macro-inclined. Third, Bible school training has traditionally given more micro tools and approaches, leaving many students unsure how to pursue “bigger picture” study.

We need to master the Book, book by book. As we study a book in order to preach it (or for personal growth – imagine!), let’s try to be aware of the whole. How does the argument flow throughout, how do the pieces fit together? Keep a document that is all about the big picture of the book. As one writer puts it, “Begin to build up a living understanding of Colossians, or of Genesis, or of Mark’s Gospel – whatever – as a whole. Make it your life’s work, and take your time. Let yourself enjoy it.”

I agree. We can never truly master the Book, but let’s spend our lives trying, book-by-book.

Reading for Discomfort

/ Peter Mead / 1 Comment

To be an effective preacher, it is necessary to be a reader.  We need to read in order to prepare messages.  Obviously there are biblical reference works, commentaries and so on.  We should also be reading in order to keep our finger on the pulse of our culture and local context.  Then there are other areas of reading related to our role – theology, apologetics, etc.  Once in a while we may also take the opportunity to read for pleasure – perhaps fiction, biography, or hobby related.  All of this is good.  But let’s not forget another broad category.

It is healthy to read works that we find uncomfortable too.  We would not read them for pleasure.  Nor would we automatically read them for sermon preparation since they are not from our preferred group of scholars.  This is a broad category since it could be theological or cultural or both.  Right now I am reading a book that I find quite uncomfortable on the whole.  Written from a perspective I would lean away from politically and spiritually, and attacking some perspectives that are close to my own, this is not a comfortable read.  Yet I feel it is right to read it.

When there is a sense of discomfort in our reading, there tends to be a couple of side-benefits.  Our thinking is challenged and stretched.  Our prayer lives are prompted as we process it before the Lord.  We become more rounded preachers.  Make sure some of your reading is quite uncomfortable.  It’s well worth it.

Musts From Beyond The Schedule

/ Peter Mead / 1 Comment

It is so easy to get into ministry maintainance mode.  We do what we have to do to keep things ticking over.  As soon as one program is over, the next is looming.  And there is certainly something to be said for faithful plugging away in local church work.  But while remaining faithful to what must be done, we should remember that there are other things that must be done too.  These “musts” comes not from the tyranny of the weekly schedule, but from the beating heart of God.

Dream – Take some time to dream.  Let’s unshackle our imaginations and prayerfully imagine what could be.   We should break out of the small confines we easily find ourselves in and engage sanctified imaginations for God.  Imagine what could be for individuals in the church, for ministries in the church, for the church itself.  Dream dreams that don’t fit in the weekly schedule.  Tangibly meeting specific needs in the local community.  Mobilizing missionaries who will actually go and make a difference.  Taking a stand on a key ethical issue and seeing God work through that.  As we walk close with the Lord, His values become our values, and increasingly our dreams should reflect His.

Strategize – Pray about taking steps toward these bigger goals.  Your strategy will go beyond preaching on the subject, but it should include that.  The pulpit ministry of the church has a unique and definite role to play.  Even if you are not able to define a five-year detailed strategy, just taking some steps is worth it.

Preach – It’s easy to lose sight of how influential preaching is in the life of the church.  It’s easy to allow negative feedback or a perceived lack of response to drain your motivation.  But preaching does matter and it does influence.  So preach.  Preach the Word of God for the transformation of lives.

Pursue – If you are pursuing a goal, then pursue it after you preach on it.  That might involve further messages.  It’s easy to expect too much from a single message.  It might involve conversations, convening an interest group, distributing resources, the targeted giving of key books, further prayer, of course.  If you want to lose your passion for something, then reflect only on the apparent lack of response from a message.  If you want to see greater things happening, then pursue with further preaching and more.

Vulnerable Time

/ Peter Mead / 1 Comment

I recently spoke to a preacher after he had preached and thanked him for his ministry.  I asked how he felt about it.  To my surprise he said something like, “Oh, I never think about it, the job is done and I move on.”  If that is true, it is strange.  I suspect most preachers are full of feelings after they’ve preached.

