In the Balance #1-Do we put pen to paper to quickley??

I was talking to a good mate on Sunday night after church, and as I am known to do lamenting some things about not crafting the sermon early enough to make some of the things i wanted to say flow, and being rushed in my final write up of my text, and on thing he said just stuck with me. He said:

"Josh what i appreciate about your teaching is that you have obviously wrestled with the text, you have done your research but you don't just sit down with commentaries and just write it, you wrestle with it and live it and once you have done that your write. Too many other preachers and teachers sit down struggle with the text but don't wrestle with it in their lives and are way too fast in putting pen to paper"

Are we too fast in putting pen to paper in our preparation, over the past 10 years I have loved getting to know different preachers and different preparation styles, but one thing is common amongst all the preachers i love and respect, "the all live it before they teach it".

One thing a speaker said a conference just recently on preaching was "I find it easy to prepare exegetical sermons, it is easy impersonal and i just need to quote big words and terms to impress people and make them feel like they are being "fed" the real skill and the difficult part is living it yourself, experiencing it and knowing how it relates to life  other than evangelise and go to church"

I tend to agree with my friend in that too many sermons are prepared but not lived, and i know there have been times when it has been more about getting "it" written rather than letting God's word impact me.

I also know of some teacher who don't spend nearly enough time writing and crafting, i suppose it is once agian a thing about balance.

What are other peoples impressions of preaching in general, and personally. How do you avoid putting pen to paper too quickly??

Comments

[Rob]

Josh,

I avoid putting pen to paper too quickly by not being given the chance to ascend the holy pulpit. It works every time . . .

[Josh]

good point, I wonder whether some of us hold onto it too strongly, and whether some ministers justify their whole existence in preaching, because there is no higher role in the church.

I wonder whether the american model of Teaching pastor, lead pastor, Pastor of small groups and so forth is a better idea.

[unkleE]

Josh, you know I don't agree with the importance of sermons, but just thinking about the question anyway .... If living life with the Spirit is the main requirement as you suggest, why don't we send our future pastors and preachers out to live life rather than gather them into theological college to learn? Just a thought. : )

[Steve]

Thanks for the heads up mate

I guess I go for a conversational style such that I hope that I might speak as I speak normally. That might be way off track and useless, but its what Im going with at the moment.

I have had a humble call where people have told me how much they zone out in my talks lately, gives me a huge dose of humble pie.

I think it is hard to say what comes first, living it or knowing it, both are so intertwined I think it can become chicken and egg in some ways

[Pascoe]

I usually read the text, then stop and let it sink in. Weigh it up in my heart and see if i myself can grasp what the crap its talking about, then only after that point would consider commentaries. I'd hate to think my own opinion was being shaped if i read the commentaries first.

I seem to recall a verse "i will write my law upon their hearts" ... hmmm interesting.