tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-46854216020169562782024-03-14T04:47:42.520-05:00The Short PreacherIllustrations, frustrations, best practices, book reviews . . . you name it, so long as it's about preaching.Taylor Sandlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13603128030380465008noreply@blogger.comBlogger172125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4685421602016956278.post-56442268476903691522017-02-14T10:30:00.004-06:002017-02-14T12:32:29.390-06:00Jonah: Reluctant Prophet, Merciful God - My first book!I'm grateful to Smyth & Helwys for the opportunity to write this year's Annual Bible Study. You can get your copy today <a href="https://www.helwys.com/sh-books/jonah-annual-bible-study/" target="">here.</a><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Book Description</span></h2>
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Jonah: Reluctant Prophet, Merciful God is a four-session Bible study for individuals and groups. The study guide revisits the classic story of “Jonah and the Whale” and discovers a rich and complex tale that proves far more interesting than we might suspect. First, the Bible makes no mention of a whale. Instead, we learn about a great fish that has only a minor role in the narrative. The main character of the story is not the fish or even Jonah; the main character of this story is God. Furthermore, the book of Jonah invites readers to ask important questions about who God is and who God calls us to be in response. Along with the prophet, we ask questions such as What kind of God is the God of Israel? and Who falls within the sphere of God’s care? Most importantly, perhaps, we find ourselves asking How will I respond when I discover that God loves the people I love to hate? These sessions invite readers to wrestle with these questions and others like them as we discover God’s mercy for both the worst of sinners and the most reluctant of prophets.<br />
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Jonah Teaching Guide</h3>
This Teaching Guide for the Smyth & Helwys Annual Bible Study on Jonah includes teaching options, suggested worship and sermon outlines, and approaches to leading discussions and group study. This study also includes relevant lesson plans for including youth and children in a congregational study of Jonah.<br />
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Jonah Study Guide</h3>
This Study Guide for the Smyth & Helwys Annual Bible Study on Jonah serves three purposes: to educate the learner on major issues of appropriate interpretation, to offer an overview of theological themes, and to build the learner’s Bible study skills by reviewing significant interpretations. Each session comes with thoughtful questions for reflection and discussion.Taylor Sandlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13603128030380465008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4685421602016956278.post-24253912082002677322016-10-03T09:21:00.001-05:002016-10-03T14:45:56.735-05:00The Fight Before Dinner - Anna Carter Florence<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" mozallowfullscreen="" src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/130997480" webkitallowfullscreen="" width="640"></iframe> <a href="https://vimeo.com/130997480">June 7: The Fight Before Dinner</a> from <a href="https://vimeo.com/user13909537">phpccommunications</a> on <a href="https://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.<br />
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Preachers don't always need illustrations from modern life to connect the Bible with our lives today. Anna Carter Florence provides an excellent example of how to connect a single text with other examples from the scriptures in order to relate that text to our lives today. By tying the Mary/Martha story to all the other stories of squabbling siblings in the Bible, Dr. Carter Florence establishes a pattern that quickly becomes recognizable to anyone paying attention. Before she even makes the application to our lives today, attentive listeners have already made the connections for themselves. We see ourselves in that pattern of worry and concern established in the first half of the sermon and find ourselves looking to Jesus for a way out.Taylor Sandlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13603128030380465008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4685421602016956278.post-86514175826850586732016-07-28T16:40:00.001-05:002016-07-28T16:40:44.295-05:00"Where grammar cracks, grace erupts""Sometimes preachers cannot help but envy other users of words in our culture. News anchors, analysts, comics, pundits, and savants: They are so smooth. They have but to open their mouths and out flows the spirit of the age. They are so professional that they are able to deliver gut-wrenching information without a hint of emotional investment, and all with an air of effortless familiarity. Next to them, the preacher often appears to be fighting off a swarm of bees. Why? Because preachers are speaking from the embedded position. Because their language emerges from pastoral participation in the life and death struggles of the baptized. Speaking of the apostle Paul, who by any account we have of him was not a smooth man, Joseph Sittler said: 'Where grammar cracks, grace erupts.' He adds a stern warning to preachers: 'What God has riven asunder, let no preacher too suavely join together.'"<br />
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Richard Lischer, <i>The End of Words,</i> 41-42.<br />
