question does God care?

When It Seems God Doesn't Care

When It Seems That God Doesn't Care In the last post we saw that people need a sense of security, that God is in control, during a pandemic.  But what about when it seems that God doesn't care about my pain?  Beyond security, however, people…

The Need for Security in a Pandemic

The Need for Security in a Pandemic In the last post we began looking at how to preach in a pandemic.  Today we look at this fact: there is a need for security in a pandemic for most people.  Let me explain. Why Conservative Churches Are…

Preaching in a Pandemic

Preaching in a Pandemic In this post I begin a series on recommendations on how to go about preaching in a pandemic such as we are experiencing right now.  When we, as human beings, engage in things that cause us loss, it can easily become…
image of orchestra director

The Sermon is a Symphony

The Sermon is a Symphony In Shakespeare's play, Hamlet, there is a scene in which the main character, Hamlet, is walking down the corridor of the palace reading.  Someone asked him, as he walked, what he was reading.  His response was,…

Walk The Talk

Walk the Talk In the past few posts we have been looking at organizing your sermon well, with the hearer in mind.  There is more to say in that regard, but an article I read recently sets me off on a different path.  Let's think for a few…
time lapse image of the sun

Keep Your Face To The Sun

Keep Your Face To The Sun We've been looking at the five activities of the speech writer, or preacher.  They are: the invention of ideas, the organization of ideas; ways to communicate those ideas in relevant, appropriate language; forceful…

Set Out Some Sign Posts

Set Out Some Sign Posts In the last post we looked at where sermons come from.  I quoted from The Sermon Doctor about five things that a speech requires, according to ancient philosophers.  The first was the generation of an idea.  The…

Where Sermons Come From

Where Sermons Come From Where do sermons come from as you prepare to preach?  The easy answer is that they come from God through the working of the Holy Spirit in our lives.  Right?  Or we could say that they come from the Bible.  But if…

When The Critics Attack

When the Critics Attack In the last a few posts we have explored some helpful tips to improve preaching.  You can look back at the ideas of keeping your radar on, keeping your bucket handy, and using a marinade for your messages.  In this…

Don't Forget the Marinade

Don't Forget the Marinade We have been looking at some key tips for more effective preaching.  We've looked at the idea of keeping your radar on,  And then we talked about having a bucket of some kind to store ideas for sermons.  In this…