I sometimes listen to preachers with amazement, if not awe. So many of them are incredibly effective in communicating God’s Word, so much more effective than I ever was or will be. I certainly understand that assessing effectiveness is a very subjective assignment. But, simply put, a number of preachers I have observed are incredible in explaining and applying the Word. As a consequence, God changes lives and saves people.
The best I can do is to be a student of these preachers, and to share with you seven key habits I have observed in most of them. I regularly ask these preachers about the way they go about preparing, preaching, and evaluating their messages. My list is fallible, but I do hope it’s helpful.
- They give preaching a priority in their ministries. A pastor has a 24/7, always on call schedule. It’s easy to let sermon preparation slide with the demands of the moment. The outstanding preachers I know give preaching a very high priority. They make certain they put the hours in to communicate effectively and powerfully.
- They make their sermons a vital part of their prayer lives. Here is a quote from one of those preachers I believe to be one of the most effective alive today: “I cannot imagine sermon preparation and delivery in my power alone. I regularly plead with God to anoint my preaching and to guide me in my sermon preparation.”
- They have a routine in sermon preparation. To the best of their abilities, these effective preachers set aside many hours a week on their calendars for sermon preparation. And while emergencies will happen, they do their best to stay committed to that time. Most of them have specific days and times of day when they work on their sermons.
- They constantly seek input about their messages. I know one pastor whose wife listens to each of his sermons ahead of his preaching. She offers valuable input to her husband. Many of these pastors have mentors and church members who help them evaluate their messages. And a number of them watch and listen to their recorded sermons within a week after preaching them.
- They stay committed to a specific sermon length. The pastors with whom I spoke have sermons that range in length from 25 minutes to 45 minutes. But they all are consistent each week on their specific length. In other words, a pastor who preaches a message 30 minutes in length will do so consistently each week. They have learned that their congregations adapt to their preaching length, and that inconsistency can be frustrating to the members.
- They put the majority of their efforts into one message a week. Some of the pastors were expected to preach different sermons each week, such as a Sunday morning message and a Sunday evening message. But, to the person, they all told me they can only prepare and preach one sermon effectively each week. The Sunday evening message, for example, is either an old message or a poorly prepared message.
- They are constantly looking for ways to improve their communication skills. So they do more than just seek feedback, as noted in number four above. They read books on communications. They listen to other effective communicators. And they are regularly in touch with the context of their church and its community, so that their messages are not only biblical, but relevant as well.
The readers of this blog include some very effective preachers, and it includes many of you who listen to effective communicators. I would love to hear your perspectives on effective preaching.
Check out our $5 ebook, Sermon Starters: Outlines for Every Holiday & Occasion to kick start your sermon preparation process.
photo credit: Chris Yarzab via photopin cc
Posted on March 26, 2014
With nearly 40 years of ministry experience, Thom Rainer has spent a lifetime committed to the growth and health of local churches across North America.
More from Thom
93 Comments
I think this article is spot on!
I have been preaching for 34 years and I tend to preach about the same length regardless of whether there is a clock in my view. The routine I have established helps me keep my sanity, and hopefully makes me more effective. I always wish I had more preparation time, but there are many needs and responsibilities in the pastorate. I believe God called me to preach, but the church has also called me to pastor. And I would agree, I think my Sunday Morning sermon is my “best” work. Mostly because, in my case, I know I am speaking to a wider variety of needs on Sunday morning. My Sunday evening sermons tend toward more discipleship oriented topics, and my Wednesday night sermons tend toward more depth in Bible study and making connections with the whole of scripture for practical application. Thanks Thom, for your work and ministry!
In his day, John Calvin preached from the New Testament every Sunday morning, from either the New Testament or Psalms every Sunday afternoon, and also from the Old Testament every morning of the week, every other week! His sermons started in the bible, focused on the bible, and stayed in the text until the end. He also, by deliberate choice, always preached extemporaneously. This in addition to regularly visiting the sick and infirm, writing, and teaching, and so on.
But life was so much simpler and less harried in those days wasn’t it?