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Taylor Sandlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13603128030380465008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4685421602016956278.post-61474203445790609792015-03-07T10:53:00.003-06:002017-02-13T14:04:12.551-06:00Fred Craddock Sermons<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Fred Craddock passed away yesterday, March 6, 2015. I had his classic textbook, <i>Preaching</i>, open on my desk this week. Whenever I feel like I'm stuck in a homiletic rut, his book is one of the handful that helps me find some good traction to get moving again. His is a voice that will be missed.<br />
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Nobody could preach quite like Dr. Craddock, though many tried. Here are some sermons by Dr. Craddock from sources like Youtube and Vimeo. The first two are a couple of my favorites. If you know of others, let me know and I'll add them.<br />
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When the Roll is Called Down Here - a sermon from Romans 16</h3>
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="375" mozallowfullscreen="" src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/20401116" webkitallowfullscreen="" width="500"></iframe> <br />
<a href="https://vimeo.com/20401116">Though One Rise from the Dead</a> from <a href="https://vimeo.com/hershaelyork">Hershael York</a> on <a href="https://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="373" mozallowfullscreen="" src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/54325510" webkitallowfullscreen="" width="500"></iframe> <br />
<a href="https://vimeo.com/54325510">Fred Craddock, DOC General Assembly, July 2011</a> from <a href="https://vimeo.com/user11925161">TEL PSR</a> on <a href="https://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="281" mozallowfullscreen="" src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/70325537" webkitallowfullscreen="" width="500"></iframe> <br />
<a href="https://vimeo.com/70325537">The God of Hope</a> from <a href="https://vimeo.com/peachtreechristian">Peachtree Christian Church</a> on <a href="https://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/9tWNnp-8XTo" width="420"></iframe> <br />The Last Temptation of the Church (Part 1)<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/vj2BpqXoQwI" width="420"></iframe> <br />The Last Temptation of the Church (Part 2)<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/O3Dxtgu4QGQ" width="420"></iframe> <br />The Last Temptation of the Church (Part 3)<br />
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Taylor Sandlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13603128030380465008noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4685421602016956278.post-48923875285997037442015-03-04T13:04:00.001-06:002015-03-06T21:34:12.124-06:00"Losing in Order to Find" - a sermon by Jim SomervilleDr. Jim Somerville is the pastor of First Baptist Church, Virginia. I have admired his preaching for a while now. He is always succinct, always thoughtful. He proves a preacher need not be flamboyant to make a lasting impact.<br />
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This sermon has a clear catch, one that works well and could be adapted by any preacher. We all spend our life on something. Is what we spend it on a good investment or not?<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="281" mozallowfullscreen="" src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/121147386?byline=0&portrait=0" webkitallowfullscreen="" width="500"></iframe> <br />
<a href="https://vimeo.com/121147386">Losing in Order to Find</a> from <a href="https://vimeo.com/fbcrichmond">Richmond's First Baptist Church</a> on <a href="https://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.Taylor Sandlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13603128030380465008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4685421602016956278.post-72597537718674255132014-06-11T08:37:00.000-05:002014-06-11T08:38:21.529-05:00Limping in the Pulpit<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0061551821/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0061551821&linkCode=as2&tag=betwesunda-20" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=0061551821&Format=_SL110_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=betwesunda-20" /></a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=betwesunda-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0061551821" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />"The first time I preached a proper sermon, my mentor gave me some good advice: your praying and your preaching should be of the same length. You don't want to find yourself limping, with one leg shorter than the other. God works as a result of prayer and faithfulness, not technique and cleverness."<br />
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N. T. Wright, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0061551821/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0061551821&linkCode=as2&tag=betwesunda-20">Surprised by Hope</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=betwesunda-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0061551821" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />, 226.Taylor Sandlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13603128030380465008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4685421602016956278.post-12119662133258022472014-04-17T12:01:00.001-05:002014-04-17T12:01:40.106-05:00Annihilated by God: Death and resurrection in the pulpit<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001EHDY6K/ref=as_li_ss_il?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B001EHDY6K&linkCode=as2&tag=betwesunda-20" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?_encoding=UTF8&ASIN=B001EHDY6K&Format=_SL110_&ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=betwesunda-20" /></a>"In the act of preaching something dies and something rises. What dies (or should die) is the preoccupation with the self that plagues so many performers. This death is ironic, since some sense of 'self' is stimulated by God's call in the first place and is necessary for public speaking. The prophets are uniformly annihilated by a conversation with God, only to reappear as powerful individual performers of the word on God's behalf. They do not lack a sense of self."<br />
