Sermon Preparation, 2

Very early in my ministry, Dr. Mike Hamlet (First Baptist Church, N. Spartanburg, SC) told me, "Preaching is 85% sweat." One of the things I've always appreciated about Mike is his candor (often seasoned with God-honoring sarcasm--no, really, it IS possible!) and the fact that he's typically dead right.

In his recent book Killing Cockroaches, Tony Morgan quotes David Foster, pastor of The Gathering in Franklin, TN:
"I operate on one key principle--great speaking comes from the overflow of preparation."

Preparation takes many different forms and comes in often unexpected ways. But there are a few non-negotiables:
1. PRAYER. Obviously, someone can get up in front of people and talk without praying, but that is not preaching. God-honoring, anointed, life-changing preaching begins, bathes, and ends with prayer. You have to invoke the power, presence, and prompting of the God you ostensibly serve by preaching.
2. STUDY. Scripture, Bible commentaries, topical books, alternative viewpoints, secular perspectives (contrary to, and consistent with, Scripture). If preaching is a spiritual/social exercise--and it is--then study is the diet that fuels the exercise.
3. EXPERIENCE. The most evocative, powerful illustrations are those that are born out of our life experiences. The audience automatically connects their personal stories to the ones shared in making a point. Almost every preacher I know is subconsciously trained to find illustrations in almost every experience. (Craig Groeschel posted some KEY thoughts about illustrations back in Feb. at swerve.lifechurch.tv)
4. FLOW. Prayer, Study, & Experience only help you find the ingredients. Creating a flow is what makes everything fit together in a cohesive, coherent way that people can and will follow you on the journey of a sermon. Flow is achieved through one thing: TRANSITIONS. It may be a word, a sentence, a pause, a phrase or a paragraph. But, transitions matter as much as almost any mechanical part of the message.
5. INFORMATION/APPLICATION. Bill Hybels says, "Tell them what they need to know. Then, tell them what to do." But long before Hybels ascended to a pulpit, that's how Jesus taught. Whether on the mountainside or in the synagogue, Jesus was much more deliberate about "how you should then live" than he was about the Hebrew root word chosen by Isaiah. Information feeds. Application leads.
5. PRAYER. Get it? Good.

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