Every pastor feels the relentless demand for new sermons. Sometimes Sundays seem like they happen every three days instead of every seven. Preach “a winner” this weekend, and before you know it, another one needs to be ready. How did our predecessors make it when they regularly preached on Sunday nights as well as on Sunday mornings?

Would you believe that for parishioners, what often seems unrelenting is the persistent challenge to be more and to do more, spiritually speaking? It’s like there’s a pitiless prodding for them to be dedicated to Christ and His Church in so many ways that, after a while, they just can’t keep up. There aren’t enough hours in the day or days in the week to accomplish what following Jesus apparently requires. “Not another sermon, please. I’m still working on the demands from the one you preached a month back about Jesus’ concern for the poor and the powerless!”

So what’s the balance point between this relentless demand for new and challenging sermons vs. the presented expectation for our hearers to be more Christ-like and to do more Kingdom-wise?

This tension only finds a solution when pastors and church members are consistently in dialog about what’s being heard, how quickly it’s being absorbed, and how much time is needed to put the truth and the expectations of sermons into practice. Are you regularly feeling your people out regarding how they are doing?

Are they showing signs of spiritual exhaustion? Do they need a month of sermons that are little more than “nice going, gang”? And what about an “I’m proud of you” message every so often?

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Please click here to visit David Mains’ Sermon-Coach.com website.

You will also find a variety of resources for pastors and congregations at the Mainstay Ministries website. Please click here.

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A Methodist church I visited for the first time this past Sunday prayed during their worship service for Nigeria’s stolen girls. I’m sure you have been following this sad story. The fanatical Muslim group Boko Haram kidnapped more than 300 schoolgirls in northeastern Nigeria, and as of this writing, the majority of them are still missing.

I have attended a number of church services since this story first broke on April 15th, but this was the first time I heard what’s been happening ever mentioned by someone on a Sunday morning. It was the high point of the service, as far as I was concerned. This was the worldwide Church of Christ being His Body in a truly compassionate manner.

I have had a keen interest in this tragedy because I had the privilege of being part of a missions documentary that was filmed in Nigeria a little over a year ago. Since being there, one of my key Nigerian cameramen has died. Nigeria is Africa’s most-populous country, and probably the most like America in many ways.

I have not included mention of the stolen girls in my Soundbytes because I write those a week ahead of time and this given story has changed almost daily. But, I don’t believe it should be overlooked by our American churches. Please make sure that you call attention to the situation if it hasn’t yet been resolved. And at the very least, pray for these young girls and their heartbroken parents.

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Please click here to visit David Mains’ Sermon-Coach.com website.

You will also find a variety of resources for pastors and congregations at the Mainstay Ministries website. Please click here.

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It’s not an easy conclusion to come to, but it’s the right one. Pastors need to be convinced that their listeners are a better judge than they are of the effectiveness of their sermons. My guess is that this statement didn’t go down all that well. But, it’s important to think this through.

Ask a preacher how beneficial a given sermon is, and most often, his or her response will be quite different from the average pew-sitter.

Let me add a second tough statement. Parishioners are also better than their minister at knowing what their own spiritual needs are. The gap between the average pastor’s life—where his or her greater amount of time is given to spiritual matters—is markedly different from that of the average congregation member, whose responsibilities are much more diverse.

Once you are convinced about these matters—that listeners are a better judge of your sermons than you, and they’re also better than you at knowing what their spiritual needs are—you will wisely seek their input in your sermon-preparation and sermon-evaluation process.

It only makes sense. Disagree with what I’ve written, and the chances are that you will continue following a policy of doing your own sermon preparation and sermon evaluation mainly without their help.

So, in which category do you fall? Do you actively seek the help from the members of your congregation, or do you pretty much ignore them?

In preparation for this coming week’s sermon, have you talked with anyone about this topic, or phoned anyone, or emailed anyone for their input, or has your sermon preparation been done exclusively on your own?

If the latter is still your situation, how might your normal pattern be adjusted in the coming weeks?

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Please click here to visit David Mains’ Sermon-Coach.com website.

You will also find a variety of resources for pastors and congregations at the Mainstay Ministries website. Please click here.

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