Preaching is an intensely solitary activity. Preaching is a thoroughly social exercise. Which is it?  Solitary or social? Yes. My own process of preparation is wholly wrapped in solitude.  I study, I jot, I brainstorm, I fret, I pray, I get excited, I become...

I am moved by the self-awareness of poet and memoirist Patricia Lockwood. Here’s how she words it in the best-selling Priestdaddy: I consider myself on an anthropological mission, much like Margaret Mead. I have discovered that this makes almost anything bearable – it...

Preaching without notes is the opposite of “winging it.” In my case at least, it is the result of a highly personalized (OK, maybe even somewhat OCD) process that’s built on these three premises: Internalize, don’t memorize If you get lost during delivery, you’re the...

Here is just about the highest accolade I can give to Will Mancini, church consultant, author, and founder of Auxano:  my wife Julie ALWAYS says she wants to meet him in person because after he brought his brand of coaching to Good Shepherd, I began to sleep so much...

If you have spent any time in this space or if you know me personally, then you're probably aware that two of the strongest passions of my life are preaching and tennis? So: how are these things alike? How are they different? It’s actually something I’ve thought about...

On a recent Sunday morning, as I neared the climactic moment of the sermon where I was to reveal the bottom line, I was supposed to read Psalm 109:30: With my mouth I will greatly extol the Lord; in the great THRONG I will praise him. Except that’s not what came out...

There are two “one things” that I believe are vital to any effective preaching. The first “one thing” is exactly that: the message needs to center on one thing. One truth. One point. One purpose. The journey to get to that one thing can be full of whimsy or full of...

Have you ever noticed that you can see a good country music song while you are hearing it? I’m only an occasional fan of that genre, but I continue to be impressed by the word pictures most country songs make. Whether it is Carrie Underwood’s vivid description of...

I had it all planned out. As part of a recent sermon, I was going to do an “experiment” demonstrating that a) oil and water don’t mix; b) there is a product made up of primarily oil & water — mayonnaise; and c) the reason mayonnaise works is because eggs are the...

At some point just before I begin every Sunday sermon, I say this to the congregation: “The bible is not a book; it’s a library: many books written by multiple authors over a long span of time and in many different styles of writing.” That realization is vital for...