Positive Feelings – Every now and then comes that feeling of having really nailed the message!  It’s a great feeling, but probably the rare.  It can be accompanied by high energy or a sense of being wiped out.

Negative Feelings – If you are like me, then these are much more common!  The feeling of having fallen short, failed to fully communicate something or connect as you had hoped.

The Truth – The truth is that these post-sermon feelings can be very deceptive.  We have to try to rest in our Lord, not our perceptions about the ministry.  It probably was not as negative as it felt, so rest in Him.  Or it may not have been as effective as it felt, again, rest in Him.

The Danger – There are several dangers for those of us who have a feeling or two after preaching.  It is easy to take offence, to give offence, to miscommunicate or to misunderstand.  For that hour hanging around the church building after the service, and the first few hours after getting home, be careful.  Don’t get too caught up in any conversation.  Don’t try to make big decisions.  Try to smile, engage with your family and enjoy your lunch (accepting that every other home may well be eating roast pastor!)

You may want to share this post with your spouse, or slip it to that person in the church that always chooses Sunday after church to pick a fight with you about something.  It would be nice if people could leave the feedback for a day or two, but they probably don’t understand.  Whether your feelings are positive or negative or a confusing mixture of both, post-sermon is vulnerable time!

Feeling Down in the Ministry

/ Peter Mead / 1 Comment

Non-preachers often don’t realize the roller-coaster of ministry.  Due to the exacting nature of ministry – giving out, being buffeted spiritually, etc. – we are all prone to repeated discouragement.  Today as you press on through another Sunday, take stock of the realities of ministry:

Discouragements are par for the course.  A preacher facing discouragement is normal.  One who claims to never get discouraged is a cause for concern.  Remember that if you’re feeling down today, or tomorrow, so are hundreds, maybe thousands of other preachers around the globe.  You are not alone.

God has gifted, prepared and used you.  Look back and spiritually reminisce over those times when God’s gifts have been clear.  Remember the blessing of training received, both formally and informally.  Thank God for the example of past mentors, prayer partners, etc.  Review your file of encouraging notes and emails.

Remember the standard.  It is tempting to try to, or to feel pressured to, live up to the standards of someone else.  Perhaps the previous pastor, or a famous preacher, or a personal ministry hero of yours.  God wants each of us to trust Him and give the best that we can.  Let others inspire, but not pressure.

Remember who to please.  It is not possible to keep everyone happy all the time.  You may preach sensitively and yet tread on toes nonetheless.  We are not called to a ministry of plate spinning where each plate is the emotional happiness of each person around us.  We are called to live a life of radical love for the Lord, where our desire is to please Him in what we do and why we do it.

What else would you add for the sake of fellow preachers who may be feeling discouraged today?

Demonstrating Key Values: Application

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People may hear words, but they sense values.  Values are caught as much as taught.  Watch a dysfunctional family situation where the children are verbally instructed with one set of values, but observe the flagrant disregard for those values in the parents.  Or watch the influence of a preacher who may state the importance of application, but demonstrate that they don’t really value it.

If you value application, do it.  As Robinson’s definition explains, expository preaching means that the biblical concept is first applied by the Holy Spirit to the life of the preacher, then through the preacher, to the listeners.  To be an applicational preacher, be an applicational Bible student first.

If you value application, include it.  Might seem obvious, but if we believe application is important, we should use sermon time to present it.  What value is communicated by a conclusion that merely states, “Now may the Holy Spirit apply to our hearts what we have heard in the last hour!”

If you value application, integrate it.  The traditional, rhetoric-driven, place for application is the end of the sermon.  There is good reason for this.  People generally need to understand and be convinced of the “what?” before they are willing to face the “so what?”  Yet in our day we are very aware of the complexity of communication.  People value relevance, so we need to integrate application and need in the introduction and movements of the sermon.  We must show why the “what?” matters to them before they will sit and listen to our explanation of it.  The “what?” and the “so what?” feed on each other.