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Richard Lischer, <i>The End of Words</i>, 35<br />
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Taylor Sandlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13603128030380465008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4685421602016956278.post-79795655222521253352013-10-30T16:28:00.002-05:002013-10-30T16:28:39.852-05:00The God of Hope - Fred Craddock<iframe src="//player.vimeo.com/video/70325537?color=ffffff" width="600" height="337" frameborder="0" webkitallowfullscreen mozallowfullscreen allowfullscreen></iframe> <p><a href="http://vimeo.com/70325537">The God of Hope</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/peachtreechristian">Peachtree Christian Church</a> on <a href="https://vimeo.com">Vimeo</a>.</p>Taylor Sandlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13603128030380465008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4685421602016956278.post-3402686956722935632013-10-14T00:09:00.000-05:002013-10-14T00:09:00.252-05:00At least one of us will give our life to Christ"I go out to preach with two propositions in mind. First, every person ought to give his life to Christ. Second, whether or not anyone else gives him his life, I will give him mine."
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- Jonathan Edwards (1703-1758)
Taylor Sandlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13603128030380465008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4685421602016956278.post-46458314427738476632013-09-11T22:44:00.002-05:002013-09-11T22:44:42.721-05:00Two kinds of sermons that are difficult to hear<span style="font-size: large;">“One must not forget that there are two kinds of preaching difficult to hear: poor preaching and good preaching.”</span> <br /><br /><span style="font-size: large;">- Fred Craddock, <em>Preaching</em>, 65.</span>Taylor Sandlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13603128030380465008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4685421602016956278.post-59959157071898261162013-08-28T09:24:00.000-05:002013-08-28T20:33:44.495-05:00"I Have a Dream" turns 50 today.<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="480" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/smEqnnklfYs" width="640"></iframe><br />
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Today marks the 50th anniversary of Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. It would be more accurate to call it a sermon. <br />
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Time Magazine's latest issue is dedicated to remembering this historic American moment and does an excellent job of allowing participants of the march to tell their stories. The issue is worth picking up. Reading it, I was struck by how many of the participants understood the march in the context of their faith.<br />
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Jerome Smith, one of the Freedom riders, recalled "It was a procession of church. It was never, ever a march. It was a congregation that was answering the call."<br />
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I learned that at a particular moment in the speech, King began to struggle with his material, material that had been assembled by a committee of people. It wasn't until King heard from behind him the voice of gospel singer Mahalia Jackson saying, "Tell 'em about the dream, Martin. Tell 'em about the dream" that King set aside his prepared text and transformed this speech into a sermon.<br />
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As Martin set aside his notes, one of his speech writers, Clarence Jones, turned to the person next to him and said, "These people don't know it, but they're about ready to go to church."<br />
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Indeed. Among the many things Martin Luther King, Jr. taught us that day is the often forgotten truth: a good sermon can turn the world upside down.<br />
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There are many great biographies of MLK. The only one I know of that focuses on his preaching is Richard Lischer's <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/019511132X/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=019511132X&linkCode=as2&tag=betwesunda-20">The Preacher King: Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Word that Moved America</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=betwesunda-20&l=as2&o=1&a=019511132X" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />. I found the book fair in its treatment of Martin Luther King as an actual human being and not simply a non-human icon of some sort. It is also an excellent look into the rich history of African American preaching in our country.<br />
