1. First, I have my own personal devotions. I open "
Our Daily Bread" and read the devotion they have, read the scripture and pray.
2. I check with my wife to see when she needs my help during
the day and schedule helping her and my study time for the best possible hours.
3. I select some background music for study. I like
"
Solo Piano Radio" (
http://solopianoradio.com/) or the "
Music to Pray By" Podcast (
http://www.musictoprayby.com/).
I make sure all interrupting electronic
devices are off. I have a stack of 3x5 cards for when I am tempted to be
distracted by my own random thought or questions. When they pop into my head, I
note them on a card so I can deal with them later, then I focus again on the
task at hand.
4. I open "
e-Sword," a free Bible program that has
English, Spanish and other language Bibles, plus dictionaries and commentaries.
My old computer is getting cranky, so I might have to get a new one. Some days
I just use the Bible and 3x5 cards and some rubber bands. I have made some better
sermons that way, but they are hard to share when people ask me for a copy.
5. I begin in Spanish from the beginning, to avoid
translation pauses during my sermon delivery.
I open Microsoft Word 2010 and use it with a bilingual spell checking
dictionary.
6. I copy the verses I plan one using and paste them into
the Word document. Then I use e-Sword, and especially TSK (Treasury of
Scripture Knowledge) to expand on the themes in the text. I cut and paste the entire Bible verses listed
into the document, not just the references. I do this so that when I give the sermon and
the people are looking for the verses in their Bibles, I have the verses right
before my eyes and use those moments to gather my thoughts.
7. I look for a "Coherence Coordinator," a
unifying structure that will aid in presenting the message and in remembering
the message.
8. I look for illustrations, local proverbs, idioms or
stories that might serve as an introduction to the main theme of the sermon. I
like it best when the same illustration serves as the intro, provides the
structure and can be used in the conclusion to echo the introduction and tie
everything together well.
9. I run the sermon through my mind, asking these questions:
a. What do I want them to think? To feel? To do? B. Why should they care about
this? Show them how this makes a difference in their life. C. Does the topic
require motivation to some kind of action? If so, provide a “call to action”
and an opportunity to make a decision.
10. I try to make it all shorter. I ask myself, "If for
some reason I only had 10 min. to teach this, what would be the points I
wouldn't want to skip?" I mark those sections. If I am running short on
time, I can jump to those marked sections and still deliver a coherent message.
11. I stand up and preach it without apology or referring to
the time. If it is good or bad, they will know, I don't have to forewarn them.
If I have very little time, why waste it talking about the time? In the time it
takes to mention the lack of time, you can teach one more truth.
12. When I'm done, I remind myself that God can use what I
just preached any way He likes, whether I get praise for it or not. I
have preached sermons where I got a lot of praise, but then nothing happened.
On the other hand, some sermons that I have been embarrassed by have produced
amazing results. To God be the glory.
PS . If you don’t like my method, please show me how you do
it. I will be pleased to learn from your real life experience.
The itching became worse and broke into extremely painful fiery red sores on my right side. I went to the doctor and he said that I had "Shingles," a painful infection of the nerve cells by the same virus (Herpes Zoster) that causes Chicken Pox. It lies dormant and for unknown reasons reactivates and causes havoc from inside the nerve cells.
