Anyone who thinks sermon preparation is easy….

has only ever preached sermons they’ve ‘borrowed’ from someone else.  Sermon prep is hard work….as well it should be.  It is not something to be taken lightly, but should be undertaken with great fear and trembling.  At this point, I’m trembling…

Playing my ‘part-time’ part well.

To say this week has been a busy week is an understatement.  My life is often times fairly hectic given the numerous responsibilities I carry between my real job at GSA and my work at the church.  The regular preaching pastor is on vacation this week and so a couple of months ago I volunteered to fill the pulpit.  What I was reminded of again is how difficult it is to split my time and energy between two functions that require so much of both. 

 I know how much time I have to spend at GSA (44 hours this week) and the real tension comes from how much time I have to prepare the sermon(not enough…or at least not as much as I’d like).  For me that includes much meditation, prayer and studying of the text (this week it’s Philippians 2:1-13) before I even get to putting the sermon together.  It’s difficult for me to feel as if I can get into the process when I’ve only got snippets of time to dedicate to the sermon.   The only time I do have to really work on the sermon is after a long day at work, and the last thing I want to do is sit down at a computer after a long day sitting down at a computer, not to mention take time away from my wife to do so.

I remember Tim Keller saying on time that to become a better preacher, it’s better to preach 3 times a week, spending 6 or 7 hours on each sermon than to preach 1 time, spending 20 hours on that one sermon.  I know that I’m learning through this process, and I know that at the end of the day,  the sermon will come together, even if I have to spend a lot of time on Saturday to get it done.  This week has also reminded me how much I depend upon the Holy Spirit to illuminate the Scriptures and empower my words when I preach.  That no matter how much time I put in the sermon, without him it’s just a bunch of words and good intentions. 

I remember Matt Chandler saying once that we need to play our part well, whatever it may be.  For me, in this season, I need to play my ‘part-time preaching’ part well….as well as my ‘full-time GSA’ part well.  Knowing that I can depend upon Christ to meet me where the tension is at its worst…and being confident that he will not let me down.

What Unifies the Church…

From Ray Ortlund’s blog:

What unifies the church is the gospel. What defines the gospel is the Bible. What interprets the Bible correctly is a hermeneutic centered on Jesus Christ crucified, the all-sufficient Savior of sinners, who gives himself away on terms of radical grace to all alike. What proves that that gospel hermeneutic has captured our hearts is that we are not looking down on other believers but lifting them up, not seeing ourselves as better but grateful for their contribution to the cause, not standing aloof but embracing them freely, not wishing they would become like us but serving them in love (Galatians 5:13).

I couldn’t have said it better myself…Come to think of it, I couldn’t have said it anywhere as close to as good as Mr. Ortlund just did. 

(HT:  Jonathan Leeman at the 9marks blog)

 

Assumptions in Preaching

Came across this article the other day that has really made me pause and think about the assumptions I make about the audience I preach to on a Sunday morning (when I get to preach on a Sunday Morning). It’s easy when preparing a sermon to make assumptions about where everyone lands on the most basic fundamental tenets of the faith and that the guy who doesn’t believe in the authority of Scripture but instead believes the ‘Holy Spirit speaking to our hearts’ is the highest authority  is an exception to the norm.  Based upon the recent Pew Forum Study completed, that is no longer the case.

As the article states, the study found that 57 percent of evangelical church attenders said they believe many religions can lead to eternal life. That’s not 57 percent of people who call themselves christian.  That’s 57 percent of evangelical (that’s us) church attenders (us too).  That is shocking to me.  I would think that our number would be a bit lower given our location (semi-rural) and demographic (conservative and christian), but still….that’s an amazing number.  Here’s my favorite quote from the article:

“The survey shows religion in America is, indeed, 3,000 miles wide and only three inches deep,” said D. Michael Lindsay, a Rice University sociologist of religion.

“There’s a growing pluralistic impulse toward tolerance and that is having theological consequences,” he said.

Needless to say, us preachers have some work to do…and now we know we can’t take anything for granted, even the basics.

A Long but Good week….

Today is the beginning of what is going to be a very long but hopefully very good week. We’re finally upgrading the the speakers in the sanctuary at church, which we’ve needed to do since 1995. However, it’s going to make for a long day today (my day off), and that’s just the beginning. It’ll probably take up tomorrow night as well. I’m preaching at youth group on Wednesday (on tithing….which should be fun) and Thursday is worship practice and of course The Office Season Finale. Friday and Saturday I’ll probably be back at the church getting the sound system completed before the service on Sunday.  All these things I will be doing outside of my regular job at GSA. Like I said, a long but good week….

It’s in weeks and seasons of life like this where I am so grateful for God’s word…

Isaiah 40:28-31
Have you not known? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength. Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted; but they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.

Lord, in the busyness of this week and this season of our lives, help me to wait upon you; to depend upon you, to find my strength in you…

Saddleback’s Ten Commandments

One of the things I’m extremely wary about in my ‘ministry’ is making sure there isn’t even a hint of sexual immorality (Eph. 5:3). One of the practical ways that I’ve been trying to do this is by incorporating very strict rules regarding my association with women that are not my wife. Found this online today…thought it was good information, not just for me as a pastor, but also for me as a man and a husband to my wife.

Saddleback’s Ten Commandments:
1. Thou shalt not go to lunch alone with the opposite sex.

2. Thou shalt not have the opposite sex pick you up or drive you places when it is just the two of you.

3. Thou shalt not kiss any attender of the opposite sex or show affection that could be questioned.

4. Thou shalt not visit the opposite sex alone at home.

5. Thou shalt not counsel the opposite sex alone at the office, and thou shalt not counsel the opposite sex more than once without that person’s mate. Refer them.

6. Thou shalt not discuss detailed sexual problems with the opposite sex in counseling. Refer them.

7. Thou shalt not discuss your marriage problems with an attender of the opposite sex.

8. Thou shalt be careful in answering emails, instant messages, chatrooms, cards or letters from the opposite sex.

9. Thou shalt make your co-worker your protective ally.

10. Thou shalt pray for the integrity of other staff members.

(The first four do not apply to unmarried staff.)

HT: Ed Stetzer