Preaching is one of my favorite things to do and I really feel like it’s an arena in which God wants to use me. When I first started preaching my focus was on being really funny and telling a lot of jokes. While I was in seminary my focus was on doing a thorough analysis of the passage. Now, while I still like to tell jokes and want to stay true to the scriptures, I’m focusing on how I can be open and honest in the pulpit.
One of my seminary professors told me that we shouldn’t focus on ourselves during our sermons, that we shouldn’t use our own lives as an example. Recently I’ve been ignoring that advice; I have been sharing applicable stories from my own life. I appreciate openness and honesty, especially from the pulpit; it makes the preacher seem much more authentic and the lessons taught much more practical.
As a preacher and a leader I need to embrace openness and honesty. Obviously there is a balance between authenticity and giving out too much information, but I would much rather struggle with those questions than whether or not to open up at all. When we’re open and honest over a period of time, people recognize that and are more willing to allow us to speak truth into their lives. Openness and honesty lay the foundation that really allows us to build into people.
How has the openness and authenticity of another impacted your development?
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