The “Ramblings” in my head part 1 – “How do you do that?”
This blog, thanks to the creativity of our staff, has been advertised as communicating “the ramblings in my head.” Honestly, it is a frightening thought that what takes place between my ears is actually being put in print; that being said, there is a specific “rambling” I would like to address.
Last night, I had the privilege of stopping by our quarterly New Members Class here at FBCC. During this time, I allow those attending to ask me any questions they want. Over the past two years, I have been asked about my family, conversion, calling to ministry, various theological positions, as well as random, fun questions such as sports team preferences, etc.
However, last night I was asked 2 very important questions that seem to be on many peoples mind. Lately it seems that I have received a lot of communication regarding these 2 items, so let’s “ramble” them. I will address the first question this week and question #2 next week (or later this week if I get the chance).
How do you preach every week without notes?
For those of you who are able to attend FBCC weekly this question is one that truly needs to be seen to understand. The average sermon I preach is app. 35 minutes in length and contains on average app. 6000 words. And yes, I preach every one of them from memory – just ask Craig Beall about “leaving the pulpit area.”
Click here to see what it looks like
People often seemed curious and somewhat amazed on how I am able to do this. So, here is the “method behind the madness.”
- I study / work on my sermon almost all the time. Yes, most preachers will tell you we are always thinking of the passage and or subject matter to be addressed the next Sunday. Therefore, every situation, thought, or conversation is “filtered” through this process. Typically, I scratch and or write down thoughts, outlines, etc. on various forms of paper. Traci, my wife, will tell you that our house has sermon ideas and notes written on the back of envelopes, bank statements, napkins, and every now and then, something that wasn’t supposed to be “violated” by one of my “rambling expeditions.” So by the time Sunday comes around I have probably actually put between 30-40 hours worth of mental energy into the message.
- I practice the sermon repeatedly during the week. This part of the process usually occurs on Saturday evening. I either go to the church, stay at home (my poor dog), or go driving around town. I usually spend between 3 and 4 hours every Saturday evening praying though and actually preaching through the message. Yes, by the time our second service concludes I have verbally spoken the sermon at least 3 times, sometimes as often as 6 in the last 18 hours.
- Though I do not preach from notes, I actually do possess notes while preaching; however, they are not what most people think of when it comes to sermon notes. In my Bible every week is a small “post-it-note” with the outline for the message. I rarely, if ever, refer to it, but it is there just in case I get distracted by something in the services or have one of those early senior moments. I actually write the outline on the post-it-note from memory; thus, knowing that I “have it.”
- Last but not least, here is the most important aspect of the answer. When I am preaching without notes you can be assured that the message is coming from the heart. Scripture teaches us “ . . . for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks (Luke 6:45c).” I know, that when I get the sermon down “by heart” it and its content are in my heart. Now, just because a man preaches from a manuscript (Billy Graham does this) or from a basic outline (listen to Fred Luter – one of the finest preachers of recent days) does not mean they are not preaching from the heart. THIS IS SIMPLY A “JEFF THING.”
In summary, I do work very hard each and every week making sure that I give God all that I am in regard to His call on my life to preach. Additionally, it must be said that my doing so is not that you or anyone else will be “amazed,” but that Jesus Christ will get all the honor and glory. God has “wired” each and every one of us to be different and unique for Him and His purposes. The real question today is, are you giving Him all you are in regard to your calling?
Pastor Jeff, Great message Sunday morning and great blog post! I look forward to hearing from what God has spoken to and through you every Sunday!!
When we were neighbors in the apartment complex, we saw you leave (ok, we heard you leave during the time you drove that very loud pick-up, lol) to go to the church on Saturday nights to pray through your sermon. I don’t recall ever being awake when you returned. Your faithfulness is something I witnessed, and I appreciate the opportunity I had to get a glimpse of it.