God Is Still Calling
To those experiencing a call to preach but having significant doubts, I wanted to encourage them to honor their own uniqueness and not to second guess God’s choices.
Does a Sermon On an Old Testament Text Have to Mention Jesus?
A sermon on a text from the Hebrew Bible does not have to mention Jesus, for one very simple fact; the Hebrew Bible is a crucial part of the Gospel. Without it fully functioning in the understanding of the Gospel of Jesus, there simply is no complete understanding possible.
Preaching With Doubt
How do I preach to people when I am struggling with my own faith?
Doubt is key to growing in the faith. God and God’s ways are mysterious enough that there is always need to doubt our finite faith.
Prophetic Preaching: A Pastoral Approach by Leonora Tubbs Tisdale
Tisdale deftly applies historical accounts and helpful exegesis to sensitive topics and encourages her readers to come alongside her and courageously proclaim the good news in whatever contexts they may find themselves.
Communicating Hope In Times of Crisis
I’d love to be able to put the topic on the shelf to gather dust while peace and love abound. But crises are like wounds that never heal, the scab keeps getting ripped off and the cut made deeper with each successive act of violence.
A Response to the Violence in Falcon Heights, Baton Rouge, and Dallas
Preachers have too often been comfortable letting unjust wars, all kinds of oppression, economic disparity, presidential candidates feeding on and fostering fear and hatred, terrorist attacks, and the like go unaddressed while preaching instead on the habits of a successful Christian...
Relating Faith to Life
My passion for preaching is that one’s faith should be related to life, to what is happening in the world. Faith is lived out not only in an interpersonal context but also in the context of larger issues, such as terrorism, natural disasters, untimely deaths, debilitating diseases, political realities, tragedy, and other aspects of our common life on this planet.
Theological Disparity
How does a preacher preach to a congregation that is theologically different from him/her?
Preaching from The Other Hand
Preaching advice reminds us to keep the Bible in one hand and the newspaper in the other. I’ve taken that to heart, with my other hand consulting mainstream and alternative print and online media. My other hand consults volumes and online commentaries. This hand clips articles and essays.
Novel Preaching: Tips from Top Writers on Crafting Creative Sermons
For any preacher wanting to develop and deliver more creative, engaging and effective sermons, Novel Preaching is a must read. It will transform you from someone looking for a good, canned illustration, to someone who develops a knack for noticing the world in new ways that inform explorations of the Christian faith.
The Importance of Paying Attention
Part of my passion for preaching is a passion for paying attention. Paying attention to the text, one’s inner life, and events in the world, is a key skill of the preacher.
Spirituality and Sermon Preparation
How does the preacher protect a dedicated prayer and devotional life? What practices are best at making space for the Spirit, even though she is unpredictable and uncontrollable?
Burnout among pastors is very high with many leaving the ministry within only a few years after graduating from seminary. While there are numerous reasons for such burnout, I am convinced that one of the biggest ones is that with all of the tasks of ministry, it is difficult to find time for sermon preparation much less for a devotional life.