Pastor Jim Cymbala has lead the multi-racial Brooklyn Tabernacle since 1971, has authored several books, preaches weekly, and speaks on a nearly constant basis at other churches, conferences, events. He also always preaches extemporaneously. He has done so for over 40 years now, and his church has grown from less then 30 people in 1971 to over 16,000 in 2012.
I do not mean to say that study and preparation are bad things in and of themselves, and of course, visiting the sick, ministering to the congregation in encouragement and counseling are all “good” and “right” things for pastors to do as well. But processes that were meant to strengthen preaching in our pulpits have, along with other ministerial functions, overtaken our pastors first and main purpose: To preach the Word.
Anyone with a few months of public speaking under their belts can deliver 30 minutes and 3 bullet points for a better life (or at least week ahead) – this should not (but does seem to) take a great amount of study and preparation; and that cardboard Christianism is exactly what is served up as “preaching” from the majority of our pulpits week after week. Christians across this country NEED to hear far more preaching that relies on the Holy Spirit, not on a Honed Script – the man of God, speaking the word of God, to the children of God (and those who yet need to become adopted by God).
Disclaimer: I am not myself a pastor, but I know and have known several of them, and believe me when I say the men God calls to preach hold a special place in my heart and in my prayers. I know the pressure can be enormous, but I also know the His yoke is easy. Let the Lord be the Lord of your work for the Lord.
May our great and glorious God bless and keep each of you and yours in all ways, always.
I agree with each point. In addition to the Sunday morning message I do leadership training on Sunday nights, a men’s Bible Study on Wednesdays nights (and 2 other mornings each week), and I teach an adjunct Bible class at a local college. So I use a preset curriculum (supplemented with some additional material and personal reading) for everything except the Sunday morning message. That allows me to devote the majority of my deep exegetical work and study time to the Sunday morning message, while spending fewer supplemental study hours with the great materials I incorporate for the other occasions. After 25 years of ministry this allows one to have a good grasp on the Bible providing an ability to teach/preach with comfort and depth from a large percentage of the Word of God.
I believe there is a little bit of confusion about a pastor who prepares for one sermon a week and how much of his time/ work actually go into that preparation. One of my earliest mentors told me that a good rule of thumb in preaching was that for every minute you are going to preach God’s word you should have an hour of study and preparation. That means if you are preaching a 30 minute sermon on Sunday morning, you should have at least 30 hours of study to adequately prepare. (There is a lot that could be said here about study, original languages, etc., but that is for another time.)
So,if you spend 30 hours a week in study for one sermon and have other pastoral duties, I think you have reached your limit…there are only so many hours in a week! If you spend another 20-30 hours a week doing your other pastoral duties you are at a 50-60 hour work week.
Now, if your working 50 hours a week with 2 days off that is 10 hours a day…11 if you take a lunch! The big question becomes, “what about your family if you go beyond a 10-11 hour work day?” Maybe you are among those who don’t have a family yet and can offer yourself beyond 50 hours a week…but if you have a family you run the risk of “sacrificing your family on the altar of ministry!” And every pastor believes that will not happen to him, but history has proven otherwise.
That is a long way of saying I believe Dr. Rainer’s point of putting most of your efforts into one sermon a week is a wise point and should be given much consideration. Adding another sermon either leaves you not prepared (i.e.-studied up…see the first paragraph, and the parenthetical statement that follows ) to feed the flock from the Word, or something or somebody else is left without.
Being an expository preacher helps with #6. I am preaching through Luke on Sunday morning and it is all new material. For other services I am preaching through Acts (notes from 2004) and 1 Corinthians (2006). I also frequently give the pulpit on Sunday evening to the Associate pastor or young men who have been called to ministry in the congregation. I have been at the same church since 2001.
Everything that I have read is helpful here…my perspective is passion which I know all servants have so if radio personalities can speak for hours every day, we that love the Word will love to share it. The problem is that we try to out do ourselves every week instead of just ministering the Word.
Very good article. I think that we have a troll on our hands ie. Josh. Shouldn’t you be preparing your sermon bro.? haha