<br />Taylor Sandlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13603128030380465008noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4685421602016956278.post-67680887269062723702013-08-22T10:45:00.002-05:002013-08-26T11:40:30.183-05:00Preach like it matters<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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As we draw near to the first day of school, I find myself thinking back over my own school year. I had some great teachers through the years. Most of them cared about the material they were teaching and most of them cared about me. In fact, there seemed to be a direct correlation between those who cared for the material and those who cared for me. The handful of teachers who seemed to not give a rip about what they were teaching also seemed not to care about whether or not I improved as a person one bit.<br />
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There's a lesson there. One of the primary ways we convey that our people matter is by making sure that we are conveying that our sermon material matters. If it appears that we don't think our sermon matters (either through lack of preparation or enthusiasm), not only will we communicate that the gospel story doesn't matter, we'll inadvertently convey that our listener's don't matter either!<br />
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John Claypool tells a story about a friend who was assigned to an airborne division during WWII. This terrified his friend because he'd never even been in an airplane much less jumped out of one! He said it was funny, no one had to tell him to pay attention to his instructor. He hung on every word the man said. Plus, the instructor was a seasoned paratrooper himself, so he spoke of these literal issues of life and death with an urgency that only comes from one who trusts his material matters greatly. <br />
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Claypool summarizes, "Here was a human being sharing with other human beings what he knew about a subject of vital concern. I would suggest that this provides a getter description of what the preaching event ought to be than for some casual academic dilettante to pass out information that, even if correct, is of little existential moment. We are called to be and do far more than merely to pass out information" (John Claypool, <em>The Preaching Event</em>, 61).<br />
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Every week we stand up and share with other human beings what we know concerning a subject of vital concern. Let's do far more than just pass out information!Taylor Sandlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13603128030380465008noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4685421602016956278.post-26540164087434695562013-07-03T00:05:00.000-05:002013-07-03T00:06:12.531-05:00Hopefulness: An essential ingredient to Christian preachingLast week I attended the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship's General Assembly. As always, it was a fun time to catch up with friends from seminary. It's amazing how far we've spread across the globe in just a decade of ministry. I was also immensely blessed by the evening worship services. This is not always the case at denominational meetings!<br />
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On the first night, Wendell Griffen, pastor of the New Millenium Church in Little Rock, Arkansas gave a sermon entitled, "We're on a Mission From God." The sermon starts at the 40:05 mark and runs just under twenty minutes. Totally worth the listen. Pastor Griffen reminded a room full of ministers about the importance of our calling. I left encouraged and emboldened. As student of preaching, I left reminded of the power of a well chosen phrase, even if that phrase is borrowed from a John Belushi movie.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="337" mozallowfullscreen="" src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/69311912?title=0&byline=0&portrait=0" webkitallowfullscreen="" width="600"></iframe> <br />
<a href="http://vimeo.com/69311912">Session 2 - Thur PM</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/cbfvideo">Cooperative Baptist Fellowship</a> on <a href="https://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.<br />
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The second night, Suzii Paynter, the brand new Executive Coordinator of the CBF gave the message ("We can be alone, or we can be a Fellowship"). Part sermon, part State of the Fellowship, Suzii's message was aimed at those who participate in the Fellowship's work. I felt she hit a homerun. If you aren't a part of CBF, I'm not sure how the message will resonate.<br />
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What made her sermon powerful applies to all Christian speakers. In a day and age where so many denominational messages involve a catalog of threats and challenges, Suzii's message overflowed with hope. Her words were hope-filled, but so was her face and her posture. Her whole self exuded hope. Her hopefulness proved contagious. The excitement in the room was tangible - a true feat for a denominational meeting! I was reminded of the essential nature of hope to Christian preaching. Challenges abound today. Of course they do. Challenges have always abounded for the believer. But if a Christian preacher can't preach with hope in the face of the greatest of challenges, he or she should probably call it quits.<br />
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The entire service is worth watching - the children's choir and liturgical dancing prior to communion had me in tears. Suzii's sermon starts at 25:10 and runs for thirty-five minutes.<br />
