There is a world of difference between preaching with fire in your bones and working up a sermon because you must preach on Sunday. Having been a pastor at the same church for over thirty years, I’ve preached through many of the books of the Bible. After you... Read More »

“Worship isn’t God’s show. God is the audience. God’s watching. The congregation, they are the actors in this drama. Worship is their show. And the minister is just reminding the people of their forgotten lines.” — Soren Kierkegaard Who are we pre... Read More »

As of August 2020, I have preached almost 300 sermons at Mayhill Baptist, the church I have had the joy of pastoring since April 2017. Before COVID-19, we had morning and evening services, so I got to pad my sermon stats pretty quickly. During COVID-19, we hav... Read More »

In his classic homiletical work, Between Two Worlds: The Challenge of Preaching Today, John Stott insists that the preacher keep one foot firmly planted in the ancient text and one planted in the contemporary context; one in the biblical world and one in the c... Read More »

It was the biggest blind spot in my preaching ministry. A year and a half into my first pastorate, I discovered it. The previous few weeks I had noticed that there was a spiritual need in our congregation. I was finishing a series, so I scheduled the next one ... Read More »

The primary and defining characteristic of the growing Christian is love. Jesus Himself says, “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all will know that you are My disciple... Read More »

More and more frequently, younger people who are visiting our churches come with a different set of values that we may be ignoring. I am talking about those identified as belonging to Generation Z. This group is labeled as those who were born after 1995[1] Jam... Read More »

The late Nelson Mandela, the former President of South Africa and anti-apartheid revolutionary, once said, “If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart.”  In proclaim... Read More »

I will admit it. I am a stubborn student of preaching. I have never been to Missouri, but in many ways, my preaching ministry must have distant relatives in the “Show Me State.” In each of my preaching classes, I was taught the importance of preaching wi... Read More »

Sheep in biblical times were essential to the culture for religious sacrifices, food, and clothing. They were commonplace to many of the authors of scripture.[1]Henry Chichester Hart, The Animals Mentioned in the Bible (London: The Religious Tract Society, 188... Read More »