If you value application, highlight it.  Try to use comments like, “so we understand it, but our Bible study is incomplete without trying to apply it – let’s think this through in practical and specific ways.”  Try to avoid comments like, “we’ll spend most of our time addressing the ‘what?’ and by the time we get to the end of the sermon, you’ll probably not even notice the ‘so?’”

By our attitude and our passing comments, we contagiously spread the value we place on application.

Goals – Too High, Too Low

/ Peter Mead / 1 Comment

Many preachers have a tendency to overestimate what can be achieved in one sermon.  We also have a tendency to underestimate what can be achieved in five years.  Perhaps today will be an obviously great day in the work of the church.  Perhaps major breakthroughs will occur for all to see, as you have prayed for during the week.  But if not, remember that over time, faithful preaching of the Word is making a difference.  A huge difference.

Let’s pray and preach like this next one matters supremely.  But let’s also pray and plug away faithfully, knowing that our supreme Command often has a longer-term view.

The Pre-Sermon Bible Study Journey

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Bible study feels like a journey. Perhaps for others the terrain feels slightly different, but I can often discern three stages I go through in the process of studying a passage. I am not referring to exegetical method here, but rather to a sense of progress in my quest to understand the passage.

1. Apparent Clarity. Not in every text, but often the first reading seems relatively clear. Perhaps I recognize the characters, or note some rich preaching vocabulary or concepts. Whether or not I’m thinking about preaching it, the text seems initially clear. This stage does not last long. Once I start questioning the text, I soon move into the next stage:

2. Complexity and Lack of Clarity. As I seek to plumb the meaning of the passage, hunting for the author’s idea, it often becomes murky. There’s word study, lexical study, contextual analysis, wrestling with the flow of the text, alternating between synthesis and analysis, etc. At this point it is sometimes tempting to quit or go for a shortcut (like preaching multiple distinct ideas from the same text). If I prayerfully push on through, there is often the joy of arriving at the last stage:

3. Informed Clarity. This is where the relationship of the parts and the whole make sense. This is where the section is clear in its relationship to the flow of the book. This is a great place to get to in Bible study. This is the place I like to be before I think about preaching the text.

My fear for myself, and others seeking to be Biblical preachers, is that we will fail to preach out of a “stage 3” informed clarity. I see in myself the temptation to quit in stage two and preach some form of textual confusion (obviously we tend to paper over confusion to give apparent cohesion to the message). At times I hear messages where I wonder if the preacher even entered stage two at all. The presence of some “rich” preaching words seems to be enough to spark a whole message in some preachers! Let’s be sure to be diligent, to study and show ourselves approved, to push through to informed clarity for our own sakes, and for the sake of those who have to listen to our explanation of the text!

The Big One: Glory!

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I’m sure we all would concur that we want to preach to the glory of God!  It is a motivation that should drive everything we do.  But let’s make sure this is not an ambiguous concept.

God is glorified when we magnify Him in our preaching.  When His Word is preached, He should be the central character, the hero, the one elevated as a result.  This means our preaching is not about us as preachers, or merely about our listeners, or even about Bible characters, it is first and foremost about God.  Theocentric preaching, absolutely.

However, it is important to remember that bringing “glory” to God is not merely saying big things about Him or saying those things in a certain voice.  Glory is the fruit of love.  Consider John’s presentation of glory in his gospel, in chapter 17, for instance.  So as we preach God’s Word out of love for Him, and stir in others a greater love for God, He is glorified.

Furthermore, genuine love for God will show in the lives of our listeners.  Whatever we do, whether in word or deed, it should all be to the glory of God.  We should glorify Him in our bodies.  There are numerous references like these that point out the need for appropriate practical emphases in our preaching.  It is not enough to always stir worship, but not life change.  As I listened to Joe Stowell recently, I was reminded again that preaching for transformed lives means a practical righteousness in the lives of our listeners that is the greatest apologetic of our age – which all brings glory to God!

Let us preach to the glory of God, but not hide behind that motivation as an excuse for irrelevant or application free sermons.