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<a href="http://vimeo.com/69361130">Session 4 - Fri PM</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/cbfvideo">Cooperative Baptist Fellowship</a> on <a href="https://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.Taylor Sandlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13603128030380465008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4685421602016956278.post-90969975263893059952013-06-11T14:04:00.005-05:002013-06-11T14:04:55.096-05:00What can you learn from a "Homiletical Belly Flop?"<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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You know that empty feeling you get after a sermon that's tanked? Yep, the one that makes you want to crawl in bed for the rest of the day? John Ortberg, pastor of Menlo Park Presbyterian Church in Menlo Park, California, has felt it to. He says that while it's not fun, it might just prove to be fruitful.<br />
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Catch the article "<a href="http://www.christianitytoday.com/le/2013/june-online-only/when-bad-sermons-happen-to-good-preachers.html?utm_source=leadership-html&utm_medium=Newsletter&utm_term=9789646&utm_content=183606192&utm_campaign=2013&start=1" target="_blank">When Bad Sermons Happen to Good Preachers</a>" over at Leadership Journal.Taylor Sandlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13603128030380465008noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4685421602016956278.post-28768812693565377382013-06-10T05:00:00.000-05:002013-06-10T05:00:07.969-05:00How to orphan a sermon"A sermon that is not directly drawn from Scripture is orphaned, however bright or clever it may be."<br /><br />- Fred CraddockTaylor Sandlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13603128030380465008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4685421602016956278.post-85029529588754714322013-05-30T11:04:00.000-05:002013-05-30T11:04:04.834-05:00Dwelling on loss verses Dwelling in Loss? by Walter BrueggemannGood words from Walter Brueggemann via <a href="http://www.theworkofthepeople.com/" target="_blank">Work of the People</a>.<br />
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<iframe frameborder="0" height="325" src="http://www.theworkofthepeople.com/embed/dwelling-on-loss-vs-in-loss" width="585"></iframe>Taylor Sandlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13603128030380465008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4685421602016956278.post-51744890046298423452013-05-30T08:32:00.000-05:002013-05-30T08:48:23.303-05:00Three sermons in response to tragedyTragedy has consumed the airwaves over the last few months. It is natural that a response to these tragedies would make their way into our sermons. Here are three sermons that do just that. I include one of my own not because I think it is on equal standing with the other two, but because it gives another example of how a preacher might approach the topic. If you know of other good examples of preachers broaching this topic, link to them in the comments or let me know and I'll try to provide a link.<br />
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<b>George Mason preaching at Wilshire Baptist Church in Dallas, Texas. </b>Wilshire provides just a clip on their youtube chanel. <a href="http://wilshire.sermon.tv/8448866" target="_blank">Click here to watch the sermon in its entirety</a>. </div>
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<b>Richard Hays preaching at Duke Chapel in Durham, North Carolina. </b>The sermon starts at the 31.00 mark.</div>
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<b>Taylor Sandlin at Southland Baptist Church in San Angelo, Texas.</b><br />
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<a href="http://vimeo.com/67220347">Praise and Protest</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/southlandbaptist">Southland Baptist Church</a> on <a href="http://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.Taylor Sandlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13603128030380465008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4685421602016956278.post-35630199360472512652013-05-30T08:19:00.002-05:002013-05-30T08:40:34.497-05:00Responding to tragedy<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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When a tragedy occurs, either locally or globally, the preacher has a choice to make:<br />
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<li>Stick with what I've prepared - Sometimes what you've got will work for the present situation. Sometimes you stick with your prepared sermon and address the tragedy through another aspect of the service, for instance, a special time of prayer.</li>
<li>Alter what you've prepared - Maybe all your sermon needs is some alteration to be appropriate to the moment.</li>
<li>Ditch what you've got and go with something totally new - This has its challenges, especially if the tragedy occurs close to Sunday.</li>
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How do you decide what to do? I think the decision process involves listening to the Spirit and gauging how close to home this tragedy has hit. Will the people in the congregation be able to think about another topic on this Sunday or will their attention be limited to their own questions concerning this recent event? The closer the tragedy is to home, or the more prominent the tragedy is in the news, helps me determine whether or not I need to alter my sermon for the upcoming Sunday.<br />
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I have altered sermons on three occasions that I can remember: The Fort Hood shootings; The Newtown shootings; and the recent tornadoes in Moore. Three sermons out of a decade of preaching is not a lot. So this is not something I do easily. For one thing, I am not an off the cuff kind of preacher. I like to be prepared. But on occasion, I have felt the need to make a change.<br />
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In the case of the Newtown shootings I actually re-preached <a href="https://vimeo.com/55898030" target="_blank">a sermon</a> from the year before acknowledging that that was what I was doing. That took care of the issue of preparation. On the other two occasions, I ditched prepared sermons and preached an entirely new one. In each case, the sermons have been well-received. People are filled with questions during such times and want their pastors to say something. While we may not have any answers to their questions, we can point people towards the God who cares for them in times of great trial.<br />
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I'd love to hear from you. When have you made a last minute sermon change? What led you to make that decision? How was that change received? Is there a time you chose to stick with what you had? How did you come to that decision? What are other ways we can acknowledge a tragedy has occurred without altering our sermon?Taylor Sandlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13603128030380465008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4685421602016956278.post-32856214595972398192013-05-29T08:45:00.000-05:002013-05-29T08:45:22.524-05:00Preaching as the Packaging of Truth"Surely an inelegant expression of truth is better than a beautifully expressed falsehood, and even a beautifully expressed truth can be diminished, subtly, if the style upstages the substance. Even so, great truth can be enhanced by its packaging. Otherwise, would we be so deeply affected by insightful poetry, penetrating novels, and great drama?"<br />
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J. Philip Wogaman, <i>Speaking the Truth in Love: Prophetic Preaching to a Broken World</i> (Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 1998), 74. Buy at <a href="http://store.faithvillage.com/christian-books/index.php/speaking-the-truth-in-love-prophetic-preaching-to-a-broken-world.html" target="_blank">Faith Village</a>; <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0664257747/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0664257747&linkCode=as2&tag=betwesunda-20">Amazon</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=betwesunda-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0664257747" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />.Taylor Sandlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13603128030380465008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4685421602016956278.post-14360603106106452112013-05-28T11:05:00.001-05:002013-05-28T11:05:29.384-05:00A Good Sermon Gone Bad<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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This past Sunday, I royally messed up what had been a good service. At least, I ruined the service for my daughter. I was introducing a new family to the congregation. One of their children was having fun going up and down the stairs of the stage. People in the congregation were giggling. I attempted to set everyone at ease with some comments about how much we love children and about how one of my own children had done something funny our first Sunday at the church. I'll leave out the details of that story here because as I soon realized, in sharing the story in full there I had mortified my eight-year-old daughter. She was two at the time of the story, but that did not matter to her. She buried her head beneath my jacket after church, and her tears communicated the hurt I had inflicted on her. </div>
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I felt awful. Not only had I embarrassed her but I had broken my agreement with her. For several years, we've had a deal that I will only mention my children in my sermon with their permission. Most of the time my children consent to a story being used, but when they don't, I find another illustration. Since I prepare early and write a manuscript, this is usually an easy agreement to keep. What got me in trouble this past Sunday was the fact that these were off the cuff remarks meant to put another at ease. That didn't matter to my daughter, of course. I apologized, took her to her favorite restaurant, and eventually was granted a pardon.</div>
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Later that day, I decided to amend our agreement. I told them that very often when a writer or a speaker uses someone else's work as a part of his own work, he has to pay that person a royalty or a fee. I told them that not only would I still get their permission before using a story of them in the sermon, now I would agree to pay them a fee for the use of that story. We settled on $5. My six-year-old son immediately said I did not have to ask him. For $5 I could tell any story I wanted! My daughter still wants me to ask permission, but she liked the idea immensely - more I think for the respect it shows her than the money she'll make.</div>
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I got the idea from a friend who is the editor of a large Baptist newspaper who would sometimes mention his children in an column. I think he got the idea from another newspaper friend. I like it because it helps me honor my children as actual people and not as simply material for my sermons. </div>
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I wonder, what are your thoughts in including your own children as sermon illustrations?</div>
Taylor Sandlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13603128030380465008noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4685421602016956278.post-67056292579350595842013-03-18T08:59:00.002-05:002013-03-18T09:00:29.430-05:00Preaching the mystery<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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"The pastor, however, can only reveal as much about God as the Scriptures do. There is a part of the Holy One that will always remain a mysterious, untamable whirlwind. This means we pastors should spend more time with <i>who</i> than <i>why</i>. Revealing a mysterious, holy lover is hard work, and for that reason the pastor is always tempted to revert back to being a friend of Job with lots of explanations and arguments. If we can prove why some things happen in the lives of parishioners, the thinking goes, then we can get a leash around God. But whatever it is that we've leashed, it certainly isn't God."<br />
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-Craig Barnes, "Three Temptations of the Pastor," 17-18 in <i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004ASOXZ6/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B004ASOXZ6&linkCode=as2&tag=betwesunda-20" target="_blank">Best Advice: Wisdom on Ministry from 30 Leading Pastors and Preachers</a></i>Taylor Sandlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13603128030380465008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4685421602016956278.post-69660696983004665112013-03-12T14:38:00.002-05:002013-03-12T14:39:07.620-05:00Stanley Hauerwas delivers a sermon entitled "Trust" at Duke Chapel. He's not the most dynamic of speakers, but his words are worth the listen. The sermon, which draws from the book of Esther, contains thought provoking ideas about what it might mean to live faithfully in a world in which God is no longer mentioned.<br />
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The sermon begins at the 40:48 mark and concludes at 62:14.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/_IaQ2fjjNjY?list=ECD6AB1CE937E87310" width="560"></iframe>Taylor Sandlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13603128030380465008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4685421602016956278.post-38010639464907189592013-02-27T08:58:00.000-06:002013-02-27T08:59:11.713-06:00Watch out for those deacons...oops...I mean demonsSunday I accidentally confused my deacons with a couple of demons. It got a good laugh and actually helped a difficult sermon be received a little better. I'd love to hear some of your preaching stumbles. I know you have some good ones, as well.<br />
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<a href="http://vimeo.com/60518279">Oops!</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/southlandbaptist">Southland Baptist Church</a> on <a href="http://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.Taylor Sandlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13603128030380465008noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4685421602016956278.post-32648526920522882332013-01-02T09:13:00.000-06:002013-01-03T12:08:58.578-06:00Question of the Week: What are you reading?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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With all the gift giving now behind us, I am sure you have at least one or two new books in your hands. What are you reading these days that you might recommend to other preachers?<br />
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I'm almost all the way through Annie Dillard's, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0060919884/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=betwesunda-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0060919884">The Writing Life</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=betwesunda-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0060919884" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />. It's a delightful, meandering piece about what it takes to write a book. Much of it resonates with the task of writing a sermon.<br />
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Take for instance, this advice on writing as if you were dying.</div>
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<i>"Write as if you were dying. At the same time, assume you write for an audience consisting solely of terminal patients. That is, after all, the case. What would you begin writing if you knew you would die soon What could you say to a dying person that would not enrage by its triviality"</i> - Annie Dillard.</div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">So, what are you reading?</span></div>
Taylor Sandlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13603128030380465008noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4685421602016956278.post-84040006201477112682012-12-14T13:01:00.003-06:002012-12-14T13:03:56.512-06:00The story behind "I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day"Thought this video was very well done. Could be used as a sermon illustration in whole or in part.
<iframe src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/33364441?badge=0" width="500" height="206" frameborder="0" webkitAllowFullScreen mozallowfullscreen allowFullScreen></iframe> <p><a href="http://vimeo.com/33364441">Behind the Music- Christmas Bells</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/firstchristiannorfolk">First Christian Church</a> on <a href="http://vimeo.com">Vimeo</a>.</p>Taylor Sandlinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13603128030380465008noreply@blogger.com1